The magic of a carnival lies within the illusion. But in “Carnival!,” Otterbein’s fall musical, the magic lies outside the illusion.
Placed in post-WWII France, “Carnival!” is the story of an orphan who runs away to join a carnival. It’s a fantasy every child has thought about at least once. The orphan, Lili, played by sophomore musical theatre major Heather Dell, finds out that it isn’t everything she had hoped it would be.
Her expectations of finding work are immediately dispelled by a handsy souvenir peddler named Grobert (junior acting major Jake Ramirez) as he attempts to get cozy with a different type of employment. To Lili’s delight, a magician named Marco the Magnificent (junior musical theatre major Hayden Clifton) seems to have saved her, though his intentions aren’t very different.
She eventually finds work with a puppeteer named Paul (junior musical theatre major Zachary Wilhelm), whose outlook on life is as bleak as his charcoal wardrobe. He loathes his carnival habitat until Lili shows him how to once again see the world with magic.
With this production, the audience is put in an interestingly precarious place. The audience plays the part of both a carnival crowd when the big top rises, and also of spectators to the real-life carnival behind the scenes when the act is through.
The carnival appeal acts as an illusion to the sorrow within the lives of its actors, who paint their happy faces for the show just like the clowns they stand next to. Those stuck within the red-and-white-striped madness deal with magic every day, but have lost a sense of a real kind of magic, the kind that only Lili can bring back.
This questions the very idea of magic, and that, along with the idea of love and purpose, is the main struggle of this beautifully twisted tale. We are walking side by side with the cast on this tightrope of life, trying to sort through the importance of these issues.
Though it is a story woven with sad strings, the strings themselves are colorful and make for a very vibrant narration. It uses the classic sideshow freaks (a bearded lady, conjoined twins and a contortionist, among others) to create an eerie environment while the vividness of the set questions the darker themes. It is a beautiful contradiction that is both well-played and a perfect illustration of the confusion found in the lives of those who inhabit the “Carnival!” life.
Soon enough, the magic once found in Lili’s young heart is wiped away with the last of the clown makeup in a dishearteningly raw monologue on growing up, proving that even the grandest of illusions is no substitute for real happiness.
Fortunately for the cast of “Carnival!,” illusions aren’t necessary for audience approval with this fall production. It manages to bring out the childish side of the audience member in the beautiful score and acting while also dragging them down moments later using the same effects. It is a tale twisted to a contortionist’s nightmare that is both wonderfully presented and perfectly relatable.
Rating: 4/5
