The Car Man – Matthew Bourne – New Adventures – Sadlers Wells – 2nd August 2015
Cast List
Last Sunday I went to see Matthew Bourne’s production of The Car Man at Sadler’s Wells. I went with a friend and we got the tickets fairly last minute, we took a bit of a risk opting for the cheapest seats going, but I have to say first of all I was very impressed with our view from the back of the second circle! So basically, don’t be put off by going to theatre because you can’t afford £50 tickets. 😉
Inspiration for The Car Man came from Bizet’s Carmen and the 40s film The Postman Always Rings Twice, and Matthew Bourne has a reputation for producing insanely creative, imaginative works from classic pieces; others include Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty and Nutcracker. The main themes of the show are lust, passion and revenge, all of which are associated with the original story of Carmen, however Bourne’s production is different and refreshing.
The show debuted in 2000, was revived in 2007 and has now returned for its third run.
I’m not going to lie, I’d never heard of the show before but when I saw the trailer a few months ago I knew I wanted to see it.
Not being at all familiar with the story line of Carmen and knowing basically nothing about The Car Man other than recognising some of the music (which I absolutely love, by the way), I have to say I found the first act a little difficult to follow, I think this also had to do with the fact that it wasn’t always 100% clear who the characters were due to being so far away from the stage. After quickly googling a synopsis in the interval it all made a bit more sense and the second act was easier to follow the plot.
The dance style was very different to what you’ve seen in Nutcracker and Swan Lake, it had much more of a contemporary feel with less emphasis on traditional ballet as some of his other works, this suited the score and the themes of the show. I think not being constrained to a classical ballet work as he has been before gave him more freedom with the choreography and ability to add in more flavours and styles rather than sticking to tradition (not that I’d call Bourne’s production of Swan Lake exactly traditional – but you know what I mean).
The set design and general vibe of the performance almost reminded me of West Side Story, I think that comes from it also being set in 1960s America.
The show was able to take the audience through a range of emotions from the powerful, masculine opening to a tender, elegant prison solo in the second Act by Angelo, one of the highlights of the show for me definitely. I was also impressed by the sensual, erotic dances that featured throughout – everything that unfolded on stage was exciting and thrilling from sex to violence and murder.
The show was recorded last week and has been aired on Sky Arts, a repeat is being shown tomorrow at 2pm I think if you happen to be able to catch it! There’s also two more days of shows remaining so if you can get tickets I totally recommend it.
You can find the trailer and more reviews on the Sadler’s Wells website here: http://www.sadlerswells.com/whats-on/2015/matthew-bournes-the-car-man/
Dreams That Glitter xo 