Review: PIPPIN - A Kaleidoscope!

"Pippin" brought circus excitement to Omaha at the Orpheum Theater on March 3 for a five-night engagement. As the curtain to the big tent was drawn back, the audience was sucked into a kaleidoscope of color, riotous acrobatics, and magician's tricks. The pieces tumbled together in one mesmerizing vision after another, leaving no time for wandering minds or fingers leafing through programs.

Nominated for the most Tony Awards in 2013 and winner of the Best Revival of a Musical, Stephen Schwartz's Pippin first appeared on Broadway in 1972 with John Rubinstein in the title role. Rubinstein was recruited to play the part of King Charlemagne ("Charles") in the touring production, which he does royally with touches of irony and fatherly good humor.

Having just watched the DVD of Pippin, I was excited to see what director Diane Paulus would do with this show. Working with Gypsy Snider of the Canadian circus team "Les 7 doigts de la main", she turned the 1970's "Hair"-like musical into a dazzling smorgasbord of song, magic, and acrobatics that often leaped off the stage and mingled with the crowd.

The colors! Oh, the colors! Brilliant reds and blues transitioning into serene greens and tapering off into the quiet denim blues and browns of the peasants, then back to the deep colors of royalty. Dominique Lemieux's gorgeous costumes are accentuated by Kenneth Posner's award winning lighting design.

The colors are not the only moving part of this production. There is nonstop action. Actor-acrobats climb poles, tumble down silks, and swing from trapezes. There are hula-hoopers and jugglers and knife throwers. There are impossible costume changes and an even more impossible balancing act. Characters appear and disappear into a magic box. Your eyes must be quick to capture it all.

I had looked forward to seeing Sasha Allen, my favorite contestant from season four of "The Voice." She plays the part of Leading Player, who is really the ringmaster for this extravaganza. Sleek in black, her voice is rich and throaty and resonant as she guides the troupe in their telling of Pippin's adventures as he goes out from the kingdom in search of life's meaning. Often stopping the show to correct a line or reprove a character, the Leading Player (played by Ben Vereen on Broadway) moves deftly between the story and the audience. At one point the audience is engaged in a sing-a-long, but only the choruses that Pippin's grandmother Berthe (Priscilla Lopez) has not reserved for herself. Lopez (In the Heights) is an audience favorite with her svelte form, trapeze antics, and seasoned performance.

As Pippin, Sam Lips is a solid pick. He is affable and good looking, ably nailing the acrobatics. His voice often slips into falsetto, but his phrasing tells his story beautifully. In his search for significance, Pippin tries going to war with his narcissistic stepbrother Lewis (a talented Callan Bergman). When he discovers that war leaves him unfulfilled, he tries his hand at sex, revolution, and politics before he encounters the widow Catherine (Kristine Reese) and her adorable fatherless son, Theo (Lucas Schultz.) Reese is perfection as the ordinary woman vying for the love of Pippin with her extraordinary voice and delightful sense of comedic timing.

King Charles' wife Fastrada (Sabrina Harper) whips through split second costume changes that leave your head spinning. She dominates the stage. She is sensuous and captivating, but wily enough to cause the king to wonder aloud whether the "fornicating he is receiving is worth the fornicating he is receiving."

Part of the success of "Pippin" is Bob Fosse's distinctive choreography. Although Chet Walker and Gypsy Snider have redesigned the choreography in a much more fast paced and exciting direction, they left Fosse's splayed fingers and sinuous movements intact. The Fosse choreographed smooth and sultry "Manson Trio" piece was inspired by his fascination with Charles Manson, making it a particularly bizarre accompaniment to the blood red battle scene where swords and bodies are flying.

As Pippin learns about the meaning of life, he reminds us that there are no colors we can have on earth that won't fade. But the colors of this show were so intense and so imprinted on my brain, it will be a long while before they fade from my memory. Missing this show would be missing something immense; something that comes too infrequently in a mundane world.

...And speaking of missing out, do NOT miss the chickens near the end of the show. They will have you cackling!

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