Cambridge Arts Theatre, Cambridge – until Sat 12th Feb 2022
Reviewed by Steph Lott
5*****
Old Major, the prize boar, calls the animals of Manor Farm together, to tell them of the strange dream that he has had, foretelling of a better future where all animals are equal and free. All they have to do is rid themselves of their oppressors and a utopian future awaits. They will take back control.
So starts Animal Farm, George Orwell’s renowned novella which tells the story of a revolution and its aftermath. It was written as a warning, based on observations of the 1917 Russian Revolution and the post-revolution Stalinist era and founded on Orwell’s own experiences during the Spanish Civil War.
It remains as relevant today as when it was written. As history tells us time and time again, “absolute power corrupts absolutely” and Major’s utopian dream of equality for all sadly isn’t realised. Everything that goes wrong is someone else’s fault, some animals find themselves labelled enemies and traitors, and history is changed.
The Children’s Theatre Partnership in association with Birmingham Rep has created a stage version of Animal Farm using life-size puppets to play the animals, with an extraordinary impact. This brand new production is directed and adapted by Robert Icke, with set and costume design by four-time Olivier award-winner Bunny Christie, and puppetry created by Toby Olie, (who is the creative genius behind the puppetry used in War Horse). Animal Farm marks Toby Olie’s third collaboration with the Children’s Theatre Partnership.
This modern adaptation of Orwell’s story is an astounding piece of theatre. The concept, design, direction and performance all come together to create something quite amazing. When the characters in your story are mostly animals, it presents a challenge, if the content of the production isn’t comic. Toby Olie’s puppets overcome that challenge. They are pretty much life-size recreations and they are magnificent. They are operated by an ensemble cast of incredibly skilled actor-puppeteers and voiced by some well-known names. What is interesting is that as you become immersed in the play, the actors operating the puppets seem to disappear – all you see are the animals, which all come to life on stage. They display all of the mannerisms and movement you expect to find from each individual creature. They move, snort, sniff, whimper and bark. The horses’ ears flick. The chickens flutter. When the pigs move you can feel their weight in the way they move. Nothing never jars; the production is moving and almost visceral.
Robert Icke’s adaptation provides an engrossing piece of storytelling, and I was so immersed that I didn’t notice the 90 minute running time passing. The design (Bunny Christie) and lighting (Jon Clark) work well together to create an atmosphere that moves from the warm and intimate barn interior at the start to a cold and bleak snowy winter. The way they depict some of the action is clever too – moving from full size animals at the front of the stage to smaller versions at the back to show distance.
What happens in the end is profoundly sad because it seems inevitable. The innocence and vulnerability of the animals is tragic. Orwell saw that the revolution that the Russian people underwent was in fact a change of regime from one small group of privileged people to another. It did not end tyranny, it just changed the tyrants. So it is that the inhabitants of Animal Farm move from “All animals are equal” to “but some are more equal than others”; it is impossible to distinguish the authoritarian regime of the pigs from that of the humans.
Animal Farm is an immaculately executed and powerful show. There is some humour from a few of the gentler animals, such as the hens and the cat, but it is grim stuff, though marvellously performed. The audience were spellbound, as was I.
It is an unforgettable production and if I could give it six stars I would.