“Four legs good, two legs bad”, straight out of George Orwell’s 1945 cautionary tale is one of the chants that finds favour among the overworked animals on an English farm, and as far as easy to remember, fun to shout out, us vs them slogans go – it is rather good. I think, writer and director Saro Lusty-Cavallari also knows a good slogan when he hears one, and wittily inserts a few easily recognised examples of contemporary PR mush into his adaptation to give the piece a modern tone. He does so without sacrificing the emotional potency of the original text, and so here we have a fresh, dynamic rendering of the famous fairy-tale about an animal rebellion.
Adapting Orwell’s novel for the stage, there is always the question of how human actors are going to portray the animal characters. I have to say I was pleased Lusty-Cavallari did not go down the gimmicky Sir Peter Hall route with stylised movement and headpieces. Opting for his ensemble to stand erect, unfettered in loose beige overalls with a pictorial signature on their chest symbolising the animal they represent was an effective solution. Both the costuming and direction manages to avoid sentimentalising our friends without opposable thumbs and instead, we are given ordinary, relatable people. I need to mention at this point the talented Costume Designer of this show- Claudia Mirabello- was stuck in the Badlands south of the border, yes, Victoria, for the entire rehearsal period. Assisting in getting her designs to the stage was Set Designer, Carmody Nicol whose visually austere setting still evokes the storybook nature of the work. Along with the lighting by Rhys Mendham and sound by Jaymes Julian Wilson, I cannot imagine a more coherent design vision to illuminate the words and work of the actors.
The cast of fifteen actors’ gels well. Every person on stage knows what they need to do to advance the story to present a highly enjoyable, often funny (at least before interval) piece of theatre. On media night, Angus Evans was a standout as the vainglorious Napoleon. The truly chilling moment of the evening involved this actor and an egg. I will say no more. There was also fine work from Brendan Miles who opened proceedings with considerable gravitas as Old Major; Zoe Crawford as Squealer brilliantly combined perkiness with menace, and Tiffany Wong made for a memorable Molly, desperately clinging to her simple luxuries. Still, I praise the entire ensemble because knowing the story as well as I do, I was fully invested in how the characters were going to deal with what was coming. I was never a passive witness to the story unfolding before me.
Orwell stands up as one of the most compelling writers of the 20th century. This production, both lovely to look at and chillingly relevant was the best foray back into the theatre I could have hoped for.
Veronica Hannon, Theatre Now
