October 10, 2025
When F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby meets the art of ballet, something extraordinary happens. Ahead of World Ballet Company’s upcoming performance at the Egyptian Theatre, Executive Director Gulya Hartwick shared how this Broadway-style ballet transforms the timeless story of love, illusion, and the roaring 1920s into a breathtaking visual experience. From the glittering parties of the Jazz Age to the quiet heartbreak at its core, this production brings Gatsby’s world to life through movement, music, and emotion—making it a performance you’ll feel as much as you see. Interview conducted by Marketing Intern Juli Reyes.
JULI: Being a well-known novel, why should people come and see this Broadway-style ballet?
GULYA: F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is a story many people know from the page or the screen, but experiencing it through dance adds a whole new dimension. Ballet allows us to capture the glamour, the heartbreak, and the intensity of the Jazz Age in a way that words alone can’t. The music, bold choreography, and sweeping visuals pull audiences directly into Gatsby’s world—it feels immersive, emotional, and immediate. Even if you know the book, you’ll discover something entirely new when you see it brought to life on stage.
J: The Great Gatsby is a novel set in the Jazz Age, so what elements made it easy or difficult to work with as this show was being turned into a ballet?
G: The Jazz Age is both a gift and a challenge. On one hand, the visual and cultural richness of the 1920s—the fashion, the music, the energy of the era—lends itself beautifully to a ballet. It’s a world of sparkling parties and raw emotion, which are perfect for dance. On the other hand, Gatsby is also a deeply internal story, filled with subtle themes about longing and illusion. Translating those inner conflicts without words required careful attention to the choreography, the score, and even the way we designed the sets and costumes to convey meaning.
J: How is the story of The Great Gatsby in ballet told differently, if it is, than in a Broadway musical?
G: A Broadway musical relies on dialogue and lyrics to tell the story, but ballet strips it down to pure movement, expression, and music. This allows audiences to connect on a visceral level—every emotion is expressed physically and musically, without words to “explain” it. The result is often more universal. Whether you’ve read the book or never encountered Gatsby before, you’ll understand and feel the story because it’s told through the most primal forms of expression: dance and music.
J: What does it mean to you to have a show that is set in the 1920s in a theatre from 1929?
G: It’s incredibly special. When audiences walk into a theatre built in the same era that Gatsby is set, the walls themselves seem to carry the spirit of the Jazz Age. The chandeliers, the gilded details, the architecture—it’s almost like stepping back in time before the curtain even rises. Performing Gatsby in a theatre from 1929 makes the experience feel even more authentic and magical, as if the story and the space are speaking to each other across history.
J: Why is it important for you to bring ballet to smaller cities like DeKalb?
G: World-class ballet should be accessible to everyone, not just those in major cities. We believe in “Ballet Everywhere, Ballet for All”—and that means reaching communities that might not often have the chance to experience large-scale productions like this. In places like DeKalb, audiences are just as passionate and appreciative, and the impact can be even greater because it feels like a truly special event for the community. For us, it’s about sharing beauty, storytelling, and inspiration wherever people are.
