Shanghai ready to rock to 'Wuthering Heights'

British director Emma Rice has transformed Emily Brontë's epic "Wuthering Heights" into an audaciously inventive stage production which is making its premiere in Shanghai this weekend as part of the ongoing 40th Shanghai Spring International Music Festival.

"Rice was a big fan of the original novel," said deputy director Laura Keeper. "After observing some refugee phenomena in France, she thought of the protagonist of the novel who is also a refugee, and gradually formed this bold adaptation."

Produced by four British theaters – National Theater, Wise Children, Bristol Old Vic, and York Theater Royal – "Wuthering Heights" follows the tumultuous and interwoven lives of two families living across the Yorkshire moors, centering on the youthful yet fierce love between the two main characters and the brutal chain of events that follows after they are forced apart.

A former artistic director of Shakespeare's Globe and founder of Wise Children, Rice re-examines this haunting tale of love and revenge through a contemporary lens, blending live music, comedy, puppetry, dance and projections.

She boldly deleted Nelly Dean, the character who witnesses and narrates the whole story, and adopted the form of Greek tragedy to give life to "the moors."

"The moors are like the Ancient Greek Chorus, a central story teller and a witness, and sometimes send warnings to the protagonists," said Nandi Bhebhe, who plays the role of the leader of the moors.

Composer Ian Ross blends Yorkshire folk songs with rock music, and a wild and unrestrained live band on stage takes the emotional tension to its fullest. This adaptation has been considered an avant-garde rock version of the 1847 Romanticism and Gothic fiction since its world debut in 2021.

Performance info:

Dates: April 4-6, 2pm/7:30pm

Tickets: 280-780 yuan

Venue: Shanghai Culture Square 上海文化广场

Address: 597 Fuxing Rd M. 复兴中路597号