Theater Reviews : Puppets Give ‘Carnival’ a Needed Hand

“Carnival,” that sweet, sentimental musical by Bob Merrill and Michael Stewart, is a fine choice for an intimate place such as the Newport Theatre Arts Center.

The heart of the show is the winning quartet of puppets that changes the life of innocent teen-ager Lili, who finds herself in a traveling French carnival. Put Lili and her puppet friends in a cozy space, and “Carnival” breaks down all your resistance to sweet, sentimental goo.

“Carnival” is also a terrible choice for this theater. Unable to hold a pit orchestra, the theater forces the worst options on to musical director Patrick Copeland. Merrill’s lovely, sometimes stunning score is reduced to a prerecorded synthesizer--a tinny-sounding synthesizer. One might as well do Gershwin on a Casio.

If these sound like contradictory views, that is what this “Carnival” revival serves: wonderful charm in impossible circumstances. Despite some cast members who obviously are passionately committed to this show, it’s worth asking: If a theater isn’t able to house even a small live band, why do musicals? Especially tradition-of-quality musicals such as this.

It’s a shame, because the musical itself is a triumph over circumstances. Taking the dreary Helen Deutsch screenplay for the clunky 1953 film “Lili” and injecting it with life and dimension, Stewart’s book (like those for “Oklahoma” and “The Most Happy Fella”) is more musical drama than musical comedy. Merrill’s score reaches a zenith because Stewart’s narrative verges on the tragic. Lili’s fate--unlike that of so many musical heroines--is always in the danger zone.

That alone gives “Carnival” an edge, so even its sentimentality doesn’t feel like manipulation. At the carnival, Lili’s sentiments are yanked in various directions by various men: puppeteer and bitter ex- danseur Paul (Martin Kennedy); Paul’s kindly assistant, Jacquot (Larry Blake); womanizing opportunist Marco the Magnificent (Kyle Myers), and gruff owner Schlegel (Bill Gekas).

Paul gives Lili a job as sidekick to his puppets. But it is Marco who, to her, represents the allure of magic, masculinity and show business in one glittery package. The funny, engaging puppets (good, “Muppets”-like hand puppets care of Colleen Kendall and Ginny Fisher) are really Paul’s medium for expressing his affections to Lili. Without them, his bitterness drives her into Marco’s arms.

*

Two-timing Marco, though, is involved with his sexy assistant, The Incomparable Rosalie (Lynette Deveraux), and so the soap opera turns. Lili’s lessons on love may be out of a fairy tale, but an adult one with a real emotional payoff.

It would feel even more emotional if we could really hear that score, rather than a synthesized version. As Lili, Adriana Sanchez tries valiantly to compensate with an engaging performance, accented with eyes full of yearning and an increasingly confident voice (as in “Yes, My Heart” and the show’s anthem, “Love Makes the World Go ‘Round”). Kennedy plays Paul as a truly torn man (most dramatically in “Everybody Likes You”) and, with Blake’s cuddly Jacquot, does wonders with those puppets.

On the other hand, Myers’ Marco, though good on the magic tricks, isn’t to be taken seriously as a sexual predator. And Deveraux’s Rosalie is total Valley Girl, whining rather than comedic.

* “Carnival,” Newport Theatre Arts Center, 2501 Cliff Drive, Newport Beach. Thursday-Saturday, 8 p.m.; Sunday, 2:30 p.m. Ends May 14. $13-$15. (714) 631-0288. Running time: 2 hours, 20 minutes.

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Adriana Sanchez: Lili

Martin Kennedy: Paul

Kyle Myers: Marco

Larry Blake: Jacquot

Lynette Deveraux: Rosalie

Bill Gekas: Schlegel

Robert Amberg: Grobert

Katie Holmes: Greta

David Schaffer: Dr. Glass

Yvonne Houssels: Madam Fortuna

A Newport Theatre Arts Center production of the musical by Bob Merrill and Michael Stewart, directed and choreographed by Larry Watts. Musical director: Patrick Copeland. Set: Linda Garen Smith. Costumes: Tom Phillips.