JADAR

★★★☆☆

Before The Greatest Showman, there was Barnum, a “circus musical” about showman, businessman and politician Phineas Taylor “P.T.” Barnum. It’s a sweet, wholesome show but it’s no surprise that movie executives decided to create a brand-new story and score for the film rather than adapting Barnum, because of how dated it feels.

This new production, directed by Jonathan O’Boyle, premiered at Watermill Theatre in Newbury, starring Matt Rawle as Barnum, who will return to the role later this year. The tour is currently led by Lee Mead, who unsurprisingly excels as the electric showman, from the singing and the dancing to walking the tightrope, and just the general charisma and gravitas required for such a role.

It’s a strong cast, with some exceptional singing, but a good cast can only do so much with a mediocre script. It’s a weak narrative that feels more like a vehicle for circus acts than a cohesive story, which fails to provide an emotional core. The script is largely episodic, introducing one character after another, which feels quite pedestrian. The second act is a bit of a departure from the first – whilst some may welcome it for feeling less episodic, it perhaps feels too different tonally. It also becomes a little bit confusing; Charity Barnum’s death could have been handled better.

One cannot help but compare the two Barnum musicals, and The Greatest Showman is much more slick and cohesive. Whilst the latter has been criticised for its highly fictionalised account of Barnum, the older musical is also sanitised, avoiding the controversies surrounding Barnum’s exploitative nature. In the musical, he insists that the performers are not freaks, but the real Barnum referred to them as such.

Perhaps the most egregious whitewash, however, is its dismissal of slavery. In the musical, Barnum signs a contract to employ Joice Heth. In reality, he bought her: slavery was illegal in many parts of the North, where he exhibited her, but he leased Heth for a year for $1,000, utilising a loophole in the law. I appreciate that it’s a 45-year-old musical but this new production could, and should, have attempted to fix some of these flaws, and perhaps even engage with the debate surrounding Barnum’s exploitation vs. celebration of “freaks”.

The score is pleasant but many of the songs blends into one. A few numbers stand out amidst one forgettable song after another, but these are often brought to life with Oti Mabuse’s stylish choreography (co-choreography by Matt Nicholson) and, of course, the impressive circus acts (Amy Panter is circus director).

Lee Newby’s circus set is stunning. It’s static but lots of set comes on and off. It looks and feels like an old school musicals. Newby also designed the beautiful costumes.

It’s a well-designed production but it feels like style (and circus) over substance. Fans of The Greatest Showman will enjoy Barnum, so long as they go in aware that The Greatest Showman this is not.

Barnum runs at Palace Theatre Manchester until February 14 and tours the UK until July 4.