Happy Monday, theatre friends!

Last week, I had the pleasure of seeing Broadway stars Jeremy Jordan and Eva Noblezada in Paper Mill Playhouse’s production of a new musical adaptation of The Great Gatsby. Paper Mill Playhouse is a well-respected regional theatre company in Millburn, New Jersey (an hour-ish outside of NYC). A bunch of Paper Mill shows have gone on to transfer to Broadway, including Newsies, Bandstand, and Honeymoon in Vegas. Jeremy and Eva are big Broadway names, and for good reason…so it’s safe to say I was excited for this one.

Now you may be thinking, “Haven’t we squeezed enough out of the Great Gatsby IP yet? Do we need a musical?” And to that I’d say: well, there are actually two separate Gatsby-inspired musicals being worked on right now – this one at Paper Mill, and another entitled “Gatsby” at the A.R.T. in Boston. So, apparently, no, we are not done yet.

These two productions are seemingly in a race to get to Broadway. The A.R.T. production is set to premiere in 2024, but from what I can gather, it’s going to be a very different interpretation. Paper Mill’s The Great Gatsby is glitzy, glamorous, and very Broadway…think Thoroughly Modern Millie or Some Like it Hot. The A.R.T.’s Gatsby is directed by Hadestown director Rachel Chavkin and the music is written by Florence Welch (of the band Florence + The Machine). I would venture to guess that the A.R.T.’s show will be darker, moodier…maybe have film noir vibes. This is purely speculative, as I have no insider information, at least that I can publicly share. (Wowee I’m so cool..or I was, until I said “wowee”).

Anyway, a lot of people in the theatre community are interested to see how the competing Gatsby matchup pans out, so this production had a lot of buzz surrounding it. In fact, it’s very much sold out for the rest of its run (though occasionally a pair of tickets are released as people cancel bookings).

The internet seems to be much harsher on The Great Gatsby musical than I would be, perhaps because expectations are high. And look, the show isn’t perfect, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Some of the symbolism and subtleties of the book are lost in the musical, but looking at the show as a stand-alone piece, it’s really quite enjoyable.

The Great Gatsby is fun and energetic, the set is absolutely gorgeous, there are some exciting lighting cues, and there are many excellent performances. I would dare to say that Jeremy Jordan and Eva Noblezada are two of the best live singers I’ve ever heard. They DELIVER, and are honestly worth seeing in any show. There were a few technical difficulty pauses during my performance, but even still, I had a blast. That being said, as this show is looking to transfer to Broadway, I have some thoughts. They’re shared with love:

1. The Mystery of Jay Gatsby: a lot of the book revolves around the question of “Who is Jay Gatsby?” He’s this illusive character that we never fully understand. In the musical, Jeremy Jordan (who plays Gatsby) literally opens the show, wearing the same outfit he wears during his “reveal” later on. I understand wanting to use Jeremy Jordan as much as possible because he’s incredible, but you lose that dramatic tension. I would probably have Nick Carraway (Noah J. Ricketts) open the show, and save Gatsby’s big reveal for 30-45 minutes into Act I.

Also, inherent to the musical art form, it’s hard to keep characters mysterious when they sing about their deepest hopes and fears. While I LOVE Jeremy Jordan’s voice (have I mentioned that enough times yet?), I’d probably suggest cutting his first ballad “For Her” so that the first time he sings about Daisy is later on in Act I, and then replace the For Her reprise in Act II with the full version (because it’s very pretty).

Finally, toward the end of the show, there’s supposed to be this huge discovery that Gatsby actually selected Nick to live in his home (as opposed to it all being a coincidence), and Nick is supposed to be all shocked and confused…this didn’t really work so well, because Gatsby pretty much spelled it out for Nick through song when they first met. Bring back the mystery!

2. Who is the narrator? The book is from the perspective of Nick; the musical doesn’t really have a definitive narrator. Sometimes it’s Nick, sometimes it’s not. This does mean that the writers can delve into the inner minds of side-characters like Myrtle (Sara Chase), but we lose a through-line holding the show together. Making Nick open and close the show may solve that.

3. Tonal shift from Act I to II: Act I is sweet and sincere, a classic star-crossed lovers plot. Daisy and Gatsby are destined to be together, but have been torn apart. Act II is darker and grittier, and moves at a faster pace. I really liked both acts for different reasons, and I don’t know if I minded too much that they were quite distinct from one another. Perhaps adding a couple of small darker moments to Act I as “hints” would help?

4. The music: some people online seem to think that the music isn’t memorable. I disagree. I quite liked the music (music by Jason Howland, lyrics by Nathan Tysen), even if it is a bit “musical theatre-y,” and there were many fantastic songs. I loved Gatsby’s ballads, I liked Myrtle’s solo, I liked the song “Sophisticated.” “Shady” was a lively way to open Act II. The show is long, though, so there are probably some songs that could be cut. I don’t know if Wilson needs 3 solo numbers, for example.

5. The death scenes: they are glorious dramatic masterpieces. The moving car with the headlights, the pool scene. The audience audibly gasped after each one. Change nothing.

6. Daisy: Eva Noblezada’s Daisy is less airy and flighty than previous iterations I’ve seen. Eva’s Daisy isn’t an ingenue – she’s smarter, more articulate, and has opinions of her own, even if she knows better than to act on them. I liked this choice, because it makes her final betrayal of Gatsby even more devastating.

7. The Costumes: the set and props are incredible, art-deco luxurious. This production cost over $20M, and it looks like it. I liked the costumes, but I could zhuzh them up a bit.

8. Sam Pauly: Sam plays Jordan Baker. I could do with some more Sam solos.

9. The end spotlights: I’m not sure how I feel about the Les Mis “Empty Chairs at Empty Tables” style reveal of all the characters at the end of the show.

All this being said, a show doesn’t need to be perfect for me to be fully entertained. I hope The Great Gatsby makes it to Broadway next season, as I would be curious to see what sort of changes they make. I’d also love to see two Gatsbys on Broadway at the same time..would make for a great Youtube documentary one day.

The Great Gatsby is playing at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, NJ until November 12, 2023. Whatever tickets are left can be purchased here.

Featured image: taken by me 🙂