Jacob (Zachery Keller, right) meets with the circus’s owner, August (Connor Sullivan), and star performer, Marlena (Helen Krushinski), in the touring production of Water for Elephants. (Photo by Matt Murphy for MurphyMade)
By Richard Ades
Running away to join the circus generally isn’t the best way to deal with your problems. But sometimes it’s the only way available to you.
That’s the situation faced by Jacob Jankowski in Water for Elephants, a touring musical now playing at Columbus’s Ohio Theatre.
We first meet Jankowski as an old man (Robert Tully) reminiscing about his past, but the show then thrusts us into that past, when a young Jacob (Zachery Keller) hitches a ride on a circus train and is offered work after he reveals he was trained as a veterinarian.
Because the Great Depression is in full force, and because Jacob has no other prospects, he reluctantly accepts the job. He then tries to make the best of what turns out to be a bad situation, complicated by a dictatorial and sadistic boss, August (Connor Sullivan). The job’s only perk is that Jacob gets to meet the show’s beautiful star performer, Marlena (Helen Krushinski), who, unfortunately, turns out to be August’s wife.
In an odd way, one gets the feeling that the show’s cast and crew are in much the same boat as their protagonist: They’re in the difficult situation of putting on a flawed piece of work, but they’re trying to make the best of it.
Namely, they’re amping things up with Lion King-worthy puppetry, gorgeous scenery and lighting (designed by Takeshi Kata and Bradley King, respectively), and especially with gasp-inspiring acrobatics and other injury-defying acts that would be at home under any big top.
With a book by Rick Elice and music and lyrics by the Pigpen Theatre Co., Water for Elephants opened on Broadway in March 2024 under the direction of Jessica Stone. It garnered eight Tony nominations, winning none, and closed that December.
The current touring production, directed by Ryan Emmons, was launched last fall and is scheduled to close in August. It has a lot going for it, including two wonderful lead performances.
As Jacob, Keller reveals the best male voice I’ve heard in a long time, pulling a surprising amount of beauty and emotion out of his solos. As Marlena, Krushinski also sings beautifully, and at one point she even performs one of the acrobatic feats that play such a big part in the production.
When Jacob and Marlena’s budding romance begins to blossom (I’m not giving anything away here—it’s pictured right on the program cover!), Keller and Krushinski do what they can to sell it. But the script just doesn’t give them much to work with.
Perhaps the show’s most affecting moment involves Marlena’s ailing horse, Silver Star, imaginatively represented by a puppet head and a lithe man hanging from a sash. But other moments that should be moving or shocking or otherwise noteworthy seldom reach their full potential.
As for the music, it offers pleasant, Americana-flavored accompaniment to the dancers and acrobats’ leaping, swinging and twirling, and talented singers like Keller occasionally make it soar. But none of it is really memorable.
So don’t go to Water for Elephants expecting to have a sublime theatrical experience. Instead, go expecting to see hard-working performers doing their best to recreate the thrills of a circus, with a little drama and romance thrown in for good measure.
Head to the theater in that frame of mind, and you won’t be disappointed.
Water for Elephants runs through June 14 at the Ohio Theatre, 39 E. State St., Columbus. Showtimes are 7:30 p.m. through Friday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes (including intermission). For ticket information, visit columbus.broadway.com. For information on future tour stops, visit waterforelephantsmusical.com.
Reel Time With Richard Ades 