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I have seen some plays on stage, some very great performances, but the way this musical portrays our inner selves is simply great. It is a "review" of Charles the Great and his two sons, how war, Christianity, love, life, education, and much more affected, Pippin. All he was looking for was fulfillment, "a corner in the sky," isn't everyone? Educated in the finer schools, given everything he could possibly want even frolicking to the max could not satisfy his hunger for something extraordinary. Pippin kills his father the King when he finds out he is nothing but a tyrant behind a mask of religion, but quickly realizes that being king is not easy nor can he give equality to all without sacrificing others.
He finds himself unfulfilled until he finds....L-O-V-E and has a child, but in the great finale promised to the audience he is unable to perform, he is supposed to set himself aflame,, you see, but he cannot, or could he. His "magician" in his mind, Ben Vereen almost convinces him, until he realizes he has found his logging. He refuses to have his huge ending. To which Ben apologizes and tells all the members of the audience the they will be ready for anybody who needs the masks, make-up, magic ready for their great finale and turns the music off, lights of, and walk out. Pippin's is asked how he feels, to which he replies, "trapped, but not a bad ending for a comedy musical." Is that not what we all are in a comedy of our own looking for our "corner in the sky."
The musical has many great performances and a whole lot of great acts, but two stand out to me, the act with Bertha, Pippin's grandmother and the ending, of course, the act of "war is a science," is quite great and the act where Pippin is frolicking is amazing. The whole choreography is amazing, directed by Bob Fosse, funny how I pay more attention too detail once my friend told me a bit about Fosse's life. Not to be outdone by anything Ben Vereen is amazing in this musical, and you can truly see the steps his son has used in this performance. 4.5/5 on these one, is you like musicals or the theater it is a must see.
