In this adaptation of F Scott Fitzgerald's beloved story set in the glamorous roaring 20s, Nick Carraway meets the enigmatic Jay Gatsby who hosts lavish parties but no one seems to know very well. Nick's cousin Daisy knows Gatsby of old, and when the two reunite it can only spell trouble as Daisy's overbearing and abusive husband Tom is not one to be crossed. The story plays out almost exactly as is written in the original text, but with one notable exception: our Gatsby is a woman.
Unfortunately, though billed as a "bold and new" adaptation, little can be said to support a claim for either. There is a confusing addition of a doctor speaking to Nick, who appears every so often to allow for more narration but seemingly serves no other purpose. Making Gatsby female is certainly a change, but the writing then doesn't do anything to make this an interesting element of the story as a whole. Emily Serdahl certainly does a marvellous job embodying the mysterious titular character, shining in a particular moment of confrontation as she is backed into a literal corner by her adversary, but such a subversive change - incredibly appropriate for a story set in an age of women starting to take up more space - becomes little more than an aesthetic one in this piece.
Other pleasing performances come from Xoan Elsdon as Meyer Wolfsheim and Flynn Hallman as Chester and Mr Gatz - both actors are clearly very gifted and don't receive nearly enough stage time. But the star of this show - and, in fact, its primary redeeming quality - is Ethan Bareham as our narrator, Nick Carraway. With little to work with in the material - so many interesting questions about Carraway's own biases and hypocracy are left entirely unexplored - Bareham commands the audience beautifully and navigates the complex role of both subject and story-teller with brilliant panache - certainly a name to look out for in the coming years!
The rest of the cast offer a mixed range of talent, with no interesting characterisation to be found at all (perhaps an issue with direction) so we are very rarely invested in any of the action on stage. Staged in the round, often performers cannot be heard or are whispering in the background of other scenes so become hugely distracting. This staging continues to provide problems as actors move up the steps into the audience, a nice idea but when we cannot see important action points it becomes incredibly frustrating. Stage combat is always feeble, on one occasion comically unrealistic, and the movement pieces littered throughout - with the exception of one very well-done creation of a car (though not the indulgent and cringe-inducing aftermath of the crash) - are all far too long and a little messy.
The set design (Jak Spencer) has some truly lovely elements, in particular the miniaturised billboard of Doctor T. J. Eckleburg's ever-present eyes, though we just wish for more from this setting which is meant to be so uniquely glamourous. Indeed, this glamour is something that's largely missing from the piece, both in aesthetic and energy. Many of the performers don't look comfortable on stage, and that discomfort makes its way into the audience. In a production so centred around the desire to be brought into the crowd, we feel decidedly separate from the action and the characters.
A fairly surface-level adaptation of the classic novel with a few charming performances, The Great Gatsby runs at The Cockpit until 14th December.
Review: Penny Lane Photos: Jenn Webb