With the world around us becoming increasingly industrialised and commercialised, Orwell’s classic novel has stayed just as relevant to the reader even 67 years down the line.
Robert Icke and Duncan Macmillan’s theatrical adaptation of the play has arguably increased this relevance further by integrating the novels appendix into the play, giving it a very discomforting scene which left the sinister and questionable idea of the party’s existence resonating with the audience. This introduction of ‘The Principles of Newspeak’, exclusive to this adaptation, emphasised the omnipotence of Big Brother and the party.
I felt some of the special effects were slightly overdone; for example, the repeated use of video projections became slightly redundant, as it seemed like a predetermined idea the audience were meant to walk away with rather than developing their own perception of the play.
Andrew Gower was fantastic in presenting Winston’s angst and confusion as well as his enthusiasm for the truth that eventually appears to precede Julia’s, emphasised by his erratic and unpredictable behaviour onstage. The increase of his subconscious ‘thoughtcrime’ is brilliantly made physical by the characters around him becoming vessels for his doubts of the party.
Catrin Stewart played the character of Julia remarkably well and the audience was bombarded with dramatic sounds and lights, keeping us on the edge of our seats throughout; mirroring the portrayal of Winston and Julia, as living in perpetual paranoia.
The militant nature of the Party is portrayed by Angus Wright, who plays O’Brian, presentable and clean appearance in comparison to Winston especially in the penultimate scene in Room 101, and the minimalist set goes a long way in accentuating the lack of freedom and privacy the people in the dystopian society had, whilst also leaving a lot down to the acting of the cast to tell the story of the novel.
Icke and Macmillan’s adaptation of the novel is fantastic and an audacious and adventurous theatrical masterpiece.
Reviewed by Joseph Bird