THEATER REVIEW : Dancing Adds Dazzle to Thin ‘Nanette’ Story : The uninvolving plot could use more of director Jon Engstrom’s exuberant tap numbers.

While the real star of “No, No Nanette” never appears on stage, there’s no mistaking his signature.

The precision tap dancing, dazzling chorus formations and lighthearted exuberance can mean only one thing--director/choreographer Jon Engstrom is back for another collaboration with the Santa Barbara Civic Light Opera.

Engstrom’s forte is turning amateurs on the chorus line into professional dancers. His past efforts for the Light Opera--”42nd Street,” “Singin’ in the Rain” and “Guys and Dolls”--have been among the company’s liveliest and deservedly most popular shows.

And each time “No, No, Nanette” erupts in movement and color, Engstrom’s guidance is as sure as ever, with the guaranteed result of jaw-dropping amazement and spontaneous applause.

Only problem is, those eruptions are few and far between.

Instead of the wall-to-wall production numbers in “42nd Street,” or the near-continuous acrobatics of “Singin’ in the Rain,” a large part of “No, No, Nanette’s” three-hour running time is occupied with telling a story that can barely hold the songs together.

We’re talking big-time fluff here--a simple-minded plot that makes even “Annie” seem like a Dostoevsky novel.

“Nanette’s” complications--such as they are--revolve around a wealthy Bible publisher trying to keep his wife and young niece from finding out about his innocent but suspicious-looking philanthropic entanglements with a trio of gold diggers.

To the original 1914 story, a 1971 rewrite by Burt Shevelove added a subplot about the niece--Nanette--trying to break out of the prim constraints to which her social status condemns her.

Talented professionals in the lead roles keep the delivery lively. Christina Saffran as Nanette sings beautifully and transitions deftly from prissy socialite to (relatively) uninhibited hedonist.

Lew Horn has plenty of Teddy-bear appeal as the uncle, Susie Lockheed Lehto’s goofy charm makes her the most endearing of the freeloading ladies, and, in supporting roles as the family lawyer and his wife, Vernon Willet’s wheeler-dealing and Kathi Gillmore’s comically exaggerated shopping sprees are welcome distractions.

But it’s Barbara Perry’s spectacular turn as Nanette’s tap-dancing Aunt Sue, a role that brought Ruby Keeler out of retirement in 1971, that will leave audiences eager to start working out again. Perry’s dancing in the show-stopping “I Want to Be Happy” is so tight it’s hard for the male chorus to keep up with her.

Director Engstrom danced in the chorus of that 1971 production, and his affectionate staging throughout bathes the show in a charming nostalgic haze.

Unfortunately, there’s only so far an audience can go on sentiment. If we’ve got to endure this much dialogue between dance numbers, emotions have to be engaged. In “Guys and Dolls,” for example, Engstrom made sure his performers found the dramatic moments that defined their characters.

In “No, No, Nanette,” the moments just aren’t there to be found.

Details

* WHAT: “No, No, Nanette.”

* WHEN: Through March 13, Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8 and Sundays at 7 p.m., matinees Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m. (extra 3 p.m. matinee Tuesday, March 1).

* WHERE: Granada Theatre, 1216 State St., Santa Barbara.

* COST: $18-$29.50.

* FYI: For reservations or information, call (800) 366-6064.