THE PLAYGOER

Such a wealth of singing, dancing and miscellaneous gyrations is now sweeping over the boards in "All In Fun" that Leonard Sillman faces a Herculean jig saw puzzle to fit the pieces into a unified show. Bill Robinson dances and the more you see the more you want. Jerry Lester, who far outdistances Phil Baker as the gag-man of the show, laughs, screams, whistles and ties himself into knots. Imogene Coca is superb in any kind of dance you can think of. And then there is Hope Manning, Red Marshall, Candido, Bothello, Bill Johnson--you can go on and on.

Looking at the scenes individually, a good majority are top-notch. But "All In Fun" as a whole is an ambitious infant sprawling all over the horizon. A strong hand is needed to give the star numbers the attention and development they need and chuck some of the piddling stuff out the window.

"Where Can I Go From You" is an example of the heights the show reaches. The song, the best by far, couldn't be kept off the Hit Parade with a shot-gun and to boot there is dancing by Bill Robinson and the chorus, and song by Nancy Noel and Bill Johnson. Another eye-opener is "It's A Big, Wide, Wonderful World" and "The Macumba" with Imogene Coca and Candido Bothello's delightful voice.

On the clowning side, Jerry Lester has the stage to himself for fifteen minutes in the First Act and fills it with a combination of imitations, somersaults and gags that should go on for hours. His side-kick, Phil Baker, whether by his own choice or not, is unfortunately relegated to a back seat and the audience gets little chance to enjoy his tongue. Of the skits, "Morning After a Faun" with Imogene Coca and William Archibald, and Red Marshall's gymnastics in "Red Rails In the Sunset" keep the aisles well filled.

The songs are as good as any out this year, and you will be getting many earfuls of "Where Can I Go From You," "My Memories Started With You," and "It's A Big, Wide, Wonderful World." Although Hope Manning warbles very nicely on occasions, there is not real singer in the show, no one who dominates the proceedings like an Ethel Merman. May be you must take that for granted in a review. But a certain amount of coordination and unity is essential, and it seems to me that Bill Robinson or Jerry Lester should take the show in hand and keep it more on one track. With such a store-house of material, "All In Fun" should be able to hold its own with any musical of the year.