PicksInSix Review: Brokeback Mountain - Chicago Shakespeare Theater
‘BROKEBACK’ – There Is Never Enough Time.
PicksInSix® Review | Ed Tracy
The North American premiere of Ashley Robinson’s "Brokeback Mountain" now playing in Chicago Shakespeare Theater's Courtyard Theater, directed by Jonathan Butterell, stays meticulously true to Annie Proulx’s short story that appeared in the New Yorker in 1973, a publishing event that transformed the mainstream platform for gay and queer storytelling forever after. Over thirty years would pass before Ang Lee’s 2005 film adaptation starring the late Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal which was nominated for eight Academy Awards winning three for Adapted Screenplay, Original Score and Ang’s direction.
As much a tragic gay love story as it is a reflection of the consequences of the chilling homophobic mores of the times, "Brokeback Mountain" is set in 1963 in the American Midwest and follows the 20-year affair of two men, living separate, unfulfilled lives except for their regular liaisons that began on Brokeback when they were tending a sheep herd. It is a fragile and fraught long-range plan because, as one prophetically mourns, "There is never enough time."
The two men—Ennis Del Mar (Harrison Ball) and Jack Twist (Jack Cameron Kay—share troubled histories. Jack aspires for a career in the rodeo and makes ends meet picking up what work he can along the way. Abused and grossly humiliated as a child, when Jack meets Ennis he sees and feels an irresistible attraction for the introspective camp cook who is engaged to be married and appears to be conflicted on many levels. Ennis is under-employed as a cook and aspires for a farm and spread of his own. With their shared futures and the isolation of the situation, they forge a meaningful connection and one thing leads to another on Brokeback. The story then jumps forward four years when the two reunite at Jack’s urging. As the years roll on, it becomes less likely that a life together will dispel Ennis's fear of the kind of retribution his father was capable of when he was growing up. Ball and Kay give fine performances, with Ball’s reserved, guilt-ridden demeanor seeming to melt away with Kay’s carefree, eager, yet vulnerable, insistence keeping some lingering hope alive that things might work out.
Ennis's wife Alma Del Mar (a powerful and moving performance by Cordelia Dewdney) and Joe Aguirre (Thomas Cox), the sheep rancher, hold the key to the evolving drama of the story. Both discover the affair in different ways and impart as much to Ennis and Jack. It is Jack who becomes increasingly frustrated by Ennis's indifference, even as it is Jack's persistence that drives every decision Ennis makes to the point that he is stuck in a life that he largely does not want.
As for the musical elements of the show, if you are expecting a back-in-the-saddle-again-type soundtrack to these themes you would be better served to know that this is a play that incorporates Dan Gillespie Sells melodic score as a transitional element with folktale messaging. It is lyrical, performed by a small onstage band with pieces that are quite beautifully sung by the Balladeer (Kat Eggleston), who also plays a significant role at one point on stage. Cox covers multiple roles and Alina Jenine Taber rounds out the cast as Jack’s ex-wife Lureen.
Tom Pye’s multi-functional scenic design, set at a sloped angle to the Courtyard thrust stage, suggests the mountain scenes with real fire and weather elements and transforms into various other interiors. David Finn’s pastoral lighting and a somber soundscape by Christopher Shutt fit the pace that director Butterell has established for the weighty 90-minute production that has already been extended through June 28 with an additional performance added on June 16.
PHOTO|Kyle Flubacker
Chicago Shakespeare Theater
presents
North American Premiere
Brokeback Mountain
Courtyard Theater
Navy Pier
Extended through June 28, 2026
WEBSITE
PROGRAM
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