If you’re after some light, fluffy entertainment surrounding high society courtships in ye olde England, then you’re probably better off staying home and rewatching Bridgerton. The one and only novel published by the second-youngest Brontë sister, Wuthering Heights is often misunderstood as a romance novel – but this is proper gothic fiction. At the center of the intergenerational drama is the relationship between the wily young Catherine and Heathcliff, an orphaned boy who her father adopts as his own. While there is a shadow of romance that underscores the central relationship; their bond is deeply rooted in hatred, pain, jealousy, isolation, misery, and despair.
This adaptation sinks its teeth into these darker elements, and it bites down hard. Rather than labouring over every line of the novel beat-for-beat, Rice uses Brontë’s text as a blueprint, fusing a range of theatrical storytelling devices (from fourth-wall-breaking japery to puppets) into an epic production backed by a moody, haunting score performed by a live on-stage band. The chorus (who represents the living, breathing embodiment of ‘The Moors’) infuses the whole affair with a flurry of evocative movement, to great effect.
Yes, this is a dark tale of wretched souls (from a time long before we were throwing around terms like ‘antihero’ so freely). But this twisted tale is a refreshing provocation, for multiple reasons – one being that it gives a proper shake-up to the over-saturated ‘genre’ of dramas that revolve around wealthy colonial families roaming large, stately homes in vast, soggy landscapes. (Not that there’s anything wrong with sugary romances with selective portions of historical accuracy, as a treat!) [...]
Of course, all of this esteem is not to say that this play will be everyone’s cup of tea. The first act runs long enough to test your patience – helpfully though, ‘The Moors’ step in along the way to explain who is who, who is related to whom, who is romantically involved with whom (spoiler: those last two categories share some uncomfortable crossovers) and who is dead or alive (again, there are some uncomfortable crossovers with these categories too). This exemplifies how this adaptation strikes a perfect balance: it has a sense of humour about the source material, but it also doesn’t undercut it. [...]
The whole performance has the air of a dark, haunted twist on a pantomime. At times, you probably wouldn’t be surprised if the actors started doing circus tricks. (Although, disappointingly for some, nobody does a flip.) As film buffs wait for the latest film adaptation of Wuthering Heights from Saltburn director Emerald Fennel to hit the screen (with Aussie darlings Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi), Emma Rice’s version gives us pause to consider what a modern spin on Heathcliff and Catherine’s relationship can offer us.
The question of Heathcliff’s heritage has long been contested by modern readers trying to make sense of the novel’s antiquated descriptors, and all but one of the many film adaptations have cast a white (or white-passing) actor – but here, John Leader’s brooding Heathcliff speaks with a Caribbean accent, and there’s an (understandable) implication that this hatred of polite society is tied to colonialism. A commanding presence with somewhat Nosferatu/Dracula-like sensibilities, this complicated character is deeply alluring even when he is being detestable. Similarly, Stephanie Hockley gives us a disconcertingly intense characterisation of Catherine, who burns up the stage in a frenzied musical number before her death (which our UK reviewer correctly compares to a “prime Courtney Love”) before her ghost remains to “stalk the stage like a smudge-eyed ghost, weighting the atmosphere with her presence”.
Yet, for all the barking this adaptation does about revelling in darkness and sorrow, it goes on to end on a weirdly cheerful note, which sort of takes the bite out of it. The world continues on, as the ghosts of Catherine and Heathcliff stroll together arm-in-arm. It feels wrong.
The relationships depicted in Wuthering Heights should not serve as aspirational. They’re a warning. Any time two people share an intoxicating bond, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re ‘meant to be’. At the end of the day, at the end of a lifetime, the quality of the love you gave and the love you received is the most important thing (apart from perhaps, appreciating good art and achieving ultimate goth witch status). If you sink everything into a twisted, unhealthy romance above all else*, you might have to face the fact that you’re choosing to be a self-serving wanker who’ll never be satisfied, as Lin Manuel Miranda might put it. (*Disclaimer; in this scenario you can see the relationship for what it is, and you have the chance to get out.)
