Buffalo Theater: Shea’s extravaganza is a stagecraft marvel, but story struggles amid the songs

By Lona LaChiusa
(Image above, L-R: Joshua Grosso (Nick Carraway), Lila Coogan (Myrtle Wilson), Will Branner (Tom Buchanan) in the First National Touring Company of “The Great Gatsby.” Photo by Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade.)

Tackling what many might argue is the greatest American novel is no small task, so it is with an open mind that one should see The Great Gatsby, the national tour which is now playing at Shea’s Performing Arts Center through Sunday (Nov. 15).

The musical adaptation was commissioned in anticipation of the 1925 novel entering the public domain and successfully premiered at the Paper Mill Playhouse, opening on Broadway in April of 2024.

As a college student I picked up the novel on a whim,and initially felt disappointed by what I thought at the time was supposed to be an epic romance.  Like most high school students across America who read the novel in their junior year, I was not ready, maybe not jaded enough, for the scathing critique of the American Dream and the abuses by powerful people the novel represents.

The Great Gatsby musical seems to be a case where the medium is not the right fit for the message. The musical is “Gatsby-lite”—the highlight reel of a dark, powerful book without its nuance and ability to make the reader draw their own conclusions about the characters and their motivations once they sing it out loud. If you are looking for a doomed romance seen through a kaleidoscope you’ll get it, but not too much more.

The biggest problem with the show is that the music is almost entirely forgettable.  Replete with soaring pop ballads and upbeat production numbers, the songs attempt but do not add to the emotional life of these characters in a satisfying way. Fitzgerald’s gorgeous prose, when directly used as the lyrics to songs in the show, often sounds silly and trite, making the enigmatic Gatsby and calculated Daisy more romantic, genuine and sympathetic to the characters’ detriment. Even a shady character like Meyer Wolfsheim (played by Edward Staudenmayer) gets his own jazzy number, and this detracts instead of enhances his quiet, mysterious power over Gatsby.

It’s certainly not the fault of the cast. As Nick Carraway, Joshua Grosso strikes all the right notes as the audience’s moral compass.  A highlight moment is the sad yet comical number “The Met” where Nick’s mounting dislike of Tom Buchanan and growing fascination with Gatsby is fueled by close confines, horny neighbors and the desire to escape an alcohol binging sex party.

As Gatsby, Austin Colby is earnest and driven. In “Only Tea,” Gatsby nervously awaits Daisy’s arrival at Nick’s cottage, frantically preparing with flowers and tea before their awkward reunion, and Colby losing his cool as Gatsby is fun to watch. In “Made to Last“ during the sweltering afternoon confrontation at the Plaza Hotel, Gatsby demands Daisy say she never loved Tom.  

Colby, Grosso, as well as Senzel Ahmady as Daisy, Will Branner as Tom and Leanne Robinson as Jordan Baker, tear into the dramatic intensity of this moment, and the layered harmonies.

Sad sack cuckold George Wilson and his social climber wife Myrtle are played with appropriately raw desperation by Will Branner and Lila Coogan. A talented ensemble of singers and dancers fills out the rest of the cast, and the applause in the audience erupted during the tap number in Act 2.

By far the most exquisite element of the musical is the production design.  Paul Tate dePoo III’s set design is built as an intricate puzzle that blends massive physical structures with seamless digital projections and sets new standards for what scenery can accomplish. The digital projections and modular panels dance in rapid, breathtaking movement to transport the audience to nearly all of the iconic locations of the novel, like Nick’s cottage and the balcony of Gatsby’s mansion.

The 77th Tony Awards recognized Linda Cho’s designs with Best Costume Design in a Musical. The glitter and flapper era glam is beautifully represented, though Daisy’s signature white dress only appears at the end of the show in the curtain call.

If you have not read F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, please do so. It is more relevant than ever. If you’re looking for the CliffsNotes version in a shiny package, go see the musical.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

In conjunction with the musical, Shea’s has coordinated a “Speakeasy Trail” for this week.

There is also a study guide for the show for educators, connecting the musical to the book. You can find it HERE.