He acts and moves with grace and his singing voice is strong enough to make the body mike he wears one of the show's excesses. Rabke is a charming, vulnerable and plucky Mabel and delivers her songs with great zest. While she doesn't really look like Bernadette Peters, her hairdo and demeanor during the first act gets a bit in the way of her establishing her own persona. One member of the audience who knew nothing about the show's history commented that McCarthy reminded him of a young Robert Preston. So, while he too may have been chosen for qualities similar to the original star's, the connection isn't quite as obvious as it is in Ms. Rabke's case.
High praise is also due to the featured players and the ensemble.
Ric Stoneback also shines as Fatty Arbuckle as does Will Erat as Frank, the scriptwriter in a studio that worked too fast to need a script. Hope Clarke's choreography is somewhat spotty, which is also true of the ensemble's dancing. A stage rear curtain is occasionally drawn to reveal a skyscape appropriately lit to reflect the mood of the moment by Jason Kantrowitz. Jerry Herman renders a lengthy account of the show's birth pangs and the the revisions used in the current Barrington Stage production. Jim van Bergen.