Review: The Sixth Heart, Cotham Parish Church – ‘The troupe’s most ambitious production yet’

Bristol-based theatre company Brave Mirror returned this week with the third play in their season of new writing: The Sixth Heart. An adaptation (penned by Natalie Beddows) of the Bluebeard fairytale, the production is the troupe’s most ambitious production yet.

The company – whose name is in part inspired from the Ariel, the ‘brave spirit’, in The Tempest – have not been afraid to dabble in the ethereal in prior productions, but The Sixth Heart sees them lean into abstract performance more than ever before. In this light, Cotham Parish Church felt a fitting venue to host the show.

The play is set at the household of the Count (Marius Hatteland-Dunn), a rich and enigmatic nobleman who, having killed his five previous wives in unspecified circumstances, marries Ariane, his sixth wife. The narrator (Bobby Busvine) guides us through the plot, which follows Ariane (Sophia Woolfenden) navigating her newly married life.

With no allusion to a honeymoon phase, the plot takes us straight to the more distressing aspects of their marriage. This entails Ariane’s obedience to her controlling husband, and her tolerance of his ever-present friends – who aren’t given names, but are merely referred to as ‘hedonists’ (played by Busvine, Gemma Lee and Elsa Rae Llewelyn).

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cei0_Y9KNq1/

We sense that Ariane’s predicament is not so dissimilar to that of her predecessors; the dark, alcohol-fuelled debauchery and the Count’s coercive control is the norm in this world. What is not so clear is whether Arianne will also follow the fate of the first five of her husband’s wives.

The comparison is drawn that as the optimism of spring must turn to the darkness of winter, must Ariane too follow the path of her inevitable demise? Creative touches such as the Count’s blood-stained neck gaiter and bubbling short temper against the increasing frustration of the Count’s friends at his established pattern of behaviour illustrate this tension nicely.

However, the fate of Ariane being seemingly subject to events out of her control serves to take agency away from the character, to the play’s detriment. Her character feels underdeveloped by the script, with the scenes proving to be repetitive, rather than revealing. Where there is opportunity to understand the dynamics of control between the Count, and his wife and his friends, the delivery is only sometimes convincing.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cen7rWroGHg/

Elsa Rae Llewelyn’s strong performance brings a painful intensity to her hedonist character, who we learn is infatuated with the third of the Count’s wives. The ebbing and flowing of her character’s loyalty to the Count is compelling to watch as the extent of his ability to coerce those around him is tested.

The set design and original music are used to good effect in this production, transporting the audience into the Count’s world in an immersive fashion. However, there are times when characters are not explored as much as they might be; sometimes at critical moments in the play, style is prioritised over substance.

It’s a balancing act that this still-emerging company will undoubtedly better grapple with in future productions. Although The Sixth Heart at times misses the mark in conveying a clear discussion of its ideas, this production is very much a statement of the ambition that Brave Mirror has for its future. As director Jamie Saul notes in the programme: keep your eyes on them.

Brave Mirror, The Sixth Heart – artwork: Rosie Bayliss

For more about Brave Mirror, visit www.bravemirror.com.

Main photo: Rosie Bayliss

Read more: Troubadour Stageworks announce summer theatre programme

Listen to the latest Bristol24/7 Behind the Headlines podcast: