Babes In Arms (1999 City Center Encores! Cast)
Rodgers and Hart'sBabes in Armsis the archetypal "let's put on a show in a barn!" musical. When Encores! decided to revive it, they picked a mostly unknown cast to match the characters' young age. Happily, the gamble paid off, especially considering the astonishing number of showstopping songs that pepper the ditzy book. Erin Dilly and Australian cabaret star David Campbell play the lead ingenues, and Dilly does well enough by "My Funny Valentine" and "The Lady Is a Tramp." But Melissa Rain Anderson steals the show with brassy renditions of "Way Out West" and "Johnny One-Note." A 1989 recording of the musical may have stronger performances overall (Judy Blazer has brass and sass!), but more Rodgers and Hart is always better.--Elisabeth Vincentelli