Emma Rice and her company Wise Children have brought their stage adaptation of Emily Bronte’s classic novel to the National Theatre following a run at the Bristol Old Vic last year.
Attempting to stage Wuthering Heights is a bold idea – it’s a novel which has little room for trimming. Unsurprisingly, this sprawling stage adaptation weighs in at a hefty three hours, with a first act that feels like it overstays its welcome a tad. To be honest the fact they’ve managed to stage the story at all is impressive, and given its complexity – a plot full of twists, a convoluted family tree and a narrative spanning many years – it’s surprisingly easy to follow.
As we’ve come to expect from Emma Rice – we saw her direct the adaptation of Noel Coward’s Brief Encounter and also Angela Carter’s Wise Children – it’s a playful and creative show. Puppetry is used throughout, the moors are brought to life as actual people, and – while not quite a musical – it’s certainly a play with songs, featuring a live folk band underscoring proceedings and numerous musical moments throughout, with some gorgeous harmonies and occasional, but impressive, choreography.
There is plenty to enjoy – not least, it’s actually pretty funny, if on occasion quite ridiculous. There’s some wonderful physical humour, with Sam Archer and Katy Owen as insufferable siblings Edgar and Isabella Linton playing outlandish caricatures; it’s high camp and silly, and all the better for it. After a while it risks becoming a bit one-note but there are some laugh-out-loud funny moments.
We weren’t sold on the central love affair between Cathy and Heathcliff, however. The beating heart of the novel, it doesn’t quite feel believable in this staging – Lucy McCormick is delightfully wild as Cathy and Ash Hunter is strong as brooding anti-hero Heathcliff, but when they’re together it never feels as exciting or dangerous as it should. It feels less passionate and more theatrical, which is a bit of a shame given how integral this element is to the story.
We enjoyed this rather epic and ambitious staging but we didn’t fall in love with Wuthering Heights. It has many strong elements – it’s humorous, creative, the songs are a welcome addition, the puppetry works effectively – and it has plenty of the warmth, charm and originality that we’ve come to expect from Emma Rice’s shows. Yet it didn’t quite give us what we wanted from our central couple, and – while it would be difficult to cut significantly – it still felt a little too long. Enjoyable viewing, but not essential.
GAY TIMES gives Wuthering Heights – 3/5
More information can be found here.
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