REVIEW: QUADROPHENIA @ THEATRE ROYAL PLYMOUTH

🎭 Quadrophenia: A Mod Ballet

📍  The Lyric, Theatre Royal Plymouth, Royal Parade, Plymouth, Devon, PL1 2TR

🗓 Thursday 29th May 2025

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THE DANCE PRODUCTION OF THE YEAR

If I'm completely honest, I walked into the Theatre Royal Plymouth last night with some trepidation about what I was going to witness. This morning however, I am at a loss as to how I even begin to put my thoughts about QUADROPHENIA: A MOD BALLET into words.

Based on The Who's landmark 1973 album Quadrophenia, this adaptation was utterly flawless. This week in Plymouth is the world premiere of this brand new production and I feel like I've witnessed the birth of something incredibly special.

I have to admit, I've never been a huge fan of the music of The Who so was unfamiliar with the album's content and I have never seen the film adaptation. You could safely say that I went into this completely blind, but one thing that struck me was the quality of the storytelling. By its very nature, dance is an interpretive artform, but the narrative here was succinct and easy to follow.

From the moment the performance opened I was transfixed. The crashing waves are a treat for the senses and as we meet our central character Jimmy, we immediately feel his complexities and his battle with the different sides of himself is mesmerising, Taking on this role is Paris Fitzpatrick, a performer I have been privileged to see on the stage before, and he is absolutely intoxicating. He completely lived the character and was unapologetic in his portrayal. His innocence and somewhat naivety is glorious.

In fact, the entire cast need to be celebrated here. Dan Baines was strikingly self-confident as The Ace Face while Serena McCall is captivating and seductive as The Mod Girl. Stuart Neal is wonderfully expressive as he displays all the intricacies of The Father and Jack Widdowson is fantastically cavalier as The Godfather.

The 'Cut My Hair' scene between Fitzpatrick and Euan Garrett as The Friend was a thing of infinite beauty, and my eyes were constantly drawn to the alluring artistry of Seirian Griffiths as The Romantic. But there was no weak link here and I could literally fill this review just talking about how exquisite they were, and the way that they not only danced the piece but acted it too. The mods and rockers fight scene was executed with perfection.

The creatives here have all done exceptional work. The choreography by Paul Roberts is intricate and awe-inspiring, and alongside Rob Ashford's direction they competently tell the story. The orchestrations by Rachel Fuller and Martin Batchelar give great depth to the onstage action, and Paul Smith's costume design is wonderfully evocative of the era.

The set design by Christopher Oram is wonderfully angular, filled with lots of straight lines, and the angular screens that come in and out add an intensity to the scenes, with sensational video design. There's no denying that this production is a technical masterpiece.

QUADROPHENIA: A MOD BALLET is alluring, slick, fresh and exhilarating. It is flawless, there are no notes or mild annoyances. This is dance at its very best. I am proof that you don't need to be familiar with the story to fall in love with this piece.

This is the theatrical experience of the year and I'm already planning a return visit! The world premiere of this sensational production continues at Theatre Royal Plymouth until Sunday 1st June. Click here to check avaliability and to book tickets. Believe me, you don't want to miss this.

Neill Kovacic-Clarke

All views are my own and I pride myself on being honest, fair and free from influence. Theatre is subjective and it is important to remember that all views expressed are just those of one reviewer.  

My ticket for this performance of Quadrophenia: A Mod Ballet was gifted by Theatre Royal Plymouth who invited me to watch the show in exchange for my honest review. The fact that my ticket was gifted played no part in the content of my review or the star rating given. 

CAST AT THIS PERFORMANCE:

Paris Fitzpatrick as Jimmy; Dan Baines as The Ace Face; Serena McCall as The Mod Girl; Stuart Neal as The Father; Kate Tydman as The Mother; Euan Garrett as The Friend; Jack Widdowson as The Godfather; Curtis Angus as The Tough Guy; Dylan Jones as The Lunatic; Seirian Griffiths as The Romantic; Will Bozier as The Hypocrite; Amaris Gillies as Drugs; Jonathan Luke Baker as Psychiatrist

Ensemble: Anya Ferdinand; Georges Hann; Joshua Nkemdilim; Zach Parkin; Yasset Roldan; Pam Pam Sapchartanan; Taela Yeomans-Brown

Swings: Zack Guest; Alice O'Brien

RUNNING TIME (approx):

2 hours 5 minutes, including interval

CONTENT WARNINGS:

Simulated violence; Physical Assult; Drug use; Mature sexual themes; Adult scenes; Flashing lights; Haze; Loud noise and music

AGE GUIDANCE:

12+