REVIEW: Starstruck – Theatre Royal, Glasgow

Based on Gene Kelly’s jazz ballet Pas de Dieux created in 1960 for the Paris Opera Ballet, Scottish Ballet’s revival of Starstruck transports the audience back to the world of classic Hollywood musicals.

Revived in collaboration with Kelly’s widow Patricia who provided invaluable resources to help bring the work to the stage, CEO and artistic director Christopher Hampson has again extended Kelly’s original work to produce this ‘director’s cut’ version for 2026.

Set to George Gerschwin’s Piano Concerto in F with glimpses of Chopin. The ballet blends classical mythology with the backstage drama of the rehearsal room where an ambitious young choreographer (Yuri Marques) is searching for a ballerina (Marlen Fuerte Castro) to star in his latest work about the turbulent relationship between Zeus and Aphrodite. Transported from Mt. Olympus to the South of France the pair, accompanied by the mischievous Eros, wreak havoc with the earthly mortals.

The setting of the ballet rehearsal room, the humour peppered throughout and the use of the incomparable Lez Brotherston as designer, will inevitably draw comparisons with Brotherston’s long time collaborator Matthew Bourne’s work The Red Shoes. Visually, Starstruck has an entertaining amount of sparkle and fizz and old Hollywood glamour with inevitable shades of Kelly’s greatest work An American in Paris, but it pales in comparison to the opulence and sure-handed storytelling of Bourne’s work.

The classically trained dancers are tasked with fusing ballet with jazz and the looser American dance style. The execution of the jazz style sequences, especially when danced in pointe shoes, does look a little incongruous and while regarded as innovative at the time of its creation, it now plays as a snapshot of a vintage period of dance. Where the production excels is in the large scale ensemble numbers, which hit home with a punch as the sixteen synchronised dancers, bristling with energy, utilise the full expanse of the large stage to maximum effect.

While there is enough to provide as satisfying enough evening’s entertainment, it suffers because of the lack of cohesive storytelling. The story at the heart of the work is an odd one, even with the added framing of the ballet studio scenes, it is challenging for the audience to follow without the help of the extensive programme notes. Worth watching in it’s most energetic moments as it honours the legacy of Kelly well, but ultimately it feels as if it’s potential isn’t truly fulfilled.

Runs until 18 April 2026 then continues touring | Image: Alex Ross