It takes a pretty good songwriting team to create a love song to commercial pastries.
So, I'm predisposed to like any show that features the music of composer John Kander and lyricist Fred Ebb.
Over the course of nearly a half-century, they collaborated on scores for stage musicals and films, as well as special material for performers such as Liza Minnelli and Chita Rivera. Their partnership was so fertile that even though Ebb died in 2004, their work continued to turn up in new musicals -- "Curtains" on Broadway in 2007 and "The Visit" last year at Signature Theatre in Arlington, Va.
"The World Goes 'Round," now being done by the Pittsburgh Public Theater, features 31 of their songs that were gathered into a musical revue in 1991 by Susan Stroman, Scott Ellis and David Thompson.
Some of them you almost surely know -- "All That Jazz" from "Chicago," "Money, Money" from "Cabaret" or "New York, New York" from the movie of the same name.
Others are small, clever, often quirky, little gems such as "Sara Lee," their homage to freezer-case baked goods; "Pain," a funny, too-true song about what dancers endure, which was written for Chita Rivera; "The Grass is Always Greener" from "70, Girls, 70"; or "Only Love" from the stage musical "Zorba."
It's worth the price of admission just to spend the evening listening to these songs and discovering at least one or two new numbers.
But director and choreographer Marcia Milgrom Dodge and her cast of five don't let it stop there.
They work overtime to add extra value, pulling out all the stops to entertain.
In addition to intelligent, often moving, renderings sung with really good voices, they roller skate, play banjos, dance with crutches, drag in a fog machine for one number and showcase their tap skills in "Shoes Dance."
Some of the more comedic numbers have a frantic energy to them, most notably "Coffee in a Cardboard Cup" and "Arthur in the Afternoon."
This music is more than capable of standing on its own.
It does so in the quieter, more reflective numbers such as Michele Ragusa's lovely "Colored Lights"; Patrick Boyd's rueful "Mr. Cellophane"; Rob Sutton's hopeful "We Can Make It"; and Rosena M. Hill's full-voiced and assertive "Maybe This Time."
Tari Kelly, familiar to Pittsburgh Public Theater audiences for her role as Sally Bowles in the company's 2007 production of "Cabaret" gets to make good use of her flair for comedy as well as her voice as she perches on the upright piano for "All That Jazz." She also turns charmingly winsome on "A Quiet Thing."
The entire company demonstrates its ability to blend together on "The Rink" and "The Happy Time" as well as with the three iconic numbers that close the show -- "Money, Money," "Cabaret" and "New York, New York."
In just under two hours and 15 minutes with one intermission, the cast of "The World Goes 'Round" polishes these already sparkling musical jewels and presents them to the audience in an attractively wrapped package.
Additional Information:'The World Goes 'Round'
Produced by: Pittsburgh Public Theater
When: Through April 5 with performances at 8 p.m. most Tuesdays through Saturdays, 2 and 7 p.m. most Sundays, 7 p.m. March 31, 2 p.m. March 21 and 28 and April 2 and 4. For specific performance dates and times, check the box office or Web site.
Admission: $35 to $55, $15 for students and those age 26 or younger with ID.
Where: O'Reilly Theater, Downtown
Details: 412-316-1600 or www.ppt.org
