ED KRIEGER/Special to the Acorn DANCING ONSTAGE- Cassie Silva, left, as Peggy and Jeffrey Scott Parsons as Billy perform in "42nd Street." The show was presented by Cabrillo Music Theatre at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza. Cabrillo Music Theatre's production of the musical "42nd Street," which was presented recently at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, is one of the best examples of "pure entertainment" ever staged on Broadway.

Based on the 1933 film musical, whose show-within-a show story line was meant to take people's minds off the Great Depression, the stage version of "42nd Street" won seven Tony Awards in 1980. It was only the second major musical adapted from a motion picture (the other was "Gigi," which was a dismal failure).

The show encapsulates all that was magical about pre-Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway: a bevy of melodic Tin Pan Alley songs surrounded by a threadbare story, colorful costumes, scintillating dance sequences and razzledazzle production numbers.

In today's world, "42nd Street" acts much like a jukebox musical, built around the compositions of two of the great workhorses of motion picture musicals: composer Harry Warren and lyricist Al Dubin. Most people know their songs: "Lullaby of Broadway," "Shuffle Off to Buffalo," "We're in the Money," etc., but not one in 10 knows who wrote them.

The plot can be summed up in six words: "Star breaks ankle; ingénue fills in." The characters are two-dimensional, but who cares? The one character who has even a hint of depth is Julian Marsh, the legendary director who casts veteran star-among-stars Dorothy Brock (Tracy Lore) in a Busby Berkeley-style blockbuster called "Pretty Lady."

As Marsh, Michael G. Hawkins actually rivals Jerry Orbach's signature performance in the original 1980 production. Hawkins acts with authority as the pinstriped director who never loses control and always makes expedient decisions, except when he impulsively fires chorus girl Peggy Sawyer (Cassie Silva) for accidentally breaking Dorothy's ankle during a final rehearsal of the show's climactic production number.

Silva does a great job combining the gawkiness of a Broadway newbie with the raw skills of a brilliant tap-dancing artist. As her co-star, the youthful Billy Lawlor, Jeff Parsons shines with a fluid dance style and resonant tenor voice.

His showcase number, "Dames," is one of the highlights of the musical, an opulent production number complete with male dancers in white top hats and tails and a procession of chorus girls garbed in a rainbow of exotic gowns.

As Dorothy Brock, Tracy Lore is appropriately haughty and egotistical, but like everyone else, she reveals her heart of gold when it counts. Comic relief is provided by the writers of the showwithinthe-show, Maggie Jones (Farley Cadena) and Bert Barry (Will Shupe). Cadena seems to have studied both Ethel Merman and Charlotte Rae in her high-voltage performance, and Shupe provided some nimble steps and mugging during his showcase number, "Shuffle Off to Buffalo," which also featured a nifty Pullman car set, complete with leggy chorines in pink lingerie.

In the traditional Saturday matinee "talkback" session with the cast, director/choreographer Jon Engstrom spoke about his work as a dancer in the original 1980 show. He meticulously recreated the work of the show's original choreographer, Gower Champion, who famously, and tragically, died just before the opening night performance.