After The Applause

The party truly is roaring on at the London Coliseum with this vibrant new musical, bound to be a hit!

The Great Gatsby is a classic novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald and set in the vibrant Long Island in the Summer of 1922. This era was full of economic prosperity, jazz and a whole lot of partying and this novel is a beautiful love story mixed with murder and passion. Sounds like the perfect setting for a musical doesn’t it?

I am delighted to say that it really does hit all the marks for a new musical and will certainly cement itself in the West End with its catchy yet emotional songs, and beautiful set and costume design!

I do believe that the top thing a musical needs is a juicy story that it can expand and explain through the form of song, and The Great Gatsby certainly has that. The opening number ‘Roaring On’ introduces us to our narrator Nick Carraway, the charismatic and quiet yet charming neighbour of millionaire Jay Gatsby, whilst also summarising and displaying a rough picture of the 1920s in America. The music by Jason Howland is terrifically composed with rasps of brass and tinkles of piano to evoke a true jazzy spirit and the lyrics by Nathan Tysen are wonderfully used to keep the story constantly trooping forward. The main characters are all given motifs, and styles of song that they sing which become recognisable and important as the story unravels. For example they manage to sum up the character of Meyer Wolfsheim, an underworld gangster, in one simple song entitled ‘shady’.

The set is bold and dazzling designed by Paul Tate dePoo III. Large pieces are rolled on and off the stage to give the feeling of moving, such as cars and huge glittery gates that float on and off the stage. There is a real sense of grandeur in the whole set which really does sum up the sentiment of the story and musical. It is grand and larger than life, which in musical theatre is always the rule, the larger the better and it really does work for The Great Gatsby.

I think The London Coliseum was the perfect arena to place this musical in, it is a large spacer that has the ability to be personalised and decorated so when I arrived in the Upper Circle it felt as though I was walking into 1920s America, a nice and immersive touch that made my viewing experience even better – take note Evita! (review coming soon…).

I normally hate musicals books (the script) however for some reason Kait Kerrigan’s was actually really impressive. I thought she managed to add a lot of depth to the characters which most musicals often miss out on. I do wish we had got to discover the characters of Meyer Wolfsheim and George Wilson a little more. I thought they had certainly deserved more presence within the script but were missed out on in place of another song. Kerrigan’s script is stereotypical and sometimes cheesy but it really works and I actually don’t mind it. It discovers and unravels the main plot points impressively for a musical and I did really enjoy the scenes with no songs as much as I loved the numbers!

The story is about a party that the millionaire Jay Gatsby organises in order to find his wartime love Daisy Buchanan, cousin of our narrator Carraway, and recently married to the abusive Tom Buchanan. At that party affairs are revealed, tensions reach the max and at the end of the night a murder is committed (I won’t reveal the whole plot because I found it really gripping!). The cast were lead by our two estranged lovers Jay Gatsby, played and sung fantastically by Jamie Mascato, a west end veteran whose rendition of ‘The Past is Catching Up to me’ earned him a well deserved lengthy applause, and Daisy, played with love and confusion by Frances Mayli McCann. Their chemistry was the centrepiece and it was just amazing to watch them on stage and both their voices combined so well and they received the loudest applause of the night in the bows at the end as they were both the cherry on the top of this spectacular spectacle. I loved the rest of our main cast, especially Corbin Bleu as the cheeky Carraway and his lover Jordan Baker played by the sassy Amber Davies who made me want to get out my seat and dance in the showstopper ‘New Money’. Joel Montague plays the rough and tender mechanic George Wilson who fights to salvage his marriage with the greedy and flirtatious Myrtle Wilson played with fire and ambition by Rachel Tucker. Tucker was really suited to this role and her and Montague’s chemistry was perfect for the context, as were all the couples in this play!

The rest of the ensemble cast were also great, they backed every song with guts and razzmatazz and they embodied the energetic choreography by Dominique Kelly and re-enacted the noisy streets of Long Island under the direction of Marc Bruni. Bravo to them all!

MY VERDICT:

The Great Gatsby musical is a whole load of fun and it is interesting and appropriate for all ages, with music that will make you tap your feet and want to get out of your seat. I think it has all the ingredients for a hit whilst still packing a punchy and interesting storyline that will never have you bored. Whilst a lot of the detail of the characters is substituted for songs, there is still a profound sense of connection between the audience and the character which I think is rare for a musical.

The music captures the feel of the 1920s, as does the set, the costume, the lighting and the cast, even the theatre itself is transported back to the 1920s making you feel immersed no matter where you are in the theatre!

I found this production fun and exciting, and would recommend if you are looking for a show that is energetic, easy to watch and just enjoyable in general. Go for the vocals and music and leave feeling as if you’ve left one of Jay Gatsby’s lavish parties in Long Island!