This staged version of 1984 does not present the book from start to finish in a literal, linear fashion, but instead focuses on Winston’s incarceration, where previous scenes from the novel are “played back” in front of him by party loyalists who are in possession of his diary. The theater becomes a confessional and interrogation chamber, and the audience is a silent witness to the proceedings.
The storytelling focuses on the nightmarish quality of life experienced by those who have no privacy from Big Brother and are frequently exhorted to love war and hate everything else. It’s dark, it’s uncomfortable at times, but it harnesses not only the power of Orwell’s text but the dynamic, emergent, and dialogic power of the theater.
Tim Robbins (director of the original production) and Michael Gene Sullivan (adapter) require that productions of this adaptation “not make use of any video, live camera, or projection screens. The emphasis [is] not technology, but of how humans become machines.” The effect is chilling. We can’t wait for you to experience it live!
