Long before we were spellbound by the Hollywood spectacular that was ‘The Greatest Showman’, there was Barnum. With music by Cy Coleman and lyrics by Michael Stewart, Barnum tells the life story of the legendary Circus master Phineas Taylor Barnum from his American Museum in 1835 to the famous Barnum and Bailey travelling show in 1880. The musical opened on Broadway in 1980, where it played for two years, before opening in the UK, where it played in various venues over a six year period. In 1986, during a run at London’s Victoria Palace Theatre, the show was recorded live for television broadcast. It was then released to video and in turn DVD. And now, in this much more modern age, it’s on Amazon Prime.

That’s where I found it whilst scrolling through on a rainy afternoon, and after having fallen in love with the music and clever way in which the show was put together when I saw the London revival in 2018, I couldn’t resist a watch. At the time of recording, the show starred Michael Crawford in the leading role of P.T Barnum, with Eileen Battye as Charity Barnum.

Something that makes Barnum so very different from a lot of other shows is the way it is created, put together as if it was one big multi-ring circus. The ensemble is made up of performers with both the talent for great musical theatre and a multitude of circus skills. Jugglers, tight rope walkers, acrobats, clowns, all of the classics of the circus inserted straight into a musical. Each scene is presented as if it was an act in one of the rings, with constant breaking of the fourth wall and slight breaks in character only adding to the circus feel. There is never a break in the action, whether it be a big song or the characters running across the stage to change the scene, it’s a blur of colour and it’s exciting, even though a screen.

Michael Crawford is a great of musical theatre and in the role of the ‘Greatest Showman’, he shines. He is full of energy, making every trick and slip of hand look easy and believable. Rarely off stage for the entire performance, he illustrates Barnum’s relentless determination to succeed, always searching for a new act, a new stage, a bigger more adoring audience. He is not shy to admit that he is selling lies and humbug, yet delights in the fact that it is the humbug that his audience crave and demand more off. Eileen Battye played the long suffering wife of Barnum, putting up with his endless schemes and long lasting travels away from home and family. You feel for this character who has both the power to pull at your heartstrings and to make you laugh.

Christina Collier played the role of famous singer Jenny Lind, with Sharon Benson and Paul Miller as big selling circus attractions Joice Heth and Tom Thumb. With a character like Tom Thumb, the smallest man in the world, some simple but effective tricks are used and it’s all a matter of perspective. A giant chair and cast members on stilts is all that is needed.

As you can see from these photographs, sometimes the quality of this film isn’t great but you have to remember that this was filmed in 1986. For it’s age, it’s actually pretty good. You get some great angles of the action and some close up looks at the characters facial expressions, all the things you could want in a live theatre recording. Even before the show itself starts, you get some wonderful footage of the audience coming into the theatre and circus performers outside greeting ticket holders, it really fits with the atmosphere of the circus.

With some great performances from the talented cast and some wonderful music, Barnum is a little treat of a show and deserves so much more love. Without this, The Greatest Showman may never have come along, and Barnum goes into a lot of more detail whilst sticking to the truth much more than the Hollywood movie musical does.