Managed to get a "Premium Seat" for one of the previews (not many others left). Overall impression, a much better production than it could have been.
Barnum has a special place in my heart, as it is was one of the first shows I ever saw, around 25 years ago, with Andrew O'Connor as the lead (my main memories for that one were Andrew O'Connor being impressive and doing lots of stunts and this being a very visual production, but I remember very little about the plot, and only song that stuck in my mind was Black and White, being long and boring).
I also saw the Brian Conley tour twice, enjoyed in, but it wasn't as I remembered it. I now realise that this had been substantially revised.
The Menier production goes back to the original script, which is very different. The songs are moved around, some lyrics are different, the book is very different. Frankly, the newer version makes more sense.
But, if you didn't already like Barnum, you're unlikely to like this one.
The Menier production room has been opened up and this is performed in the round. It all looks much bigger than I remember in that format. There isn't much of a set, but there is a central round platform which is used.
The staging in the round fits the circus theme, but also makes some of the viewing difficult. For instance (even from a premium seat), I know there was fire used at one point, but only because I could see the edge of it. Otherwise my view was blocked by cast members.
The fire brings me onto the main problem. The room was bitterly cold, with no heating. From what I could hear, there was also meant to be music playing when the audience arrived, but this was broken.
Fair warning. There is audience interaction, particularly with the front row. The ensemble came out about 5 minutes before the advertised start time (8pm). A few conjuring tricks (some went wrong, so still being worked on), juggling etc. They weren't particularly good at engaging the audience that night, but did, for instance, show each other their tricks. The show started properly about 8:05pm. The restaurant was really full, which I think explains the show starting slightly late.
Staging was good, with some great acrobatics from the ensemble.
The biggest problem in the space was the sound. The ensemble performing on the hard floor of the Menier was really noisy and it was hard to make out the words during the songs. If you don't know the story, you may struggle to follow this.
I thought Marcus Brigstocke was excellent at involving the audience and very different to the other people I've seen play Barnum. He did a few conjuring tricks during the show and ad-libbed as needed. Not the best singing voice, but it isn't a role that needs a great singer.
Laura Pitt-Pulford, I thought struggled with keeping the accent going, so it drifted in and out. Some good chemistry between the two leads.
If I can single out members of the cast, Danny Collins and Dominic Owen came out during the interval to ad-lib for a few minutes. Both very funny, talking about empty seats (few), people leaving in the intermission (possibly read here - I didn't notice any on the night) and Danny doing some of his funny dancing. If that's a regular think, I suggest only taking a short interval break.
The stunts didn't always go right. There were some acrobatic fails, falling off giant balls, balls being dropped when thrown around (which confused the cast with a then "invisible ball" in the sequence etc). Hopefully, that polish will appear during the run.
The tightrope scene, unfortunately, failed as well. It is a very wide tightrope, just below waist height. A really tough ask, to both sing and walk the tightrope. The cast do wait crouched by the tightrope in case any help is needed.
First go, Marcus got around one quarter of the way across before falling - and commented that this sometimes takes a few goes. To me, it looked as though this was meant to be an "almost fall".
Second go, about half way. Marcus commented that it might be a while until the interval.
Third go, only a quarter again. He jumped back further down and completed the rest of the walk holding onto a member of the cast (with a great round of applause for the showmanship).
Finishing time was 10:15pm, so I imagine this will be over by 10:10pm when it's tightened up. So relatively short.
And now, some spoilers.
{Loud Noises Warning}Including this one based on the topic in the General Forum.
There is a Loud Noises warning, but this was quite a tame one.
A large Party Popper type device is fired during Black and White. Because of the angle, I didn't even notice it until it was fired.
(the loudest noises weren't planned - there were a few bangs during the show from backstage, presumably from items being dropped)
{Talent Show Warning}Some members of the audience are "selected" to play Kazoos during Come Follow The Band.
As Marcus pointed out, he chooses the people who look away.
{Sections Where The Audience Get Soaked Warning}Humbugged!
(unlike the recent tour, there is no water used in the Elephant scene)
I did enjoy it, in a way that has a slight fun amateur edge to it. There really are some great songs, including One Brick At A Time, Come Follow The Band and Join The Circus.
I'd be keen to go back towards the end of the run to see how it all looks when the kinks are ironed out.