This show had great potential: Hugh Jackman leading a star studded cast; music composed by the Oscar winning duo from LA LA LAND; Bill Condon writing the screenplay; a wealth of spectacle in its subject matter - PT Barnum's Circus - but I was underwhelmed by the whole production. First, I don't know why they anchored their story to a historical figure and then built a world of pure fantasy. Why not just build a world of fantasy? By linking it to a specific person and events you open the door to all sorts of cultural questions: the treatment of his performers - human and animal; the untangling of the myth from the man and why the choice to tie the music to contemporary pop rather than find the music of the time. These were all discordant notes to me. Better pure fantasy than poor history. I was also saddened by the waste of Michelle Williams in her role - she had serious dramatic chops that were underutilized. On the more positive side, the vocal talents were marvellous, the songs, though anachronistic, were catchy, the images were spectacular, the performers - great and small - were endearing. All together I give the production a 6.5 (breaking even) out of 10. [Historial? Musical Drama Fantasy]
Review by Nancy L DraperVIP 8BlockedParent2017-12-21T17:21:41Z
This show had great potential: Hugh Jackman leading a star studded cast; music composed by the Oscar winning duo from LA LA LAND; Bill Condon writing the screenplay; a wealth of spectacle in its subject matter - PT Barnum's Circus - but I was underwhelmed by the whole production. First, I don't know why they anchored their story to a historical figure and then built a world of pure fantasy. Why not just build a world of fantasy? By linking it to a specific person and events you open the door to all sorts of cultural questions: the treatment of his performers - human and animal; the untangling of the myth from the man and why the choice to tie the music to contemporary pop rather than find the music of the time. These were all discordant notes to me. Better pure fantasy than poor history. I was also saddened by the waste of Michelle Williams in her role - she had serious dramatic chops that were underutilized. On the more positive side, the vocal talents were marvellous, the songs, though anachronistic, were catchy, the images were spectacular, the performers - great and small - were endearing. All together I give the production a 6.5 (breaking even) out of 10. [Historial? Musical Drama Fantasy]