42nd Street

42nd Street contains none of the heavy drama or extreme angst that marks so many contemporary musicals. Instead it’s filled with battling Broadway divas, low-stakes romance, and corny vaudeville humor. And that’s just fine. The predictable story is the least significant part of this visually spectacular production, filled with high-energy tap numbers and belted ballads. Directed by Steve Tomkins and choreographed by Tomkins and Kristin Culp, the show is gaudy by design, its primary goal to shine and shimmer and win us over with tap shoes and sequins. The cast is thoroughly committed to achieving this. Particularly good are the young romantics: James Scheider as the earnest Billy Lawler and Krystle Armstrong as Peggy Sawyer, the small-town girl bound to make it in the big city. The success of the production owes much to its scenic designer, Robert A. Dahlstrom, who manages to give us the feel of New York in the heart of Issaquah. BRENT ARONOWITZ

Tuesdays-Sundays. Starts: May 13. Continues through July 3, 2010