Cult of celebrity savagely exposed; REVIEWS.Byline: DIANE PARKES MATTHEW Bourne's latest endeavour takes Oscar Wilde's Portrait of Dorian portrait of Dorian Gray becomes more hideous as Gray grows more vicious. [Br. Lit.: Oscar Wilde The Picture of Dorian Gray] See : Transformation Gray and transports the tale into the present day as a bitter indictment of the cult of celebrity The cult of celebrity is the widespread interest in arbitrarily famous individuals, or 'celebrities', that became a prominent social phenomenon in late 20th century Western popular culture. and search for everlasting youth. In doing so he strips it down to its bare essentials - in more ways than one. Without words, language is portrayed through movement, with sets and costumes in black and white and a good deal of bare flesh on show. This Dorian Gray is clearly sex-obsessed as well as self-obsessed as he gradually works his way through the cast wreaking havoc, and even death, along the way. Richard Winsor is excellent as Dorian, beginning as a seemingly shy young man and concluding as a monster who turns on all who love and support him. His muse and corrupter, Lady H, is played by a stalking Michela Meazza, while Jason Piper makes an achingly painful Basil - the man who discovers Dorian and is then destroyed by him. While this has many Matthew Bourne This article is about a British ballet and dance choreographer. For Matthew Bourne the British jazz musician, see Matthew Bourne (musician). Matthew Bourne (born 13 January 1960) is a British ballet and dance choreographer. hallmarks and moments of black comedy, there is also a sense that the story is being stretched and padded to fit its two-hour slot. Until November 14. VERDICT: HHHII DIANE PARKES |
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