It's a theme musical. It conjures up the American tragedy of the 1860s. It is very serious about the Union and the Confederacy, much as the Camelot Theme Park is serious about King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Above the performers on the Paramount stage, projections onto a gauze screen display photographs from 140 years ago. Projections also detail casualty statistics from the various battles.
Costumes evoke military and civilian fashions of the time.
The songs strive mightily for poignancy and grandeur. Staging by Stephen Rayne struggles for a sense of epic sweep. But it is all so bogus. They are accompanied by an onstage combo made up of synthesizers and electronic instruments. The production chases after historic effects but never captures them.