I’m going to say it: I’m not a fan of rock ballets. Pop ballet, electronic ballet and soul ballet are all things I can get on board with. But rock ballet? Please god no. I don’t want to see a ballerina in an edgy black tutu playing air guitar, à la the 2023 Black Sabbath Ballet. So, I’m pleased to say that Quadrophenia, a Mod Ballet, using music by The Who and inspired by the 1979 film of the same name, manages to avoid all the usual pitfalls of a classical dance show desperately trying to attract, lets face it, probably boomer men who would usually be averse to spending three hours in the theatre watching men and women leaping about in tights.
For starters, the music of this show created by Who guitarist Pete Townshend isn’t simply recordings of the original songs, but a moving, bombastic and sweeping live orchestral rendition of the album Quadrophenia (with a few other songs, including ‘My Generation’, thrown in for good measure) by Rachel Fuller, AKA Mrs Townshend. Secondly, the stunning lighting, set and projections (videos are by YeastCulture) keep the production feeling sharp and modern. And most importantly, the themes of the story ring as true today as they did when the film was made – it explores toxic masculinity, and an increasingly dissatisfied and restless younger generation, facing an existential crisis in the face of capitalism, class struggles, and world-wide conflicts (in this ballet’s case, it’s the aftermath of World War II).
Quadrophenia tells the story of Jimmy, a disaffected young man in 1960s London. His pill-popping mother won’t acknowledge him, his bullyish father hides behind the whisky bottle, and he’s tired of his dead-end job working in a post room. He seeks solace from life by taking amphetamines, riding his Vespa with his gang of Mods and scrapping with Rockers.
Paris Fitzpatrick is exceedingly brilliant as the scrappy and troubled Jimmy. He first made a name for himself as a finalist in BBC’s Young Dancer in 2015, and then starring as Romeo in Matthew Bourne’s Romeo + Juliet in 2019. One minute he is vulnerable, dissociated and forlorn, the next minute he is high on drugs, lovesick and stag leaping across the stage. His range is astounding, and I can’t take my eyes off him.
Choreography by pop and musical choreographer Paul Roberts (who has worked with Harry Styles, the Spice Girls and Alicia Keys) keeps things fast, fresh and energised. Occasionally it feels a bit musical theatre-y, like in the big final fight scene when fists are thrown in freeze-framed stop motion, but this is balanced out with plenty of raw, moving material.
The best moments come when Jimmy interacts with his alter egos – the tough guy, the lunatic, the romantic and the hypocrite – all clad in different colours of the same sharp suit, designed by Paul Smith. They appear throughout the performance – sometimes crawling demonlike from behind a rock, sometimes lovingly cradling him and sometimes fighting him – as Jimmy struggles with his identity.
The staging is sparse, and in a clever move dancers drag elements of the set on and off the floor themselves. During an electrifying nightclub scene beams of neon light stretch out above the dancers as they shimmy and shake their hips. At another point a beautiful moving video shows Jimmy walking down the rain soaked street – he dances with his reflection in the window of a diner, dripping in condensation.
Fear not, Who die-hards. The rock spirit does live on through the larger-than-life orchestral music. A sultry electric guitar twangs over the lovelorn duet between Jimmy and his crush, the Mod Girl, played by an always-smiling Taela Yeomans-Brown. Then there is the Godfather character (Jack Widdowson), a rock-star who Jimmy idolises clad in a Union Jack blazer, all Elivs hips and smoother than butter. But if you’re not a megafan of Pete Townshend and co no worries – you are still going to thoroughly enjoy this marvellous ballet, and you aren’t going to be cringed out by cheesy guitar riffs and on-the-nose dance moves.