THE BABE RUTH BALLET SCHOOL

This droll debut by Shortt tells the story of the friendship between baseball's greatest slugger, Babe Ruth, and Issy Archer, the nine-year-old spitball-hurling whiz of the 1923 Yankees. Never were two players closer, but Issy has a secret: She wants to be a dancer. Her lessons cut into her out-of-ballpark time with Babe, and he feels left out. When she reveals her secret (""since you can't live without knowing""), Babe joins her at dance practice, and even performs some fancy footwork for the public. Years later, Issy teaches at a Parisian dance school, Le Corps de Ballet de Babe Ruth. Shortt melds light drama to crisp humor and graces the whole production with caricatures of Yankee greats. Beyond the Ty Cobb and Joe Dugan look-alikes, though, is a breezy story of the staunchness of friendship with all its glories and unintended hurts.