1984 adapted from the novel by
George Orwell by Nelle Lee and Nick Skubij.
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Directed by Michael Futcher Creative producer Ross Balbuziente.
Designer Josh McIntosh. Lighting designer Jason Glenwright. Sound designer Guy
Webster.Video designer Craig Wilkinson.
Cast: Chloe ,
Tony Cogin, Abhilash Kaimal, Steven Rooke, Michael Whalley and David Whitney The Canberra Theatre, June 6-7
2025. Bookings 62752700.
Reviewed by Peter Wilkins
George Orwell described his
dystopian novel about the destructive nature of power as a satire. Shake
&Stir’s adaptation of 1984 is a
terrifying glimpse of a stark reality. Orwell’s cautionary prophesy
assumes a heart-stopping significance 40
years after Winston Smith’s desperate
attempt to combat the authoritarian control of omnipresent Big Brother,
constantly watching over the citizens of Oceana from a huge screen. Written in
1949, 1984 is an attack on the regime
of Nazi Germany and post war Stalinism. Oceana controlled by the state is at
war with Eurasia. The Brotherhood resistance movement under leader Emanuel
Goldsteinstruggles to incite the proletariat Prols to stand up to the forces of
Big Brother and the Thought Police who hunt out thought criminals, subject them
to torture and eventually vaporize them into non-existence. Propaganda
pronounces that War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery and Who controls the past
controls the present. Who controls the present controls the future.
Shake &
Stir’s discomforting adaptation by Nelle Lee and Nick Skubij resonates with
chilling relevance in this era of fake news and social media influencers.
Michael Futcher’s electrifying direction is aided by designer Josh McIntosh’s war-torn
set, sound designer Guy Webster’s
ominous sound and effects and video designer Craig Wilkinson’s overpowering
video imagery, accompanied by Jason Glenwright’s eerily evocative lighting
design. This is a perfectly integrated production of theatrical elements to
heighten the tension, increase the suspense and underscore the riveting
performances of Shake & Stir’s excellent cast. For one hour and forty
minutes without an interval, 1984
grips the audience with unrelenting involvement in Orwell’s dire and all too
real prophesy. This dystopic view of a world entrenched in the threat of
fascism and state control strikes a fearful chord for a 2025 audience cognisant
of the fragile balance in the world order.
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| Michael Walley as Winston Smith |
Josh McIntosh’s austere setting
captures the bleak desolation of a post apocalyptic society, denied any
pleasure, luxury or sexual freedom. The design is a depressing grey, the images
of war, death and destruction on the large screen a lifeless monochrome.
Protagonist Winston Smith’s dreams of a
world free of the darkness appear in vivid colour before dissolving into the
gritty greyness. The inescapable irony of a Ministry of Love that preaches hate
or the Ministry of Truth that propagates lies may remind us of the wisdom of
hindsight, but Orwell reminds us that who controls the present controls the
future.
Shake & Stir project Orwell’s
forewarning with an excellent company of five actors. The performances are
highlighted by the use of video close-ups and historical footage of World War
ll horror and atrocity. Every aspect of the production compels thought and
reflection. As Winston Smith, Michael Whalley traverses with absolute
conviction the doubtful editor of Newspeak to trusting ally of O’Brien (David
Whitney) to the lover of Julia (Chloe Bayliss) and the eventual captive in Room
101. Bayliss gives a coquettish and fiercely independent performance as Julia
and Whitney is invidious as the cold and sadistic interrogator O’Brien. They
are well supported by Abhilash Kaimal as the informer Charrington and Tony
Cogin and Steven Rooke in a number of roles.
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| Chloe Bayliss as Julia. Michael Whalley as Winston Smith |
Shake & Stir’s powerful
production of Orwell’s cautionary classic is a shocking indictment of man’s inhumanity
to man. It is impossible to escape its warning at a time when the world
confronts the dangers of international conflict and insatiable quest for power.
The production closes with Orwell‘s words
projected on the screen: Power is not a Means. Power is an End. It is power for
power’s sake that O’Brien employs as he reduces Smith to a victim of the state’s
will. Shake & Stir’s production is a grim reminder that Big Brother still
exists and the only hope for the future lies in the memory of a better past and
the existence of the Brotherhood. Shake & Stir have once again shaken us
out of our complacency and stirred up our awareness. 1984 is Shake & Stir’s warning to our time. Don’t miss it.
