By Christopher Heide
Two magic-themed musicals debuted this week within Seattle’s rich performing arts culture. Pippin, which is on a limited one-week run at the Paramount and Matilda, which just began a three week engagement at the 5th Avenue Theatre, are both visually stimulating productions. However, the execution of the two shows marked a noticeable disparity. Whereas Pippin was a tightly executed performance, Matilda was marred by a lagging story and technical difficulties.