The Wardrobe Ensemble and The Wardrobe Theatre’s co-production has been adapted from the American novel by F Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby and is now playing as part of the online Brighton Fringe.
Tamsin Hurtado Clarke and Jesse Meadows bring to life the classic story of the flamboyant self-made millionaire Jay Gatsby and his friend Nick Carraway in this two person’s performance. The rich depth of the storyline is bought to life by their brilliant performances.
Without the aid of a big-budget set, lavish costumes or a large cast which are familiar with previous adaptations of The Great Gatsby, the audience can focus primarily on the storyline without other characters distracting them. In my opinion, I prefer this style of adaptation as a smaller accomplished cast can bring far more depth and life into a story.
Nick Carraway a young Batchelor is invited to a Long Island party hosted by the flamboyant self-made million, Jay Gatsby. The two strikes up an unlikely friendship, the two descend into an honest, intriguing and heartfelt trip down memory lane
Running for just under 1 hour and 40 minutes Clarke and Meadows’s performance was flawless. Both actors rose to this challenging lengthy in-depth depth script brilliantly and I can imagine it was incredibly demanding for them at times.
Director Tom Brennan overall has adopted a fresh approach to The Great Gatsby and without using grand props and period costumes allows the novel to be removed from its 1920’s setting and allows a new audience to appreciate the text in an impartial setting. This particular direction works extremely well front perspective, as I don’t necessarily want to always watch a production that is firmly placed in an historical context.
For performance details or to check out the companies involved please use the links below.
Four Stars
Photo credit to Jack Offord
The Wardrobe Theatre
https://www.thewardrobeensemble.com/
https://www.brightonfringe.org/whats-on/the-great-gatsby-153733/
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