Theatre Review: Water for Elephants

Enter the big top of Benzini Bros. Circus and be ready to be dazzled by acrobatics, a menagerie of animals, a clown, pain, loss, but above all, hope! Water for Elephants has set up in town at the Pantages Theater and this one is worth seeing.

Mr. (Jacob) Jankowski, now an elderly man, comes across a circus in his town. As he talks with the owners about his history with circuses, he reveals that he was present for the famous “stampede” at the now-defunct Benzini Bros. Circus in the 1930s. Back then, Jacob was a young man suddenly orphaned and unsure where to go. Hoping to start over, he hopped a train and soon found himself joining Benzini Bros. as the company set up its big top for the next round of shows. Camel (Javier Garcia), a longtime crew member, quickly befriends him and helps him navigate circus life. Jacob soon meets Marlena, the show’s beautiful star, who performs with a horse.

His fascination with her is immediately complicated when he meets her husband, August, the circus’s brash, charming, and quick-tempered ringmaster and owner. After Marlena’s horse, Silver Star, is injured, Jacob draws on his schooling to determine that the horse cannot be saved. Without a horse, the show seems doomed—or does it? August, Marlena, and Jacob soon find a nearby circus selling off its animals and purchase an elephant named Rosie. The story follows Jacob’s brief journey with the circus as he falls in love, helps train its new animal star, and how the famous “stampede” really happened.

One of the company’s earliest standout numbers is “The Road Don’t Make You Young,” which shows the labor of raising the big top and preparing the circus for an audience. With the performers using mallets striking tent stakes as percussion, the scene becomes a high-energy showcase of acrobatics and pole work. Helen Krushinski (Marlena) brings a beautiful stillness to “Easy,” holding the audience in rapt attention. Zachary Keller’s (Jacob) strong vocals are especially moving in “Silver Stars.”

As Walter, Tyler West gives the gruff, guarded clown a gradual warmth that mirrors his growing connection with Jacob. He nearly steals the show with his mix of silly, surprising, and impressive gags. While Krushinski, Keller, and West were the standouts for me, the entire Cast is amazing at bringing you into the story.

The set design is simple, with three train cars and a big-top tent backdrop. What shines is not the scale of the scenery, but how the actors and performers use and interact with the space. Since Water for Elephants takes place during the Depression, the sparse design feels fitting, but because the story is set in a circus company, the production is still full of incredible circus acts. Some of the acrobatic moments are lighthearted and fun, while others are beautifully crafted and artistically driven.

This is especially true in “Easy,” which uses Yves Artières’s stunning and intricate aerial work to represent Silver Star’s spirit despite the horse’s pain. The puppetry is not especially elaborate, using simple, suggestive animal heads and cloth to portray different creatures, but the use of puppetry for Rosie the elephant feels deeply symbolic. When Rosie first appears, she is represented only by her ears, then her trunk, and then her legs, one by one. Once Jacob learns how to communicate with her, the full version of Rosie finally appears, as if she has finally been understood and fully seen.

While the circus acts and comedy are fun, I would be remiss to not share that this story is dark and may not be appropriate for younger children. However, teens and adults will enjoy the kinetic energy of this show, the acrobatics, phenomenal vocals, and a story that feels good if you enjoy when bad people lose. You may not actually be able to carry enough water for an elephant, but it’s not too late to get tickets to see Water for Elephants before they pack up their train for the next town.

Water for Elephants is performing at The HollywoodMidsummer Scream Moves to Anaheim August 6-9, 2027 Pantages Theatre until September 27, 2026. For tickets and more info click here.

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