Build me a stairway to paradise! Welcome back the knockout stage adaptation of the 1951 Hollywood classic An American in Paris. Unveiled at the Théâtre du Châtelet on the Right Bank of the Seine in 2014, the show went on to a triumphant Broadway run at the Palace, collecting a half dozen Tony Awards. And now, here it is at the Grand Théâtre in Geneva, once the stronghold of John Calvin, today a world capital of international governance. How serendipitous! An American in Paris is a textbook case of entente cordiale. The project came together when producers from both sides of the Atlantic approached the Gershwin estate about rights to his music. Rather than go all zero-sum-game, they shook hands and reeled in a string of Gershwin hits that ranges from the infectious “I Got Rhythm” and “Fidgety Feet” to the dreamy “Liza” and “They Can’t Take That Away From Me.” Like the song list, the show is drop-dead stylish in every way, thanks to Christopher Wheeldon’s direction and choreography, Bob Crowley’s sets and costumes, and pitch-perfect script-doctoring by Craig (Invitation to a Kiss) Lucas. At the Châtelet and the Palace, Robert Fairchild (ex of the New York City Ballet) channeled the movie’s Gene Kelly alongside Leanne Cope (on leave from the Royal Ballet) in the part created by Leslie Caron. The Grand Théâtre isn’t naming names, simply promising “a cast of Broadway and West End artists.” Well, the talent pool in those places is fathomless. ♪ ♫ I’ve got beginner’s luck. The first time that I’m in love, I’m in love with you … ♫ —Matthew Gurewitsch