Preview of Northern Ballet - The Great Gatsby at Milton Keynes Theatre
Coming the Milton Keynes Theatre next week is a return to the stage for the hit production The Great Gatsby brought to the stage by Northern Ballet. The production reaches Milton Keynes as part of its UK spring tour for 2022 which culminates in Cardiff in June. The production based on the novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald brings all the glamour and seduction of the roaring twenties to life and premiered in 2013 and which has now had three UK tours.
Set on New York’s Long Island, in the heady, indulgent days of the 1920s, Nick Carraway comes to know his infamous neighbour Jay Gatsby – a mysterious millionaire with a secret past and a penchant for lavish parties. As the sparkling façade of Gatsby’s world slips, Carraway comes to see the loneliness, obsession, and tragedy that lie beneath.
The Great Gatsby was nominated for a UK Theatre Award for Achievement in Dance. David Nixon OBE choreographed The Great Gatsby and earned a nomination for Best Classical Choreography in the 2014 National Dance Awards. Performed to the unforgettable music of Sir Richard Rodney Bennett CBE, which is played live by the Northern Ballet Sinfonia, The Great Gatsby also features a lavish set designed by Jérôme Kaplan, complemented by the dazzling colourful costumes designed by Nixon.
David Nixon said: “I’m delighted to be bringing The Great Gatsby, one of the Company’s most beloved productions back to the stage this Spring. Like many, I fell in love with Fitzgerald’s timeless novel at a young age and it continues to capture my imagination to this day. As a choreographer, I had always wanted to depict Gatsby’s tale of passion and obsession through ballet and in 2013, with the help of Patricia Doyle, it was a thrill to bring The Great Gatsby to life. The glamour of the 1920s lends itself beautifully to the stage with stunning costumes and Jérôme Kaplan’s expertly designed set that conjures an America as painted by Edward Hopper. Music by the late Sir Rodney Richard Bennett CBE completes the backdrop and transports the audience to an elusive time of lavish parties and prohibition. So much has changed since the ballet was last performed in 2019 including the addition of many new young dancers to the Company so I am looking forward to seeing them flourish with this repertoire.”
The Great Gatsby performs at Milton Keynes from Tuesday 24 to Saturday 28 May.
I have now written a little over two hundred and fifty reviews on this blog (yes I know, amazing. I am sorry). Most shows I have enjoyed, many I have given four star reviews, a good number have also got that lofty five stars from me. There is however hiding among them five star reviews, another tier of brilliance. One that lies in my head, where everything comes together to go beyond that five, but where I have nothing left to give. The play, the performances, the staging, and perhaps even more to elevate what is a personal opinion as a review, an actual personal emotional feeling or connection towards the piece. Featured: Boy (Tom Cocker), Trader (Greg Dallas) and Mum (Helen Gibb) Market Boy written by David Eldridge and performed by the Royal & Derngate Actors Company will (spoiler intended) receive five stars from me at the end of this review. However as that first paragraph suggests, this was one of those that went a little further for me. Set in what I happily claim a...
The musical Kinky Boots is perhaps the perfect show for the homegrown theatre group Northampton Musical Theatre Company to perform with the very core of the story bred within this very county. The tale of of Charlie Price and his encounter and unlikely partnership with a certain Lola is based on a true story of factory W. G. Brooks Ltd and the owner Steve Pateman. Back in 1999 his story of men and their wearing of shoes for women featured on a BBC documentary and this in turn inspired the 2005 film, Kinky Boots . Finally, in 2012, this musical adaptation of the story hit the stage, with a book by Harvey Fierstein and songs written by Cyndi Lauper. Longtime readers of my blog with good memories may remember that five years ago I reviewed the opening of the UK professional tour of Kinky Boots , also at the Royal & Derngate. While I enjoyed the show, I didn't give it the most favourable review. Five years on, and a second viewing, have I warmed to the charms of Charlie and Lola...
So, as December draws in, the world of theatre moves into panto season and first up this year is Castle Theatre’s production of Cinderella , and the deja vu world begins again and we are all crying “He’s behind you” and “Oh no you’re not” etc, etc. Perhaps it is reassuring in a world of change that pantomime land never changes. The jokes might get a little nudge, a few of the characterisations might change a bit, but you all know that we will have a split theatre singalong, a grand wedding at the end and a multitude of stuff you have seen year after year. Unlike many of the bigger theatres around the country, Castle Theatre, presents a pantomime with no “big name” from the showbiz world in sight, just great little stage performers, and how refreshing it is to see. No awkward bolted-on references to a star's normal day job, just more emphasis on fun characters and the usual sly references to the local towns and villages. That, in itself, is great to see. The title character is playe...
