West End vs Broadway: The Great Gatsby – Jamie Muscato and Ryan McCartan talk the Heathers effect, backstage rituals and the American Dream

Welcome to the latest installment of our West End vs Broadway series, old sports!

WhatsOnStage and our New York sister site TheaterMania have given the green light for The Great Gatsby stars to take the wheel, so we invited WhatsOnStage Award nominee Jamie Muscato and his Broadway counterpart Ryan McCartan to take part.

From their shared experiences as JD in Heathers the Musical to backstage behaviour and Gatsby’s emotional downfall, you can watch their candid conversation in the video below:

Based on F Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel about a self-made millionaire and his quest for the American Dream (in the arms of the married woman living across the bay), the show is now enjoying both its Broadway and West End premieres.

The Great Gatsby features a book by Kait Kerrigan, an original score by Tony Award nominees Jason Howland and Nathan Tysen, and direction by Marc Bruni. You can read our exclusive interview with Bruni here.

Alongside Muscato, the West End production also includes Frances Mayli McCann (as Daisy Buchanan), Corbin Bleu (making his London theatre debut as Nick Carraway), Amber Davies (as Jordan Baker), Joel Montague (as George Wilson), John Owen-Jones (as Meyer Wolfsheim), Jon Robyns (as Tom Buchanan) and Rachel Tucker (as Myrtle Wilson).

Completing the London cast are George Crawford (Waitress), Jordan Crouch (Anything Goes), Kiara Dario (Miss Saigon), Frances Dee (Matilda), Aimée Fisher (Waitress), Tom Andrew Hargreaves (Pretty Woman), Alyn Hawke (Come From Away), Ediz Mahmut (Hadestown), Jamel Matthias (Why Am I So Single?), Nevé McGuiness-Dyce (Starlight Express), Rose Ouellette (The Wizard of Oz), Sophie Pourret (Guys and Dolls), William Richardson (Les Misérables) and Lily Wang (Burlesque) as ensemble, alongside swings Liv Alexander (Cabaret), Taylor Alman (Greatest Days), Lauren Hampton (Mamma Mia!), Jared Irving (Aladdin), Samuel John-Humphreys (Sister Act) and Millie Mayhew (Wicked).

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The production is choreographed by Dominique Kelley (who we also interviewed recently), with Tony Award-winning costume design by Linda Cho and Outer Critics Circle Award-winning scenic and projection design by Paul Tate de Poo III. The team is completed by lighting designer Cory Pattak, sound designer Brian Ronan, hair and wig designers Drama Desk Award winner Charles G LaPointe and Rachael Geier. Arrangements are by Jason Howland, orchestrations are by Howland and Kim Scharnberg and the music producer is Grammy Award winner Billy Jay Stein for Strike Audio. UK casting is by Jill Green Casting.

The Great Gatsby runs at the London Coliseum until 7 September 2025, with tickets on sale below.