I caught the national tour in Durham last night.
I actually did read the original novel during my senior year of high school… and I really didn’t get it. I know I’m not alone in that as most teenagers tend to find The Great Gatsby dull, slow, and difficult to relate to. Shortly thereafter, I did catch up with two of the five film adaptations from 1974 and 2013, respectively. Neither of them managed to win me over.
Under Marc Bruni’s direction, he most certainly pulls off such a lavish production. There’s especially a lot to like about Paul Tate DePoo III’s visuals. His physical sets are quite elaborate while his projections are so dazzling to behold. There’s elegant lighting work courtesy of Cory Pattak. Linda Cho pulls off some very attractive costumes. The choreography by Dominique Kelley has quite a bit of style, including an impressive tap number in Act II.
Several of the performances deliver the goods. Whatever problems some may have with the title character (more on that later), Jake David Smith proves to be quite charismatic as Jay Gatsby. He shares compelling onstage chemistry with Senzel Ahmady as Daisy Buchanan. The latter of whom is very good in the role with such an impressive set of vocal pipes. Joshua Grosso does a pretty humble job as Nick Carraway. Leanne Robinson as Jordan Baker really blows the roof off with not just her voice, but also her sense of humor. Will Branner is excellent as Tom Buchanan. Lila Coogan proves to be quite a burst of energy as Myrtle Wilson.
I've always found Jason Howland's score with Mindi Dickstein for Little Women to be pretty underrated. His work with Nathan Tysen here successfully feels evocative of the 1920s. There’s a couple of power ballads such as the Act I finale, ‘My Green Light,’ and Gatsby’s big solo number in Act II, ‘Past Is Catching Up to Me.’ While they are pleasing to the ears, they also don’t match the musical tone with the rest of the score.
Time for the biggest question of all, how do I feel about this story now? While it most certainly has moments of comic relief and emotional catharsis, I still struggle to relate to the whole thing. It especially doesn’t help that several of the characters, including Gatsby himself, come off as rather unlikable. I’m not opposed to unlikable characters, just as long they at least feel sympathetic. Whether these particular characters have sympathy or not, they still prove to be too difficult to care for. Not to mention that for a musical, this appears to lack an active protagonist, a similar criticism I had with The Outsiders. It especially doesn’t help that Gatsby doesn’t show up until about 20 minutes in.
The novel has notoriously been considered a challenge to adapt to other mediums. Neither of its five movie versions were necessarily well regarded, with many feeling that the filmmakers struggle balancing out the “glitz and glamour” of the parties with the harsh, cynical critique of the 1920s. It’s also worth noting that in the novel, it’s all told through Nick’s introspective voice, which encourages an individual imagination for the reader. Easy to see how that makes it hard to translate as well as how the story is probably better left as a novel.
Although if I were giving notes to book writer Kait Kerrigan during the development process, this is what I’d suggest. Take a page out of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita and Sunset Boulevard. Mainly in how both musicals start at the very end, create intrigue for the audience regarding what happened, and have a singular narrator (which in this case, would be Nick) take the story back to the beginning. To me, that would’ve made for a more fascinating way in for this musical. Fans of the source material may not be entirely on board with that approach, but the novel will always be around. It’s not like the creative team would be erasing it from existence or anything like that at all.
Overall, there are aspects to like about The Great Gatsby. The spectacle of it all certainly makes me wish I could travel to the 1920s for the culture, clothing, and music. The performances certainly keep things afloat no matter how unlikable most of their characters are. I’m honestly not surprised by the mixed reception this received in New York upon opening. I will say that I did enjoy this more than what I remember of the novel. At best, I would give this a mild recommendation. I just wish I connected to the story more.
Click Here for My Full Review
Updated On: 5/8/26 at 11:23 AM
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