Water for Elephants

The national tour of the Broadway musical Water for Elephants arrives at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, bringing Sara Gruen’s Depression-era novel to the stage. Adapted by Rick Elice and PigPen Theatre Co., the production infuses the narrative with soaring Americana music, high-flying acrobatics, and puppetry to recreate a struggling 1930s circus. The staging transforms the proscenium into a dusty, magical big top where an old man recalls his youth among roustabouts and performers. It is a theatrical spectacle that merges visceral physical theater with a sweeping, sentimental romance.