Gyton Grantley talks all things South Pacific and the transition from screen to stage

There’s some distance between the gritty laneways of Melbourne and the sunny shores of the South Pacific, but Underbelly & House Husbands star Gyton Grantley made the leap with ease when he made his musical debut in South Pacific last year.

While treading the stage is a familiar feeling for the accomplished actor, this was his music theatre debut. “I’m not a singer,” he says. “And the only dance moves I pull are on the dance floor after midnight, so I was very nervous.”

But the “incredible world of musical theatre” welcomed him with open arms, Gyton says. “The people that came on this journey with me were such a warm and wonderful group of people. I felt very safe, and it just worked!” Reviews of the actor's performance were glowing.

Gyton had never seen South Pacific when he joined the cast in Brisbane last year, but he knew the music. “It’s one of those albums that played in every kid’s grandparent’s house as they grew up.”

He finds it hard to explain why the musical has proved so enduringly popular. “It’s just an old favourite. It’s incredible to watch it and see how much the world has changed in 60, 70 years.

“But it goes to show how well the musical was written that it’s still relevant today. There are great common themes: mateship and love and culture clashes and the question of war. Not to mention that universal human desire to sit on a tropical beach and do nothing,” Gyton laughs.

Musical theatre might not sound a logical career move for the Logie-award winning actor (although he is following in cast-mate’s Lisa McCune’s footsteps), “but I just love doing everything,” Gyton explains.

“What I love about being a performer is the opportunity to play different parts, explore different human stories and then tell them to audiences. Doing South Pacificintroduced me to another format, and another way of exploring that and I loved it!”

And while the singing and dancing certainly moved the actor out of his comfort zone, Gyton could approach the character of Luther Billis like any other. “With any character, you need to find the truth, you need to find their deepest darkest secrets, their driving forces.

“Billis is a conniving, wheeling, dealing go-getter that’s out there for himself. He’s not the happy-go-lucky musical theatre type.”

Director Bartlett Sher really encouraged the performers to find the humanity in the story, Gyton says. “It is a beautiful fun piece of entertainment, but what was so wonderful about Bartlett and what makes this production so special is that he has brought out the deeper issues and fleshed out the meatier parts of the story.”

Performing in a musical is very different from theatre or film, Gyton says. “There are lots of extra elements that are used to deliver the story. When you’ve got forty people in the cast supporting you on stage and an orchestra and a big stage crew, there’s a lot of energy behind that!”

The prospect of performing on the Sydney Opera House stage when South Pacific returns to Sydney this September is a “dream come true,” Gyton says. “It’s definitely a box most actors would like to tick, to perform at the most famous opera house in the world.”

To see Gyton Grantley in South Pacific, click here for tickets and more information.