Jeff Stafford accomplishes the most extraordinary thing during the first five minutes of "Oklahoma!" He takes a 52-year-old song, "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning," and makes it sound like it was written yesterday.

OK, maybe not yesterday. But in the absence of a hip-hop beat, the familiar song could not have sounded more fresh. With unusual, masterful phrasing and a sneaky sense of humor, Stafford blew the dust off and made the song soar.

Stafford's singing was the highlight of Thursday night's performance at the Tucson Convention Center Music Hall. Happily for audiences who adore the Rodgers and Hammerstein score, he's surrounded by singers of the highest caliber in this big-budget summer show from Arizona Theatre Company and the Phoenix Symphony.

Unfortunately, the Tony Award-winning director of this $830,000 production does not do for "Oklahoma!" what Stafford does with the character of Curly. Vivian Matalon's staging lacks imagination and vision. Several of the large ensemble scenes are staged in a manner that can only be described as amateurish. This is surprising considering Matalon's impeccable credentials on Broadway and in regional theaters.

The director and the choreographer, Joey McNeely, bring no grit or invention to this story of farmers and cowboys in territorial Oklahoma. Their staging sticks to the tried-and-true far too often, resulting in many museumlike moments that fail to come alive.

Unlike so many of the old musicals on Broadway at the moment, ATC's "Oklahoma!" has not been revised or rethought with contemporary audiences in mind. That might be why the teen-ager next to me fell asleep and asked his parents if he could leave at intermission.

There is value, of course, in presenting old-fashioned musicals in an old-fashioned way with few original ideas. But with a $200,000 grant from the Flinn Foundation, one would hope that ATC and the symphony would have taken a less conservative approach to the 1943 musical.

Unlike so many historical musicals, "Oklahoma!" is painfully dated, with a story line that is less than exciting. Curly likes Laurey (Becky Watson) a heck of a lot, but she's going to the big dance with a hired hand named Jud Fry (Michael Gruber). Will Curly eventually get the girl?

Meanwhile, the friendly Ado Annie (Kelli Maguire) is being bounced back and forth between the man who loves her (Jay Douglas) and the likable scoundrel who doesn't (Adam Matalon, the director's nephew). Presiding over all the commotion is the commanding Aunt Eller (Marsha Bagwell in a fine performance).

Because the musical is so well-known, the voices so strong, and the production design so attractive (in an ordinary way), "Oklahoma!" should have no trouble finding a willing audience. The opening-night crowd gave the show an enthusiastic standing ovation.

But who would not want to stand after the stirring final number? The title song is staged with powerful simplicity, with musical flourishes that are more artful than anything that has come before. The singing is gorgeous, and the arrangement by musical director Jack Lee is downright breathtaking.

In a production so blissfully unconcerned with reality - these cowboys and farmers don't have a bit of dirt on them - it's ironic that the real world intrudes so poignantly on the final song. The April bombing in Oklahoma City lends the lyrics added meaning and resonance.

Here, through an awful convergence of art and life, "Oklahoma!" brings tears to the eyes.