We’re joined by co-writers Mina Moniri and Peter Todd to discuss their fresh, modern adaptation of The Great Gatsby at The Cockpit Theatre. Their version offers new perspectives on the classic tale...
Hi Mina and Peter, what was the journey like in taking on the story of The Great Gatsby? The inception?
We knew we wanted to reinvent a classic, but didn’t want to just do one for the sake of it. We wanted to make sure we had something new to say. And when we were looking at plays that we knew, novels that we liked, The Great Gatsby came up and suddenly our concept fell into place. After a little more research, we realised that no one had explored Gatsby from this perspective and we knew we had to scratch that itch!
What inspired the choice to adapt The Great Gatsby with a queer, feminist angle? What were the big opportunities? Challenges?
Queering the central love story of The Great Gatsby beautifully warps the metaphor about the American Dream into a broader longing for equality. It also pays homage to the silenced queer experience of the 1920s and the long list of incredible women who did extraordinary things to push back against the limits of society. Looking at the novel this way brought about nuances in the text that we hadn’t noticed before and it imbues our adaptation with a whole new set of layers to explore.
Adapting well-known novels always proves challenging: people to want to see a story they already know and love so deeply. We wanted to strike a balance between the iconic quotes and events of the book and giving audiences something fresh to sink their teeth into. We’ve added scenes, fleshed out characters, and spun the book’s intricate web into a whole new beast for the stage while paying homage to the original novel.
Can you talk us through the process of bringing the 1920s alive on stage?
The most exciting part of this production is that we’re staging it in the round, which immediately pulls us into a very intimate setting. Our design immerses the audience in the action by integrating them into the set. The novel is known for its opulence and decadence which we have preserved, but this new intimacy invites us into the larger-than-life world of Gatsby - you’ll want to get up and start dancing with the cast!
Our costumes have been meticulously curated by designer Eleanor Dunlop to reflect the dazzling 1920s flair we all know and love. We’ve got beads, sequins, feathers galore, and even a set of human molar cufflinks (if you know, you know)! It’s Gatsby in all the splendour of its original setting, with a juicy new twist. In addition, our jazzy rearrangements of many well-known songs peppered throughout the show will keep your toes tapping with a little extra spice!
You’ve described a “strong, consistent dance and movement language” with this production. Can you explore this?
When putting together the show, and devising the movement language for the piece, we discovered a distinct sense of longing in each and every character onstage. It manifests in different ways, but we’ve captured that essence through movement and dance by taking inspiration from the text itself. Fitzgerald’s beautiful prose contains a host of references to nature and the elements: earth, water, air, and fire.
We’ve worked a lot with our actors to explore these elements in terms of the qualities they possess: in the gaze, in the body, their range of movement. The motif we keep coming back to is longing like waves in the ocean, how longing ebbs and flows like the tide. We can’t wait for everyone to feel it in motion.
What is interesting you in the culture scene right now? What’s caught your attention?
I (Peter) can’t speak for Mina, but I keep thinking a lot about metamodernism of late. In film, stage and music, it occupies this incredible space between ironic detachment and sincere engagement. It recognises the past, recontextualises and reinterprets it for the present. I see it especially in films like Everything Everywhere All At Once and the music and designs of Chappell Roan where the costumes and scenic designs create nostalgia through these almost homemade sets and clothing.
Take, for instance, Chappell Roan’s video for My Kink is Karma: everything feels like something you might be able to make at home but it throws these ordinary, nostalgic styles into epic, ethereal spaces while remaining grounded in its emotional convictions. Chappell Roan styles herself in beauty products but deliberately repurposes them to reject and question ideals of beauty - wearing lipstick on her teeth, sticking half-smoked cigarettes in her wigs. It’s self-aware, self-referential and finds authenticity through its play with caricature. Everything is built with a sense of irony and parody that gives way to such sincerity that hits you like a gut punch.
I’ve seen a lot of criticism for this movement claiming that it’s lazy because it keeps its mess on display, it doesn’t have the same clean polish as modern and postmodern media but I have to disagree. It’s disruptive, it’s breaking rules, it’s degrading and reconstructing form. It’s so carefully considered and curated. I think the levels of creativity and innovation on display are truly awe-inspiring. It’s such an exciting time to be consuming art. And that’s a spirit that we’ve really tried to lean into with Gatsby. I really hope audiences love it just as much as we’ve enjoyed crafting it!
Book tickets to see The Great Gatsby at The Cockpit here. Performing from 28 November to 14 December.
Learn more about Scar Theatre here.