The 1979 album of The Who which went on to become a film and a musical, now returns as a ballet. Using Rachel Fuller's classical scoring, this version of Pete Townshend's story of Jimmy, the working class lad whose dismal home life and dead-end job lead him to embrace the Mod ethos of the '60s may be the most successful version yet. In this ballet adaptation of the time-honoured story of rival clans and frustrated love, which echoes Romeo and Juliet, and which is played out against the background of the conflict between the Mods vs Rockers, the style of the era is beautifully invoked but the symbolic depth of Jimmy's conflict is also brilliantly emphasised. The four aspects of his "quadrophenia" (The Tough Guy, The Lunatic, The Romantic, and The Hypocrite) are explicitly shown and explored, and they are directly contrasted to the external influences on his life as expressed by his father, Ace Face, his love interest, and his rocker friend. The real depths of Jimmy's angst are brought to the fore in a way that previous iterations seemed either to skim over or to reduce to the level of kitchen-sink drama. Perhaps because the words are not here, the archetypal nature of Jimmy's quandary is more powerfully exposed. Paul Roberts' extraordinary choreography manages to capture the many varied moods of the piece, and the humorous little scene on the train to Brighton is simply perfect! As Jimmy, Paris Fitzpatrick dominates the show, and he masterfully manages to infuse his character with an amazing emotional depth. The athleticism and finesse of his portrayal is only matched by that of Matthew Ball as The Godfather, yet singling these two out seems almost unfair when all of the cast put in first-rate performances. The quality and inventiveness of the set and video design are also quite remarkable. Indeed, the components of this dance narrative all come together to make it for us, the most successful version of Townshend's classic work so far.
Rated: ★★★★★
Reviewed by J.C.
Photo by Johan Persson
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