The Great Gatsby Review (London Coliseum)

15 April 2025 I 19:30 I London Coliseum

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The trending musical adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby has finally reached UK shores, as audiences are graced with lavish, luxurious and sophisticated visions of excellence. A Broadway transfer that boasts enormity, the London Coliseum hosts a theatre spectacular of epic proportions, a mesmerising feat to guarantee a magical experience. Jay Gatsby invites you to the party of the century, and it would be foolish not to accept.

Reported through the eyes of morally upstanding Nick Carraway, The Great Gatsby is a treacherous love tale amidst the Jazz Age of New York. Daisy and Tom Buchanan are confined in a faithless marriage. Although, when the lucky citizens of East Egg receive an invitation to a mysterious millionaire's mansion across the Sound, Daisy's past love is rekindled with the host of the party, Jay Gatsby. In West Egg, wealth is everything, as Jay exploits his paradise to solicit an affair and seek eternal love with Daisy.

Visually, this production will knock the wind out of you, animating the grand materialism of the American Dream. Paul Tate dePoo III's scenic design is otherworldly, a multi-dimensional and expansive set able to maintain intimacy where appropriate. His video designs are inventive and original, finding subtleties that allow the action to travel... and even disappear! Every detail has been considered, from the bubbles that emerge from the stage-front swimming pool, to car wheel projections to simulate movement. The ingenuity allows the inner theatre kid to scream with excitement!

It is phenomenally rare for an opening scene to garner such a strong emotional reaction, however as Roaring On hits the stage, it brings a tear to my eyes. Ahead of seeing The Great Gatsby, this song was one of the only numbers I had been familiar with. You have a vision, a set of expectations as you prepare to witness it live. I had immensely high hopes, but from the first five minutes, the production exceeds its preconceptions tenfold. As a musical, its identity is highly assured, aesthetically understanding of what it needs to achieve.

A terrifically vibrant ensemble thrive through Dominique Kelley's choreography. Roaring On's movement is designed to establish a powerful pace, where a swirling band of party-goers become increasingly drunk, a state hypnotised by wealth. Where this could easily lose precision, Kelley's vision goes beyond dance, bodies each holding thematic intention and purpose. Standout moments are plentiful, from New Money's viral, monumental choreo that brings the house down to delightfully chic tap sequences.

Jill Green's casting is hugely admirable, removing the need for stunt casting to provide pure West End excellence. Jamie Muscato and Frances Mayli McCann are a heavenly match as Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan. Muscato's Gatsby is greatly likeable despite an initial hard-shelled exterior. We see his vulnerability and awkwardness arise through Kait Kerrigan's book, endowing a redeemability to his character. McCann is a truly formidable actress, able to captivate over 2,000 people with such delicate emotivity. In Beautiful Little Fool, you could hear a pin drop in an entranced audience. The pair's solo (and duet!) work is sublime vocal perfection to make you melt in your seat.

Nick Carraway anchors the narrative, facilitating love affairs as Corbin Bleu enacts the trustworthy narrator. He is adorably innocent, often put into uncomfortable situations where Bleu's acting expertise shines, soon forming an investing relationship with Jordan Baker. Amber Davies' Jordan quickly asserts herself as the audience favourite, impressing with quick wit and confidence. When New Money begins, prepare to witness the queen of the London Coliseum and fall in love!

Jon Robyns' antagonising role as Tom Buchanan is discernibly dislikeable in the right places. Not overbearing to become a caricature, rather taking on a non-glamour personification of old money and its connotations of entitlement. Rachel Tucker upholds her legendary musical status through Myrtle, where her rendition of One-Way Road is worth a ticket alone! Expect the applause to be one of the loudest you will hear in the West End!

With new music and lyrics from Jason Howland and Nathan Tysen, The Great Gatsby is jam-packed with frightfully good earworms! I listen to the (Broadway) soundtrack while writing this review, and I get waves upon waves of goosebumps as I remember back to this experience. Final mentions must be rewarded to Linda Cho's glitzy, period refined costume designs that leave me asking how I can own all of them?! And Chris Ma leads a decadent 18-piece orchestra, only fit for one of Jay Gatsby's parties!

If you have made it through my review, I can only apologise for the overly-enthusiastic language and the amount of exclamation marks used! In purely impeccable form, The Great Gatsby is exquisite theatre. Truly the hottest ticket in town. As you enter an auditorium projected with the water of the New York Sound, expect to be treated as the VIP guest at the party, a divine team that will not disappoint. On London's biggest stage, tickets can be pricey. But with an extensive budget and Marc Bruni's majorly impressive vision, I couldn't recommend The Great Gatsby enough!

Joining with Jamie Lloyd's Sunset Boulevard, this is the BEST production I have seen, and will ever see in my lifetime. Do NOT miss this limited transfer!!

https://londongatsby.com/