* REVIEW Timing, they say, is everything. And now that our country is in the middle of a war, it doesn’t seem at all inappropriate to dust off and re-investigate one of the reliable warhorses of the musical theater canon, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s "South Pacific."

The classic love story, set against the backdrop of World War II, returned to Springfield yesterday for a two-performance run at the Sangamon Auditorium. This solid, if uninspired, revival was produced by the Troika organization, a company that has been presenting touring shows for years.

"South Pacific" is based on James Michener’s collection of short stories, "Tales of the South Pacific." Turned into a musical in 1949 by Joshua Logan, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, the plot deals with a romance between mature Frenchman Emile de Becque and Nellie Forbush, a young American nurse from Little Rock, Arkansas stationed in the South Pacific. When she discovers that Emile is the father of two Polynesian children, Nellie must come to terms with her own prejudices.

The secondary plot, a romance between Lt. Joe Cable and a young native girl named Liat, features a similar personal dilemma.

Some might say that in our enlightened times this sort of prejudice is old-fashioned and no longer an issue. But anyone who has ever been the subject of racial profiling knows that intolerance is still very relevant to our society.

Lauren Shealy shines in the leading role of Nellie Forbush. When played properly, as it is here, the role of Nellie has much more punch than the typical musical ingénue.

The character, a self proclaimed "hick" from Little Rock, is not a polished musical leading lady, and Shealy had fun making the most of Nellie’s brashness and spunkiness.

She also possesses a strong voice and is able to belt out such standards as "I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Out Of My Hair," and "I’m In Love With A Wonderful Guy" with personality and charisma.

It was obvious that Peak Kwinarian, as Emile, was cast for his strong voice. Musically he had many fine moments, most notably singing the second act ballad, "This Nearly Was Mine."

Unfortunately, the romantic chemistry between the two failed to ever really catch fire. In these old romantic "soap operas," it’s essential that the audience feels the heat between the two lovers. If we don’t feel any spark between the two, it makes it hard to care about their story.

In the secondary role of Lt. Joe Cable, Joseph Spieldenner had the perfect look for the haunted young officer. His clear tenor voice did justice to "Younger Than Springtime," one of the many hit songs from the show .

Sumie Maeda was lovely as Liat, the object of Cable’s affection. There really isn’t a lot to the part, but Maeda played the role with grace and gentle beauty.

Seneca Burr as Luther Billis and Kelly Rucker as Bloody Mary were responsible for handling the comedy duties for the evening.

With a touch of Groucho Marx and a splash of Ray Romano, Burr did a nice job playing the wheeler-dealer Billis.

He was well matched by Rucker, who earned some of the best laughs of the evening as the English language mangling Bloody Mary. She also gave a beautiful rendition of the hypnotic ballad, "Bali Ha'i," as she tried to seduce the young lieutenant to come visit her "special island."

The rest of the 25-person cast was fine, but at times it seemed like their energy was a bit low (perhaps understandable after eight months of being on the road). The musical number "There Is Nothin' Like A Dame" should have stopped the show, but with competent, but unexciting, staging and execution, it failed to bring the house down.

The scenic design by James Fouchard was very effective. Featuring a bamboo frame, a series of intertwined palm trees and several playing levels, the set proved to be effective for quick scene changes with a minimum of effort.

The back drop was a beautiful cloud-dotted sky, and was lit with several colorful washes, but I wish the actors, who were frequently in shadows, had been lit with brighter light.

And while I understand the economics of modern touring shows makes it impossible to travel with a full orchestra, I still believe that a synthesizer (no matter how well played) is not a good substitution for a string section.

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Gus Gordon is the chief meteorologist at News Channel 20 and a free lance arts reviewer. He can be reached at gusgordon00@lycos.com