Wise Children Presents WUTHERING HEIGHTS Next Month
Performances run January 27–February 19, 2023.
Chicago Shakespeare Theater's WorldStage Series returns with groundbreaking theatermaker Emma Rice's exuberant reimagining of Emily Brontë's gothic masterpiece, Wuthering Heights. The production combines live music, dance, puppetry, and a dash of impish irreverence to create an intoxicating revenge tragedy for our time. Hailed a Critic's Pick by The New York Times, this wildly imaginative theatrical event from the UK is a co-production with The National Theatre, Wise Children, Bristol Old Vic and York Theatre Royal in association with Berkeley Repertory Theatre. Wuthering Heights runs as a special limited engagement in The Yard at Chicago Shakespeare, January 27-February 19, 2023.
The production marks a return of Emma Rice's boundary-pushing work to Chicago Shakespeare, previously seen in her celebrated Tristan & Yseult with Kneehigh Theatre in 2014 and the presentation of Wise Children's musical comedy Romantics Anonymous, streamed live from Bristol Old Vic in 2020. Both productions were part of Chicago Shakespeare Theater's WorldStage Series, which has featured more than 1,300 artists in 96 productions from 22 countries spanning six continents to date. Wuthering Heights marks the return of in-person WorldStage performances after a two-year hiatus of international touring due to the pandemic.
The wild moors of Yorkshire are the setting for an epic story of love, revenge, and redemption. An orphaned Heathcliff is adopted by the Earnshaws and taken to live at Wuthering Heights-where he finds a kindred spirit in Catherine. As they grow up together, a fierce love ignites between them-and when forced apart, a brutal chain of events is unleashed.
London's The Telegraph declares that the production "unleashes the fire and the fury of Brontë's masterpiece in a full-throttle show," and BroadwayWorld calls it "audacious, ingenious, and visually stunning...Rice's ambition is unbounded." The New York Times raves "this music-filled version is an embrace, an envelopment: a feat of storytelling that wraps itself around the audience, pulling us into its silliness and sorrow."
The company features Sam Archer (Lockwood/Edgar Linton/The Moors), Leah Brotherhead (Catherine), Georgia Bruce (Isabella Linton/Little Linton/The Moors), Ricardo Castro (Robert/The Moors), Katy Ellis (Zillah/The Moors), Stephanie Elstob (Swing), Lloyd Gorman (Mr. Earnshaw/ The Moors), TJ Holmes (Dr. Kenneth/The Moors), Jordan Laviniere (The Leader of The Yorkshire Moors), Tama Phethean (Hindley Earnshaw/Hareton Earnshaw/The Moors), Eleanor Sutton (Frances Earnshaw/Catherine Linton/The Moors), and Liam Tamne (Heathcliff). The production's live music is performed by Sid Goldsmith, Music Director Pat Moran, and Vincent De Jesus, with TJ Holmes and Lloyd Gorman.
In addition to adaptor and director Emma Rice, the creative team includes Composer Ian Ross, Scenic and Costume Designer Vicki Mortimer, Sound and Video Designer Simon Baker, Lighting Designer Jai Morjaria, Choreographer Etta Murfitt, Puppetry Designer John Leader, Fight Director Kev McCurdy, and Music Director Pat Moran.
Chicago Shakespeare Theater's WorldStage Series exemplifies a landmark commitment to bring the world's great theaters to Chicago and Chicago Shakespeare to the world. The series has welcomed some of the globe's most exciting theatrical events, affording theatergoers prime opportunities to experience different cultural traditions and must-see international shows without leaving Chicago.
Chicago Shakespeare makes its facility and performances accessible to all patrons through its Access Shakespeare programs. Accessible performances for Wuthering Heights include:
- Audio-described Performance - Sunday, February 12, 2023, at 2:00 p.m.
A program that provides spoken narration of a play's key visual elements for patrons who are blind or have low vision. - Open-captioned Performances - Wednesday, February 15, 2023, at 1:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
A text display of the words and sounds heard during a play, synced live with the action onstage. - ASL Duo-interpreted Performance - Friday, February 17, 2023, at 7:30 p.m.
All dialogue and lyrics are translated into American Sign Language by two certified interpreters.
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