Opinion: “The Great Gatsby” musical misses the mark, too reliant on lead actor

Jeremy Jordan and Eva Noblezada play Gatsby and Daisy, respectively.

     As a diehard fan of both literature and musical theater, I was immediately drawn to the new musical adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby.” The iconic 1925 novel has inspired numerous reimaginings over the years, including six films and a graphic novel. I was eager to see how this latest version would compare, especially after reading the original book and watching the 2013 film adaptation. 

     However, after I began to listen, my excitement quickly wore off. 

    The new musical, retaining the same title as the novel, stars “Newsies” legend Jeremy Jordan in the role of Jay Gatsby and Eva Noblezada as Daisy Buchanan. While I highly commend the vocals, I found the music and lyrics to be lacking depth and sophistication expected from a Broadway show. The only standout is “Go,” a beautiful duet between Daisy and Gatsby, and “For Her,” a solo in which Jeremy Jordan shines brighter than any other moment in the show.

“The Great Gatsby” musical features a total of 23 songs.

     Something the show did right was introduce a nostalgic feel, reminiscent of “Bye Bye Birdie,” particularly with the number “Absolute Rose,” where Daisy introduces Jordan Baker to Nick. The set design was also visually stunning, with beautiful and elaborate set pieces. One of my favorite backdrops was the interior of Gatsby’s office, which was elegantly lit with both hanging and standing lanterns.

     A couple of these average songs may get stuck in your head, like “Shady” or “Only Tea” —- the latter in my case, though I believe that song has fabulous instrumentals that are off-put by the uninspired, lazy lyrics. Some numbers had excessive dialogue, such as “The Met,” and I felt “Roaring On” was a weak choice to open the show; the finale’s reprise of this song was even more dialogue-heavy, as if to recap the story by overexplaining.

     Some music selections did not stand out as much, like “Lah Dee Dah with You” and the Act One closer, “My Green Light.” A piece that was completely unnecessary was the penultimate song, “Beautiful Little Fool,” mainly because it rehashed dialogue from earlier in the story and offered exposition that did not add much value at that point in the narrative.

     Interestingly, this is not the first Broadway adaptation of Fitzgerald’s classic. A previous version titled “Gatsby: An American Myth,” co-created by Florence Welch of Florence and the Machine, offers a darker tone and, arguably, superior music.

      Many fans have been wondering what brought about the need for a seventh adaptation of the classic novel. Another past adaptation includes the iconic 2013 movies directed by Baz Luhrmann, starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Gatsby and Tobey Maguire as Nick Carraway.  

     As for the characters, Jeremy Jordan brought a refreshing and nuanced take to Gatsby, distinct from DiCaprio’s portrayal. On the other hand, Noah J. Roberts’ interpretation of Nick seemed too reminiscent of Maguire’s performance, even sounding similar to Jeremy Jordan at times, which was slightly confusing. Eva Noblezada and Samantha Pauly delivered outstanding performances as Daisy and Jordan, respectively. However, Paul Whitty’s portrayal of Tom Buchanan was underwhelming — his vocal performance paled in comparison to the rest of the cast, though his uncomfortable presence did capture Tom’s unsettling character to a tee.

     While “The Great Gatsby” remains a timeless story, this new musical adaptation is decent — to say the least — for what it is. It certainly does not stand out amongst other more prominent musicals like “Hamilton” or “Wicked.” Without Jeremy Jordan’s star power, it is likely this show would have struggled even more to make a lasting impression.

Abby Dreistadt, Editor in Chief