Review: The Great Gatsby, Golden Goose Theatre

Such imaginative touches make this an entertaining and engaging take on The Great Gatsby at the Golden Goose Theatre

“There was something gorgeous about him”

Adapted and directed for the stage by Leopold Benedict for ADGE, this swinging, pocket-sized adaptation of The Great Gatsby arrives at the Golden Goose Theatre after touring much of Eastern Europe. Marking the 100th anniversary of the publication of F Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, its evocation of the American Dream ruined by greed and deceit somehow still manages to have resonance in this day and age, now even more than ever one might argue.

With a neatly abridged version of the text and a hard-working, multi-roling company of seven, Benedict’s production has a real effervescence about it, a charming lightness of touch that does much to win over its audience. Imaginative directorial flourishes such as the classic film effects, period song and dance routines, party shenanigans that stretch out into the audience, the straw boaters, the kazoos! When doing something different, this really is the cat’s pyjamas. 

With so much else going on, a little more work is needed in the straighter book scenes, which occasionally have a tendency to fall a little flat by comparison. Alex Figueiredo’s Nick Carraway acts as the narrator and our entry point into the hedonistic world of 1920s New York in all its dazzle and danger, watching on as his man-crush Jay Gatsby fritters his millions on buying mansions and throwing parties to attract the fragrant Daisy while her husband is off with his bit on the side. 

The multi-roling is impressive but without prior knowledge of the story, I wonder if the fast pacing and number of characters might be a little overwhelming. For the most powerful moments come when things slow down – an early stamp of historical marking, a shocking flash of violence that stops everything – these are the times when this production really engages with its source material to suggest why it remains so popular. A few more of these and it’ll be the bee’s knees.

Running time: 85 minutes (without interval)
Photo: Leopold Benedict
The Great Gatsby is booking at the Golden Goose Theatre until 11th January

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