Circus Hoopla

By T.E.K.

BARNUM

Music by Cy Coleman

Directed and Staged by Joe Layton

Jim Dale is the Decathlon Man of the musical theater. In this show, he walks a tightrope, rides a unicycle and launches himself from a trampoline to a small balcony, besides singing and dancing. But dynamic versatility merely taps Dale's appeal. He is a born charmer with an infectious grin who never gives a self-serving performance. Every bouncing inch of his body is bent on pleasing the audience.

It is lucky that Dale is so irresistible, since the book makes him a horseless rider. Writer Mark Bramble has sketched in the details of Barnum's career like a superficially canned guided tour. We can grasp Barnum's relish for humbuggery (There's a Sucker Born Ev'ry Minute), but not the calm, staunch loyalty his wife (Glenn Close) displays even during his dalliance with "the Swedish Nightingale," Jenny Lind (Marianne Tatum).

With Dale at the hub, circus hoopla makes the evening spin. There are juggling acts, clown acts, acrobats, tumblers, a baton-twirling whiz (Sophie Schwab) and a marching band that goes swirling into the aisles. David Mitchell's set, festooned with primary colors, is a child's dream of the Big Top. While Michael Stewart has written prosaic nuts-and-bolts lyrics, Cy Coleman's music has a hang-gliding lift to it, and one lovely ballad, The Colors of My Life, will probably take off for a life of its own. As for Joe Layton's staging, the blinding speed of his now-you-see-it-now-you-don't direction makes playgoers forget that they can see right through Barnum.

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