There might be a Broadway musical somewhere inside “Cagney,” which is currently playing at Pioneer Theatre Company. But maybe not.
The producers of the show — book by Peter Colley, music and lyrics by Robert Creighton and Christopher McGovern — have ambitions to take it to the Great White Way. But they’ve got a lot of work to do to turn what’s sort of a muddled mess into a tight and engaging production that anyone will pay Broadway prices to see.
“Cagney” wasn't terrible. But if it's worth the $45-$68 PTC is charging for tickets, that's almost entirely because of the second-act tap dancing numbers, which brought a somnambulant audience to life with an explosion of sequins and high-energy footwork.