Tympanium Euphorium decided to cross the boundary between reality and fantasy by bringing life to the celebrated Peanuts characters in "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown," produced by Alison Warren '05 and directed by Dave Stromes '05. Snoopy and his friends have come a long way from their debuts as newspaper comic characters. Many adults came to watch the revival of their childhood cartoon heroes.The structure of the play was remarkably close to the comic strip. There was no central storyline or any linear connection between the events; instead it was presented to the audience in the form of short episodes with alternating protagonists.

The musical starts off with Charlie Brown and his infatuation with the mysterious redhead, and delves into his friends and their self-absorbed plights, such as Lucy's unrelenting dream to become a queen, Linus's problematic love affair with his blanket and Schroeder's musical talent that isolates him from his juvenile friends. All the characters get their fifteen minutes of glory, except for Marcie (Rachel Shapp '06) and Peppermint Patty (Rachel Baron '05), who are minor supporting characters, but contribute to the chaos that occurs when the posse comes together.

One can hardly imagine the challenge that the actors face in trying to play the Peanuts characters without betraying the fans that they have amassed over the last 50 years. Nevertheless, the cast members did a brilliant job of breathing life into each of these popular icons.

Sara Friedlander's '05 adaptation of Lucy's high-strung, crabby character scored high with the audience and Elliott Veloso '05 rendered a very agitated Schroeder that complimented Lucy's bubbly personality. Stephanie Tuck '06 portrayed a very credible version of Sally, providing an interesting combination of nonsensical rationalism, while Jacob Baron's '06 Linus was endearingly babyish. Also, Matthew Gertz '06 did a wonderful delivery of Snoopy, as the self-important dog who wants to spice up his mundane canine life by flying as well as eating out of his yellow water dish.

Interestingly, Joshua Simmons '06, who played the eminent loser Charlie Brown, did not get as much appreciation as he deserved. Although the play is named after him, his self-esteem issues are outweighed by Sally's knotty jump-rope and Lucy's romantic obsession with Schroeder. Joshua's portrayal of Charlie Brown as the unfortunate reject was extremely persuasive.

The set and costume design completed the performance and completely transformed the Carl J. Shapiro Theater into the world of Charlie Brown & Co. The two-dimensional cut-outs of the school, Snoopy's doghouse, and Lucy's psychiatric help booth combined with the characters' signature outfits (from Charlie Brown's yellow zigzag T-shirt to Sally's pink polka dot dress) encouraged the audience to put their imaginations at rest.

As they sing in "The Baseball Game," the troupe proved that they are indeed the best team. The orchestra did a commendable job of delivering the musical score, and the choreography made the show a truly entertaining piece. "My Blanket and Me" was particularly enchanting, with synchronized blanket tosses and some Gene Kelly moves. After the first title song, each player was afforded a chance to display his or her solo skills.

It is slightly confusing that the musical starts with the acclamation of Charlie Brown, for Charlie continues to be overlooked by his friends for the remainder of the show. Had the musical ended with this song, the statement that Charlie Brown is indeed a good man would resonate with more conviction.

Nevertheless, the last song, "Happiness," does make up for any sense of doubt and ends the story on a friendly, heartening note. Although we do not see Charlie overcome his insecurities, one is almost certain that one day, the wind will help him to fly his kite, or that the red-haired girl will sit down next to him for lunch.

The unique mlange of the comic strip with the musical makes "You're a Good Man Charlie Brown" a memorable performance for people of all ages. If one looks beyond the trivial nature of these children's traumas, one will understand that adults do not have monopoly over life's problems.

Sally's belief that her life is a Shakespearean tragedy, which is formed by her dropping of an ice cream cone, makes anyone in the audience think twice about some of the marginal problems upon which we dwell. These children may shop in the kids' department but their dreams are larger than adult-size.

"You're A Good Man Charlie Brown" will be playing Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. in the

Carl J. Shapiro Theater.