We take a look at what is being said about the musical adaptation of Sara Gruen’s book, now officially playing on Broadway…
USAToday.com: “A life raft in this troubled “Water” is the production’s elastic ensemble, which jolts you awake with their spring-loaded flips and death-defying stunts, ranging from aerial hoops to tightrope walks to trapeze swings. A sequence of the cast pitching a big top is wondrous to behold, as is the effortless athleticism they bring to numbers like “Zostan.””
Variety: “Gustin as young Jacob shares that likability — and vulnerability — as a man feeling lost and alone until he discovers his true calling, chosen family and love. McCalla plays Marlena not as a victim but as an ever-resilient wife walking the tightrope of fidelity, fear and desperation. Nolan is mesmerizing as Augustus, a master impresario and sociopath of both charm and menace.”
Time Out.com: **** “The stakes of this familiar romantic triangle are not, in and of themselves, enough to anchor a big tent. But the creators of Water for Elephants find other ways to ground the show, and to let it fly. The score, which mines several veins of Americana, is skillfully crafted. (August, bragging about fooling the rubes with harmless lions: “Our lies are our pride / And our pride’s in our lies / And the lions in our pride have got no teeth!”) And Stone’s staging embraces overt theatricality as an invitation to imagination. Takeshi Kata’s set evokes a train with style and minimal fuss.”
Deadline.com: “Water For Elephants is a pleasant, visually beguiling show, with a cast, led by The Flash‘s Grant Gustin in a sweet-voiced Broadway debut, that puts some charm into a thin book by Rick Elice that probably veered too close to the novel for its own good.”
Vulture.com: “Under Jessica Stone’s exuberant direction, a huge ensemble of ridiculously talented acrobats ebbs and flows — and flips and flies — through the house, coalescing into gorgeous paintings in front of projection designer David Bengali’s lush, shifting cloudscape of a backdrop.”
Entertainment Weekly: “The Jessica Stone-directed musical is never more compelling than when the stage is theirs for the taking. This is where the promise is fulfilled: You wanna feel something? The magic of the Benzini Brothers’ Circus will make it happen. The performers ooze charisma, spreading infectious excitement even when they aren’t showing off their death defying feats. And when they are, it’s an undeniably thrilling affair.”
The Wrap: “The Cirque du Soleil effects (“circus design” by Shana Carroll) are dazzling when they are first introduced. By the time the second act rolls around, the acrobats have been turned into filler by director Jessica Stone to prop up a story with little drama going on – unless your idea of drama is contemplating what happens when acrobats miss their mark.”
New York Stage Review: *** “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.”
New York Theatre Guide: “Director Jessica Stone (Kimberly Akimbo) deserves a big shout-out for combining all of the elements – the actors, circus feats, puppetry, song and dance breaks – so beautifully. Stone really can juggle.”
New York Theater.me: “The Broadway performers all do a fine job. But if I remember anything about this show, it will be an early scene, when Jacob meets Marlena, who’s tending to Silver Star. Jacob, the vet, takes a look at Silver Star and realizes he’s fractured his leg bone, a terrible injury, and is in great pain; the humane thing is to put him down. As Marlena sings “Easy,” Jacob reaches for August’s gun. And what’s memorable – sublime – about this moment is the way the horse is portrayed — partly by puppetry, partly by a silk ribbon, and consummately by an extraordinary aerialist named Antoine Boissereau, who performs a ballet in mid-air, swirling and twirling with the silk. It’s not just technically impressive; not just beautiful; it’s, somehow, deeply moving.”
Theatrely.com: “Though it thrills with incredible circus stunts (designed by Shana Carroll) and animal puppets (by Camille Labarre, Ray Wetmore & JR Goodman), there’s a lax, convivial air perfectly suited to its 1931 setting — it’s the Great Depression, and one must do as one must to scrape up some happiness.”
The Stage: ** “Rick Elice’s adaptation of Sara Gruen’s novel following a circus-based love triangle fails to wow in spectacle or romance”
Water for Elephants continues to play on Broadway. To find out more visit: https://www.waterforelephantsthemusical.com/