There’s a lot to take in at the new musical based on Sara Gruen’s best-selling novel (which has already inspired a 2011 film). The show features a melodramatic storyline set amidst a Depression-era traveling circus, puppetry, and numerous circus acts including aerial work, juggling, acrobatics, knife throwing, and even a clown routine. It would be nice to report that all of these elements have blended together to create a magical musical theater experience, but Water for Elephants feels more clunky than transporting. There are many things about it to enjoy, but it falls far short of being the greatest show on earth.
The story is told from the perspective of Mr. Jankowski (the ever likeable Gregg Edelman), an elderly man who enjoys a respite from his assisted living facility to visit a nearby traveling circus. There he encounters the circus owner (Paul Alexander Nolan) and one of the performers (Isabelle McCalla) and impresses them with his knowledge of the business and particularly the animals. Cue the evening-long flashback as the genial oldster regales the two with his past experiences.
Yes, it’s a framing device, something that seems to be used more and more frequently these days. To be fair to book writer Rick Elice (The Addams Family, The Cher Show), the same technique was employed in the original novel. But it’s getting to the point where you’re afraid to talk to an elderly person these days for fear of getting trapped in a Broadway musical. Just walk across the street to The Notebook, where you’ll see another alte cocker relive past traumas while fending off pesky nurses. Or A Beautiful Noise, in which the present-day Neil Diamond (played by Mark Jacoby) relates the story of his life to his shrink? Or the recently departed Harmony, in which Chip Zien played…well, you get the idea.
[Read Sandy MacDonald’s ★★★★☆ review here.]
It might have worked if the elderly Mr. Jankowski had the courtesy to make a quick exit so we could settle in to watch the story of his hunky younger incarnation, Jacob (Grant Gustin, of the CW’s The Flash.) But no, he hangs out onstage throughout much of the evening, observing the action, making acerbic comments, and occasionally injecting himself into the proceedings. It makes an already overstuffed musical feel even more so.
The bulk of the story is set in the 1930s, when Jacob hops on a passing train and falls in with a ragtag traveling circus grandiosely named the “Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth.” Having almost graduated from veterinary school, he knows plenty about animals, so he’s able to give expert advice to Marlena (McCalla), one of the star performers, about her ailing horse. Impressed, the owner and ringmaster, August (Nolan), who’s married to Marlena, gives Jacob a job.
Cue the romantic triangle, as the decent, gentle Jacob cuts quite a contrast with the hard-driving August, who thinks little of lashing out at the animals, or his wife, when things go wrong. The relationship between Jacob and Marlena develops even further with the arrival of Rosie, a previously abused pachyderm that August hopes will become the star attraction and revive the circus’ flagging fortunes. Jacob turns out to have a remarkable way with Rosie, especially when he discovers that she understands commands only when they’re delivered in Polish. (Hence the musical number “Zostań.”)
It’s not much of a storyline, with barely defined characters and a central love relationship that never develops any real chemistry. To keep us distracted, the show features genuine circus performers performing many routines accompanying the dramatics. But only rarely do they have any real theatrical power, as opposed to simply being the sort of aerial stunts and acrobatics on far better display in a Cirque du Soleil show. A notable exception occurs with the number “Easy,” in which Marlena gently tends to an ailing horse represented by Antoine Boissereau, beautifully performing an aerial silk routine. It’s a gorgeous, transporting moment illustrating what the show could have been if done with more artistry.
As it is, it’s reasonably entertaining, thanks to the lively production staged by Jessica Stone (Kimberly Akimbo), whose best moments comes with some striking stage tableaux depicting a big top stampede. But the musical feels much longer than its two hours and forty minutes, thanks to the draggy book and underwhelming score by Pigpen Theatre Co. that feels more folksy than theatrical, with few songs making much of an impact (the lyrics are particularly bothersome). As the other circus employees, Stan Brown, Joe De Paul (a real-life circus clown) and Wade McCollum struggle with their underwritten roles, with only Sara Gettelfinger creating sparks despite her character existing mainly to look on worryingly at Marlena and Jacob’s increasing closeness.
It doesn’t help that although Gustin is an appealing, handsome leading man, he’s so overshadowed by Nolan in the charisma department that you find yourself rooting for the bad guy. And while McCalla sings beautifully, she too is undercut by the schematic storyline.
Of course, the real stars are the circus performers and the animal puppets, with Rosie teasingly suggested by shadows and various body parts until she’s fully unveiled at the end of the first act. She fittingly receives the biggest entrance applause, even if she won’t erase anyone’s memories of The Lion King or Life of Pi or War Horse (the bar for puppetry has been raised considerably). But she does have eyelashes to die for.
Water for Elephants opened March 21, 2024, at the Imperial Theatre. Tickets and information: waterforelephantsthemusical.com
