There's only so much talent can do.

Talent abounds in Tacoma Musical Playhouse's production of Little Women. Singing talent in particular.

But, well, if there were ever a novel that didn't need to be made into a musical, this would be up there on my list.

I'm not a Little Women aficionado, but it seems safe to assume Louisa May Alcott's novel deals largely in a portrayal of the relationships and character of the four sisters, as demonstrated by a series of events throughout the course of their young lives.

I assume this because the musical version seems to hit all the plot points with none of the character development, relationship building or substance, and I can't imagine that's all there is to it. A book that runs like this would never have made it to such long-lived classic status.

Rather than a focus on the heart behind the story, we get a rush job. The writers in a room, saying, "Alright, we need just need one scene for everything. One scene to show that they're a little poor, one scene to show that Amy is self-absorbed, one scene to show Beth is a musician. Whoops, we forgot to show Jo and Beth's relationship. Well, we can cram that in here at the end. Don't have time for a plot point? Well, we'll just explain it afterward."

The thing is, there was plenty to like on stage at TMP. Brynne Giszler is clearly having way too much fun as the central Jo March. Bryan Gula was well-suited as her early foil, Laurie Laurence. Tacoma mainstay Sharry O'Hare was thoroughly entertaining as the stuffy and snarky Aunt March. The set design was uncomplicated but effective, rotating into a number of different configurations. And most of the singing voices were at the top notch of Tacoma community theater.

Unfortunately, for all the talent on display, they were still doing a musical adaptation of Little Women, and there is only so much you can do to rescue a show from such a fate. A book about four women growing toward adulthood, and the changes that gradually affect their lives, is distilled into a play in which some things happen, people change suddenly and, for no apparent reason, there are some weddings ... the end.

[Tacoma Musical Playhouse, Little Women, through Oct. 16, 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, $20-$27, 7116 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.565.6867]