Review: Barnum at the Liverpool Empire ****
Every generation is gifted its own Barnum moment, from the 1930s movie The Mighty Barnum to the 2017 (highly fictionalised) cinematic blockbuster The Greatest Showman.
For those of us of a certain age, the name PT Barnum likely conjures up images of Torvill and Dean skating their way to an acrobatic gold in the World Championships in Helsinki.
There, the now-knighted skating stars used a medley of tunes from Barnum, Cy Coleman/Michael Stewart/Mark Bramble’s 1980 stage musical which has rather been upstaged by Hugh Jackman et al in recent years.
But Barnum – which in its latest incarnation is in residence at the Empire this week - is definitely not The Greatest Showman, although it certainly shares a great deal of its showbiz razzmatazz.
A biopic of sorts (albeit crafted with quite a bit of dramatic licence), Barnum charts the highs and lows of a figure who encapsulates much of the American Dream.
Saying that, it’s one that remains mostly at surface level – here is not the place you’ll find a particularly nuanced portrait of the complex and contradictory figure who was obsessive about success and exploited people with physical differences to a humiliating degree - not least 'General' Tom Thumb, played by Fergus Rattigan - but who was also a generous philanthropist and vocal abolitionist.
Oh, and (spoiler alert) there’s no solid evidence he had anything but a business relationship with Swedish nightingale Jenny Lind.
What it does do, and in spades, is blend musical theatre and circus to dazzling effect, with the hugely accomplished ensemble cast in this Watermill Theatre revival showcasing an abundance of amazing acrobatic, circus and musical skills against the backdrop of designer Lee Newby's burnished, pros arch-dominated set.
The performers spin on threads from aerial hoops, contort themselves into all manner of shapes, and tumble with great dexterity, not least in one scene involving a seesaw, while the busy acto-musos play a reputed 150 instruments between them.
Above: Matt Rawle as P T Barnum with Monique Young as Charity Barnum and cast members. Top: Barnum the Circus Musical. Photos by Pamela Raith.
At the heart of all this razzle dazzle is Matt Rawle, who turns out to be quite the showman himself as Barnum, radiating easy charm and effervescence in a role which requires the forging of a bond with the audience; on opening night he manfully worked the room despite not always getting a lot back.
He also proves a nifty triple threat, delivering musical numbers (including a challenging patter song) with warmth and panache, taking his turn on the piano and even, in a nail-biting moment in the finale of Act 1, wobbling his way across a tightrope.
Michael Crawford, who won an Olivier as the original Barnum in the West End and was certainly no slouch himself on the daredevil stunt front, spent five weeks at circus skills school to perfect the same manoeuvre. So chapeau to Rawle.
Monique Young is an excellent foil as sensible, long-suffering but loyal wife Charity, the grounded yin to Barnum’s reckless yang. Young is a particularly versatile performer; she sings beautifully, moves seamlessly into the dance numbers (choreographed by Strictly’s Oti Mabuse) and also plays the keys.
Above: Barnum the Circus Musical. Photo by Pamela Raith.
Additionally, she offers emotional heft, and despite the limits of the characterisation, she and Rawle create a natural and engaging rapport.
Meanwhile Penny Ashmore brings an operatic vocal range and a touch of feistiness to a harp-playing Jenny Lind.
if the ending lacks a little of the energy and spirit of the previous two hours, overall, this Barnum is a colourful, crisp and charmingly cheery spectacle – something of which the 'Prince of Humbug' would surely approve.
Incidentally, as part of working the audience, Rawle is evidently tasked with dropping the odd local namecheck. But I’d wager there are few places on the current tour with more links to Barnum than Liverpool.
For those who are interested, the showman travelled in and out of the port many times from his first visit in February 1844, int he company of General Tom Thumb, to his final trip up the Mersey in October 1889.
In 1858 he gave two well-attended talks here on ‘the art of money getting’, where according to one report he “drew a nice distinction between a humbugger and swindler”. And then after Charity Barnum died, a 64-year-old Barnum hooked his second wife (the 26-year-old Nancy Fish) at her Southport home.