Alas, this is a clever production that definitely doesn't take the easy way out of staging a well-trodden classic text, and Sydney is lucky to have it. (Although, much like the book, it might not be everyone's cup of tea.) (Alannah Le Cross)
Set and Costume Designer Vicki Mortimer has given Rice a artfully simple staging that utilizes found items to be repurposed as they provide enough imagery to trigger the imagination, from the farming implements employed to represent Heathcliffs vicious dogs and an assortment of panels mounted on trolleys to serve as the doors and windows of the two homes with the lowered light fittings shifting the space from the run down Wuthering Heights to the brighter and refined Thrushcross Grange. A large screen provides a backdrop and enables handwritten text to connect the story to its written origins and also reinforce things like the flocks of blackbirds that accompany the many deaths that mar the story but thankfully the design has refrained from trying to use the Costumes anchor the work in the early 19th century while also having a found nature as more contemporary elements are included to ensure modern sensibilities easily connect the underlying shift in status from life at Wuthering Heights to Thrushcross Grange.
Woven with Ian Ross’ music that draws on folk tones and Etta Murfitt’s choreography that has earthy tribal movements, this interpretation of WUTHERING HEIGHTS injects a fresh life into the dark story. With the work centering on Heathcliff and his obsession, Catherine, with the Leader of the Moors being the key narrator, John Leader, Stephanie Hockley retain these roles throughout while the rest of the ensemble take on multiple characters including The Moors. Sam Archer brings a delightful physical comedy to Lockwood as he battles against the storm across the Moors when he visits his landlord and Edgar Linton who at face value seems nice and gentle but has the capability for prejudice initiating Heathcliff’s desire for retribution for his poor treatment. Matthew Churcher gives Heathcliff’s first tormenter Hindley a requisite savagery while presenting Hindley’s son Hareton with a similar aggression born of his treatment from his father and ‘uncle’. As Edgar Linton’s sister Isabella Linton, Rebecca Collingwood conveys a naivety for the easily manipulated child while she infuses a more calculated undertone for the Heathcliff’s and Isabella’s frail son Little Linton.
As the Leader of the Moors, Nandi Bhebhe brings a delightful energy to the story as The Moors share their own opinion of the events unfolding, circling around the central characters hoping to influence their decisions but continuously failing to stop them from making unwise choices. Bhebhe gives The Moors a power and gravitas to ensure that it is clear that nature is seen as a major character in the story. The other comedy relief comes from TJ Holmes’ portrayal of Dr Kenneth, the medical man that oversees all of the deaths in the neighborhood with a terrible bedside manner.
As Catherine, Stephanie Hockley ensures that the object of Heathcliff’s affection and obsession is seen as increasingly unbalanced, from the initial wish for a gift of a whip, to reflecting that she regrets giving up the wild life playing on the Moors with Heathcliff to marry Edgar in what is considered a more socially acceptable match than the orphan that had been treated as a servant once her father died. She captures the maniacal nature well and her expression of Catherine’s solo rock song that features is powerful as it expresses her mental state. As Heathcliff, John Leader has a haunting gravitas drawn from both the physicality he brings to the role and his vocal tone. He allows the orphan, taken in and doted on by Mr Ernshaw, to grow from a young boy enjoying playing with his adoptive sister but bullied and beaten by his jealous adoptive brother, into an adult driven by the desire to seek vengeance on those that have mocked, mistreated and rejected him. He shifts Heathcliff’s character to become scarily broody, controlled and menacing with a quieter undertone in contrast to those that have tormented him in the past.
Regardless of whether you are well acquainted with the classic story or just have a passing awareness of the novel, this production tells the complex story with clarity and makes the gothic tale a captivating evening of entertainment despite the twisted subject matter. A must see for it’s inventive storytelling that shifts a classic novel to the realm of myths and legends. (Jade Kops)
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