Review: Humiseva harju

The hum on the ridge is so loud that the spectator is about to faint from the speed

I can’t remember a theatre night when I, as a spectator, was as breathless and in an emotional state as I was yesterday. Lauri Maijala’s direction of Emily Brontë’s (1818–1848) classic novel, which will be performed on the main stage of the Helsinki City Theatre, is a passionate, fierce and powerful interpretation of a life-long, difficult love that surpasses all reason. A life that never goes according to plan.

It is a story about life and emotions that surprise you. And they surprise you, because life and true love are anything but syrupy stories.

The mythical, downright horror movie-like landscape of the humming ridge is also the soulscape of the story’s main characters, Cathy and Heathcliff. The daughter of the manor gets an orphan boy as her plant companion, with whom she falls in love. Cathy’s brother Hindley does not accept the newcomer, which leads to a lifelong grudge.

Oona Airola Cathyna and Markus Järvenpää as Heathcliff make such physical interpretations of the role that we haven’t seen in a while. Markku Haussila has been given a great role as Cathy’s brother, and he also interprets it wonderfully.

“Love is like a wild rosewood/ and friendship like a laurel of thorns./ A rose is wonderful in spring/ and in summer its flowers smell./ But when winter comes/ who calls a rose beautiful?” (composed and translated into Finnish by Mikko Helenius)

Leena Rapola as the manor’s faithful servant and storyteller gives one of the most impressive roles of her long career. And I have to say that his use of voice is the best in the performance – the audience gets to understand every word and every line, which is not entirely self-evident these days.

As a director, Lauri Maijala cannot be pigeonholed into any particular genre. The talented Maijala follows her own paths. He sees the different nuances of life clearly, laughs at seriousness and at the same time takes the serious seriously. He interprets us humans violently and truthfully. Her good working partners in Humiseva harju have been dramaturg Ari-Pekka Lahti, set designer Katariina Kirjavainen, costume designer Sari Suominen and composer Mikko Helenius.

Life is not an easy journey in reality, but it is a journey worth traveling. Admittedly, things are not going well for the main couple of Humiseva harju, but at least they have loved it. The presentation proves that.

This is my last blog Help, I’m retiring, but life goes on. I will not leave my passion, writing and theatre. A new blog can be found at https://liisan-seikkailut.blogspot.com