"For god's sake! What's Mark and Sab doing at a theatre?" It seems Tim Robbins is a pretty busy man.
Outside of his movie career and his family responsibilities, he is also co-founder of the Los Angeles acting troop known simply as "The Actors' Gang." Now Tim is a pretty versatile actor. I cheered him when he made his way through the sewerage pipe during the "Shawshank Redemption", scorned him with his portrayal as a family man-cum-terrorist in "Arlington Road" and just flat out laughed at his stupidity as 'Nuke LaLoosh" in the classic sports film "Bull Durham." He is one of ther most versatile actors of the past 25 years and his adaption of 1984 shows not only his ability to break down a complex and controversial novel but '1984' hints at his paranoia in some ways of the role of government in society today.
Sab and I went of a George Orwell fix in Thailand. We both read '1984' , 'Animal Farm' and 'Down and out in Paris and London' so it was to great surprise last week that whilst surfing the web that i came across an ad for a production at Melbourne's splendid State Theatre. With this piece of news i called Sab who was equally enthusiastic to see this fabulous work come to lifeand if Tim Robbins gotta hand in its creation then it has to be pretty good.
A splendid theatre we have here in MelbourneNow i haven't frequented the State Theatre much in my life. I remember going there in primary school and admired the red carpets and shiny surfaces. With Sab and I being the patrons of the arts we are we ended up in the cheap seats yet it seems in this theatre even the cheap seats are great. Unlike the theatre in Hong Kong, our view of the action wasn't impeded by an airconditioning duct which made it hard to follow the subtitles whilst watching "Turandot." Still the differences in going to the theatre Melbourne style are vast compared to going to the theatre in Hong Kong. For starters in Melbourne going to the theatre is an event.
The audience dress according to their ticket price here. Seen thnat we were up the back we were dressed not too badly but we would have been out of our league had we been closer to the stage. Once again, i've taken Sab out in style. The audience doesn't bring plastic bags or dress like they have just taken the weeds out of the garden herre as well. There is more sosfistication in the audience as they are here to experience the play rather than just watch it.
The play started and the stage was a simple black affair with only 6 actors used in the production. Much like the book, the mood and look of the play was stark.The central role of Winston was performed brilliantly by P Adam Walsh who drove himself into the paranoia and fear that his role required. The supporting cast was excellent yet their performances were difficult to follow as the play wass designed for each actor to jump between characters. The real winner of the night was the story itself. Orwell's words coming to life were more than enough for Sab and I to enjoy the night and the underlying feeling of the novels spirit tying into current day American politics was at the forefront of the audiences minds.
The Actors Gang did a fantastic job of interpreting '1984' in a very minimalistic sence. It seems that they wanted the words to be the star and they were at the expence of the acting. Still '1984' is a hard book to bring to thearte life because it is so stark and large an idea that a stage will never be big enough for its full potential to be seen. The only place it can be seen in its full light is in the readers imagination.
The audience dress according to their ticket price here. Seen thnat we were up the back we were dressed not too badly but we would have been out of our league had we been closer to the stage. Once again, i've taken Sab out in style. The audience doesn't bring plastic bags or dress like they have just taken the weeds out of the garden herre as well. There is more sosfistication in the audience as they are here to experience the play rather than just watch it.
The play started and the stage was a simple black affair with only 6 actors used in the production. Much like the book, the mood and look of the play was stark.The central role of Winston was performed brilliantly by P Adam Walsh who drove himself into the paranoia and fear that his role required. The supporting cast was excellent yet their performances were difficult to follow as the play wass designed for each actor to jump between characters. The real winner of the night was the story itself. Orwell's words coming to life were more than enough for Sab and I to enjoy the night and the underlying feeling of the novels spirit tying into current day American politics was at the forefront of the audiences minds.
The Actors Gang did a fantastic job of interpreting '1984' in a very minimalistic sence. It seems that they wanted the words to be the star and they were at the expence of the acting. Still '1984' is a hard book to bring to thearte life because it is so stark and large an idea that a stage will never be big enough for its full potential to be seen. The only place it can be seen in its full light is in the readers imagination.
1 comment:
hmmmmm I don't think it was as great as you say. Theatre shows shouldn't go for longer than 2 hours including Intermission and this went for 2 and a half. Secondly, sorry to say but no cheap seats in any theatre are good. It takes away from the experience. When we go to see the Marriage of Figaro and I book the tickets, you'll see
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