‘The Nice Gatsby’: Dazzling musical revival of Fitzgerald’s basic

Peace Heart, Greenville, SC.
March 31, 2026.

The Nice Gatsby has roared onto Greenville’s Peace Heart stage in a blinding new musical adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s basic novel. Full with bootleg liquor, classic vehicles, and the mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby at its heart, the manufacturing immerses audiences within the extravagant Roaring Twenties via flashy dance numbers and high-energy spectacle.

Jake David Smith leads the primary North American tour as Jay Gatsby. Having beforehand seen him because the lovesick Marius within the nationwide tour of Les Misérables, I used to be instantly drawn in by his compelling portrayal of Gatsby. From his first moments onstage, Smith made the viewers root for the sophisticated dreamer on the coronary heart of the story. His highly effective, pure vocals anchored a lot of the present, delivering every track with emotional depth.

Senzel Ahmady introduced nuance and vulnerability to Daisy Buchanan, capturing a younger lady torn between two worlds. Joshua Grosso shone as Nick Carraway, opening and shutting the present with fascinating monologues, and injecting welcome comedic traces all through. Leanne Robinson commanded consideration because the spunky, unbiased beginner golfer Jordan Baker.

In a Broadway musical set within the Jazz Age, the dance numbers are important, and Gatsby delivers. “Roaring On” opened the present with dancers backlit as elegant silhouettes, then burst into an environment of extravagant opulence. Dominique Kelley’s choreography seamlessly blended interval dances, just like the Charleston, with up to date hip hop and fluid fashionable strikes. “New Cash” stored the social gathering going with bubbles, pyrotechnics and a kaleidoscope of movement. Shifting scrims, legs, and projections wove seamlessly with the dancers’ steps, constructing an growing sense of grandeur that turned your entire stage right into a dwelling, respiratory extension of the choreography.

Act Two opened with “Shady,” a far darker quantity whose choreography mirrored the dramatic tonal shift. Dancers wore trench coats and fedoras, their sharp steps illuminated by spotlights. The coats added visible mystique, as dancers swooped and flicked them with aptitude. Faucet dance took heart stage in “La Dee Dah With You.” 4 dancers commanded the stage with crisp rhythmic footwork, and the viewers fed off their infectious vitality. A number of ensemble members additionally appeared in previous army uniforms and their choreography included step dance – the grounded type completely mirroring the army precision of troopers.

Having learn Fitzgerald’s novel a long time in the past, I used to be considerably conversant in what to anticipate, however I deliberately approached the musical with contemporary eyes – avoiding a re-read beforehand. The story’s ending stays complicated and unhappy, but the musical delivers hope within the midst of sorrow. Gatsby’s elusive inexperienced gentle in the end reminds us to maintain reaching, regardless of the price.