Review: THE GREAT GATSBY, Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre
Each summer, Chester’s Open Air Theatre in Grosvenor Park performs classic plays and musicals for audiences to enjoy. One of this summers shows is The Great Gatsby running until 27 August.
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel is set in America in 1922 and depicts Nick Carraway’s interactions with mysterious millionaire, Jay Gatsby. Nick acts as our narrator and guides us through a turmoil of events of the summer of 1922 whilst seeking his ‘American Dream.’
The novel has been adapted for stage several times and this production is set in-the-round in an impressive sort of amphitheatre, consistent with Chester’s Roman heritage. The unique venue sees families and friends enjoying picnics and wood fired pizzas in the grounds before taking their seats for an evening of theatre.
The Great Gatsby is synonymous with big lavish parties, incredible 1920’s charleston dancing, and glitz and glamour. This is what lets this production down slightly and is lacking. The audience are only able to distinguish where we are location wise as our narrator tells us, otherwise the piece would blur into one. We are told of the great lavish Gatsby party that everyone wants to attend but this takes the audience out of the moment as the set is the same as a court scene not long before. As very little changes set wise, it’s hard to visualise the luxurious nature of these parties when no props or set dressings are used.
Working in-the-round is never an easy task for those in the play, however the cast do their best to use the limited space. Appearing from all corners of the set, meandering through the audience, with some portraying more than one character, they do have a lot of ground to cover during the 2 hour 30 minute performance. Some of the cast join audience members in the crowd and at times, immerse selected individuals by bringing them up and teaching them a charleston - a lovely little touch.
A great feature of this unique venue is that every performance is captioned, which is a fantastic step in the right direction for greater accessibility for all. Due to the large outdoor space, including noises from the park, planes flying above as well as many corks popping and drinks flowing, it isn’t always clear what the actors are saying as their projection isn’t always loud enough to be heard. This production really could benefit from the use of microphones because as intimate as the space is, it is also large, vast and outdoors. If it was not for the captioning, we would have struggled to have followed the dialogue in the story, especially when actors have their backs towards the seats.
Thomas Cotran’s portrayal of Nick Carraway is a highlight of the piece. Nick initially appears before the play begins, welcoming the Chester crowd to the performance. Throughout the performance, he guides us through the story via flashbacks, confidently and barely leaving the stage. This guides the audience’s views of Jay Gatsby as it is told from Nick’s perspective. Cotran’s performance convinces us that he is a more thoughtful and genuine person compared to other characters in the piece.
A particular mention must go to Laure Jamieson who plays Tom Buchanan. Tom represents the worst aspects of the super rich in American society and emotes the intimating figure that he is. Whilst some of the main characters fade into the ensemble, a huge amount of respect must go to these determined individuals as they also play characters simultaneously in Shakespeare’s A Midsummers Night Dream at the venue during their run.
The majority of the supporting ensemble also play instruments live on stage. Sometimes on their dedicated pedestals and other times performing simple choreography in-the-round. Whilst we are transported through to the 20’s with lovely simple jazz numbers, the sound, at times, boards on too loud as dialogue is missed from the characters. Clearly talented musicians and vocalists, female members of the cast do a stellar job harmonising whilst the action played out, giving us silky smooth vintage vocals. As the evening drew in last night, the surrounding festoon of lights lit the stage and set the ambiance for the open air theatre.
Whilst there are many things to enjoy about this production of The Great Gatsby, more could be done to truly take us back to the classic time and era. The hard working cast deserve more and at a time when cost of theatre is rising, so do the audience. By putting on a well known novel and play, expectations are always going to be high and this production is more ‘good’ than Great Gatsby.
*** Three stars
Reviewed by: Jordan Potts
The Great Gatsby plays at Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre until 27 August, with further information here:
https://www.grosvenorparkopenairtheatre.co.uk/show/the-great-gatsby/