Written by Laura for Theatre and Tonic

Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review. All views are our own

Enric Gasa Valga brings a new version of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, completely different from the Broadway or West End productions. It has an original twist: the whole story is told through dancing, at the rhythm of live jazz songs by artists like Nina Simone, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, or Louis Armstrong.

The Enrique Gasa Valga Dance Company performed a visually engaging contemporary dance, mixing more modern movements with a vintage aesthetic. I am not very well versed in dance-based shows, but I did find the choreography striking; there were some back-to-back “duets” that I thought perhaps were a bit repetitive, but overall, I found the performance engaging. I will admit I kind of expected a big tap dance number that never came, though! I’d like to highlight Matthew Humphreys as Nick Carraway especially.

The costumes, designed by Birgit Edelbauer-Heiss were gorgeous, opulent and showy, while not restricting the dancers’ movement.

One of the highlights of the show was the live band, with a rich vocal performance by Greta Marcolongo, who got perhaps the biggest applause of all. The whole band was remarkable. Locke Venturato as Gatsby was the only other character who sang, and he did so flawlessly while performing intricate choreography.

The use of well-known jazz standards was interesting, as they were instantly recognisable, but they didn’t really serve the narrative, as the lyrics are quite generic.

I have to admit that I’m not very familiar with the book or its plot. Therefore, I found myself quite lost and unable to follow the plot of the show. The fact that there is no type of speaking or setting of the scenes or characters made it very hard to follow. It was still enjoyable, but I would have appreciated some more context.

Overall, this original Gatsby was a different and entertaining experience, although perhaps a bit hard to follow for those not very well-versed in the story.

El Gran Gatsby has had a very limited run, however you can have a look at the company’s future projects on their website.

★★★

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