Chunsoo Shin, an award-winning producer and prominent figure in Korean theater, is bringing the iconic novel “The Great Gatsby” by yours truly, F. Scott Fitzgerald, to life in the form of a musical this spring.
Amidst the dazzling, charming, and enchantingly lavish Roaring Twenties, the story follows an eccentric and mysterious millionaire, Jay Gatsby, and his dream of winning over the love of his youth, Daisy Buchanan. Capturing the essence of idealism and a heart-wrenching love story, the novel strikes with beaming excitement among the audiences. This classic story will be performed on the greatest American stage, Paper Mill Playhouse, accompanied by electrifying jazz and pop-infused scores with the drizzle of the 21st century feels.
The lead producer of “The Great Gatsby” musical, Chunsoo Shin shared on the official Paper Mill Playhouse website: “I am passionate about producing this show because it provides a modern audience with the true essence of idealism that is expressed eloquently in the novel and now on stage.”
He continues, “ ‘The Great Gatsby’ is a masterpiece that grows and changes as it’s experienced by each new generation, in every culture and people — and yet, still maintains its uniqueness, with its fascinating characters that burst with vitality. The entire team behind ‘The Great Gatsby’ is beyond thrilled to present this timeless, glamourous, and resplendent production on Broadway — that is becoming even more refined, resonant, and expressive, following our world premiere production.”
“The Great Gatsby” was adapted into a musical at Paper Mill Playhouse around the fall of last year, running from October 12 to November 12, 2023. The musical has a score composed by Nathan Tysen and Jason Howland. This is followed by an all-star cast of actors featuring Jeremy Jordan as Jay Gatsby and Eva Noblezada as Daisy Buchanan (More information here). The original off-Broadway run of “The Great Gatsby” had set an all-new record for ticket sales at Paper Mill Playhouse and is their highest-grossing show to date. The musical is said to be opening this spring with tickets already on sale on Broadway Direct. Previews for “The Great Gatsby” begin on March 29 and the musical officially opens on April 25.
The initial off-Broadway production of “ ‘The Great Gatsby’ was met with mixed reviews from general audiences upon its release. Adam F. Cohen, a journalist on New Jersey Stage praised the show claiming “The Jazz Age novel, a high school English curriculum favorite, translates superbly well to the stage.”
He elaborates “The production is richly beset with gorgeous sets, lights and costumes, a spry knowing intelligent book, and witty lyrics with amazing performances by a gloriously talented, intelligent cast.”
Another journalist, Maddie Bimonte, had a very different take on the production, as she wrote in her review of The Fordham Ram “While I commend the vocals, I personally found the music and lyrics to be very subpar for a Broadway show.”
Bimonte adds to her statement “The lyrics themselves, written by Nathan Tysen, fell short of my expectations as I struggled with really feeling a cohesive connection between the plot and the lyrics.”
Some Eleanor Roosevelt High School students who have read “The Great Gatsby” gave their opinions on the upcoming musical.
A junior student, Jenna Liu shared her thoughts “ ‘The Great Gatsby’ is a good commentary on the consequences of the American dream. I think it could be interesting as a musical although the story itself is not the most musical.”
Liu adds “I probably would consider going. I think It’s pretty cool that they’re doing musical adaptations of classic books and novels.”
Another junior, Elisabeth Resendiz gave her insights, “Honestly I really liked ‘The Great Gatsby’ as a novel but I don’t think it’s the type of story that would work on stage.”
Resendiz however, exclaimed, “I would go see it though, because I read the book and watched the movie so I might as well.”
Caleb Wang, a senior shared, “My general thoughts on “The Great Gatsby” as a story are pretty mixed. While I do believe that the story is a classic and has some interesting elements to it, I don’t believe that the story is necessarily engaging. In my opinion, it is kind of outdated for modern tastes, but regardless it is still a very interesting take on the “American Dream” and it is a good story.”
He added, “I think that ‘The Great Gatsby’ would work pretty nicely as a musical. There are a lot of different themes and subliminal messages presented in the novel that would work great if they were to be incorporated into a musical.”
On his end note, “The Great Gatsby is just fine. I don’t personally like it as a book since I don’t have too much of an interest in dramas, but I do think that it’s a good read regardless, especially if you’re interested in that type of genre. I would probably consider going to see the musical if my friends were performing in it. ”
