Scottish Ballet’s Starstruck: plenty of pzazz in Glasgow

Scottish Ballet in Gene Kelly and Christopher Hampson’s Starstruck

Kayla-Maree Tarantolo, Rishan Benjamin and Alice Kawalek in Christopher Hampson’s Starstruck

Andrea Azzari as Eros in Gene Kelly and Christopher Hampson’s Starstruck

Marlen Fuerte Castro as Star Ballerina and Joseph Taylor as Choreographer in Starstruck

Marlen Fuerte Castro as Star Ballerina in Gene Kelly and Christopher Hampson’s Starstruck

By Kathy Elgin, 20 April 2026

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“goes from wispy, melting ingenue to spiky demanding star in no time”

Reviewed at Theatre Royal, Glasgow on 16 April 2026

Starstruck (Gene Kelly, Christopher Hampson)

Scottish Ballet

Lez Brotherston, Set Designer, Costume Designer

Lawrie McLennan, Lighting Designer

Scottish Ballet’s The Snow Queen in Edinburgh

Kathy Elgin, 27th November

Scottish Ballet’s third outing of Christopher Hampson’s The Snow Queen sees some modifications to the story and it’s more spectacular than ever.

****1

Scottish Ballet's Nutcracker: brimming with Christmas magic

Kathy Elgin, 6th December

In the third revival since 2014, Peter Darrell's 1973 Nutcracker still has all the right ingredients to send the audience home feeling joyous.

*****

Scottish Ballet's Cinders! confirms Hampson is a savvy theatre-maker

Kathy Elgin, 13th December

Christopher Hampson's reinvented version of his own original Cinderella, Cinders!, is a triumph of theatre, whether the central character is danced by a man or a woman.

****1

Twice-Born: Scottish Ballet opens the season in bold, balanced style

Kathy Elgin, 21st September

Clearly on a mission to prove that today’s dance world comprises many styles that feed into and refresh each other, Scottish Ballet starts as it means to go on.

****1

“Starstruck” Scottish Ballet brings back Gene Kelly ballet back

Graham Watts, 24th September

Gene Kelly's only ballet has been revived by Christopher Hampson, with an excellent twist.

****1

Icy worlds collide in Scottish Ballet's euphoric Secret Theatre

Graham Watts, 21st December

Jess and Morgs continue to break the mould of tired dance films by directing their first full-length feature, which offers much more than just a different way of presenting dance.

*****

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Kathy Elgin

After a career in publishing, Kathy Elgin turned her enthusiasm for dance into a real job by joining the late, great John Percival, Dance Critic of The Times, in his re-launch of Dance and Dancers magazine in 1981. She was later delighted to join its rival, The Dancing Times, as Scottish correspondent until the magazine’s sad demise in 2022. She lives in Edinburgh.