Marc Bruni’s musical adaptation is a shimmering, spangled, and frankly masterful display of opulence, one that perfectly emulates the lavish lives of the nouveau riches who inhabit Gatsby’s world.
Its colours, costume and, well, vibes were immaculate – as fizzy and effervescent as a glass of champagne – owing mainly to an exceptional ensemble who twirled, pulsed and Charlestoned across the stage like the careless group of partygoers they were undoubtedly supposed to be.
A huge moment of applause for both choreographer Dominique Kelley and costume designer Linda Cho who made up a huge part of the show’s glitzy appeal – it wasn’t hard to see why her efforts on Broadway earned her a Tony.
But, out of the principal cast, the biggest highlight for me came from High School Musical actor Corbin Bleu as Nick Carraway. Despite Nick’s role as a narrator being somewhat reduced in stage form, Bleu felt absolutely central and carried the entirety of his journey with gravitas and grace. We got to see his move from naivety to being sucked in by the glittering party lifestyle and subsequently being shoved back out again by the show’s tragic events. Ultimately, he held the show’s moral message on his shoulders and nailed it.
Completing the main four was Frances Mayli McCann, who was on-point with Daisy Buchanan’s complex behaviours – foamy and frivolous in one moment, but burdened and grief-stricken in the next – and Jamie Muscato as Gatsby himself.
This is where a few of the musical’s issues come in. It seems that, much like the character of Gatsby himself, stripping away a lot of the glitz and glamour left a hollow space underneath. Despite the many discussions and songs about “new money”, and the attention given to characters George and Myrtle Wilson – gorgeously played by Joel Montague and Rachel Tucker – the show did little more than glance over the deeper themes such as class and perception.
The first act was especially guilty of this. Thanks to a string of fairly unmemorable songs, the musical was more Gatsby paint-by-numbers than Gatsby work of art, as it failed to really push into what makes the book and its namesake so mythical. Perhaps a bit more dialogue was needed and a few more pauses on the action to look inward.
This was, however, much improved on in the second act. As Tom Buchanan’s brutish nature and snobbery comes to the fore, we get much more into the weeds of arguments around money and so-called breeding. Plus, we see the impossible choices faced by women at this time.
Gatsby’s death – spoiler alert, I guess? – is sudden and unsatisfying in the best way and the fact we see his party-goers simply giggle, gossip and move on afterwards perfectly shows how fake and meaningless it all was.
This all culminates very neatly with a return of the opening number, a chilling image of Gatsby looking out across the dock, and a promise from Nick to keep the party “rolling on.” And so it will night after night at the West End…
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When and where can I see The Great Gatsby Musical?
The musical is running at London’s Coliseum from 11th April to 7th September 2025, with shows every Wednesday to Monday.
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