Nineteen Eighty Four or Against?

Review of 1984 performed at the Sherman Theatre in Cardiff.

Being a theatre virgin, I’m still unsure if 1984 was a great choice for my first play to go and see. When a house mate mentioned going to watch the George Orwell adaptation I jumped at the opportunity, not just because of the student rate of £11 a ticket, but because I had read the book over the summer (a cheery holiday read I know!) and wanted to see how it could be adapted for the stage.

My first impressions of the production were good. The set, which appeared to be a 1950s office/library room with a glass corridor, was amazing and was utilised really well by the actors to signify the different locations of the storyline. Part way through the play the formal set shed to a bare white room to represent Winston’s cell, which in contrast to the former panelled wood walls looked really striking. It was also carried out very smoothly, as a member of the audience I didn’t really register that the characters were part performing, part changing the set. The acting was also spectacular, I couldn’t fault it. Communication was fluid between characters and you could sense the passion the actors associated with their characters.

The scene was set in a futuristic book club, where all the characters collectively discussed Winston and the narrative of 1984, however I didn’t actually realise that this was supposed to be a book club until a friend told me at the end. This was a constant theme of the play, confusion. Even though I had read the original book quite recently, many parts of the play took a long time for me to make sense of. Therefore I wouldn’t advise watching the production without at least reading a synopsis of 1984, otherwise you will get lost, well and truly lost.

The production was surprisingly high tech as well with the use of live camera’s and video footage. I thought the use of handheld live cameras worked really well to accentuate Winston’s madness whilst he was being tortured, the combination with the heightened music made me feel really involved in the story line. However the producers took this too far with the tedious use of high pitched noises and flashing strobe lights. I found this very uncomfortable to watch and think that it really ruined parts of the play. I know people may say they were using the light and sound features to make the audience feel on edge, to feel the pain of the leading character Winston, but for me it was definitely a step too far, I actually found it painful as the noise was so loud.

I also thought that the producers relied on the use of pre-recorded video too much, when a couple of scenes were played via a very large T.V screen. I know theatre plays are restricted with set changes, but I didn’t like this as I had paid to see a play, if I wanted to watch a non-live version of 1984 I would have watched the film.

So I’m still not really sure if I would recommend this play, not that I really have any credentials or expertise to do so, as this was the first ever production I had seen. But I definitely would advise reading the book before seeing it and expect to be slightly confused at parts and maybe even bring earplugs for the deafening, repetitive tones? Tickets to the show can be bough here!