Sometimes you can't help but be delighted by spectacle, especially when there's a talent at the center of it that deserves to carry a full Broadway tour on her back. The story of 42nd Street is dog-eared; it's 1933, and Peggy, just in from Allentown, lands a chorus part in her first audition (with help from wolfish tenor and "juvenile lead" Billy Lawlor) on the big blockbuster musical directed by impresario Julian Marsh. When the big star, the catty and self-inflated Dorothy Brock, cannot perform, the cast and crew beg Peggy to save the day and learn the show in 36 hours. When it premiered in 1980, producer David Merrick originally listed writer's Michael Stewart and Mark Bramble with the demeaning "Cross-overs and Lead-ins by," which gives you an idea how much the actual plot matters. It's just cute and cohesive enough to carry the show from one eye-catching musical number to the next. This touring production of 42nd Street has a lot of the flash and dazzle you need, and a soup kitchen-full of talented dancers and singers, but what makes this evening zoom into the stratosphere is the amazing work by Shannon O'Bryan as star-in-the-making Peggy.

This production is directed by playwright Bramble and enhanced with new choreography by Randy Skinner that uses as its base the last creation of Director/Choreographer Gower Champion (who died the afternoon of its original opening night). It is packed with amazing hoofing, grand and glorious numbers, and an earnestness that saves this show from becoming unbearably kitschy. This total belief in the material by the performers makes this production succeed, such as being able to deliver lines like "You're going out there a youngster, but you're coming back a star," as Julian Marsh (a strong-voiced and commanding Daren Kelly) must do with a straight face.

Ms. O'Bryan is a treat, as are many others that share the stage with her. A true triple threat, she believably transforms herself into the loveable innocent, taps out number after number like a crazed Teletype machine, and sings excellently. Plenty more in the cast are not slouches, either, as this is a top-drawer tour. Marcy McGuigan's Dorothy is a star just about to pass from her prime, but she shows what it is that got Dorothy where she is when she melts into such ballads as "I Only Have Eyes for You." Robert Spring's Billy is at his best when highlighting his pipes and taps. The hilarious comedic duo of Tina Johnson and Michael Fitzpatrick are timing personified as songwriters Maggie and Bert. The endless kaleidoscopic collection of beautiful chorines and their dandies are in perfect synch during such extravagant numbers as "Lullaby of Broadway," "Shuffle Off to Buffalo," and "We're in the Money."

I often complain that some Broadway touring shows are filled with also-rans who seem tired and don't really care about the material. I didn't sense that with this bunch, who sold and sold and sold the show like it was their first day on the road.

For a tour, Douglas W. Schmidt's set appears to be in pretty good shape, and creates as much spectacle as possible for a scenic design that must fit in the back of a truck every week. Roger Kirk's costumes are a colorful examination of the early 30s styles, while Paul Gallo's lights capture every mood, from the glare of work lights on a bare stage to the blue moonlight of a rooftop nightclub in Philly. Jeff Rizzo conducts a powerful orchestra.

Technically, it's Kelly and McGuigan's show, as the two veterans are the featured players, and while they're definitely great performers, I can't help but smile as I conjecture that Ms. O'Bryan's reality mirrors that of her character: she enters a youngster, but she takes her bows as a star.