★★★★✰
Book, film and theatre adaptations are always a tricky thing to nail. There’s usually some form of unhappy party that clings onto the imagined gaps in the author’s narrative that haven’t been translated as they hoped onto screen. Or a stage actor’s reimagined version of a film character strays too far from the film’s version that the original allure is lost.
However Jonathan Butterell’s West End adaptation of the 2005 American neo-Western romantic drama Brokeback Mountain is a great example of a well-done theatre adaptation. The show honours the original material, both short story and screen, whilst also putting a new and original twist on the plot and characters.
Tom Pye’s set is the perfect canvas for this 1960s set, rural, forbidden love story, with an unmade bed, rustic table and chair set and elements of scrubland and shrubbery growing around the stage. This along with Dan Gillespie Sells’ country and western songs, with Eddi Reader on vocals, create the perfect, rustic, Western backdrop.
The intimacy of the theatre-in-the-round creates an almost magnifying glass view on a hidden relationship. It makes you feel almost indecent being privy to. American rising stars Mike Faist and Lucas Hedges nail the duo of Jack Twist and Ennis Del Mar, creating character profiles that we recognise from the short story and movie but also seem new to us. Faist’s more energetic and humorous take on Jack gives a fresh feel to the role and drives the narrative forward, whilst Hedges remains slightly closer to the original character in his portrayal of Ennis.
Faist’s portrayal of Jack is incredibly enthralling and captivating, creating likeable and developed character whilst shining in this role. However, in comparison, it feels as if Hedges holds back slightly in his conviction of the role of Ennis.
In the movie especially, Heath Ledger embodied a completely closed off and rigid cowboy, which makes the unrestrained, and lustful scenes with his forbidden lover that more powerful and captivating. Hedges fails to create this contrast, choosing to walk the tightrope between the two as opposed to fully dedicating himself to two sides of the character.
In an interesting take on the story, Paul Hickey portrays the older Ennis who continues to skulk and haunt the stage and the rest of the performance, looking back on his old relationships.
Even in old age, Ennis remains walking on the tightrope of wanting to commit to his feelings but failing to do so. By intruding into the young version of himself in scenes, reaching out but pulling back, we see how he is simply too firmly rooted in this passive character, that never fought or made the jump for what he wanted. The older Ennis becomes a reflection of a closeted queer man who is a product of the homophobic society of a Western subregion in 1960s America. This makes Hedges’ more one dimensional portrayal of Ennis feel like an active chosen decision.
We follow him around through his memories, which are artfully presented in such a way to reflect his feelings. For example, side characters such as Alma, his wife, are momentary waves of short scenes compared to the ocean of dialogue and conviction that Ennis and Jack’s relationship takes up.
All in all, Jonathan Butterell’s Brokeback Mountain doesn’t disappoint. Faist and Hedges nail the two roles, creating a convincing and passionate relationship that is believable and emotional, that we can’t help but root for even though we know it fails in the end. A masterclass in how to create new roles from old characters, and build upon an already loved story.
Words by Panayiota Demosthenous
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