1984 Theatre Royal Bath
George Orwell’s slimmed down story reminds us to revisit social media with a more wary eye
We took up a special ticket offer from Theatre Royal Bath, for an unplanned trip to see 1984.
The play has taken some liberties with Orwell’s story, creating a more stage-friendly production.
Ryan Craig’s adaptation, has slimmed down the story, creating a sense of isolation in a sterile environment. A place where independent thought is stamped out.
Since Orwell’s novel was first published, its dystopian future examining the British intelligentsia’s relationship to Russia has been a constant in the background. Not just influencing pop culture, but each and every political situation has seen reference back to the 40’s satire.
The complexities of Orwell’s original novel aren’t in this production. Instead, it leaves the audience with a sinister aftertaste of surveillance, data harvesting, AI and the algorithms that track us, pushing everything from Amazon buys to YouTube suggested listening.
In this respect it was a fresh take on a story that’s been pulled inside out for decades.
The cast included on-stage and prerecorded cast, with Doña Croll as Telescreen Newscaster bringing a Hunger Games flair to breaking news stories.
It’s definitely worth a trip to see the production, if not to be entertained then as a timely reminder to really go through those social media settings.
1984 is on at Theatre Royal Bath until Saturday 28 September 2024
For more information or to book, visit: https://www.theatreroyal.org.uk/events/1984/
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