Kylie Jenner’s Private Jet

Pelican Theatre - Review

Written by Aaron Markwell

Pagan Hunt & Ellie Trow performing in Kylie Jenner’s Private Jet

A pair of airline stewardesses, adorned in yellow, branded scarves and matching hats teeter onto the stage. A pair of Lufthansa Barbies - a reminder that in the theatre, “You can be anything.” 

In this first moment, as they go through the pre-show safety check, Pelican Theatre reminds us that they have come to play. Don’t be fooled though, “this is a show about dread”, and to be fair, it really is. In response to so many arts’ applications desiring work about the climate crisis, Ellie Trow and Pagan Hunt have hijacked Kylie Jenner’s Private Jet. You’ll be joining Pelican Airlines on a voyage of personal horror, disgust and the accompanying comedy of these emotions. You’ll be asked to explore your relationship with celebrity and billionaire culture and how the small things that we do, to make a difference to the climate emergency may (or may not) make a big difference.

For the dance admirers among you, you’ll be thrilled to see a combination of athletic contemporary dance technique, which Trow and Hunt have fine tuned into brilliant unison. For the dancers in the room, there are moments of striking somatic movement practice that really adeptly delve into sensitivity, horror and helplessness. Much of Pelican Theatre’s community work is around accessibility, and this shines through in the choreography. A jazzy dance interlude set to Rich Man’s Frug, from the iconic Bob Fossé’s film, Sweet Charity, creates a familiar and joyous feeling. That is, before bringing us to rocky landing, back in the realities of the climate crisis. Through working with movement director, Jemma Stein, Pelican have ironically proved, Kylie Jenner’s Private Jet is for everyone. 

Pagan Hunt and Ellie Trow dancing in Kylie Jenner's Private Jet.

Photography by Von Fox.

Here I have a confession to make. I had seen snippets of Kylie Jenner’s Private Jet during the marketing material filming. To say that the work has come leaps and bounds from then would be an understatement. With the help of local dramaturg, Andy Gardiner, our glorious Pelicans have taken flight. The scripted moments of talking to the audience feel natural and comfortably uncomfortable. You’re having a serious conversation with two friends. Sure, some of it is silly and neurotic; but you already know these people. It’s all part and parcel of living in the infinitely impending doom of 2025. 

I do have one note, about a section portraying hopelessness, and the story Hunt shares certainly painted a visceral picture of hopelessness. This story did leave me wondering, how can we loop that back around to the climate crisis? (I’ve no doubt that they will figure it out during the process of developing the work on this tour because the rest of the show’s scripting is artfully on the nose).

Without humour, this work would be a very severe fact-checking service, explaining the outrage we should feel about polluting habits of celebrities and billionaires. Pelican Theatre has taken inspiration from many dance companies that work with text, but I think that they should be looking for inspiration from Pelican. Kylie Jenner’s Private Jet is a masterclass in Dance Theatre from a North East power duo. You don’t get to say this about contemporary dance very often, but this work is FUNNY. In an industry and area under stranglehold from continued lack of funding, Pelican are injecting light into the serious problems of our time.

Mark Johnson has composed a sensitive soundscore, blurring the boundaries between high-campy moments and mind-numbing meditative notes; a ticking clock reminds us of the timely nature of our planetary demise. With the sobriety of voice-over artist, Scarlett Harmony, providing factual stats about carbon emissions in a jarring, American News Anchor's cadence, the soundscore proves alarmingly adept at charming, informing and disarming the audience. 

Often, due to funding shortages for small dance productions, lighting design isn’t added into the work until the technical rehearsal. Pelican have worked alongside lighting designer, Charly Dunford, to create immersive lighting that creates the set design for an otherwise minimalist work. We see beautiful lighting effects - airplane gangways, moving colours blending and coming to life. The most ethereal plastic sheet you’ve ever seen turns into a single giant bubble, begging to be popped. I won’t spoil it, but the end of that moment made me burst into laughter. To me it felt obvious that there was a prolonged period of collaboration to make a show this coherent, Dunford controls light in the most deliciously, emotionally manipulative way. 

Ellie Trow in Kylie Jenner’s Private Jet.

Photography by Von Fox.

We’ve already talked about stewardess accessories, but we also need to talk about the frilly, shocking yellow bolero-style jackets in the room. These create a sense of camp and energy, and highlight the frenetic dynamic Pelican Theatre has created. Costume designer, Gabriel Watt, created a base layer of eco-conscious looking, contemporary dance appropriate, casual wear. Think slightly baggy, olive green trousers and neutral tops. Simple base costuming while adding layers for characterisation was really effective. To see a display of indulgent materials in a show about the climate crisis may have been a little absurd, and Watt rose to the challenge of not overegging the pudding perfectly. 

For the North East dance artists to note -  Pelican know their way around a marketing campaign. Following on from their hugely successful Screen Dance event, Kylie Jenner’s Private Jet makes crystal clear that there is a snowballing evolution of their business mindset. They’re putting into practice the age-old adage of “word of mouth is the best form of advertising. Most of the people at Dance City knew Hunt and Trow. We work or play with them across their performance work, community engagement, classes or previous events. With the support of local venues, they’ve created a buzz around the work. The accidentally tactful naming of the show is also bound to bring in audiences- it touches on the excitement of popular culture; something that the dance industry seldom does. It was heartwarming to see so many dance community faces in the same space to celebrate our friends. 

In the post show talk, Trow and Hunt spoke about creating a work this political, and whether they would continue to do so. They seemed unsure, but to me, this work handled such a difficult topic adeptly: horrific, entertaining, funny and beautiful. As a choreographer it made me want to dive into creating even more current affairs based work. When dance is done right it really does inspire and question its audience and this show was done RIGHT. It begs the question, when are we making “Philip Green’s Private Yacht”? 

Kylie Jenner’s Private Jet, truly is a luxury experience that will take you on a journey, get onboard and take a short flight into an absurd disaster, like only a Peli-can. 

(I’ll stop with the puns now)