Review: Matthew Bourne's The Car Man at the Bristol Hippodrome, May 2015

Having previously enjoyed re-imaginings of Cinderella, The Nutcracker and Sleeping Beauty at the Bristol Hippodrome, hopes were high for his take on Bizet’s Carmen, and this dazzling production did not disappoint, oozing as it was with passion, violence and lust.

The Car Man is not a recent work, having debuted in 2000, but this is the first time it has gone on tour in eight years.

The set is superb and the audience gets to make the most of it before the show even starts, with the various dancers taking to the stage as the audience takes their seats, using the time to carry on with ‘business as usual’ in the greasy 1960s garage diner in the small American town of Harmony. The entire Hippodrome stage is utilised - right up to the back wall - with no detail overlooked.

The lighting is so atmospheric you could almost imagine that you are suffering from heatstroke in the claustrophobic environment, but to my mind the two hot rods in the garage are the stars of this particular show!

For me, this isn’t one of Matthew Bourne’s best re-imaginings; despite the excellent choreography the first half is simply overwhelmed by the amount of sex and brutality, and the complicity of the characters means the plot is difficult to follow, particularly when it comes to the love interests.

The second half is a very dark and sometimes disturbing exploration of conscience and betrayal, however, the dancing is, as always, superb and the standing ovation at the end well deserved for the cast.

The Car Man uses one of the most instantly recognisable scores in New Adventures’ repertoire. However, the lack of a live orchestra is certainly a down-side to Bourne’s shows as Terry Davies’ beautiful composition seems to become slightly distorted when played at such volume.

For an adult audience only, Matthew Bourne’s ‘The Car Man’ is on at the Bristol Hippodrome until Saturday, May 23. Visit atgtickets.com/Bristol for more details.