Aerialists from Suspended Cirque enliven the production directed by Darko Tresnjak.
Based on the film "Lili," and featuring the songs "Love Makes the World Go Round" and "Her Face," Carnival! features music and lyrics by Bob Merrill and book by Michael Stewart, based on material by Helen Deutsch, with revisions by Francine Pascal. Opening at Goodspeed Opera House is Aug. 4.
Many consider Carnival! — the tale of a naïve young woman who joins a traveling circus, encountering acrobats, jugglers, singers and clowns, a manipulative magician and a disillusioned puppeteer — to feature the best score in the career of composer-lyricist Merrill (Take Me Along; New Girl in Town; Henry, Sweet Henry).
Lauren Worsham (Cunegonde in New York City Opera's recent Candide, Paper Mill's Master Class) plays Lili, Adam Monley (Broadway's Mamma Mia!) plays puppeteer Paul, and Mike McGowan (Broadway's Ragtime, Grease, The Apple Tree and The Producers) plays Marco, the magician. The cast also includes Michelle Blakeley as Rosalie, Nathan Klau as Jacquot and Laurent Giroux as Schlegel.
The ensemble includes Joshua Dean and Ben Franklin, co-founders of New York-based aerial theatre company Suspended Cirque, and Price Waldman from Broadway's The Little Mermaid and Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The ensemble also features Timothy Hughes, Kara Kimmer, Robin Masella, Clifton Samuels, Amy Shure, Justin Urso and Dana Winkle. The swings are Miguel Edson and Melissa Steadman. Here is a look at the production:
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Tickets are available through the box office at (860) 873-8668, open seven days a week, or online at www.goodspeed.org.
