Sacramento's Music Circus has been dusting off old favorites this season. Two weeks ago it was Kiss Me, Kate which reappeared after a 16 year absence. This week it was Kismet - a fanciful Arabian tale which returns after 17 years for its sixth go-around under the tent, first appearing in 1956.As musicals go, Kismet is a pure delight with humor, romance and some fine tunes, although many might not be recognizable - other than "Stranger in Paradise" which has made the rounds on stage, movies and television.
Kismet opened on Broadway in 1953 and was a hit and continues on in that tradition wherever it plays. Sacramento's production, which runs through Sunday, features Richard White as The Poet (Hajj); Dale Kristien as his daughter Marsinah; Michael Mulheren as the Wazir of Police; Michele Pawk as Lalume, the Wazir's wife; and Sal Viviano as The Caliph.
White has appeared in several Music Circus and Broadway Series productions, including The Pirates of Penzance and A Little Night Music, but is probably best known as the voice of Gaston in Disney's animated feature Beauty and the Beast.
As Hajj, White's good looks and booming voice blend perfectly in the role of the opportunistic poet who rises from a street beggar to Emir of Baghdad in one day. Kristien's Marsinah is the love interest of Viviano's Caliph in a typically predictable "boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy finds girl" romance. It's the Wazir that plots to keep them apart, however, as he has a number of camel loads of gold riding on the Caliph's marriage to the Three Princesses of Ababu (Carol Bentley, Robyn Cohen, Jennifer Foote).
After both the Poet and his daughter wind up in the palace, however, will true love or the scheming Wazir win out in the end?
Complicating matters - the Wazir's "Wife of Wives" Lalume - has taken a liking to Hajj and although the Poet has never been one to refuse an attractive woman, Lalume may be more than he bargained for.
Of course love wins out in the end - all the way around - and Kismet winds up being a delightful, fun, and fast-paced jaunt through the Arabian desert. White, Kristien and Pawk all do great jobs in their respective roles, but Mulheren as the Wazir has some of the best lines and funniest parts in the show.
Kismet runs through August 11 with performances at 8 p.m. through Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the Music Circus box office, 1419 H Street, any BASS location, or by phone at (916) 557-1999 or 923-BASS. Next up at Music Circus is Fiddler on the Roof Aug. 12-18.