The Great Gatsby at the Alhambra Theatre, Bradford Review
The Great Gatsby
by The Northern Ballet
Alhambra Theatre, Bradford
11-15 November 2014
Reviewed by Rachel Legg
I had the privilege of attending a performance of The Great Gatsby by the Northern Ballet at the Alhambra Theatre in Bradford last night. I will be honest and say straightaway that I am not an experienced ballet aficionado however I thoroughly enjoyed the evening. The ballet is a beautiful interpretation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel and evokes both the spirit of the novel as well as the era in which it is set. 1920s America is an iconic period and the ballet captures this perfectly aided by superb costumes, set, choreography and music. The music is brilliant throughout the whole piece, the Northern Ballet Sinfonia under musical director John Pryce-Jones performed with skill and flair the score written by Sir Richard Rodney Bennett. The set is simple but incredibly effective and the simplicity adds to the ballet as it allows the dancers to be centre stage and for the music and dance to create the atmosphere.
The ballet is fairly fast moving and I would definitely recommend reading the synopsis in the programme if you are not very familiar with the novel as it does provide a degree of clarification. The dancers of the Northern Ballet were superb, the principles were all excellent, particularly Tobias Batley as Gatsby, Kenneth Tindall who gave a powerful and at times frightening performance as Tom Buchanan and Martha Leebolt who played Daisy, Tom’s wife and Gatsby’s love interest. The dancers manage to portray a complete spectrum of emotions, from passionate and tender duets to riotous parties to fairly sinister meetings with flare, and make what surely have to be incredibly difficult moves and lifts seem truly effortless. The chorus numbers, especially the dances set in Gatsby’s mansion were brilliant I loved both the Charleston and Tango pieces and thought some of the more unusual dances, such as Isaac Lee-Baker’s portrayal of George, were particularly effective.
All in all this was a thoroughly enjoyable evening, the mixture of 1920s music, fantastic costumes and superlative dance makes for a really good evening out, even if you are not normally a ballet fan.
Rating: 5/5 
Tickets cost from £13.50 to £33.50
The Great Gatsby is at the Alhambra Theatre, Bradford until 15 November 2014. For more information or to book tickets click here or call the box office on 01274 432000.
The Alhambra Theatre, Morley Street, Bradford, BD7 1AJ | Box Office 01274 432000
