F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic “The Great Gatsby” has certainly made a splash in 2013. Flapper style has been all the rage for women and pink suits for men seem less outlandish than usual this year. Theatre Calgary is currently doing their own rendition of The Great Gatsby, inviting the city to partake in all the glitz and glamour of a classic era and great love story.
Ksenia Thurgood is the dance captain for Theatre Calgary’s Great Gatsby, which began on October 18th. As dance captain, Ksenia is responsible for watching each dance number to ensure the dances stay true to the choreographer’s instruction. Miss Thurgood was kind enough to meet with Notable to fill us in on what we can expect from Theatre Calgary and to tell us a little bit about herself.
Ksenia is an accomplished young woman who describes ballet as her primary language that she learned how to speak, and she has danced in everything from flash mobs to opera. While she is currently based out of Montreal, Ksenia lived in Calgary after she completed theatre school and counts herself as fortunate that she was able to work with a number of Calgary companies including Theatre Calgary, Alberta Theatre Projects, Lunchbox Theatre, Verb Theatre, Ground Zero Theatre, Stagewest Calgary, Urban Curvz Theatre, Forte Musical Theatre Guild, Dirty Laundry and The Late Late Breakfast Show. Ksenia also worked with the Alberta Ballet before she went on to tour the EU with her own dance company, ‘Automatic Groove’.
What excites you most about being part of Theatre Calgary’s The Great Gatsby?
When I first saw the call for Theatre Calgary’s The Great Gatsby with Kim Collier’s name attached, I immediately submitted for the audition, as I am a huge fan of her work with Vancouver’s The Electric Company. On top of that, I finally got to work with renowned Calgary choreographer Anita Miotti. She has such a gift with pedestrian storytelling movement with lovely attention to physical detail.
And the real cherry on top? I LOVE THIS STORY! Mr. Fitzgerald has such a way with words and to be a part of bringing this classic tale to life makes my inner book nerd flip for joy.
Can you tell us a little bit about the costumes that you’ll be wearing?
Judith Bowden is seriously amazing. She captures the art deco period beautifully. One can expect loads of pearls, silks, rhinestones, feathers, garters and fringe. And the men? They are all very handsome and incredibly well dressed (who doesn’t adore a well-fitted suit?).
Do you have a favourite dance number?
That’s a tough question! I like different aspects of all the dance numbers; the athleticism and ‘play’ of the Charleston is a hoot. Tapping with Jason Hardwick, who is a killer hoofer, is also a treat. The waltz always makes my girlish heart swoon.
Is this adaption of The Great Gatsby doing anything unique? What’s the number one reason that Calgary needs to come out and see the show?
This summer, I saw the Baz Luhrmann version of Gatsby and was struck by the obvious beauty of spectacle, but beyond the Prada I missed the heart and hope of the story. Yes, there is obsession and darkness in Fitzgerald’s work, but there is also the buoyancy of faith and love. In addition, during this process, we all had the book by our sides as well as the adapted script because it was important to our director to keep the integrity of Fitzgerald’s story. Luckily, the playwright, Simon Levy, is supportive of Kim’s vision and there are specificities in the book that are now present in our production, but one will have to hunt for them as they are not explicit.
One hint: ‘She appeared suddenly at his side like an angry diamond and hissed’.
Theatre Calgary’s The Great Gatsby runs from October 18th until November 10th.
Cover photo and theatre photo by Trudie Lee
Artist photo by Aldona B Photography