1984 the play

13 August 2014






The theatre scene in London is known to be prestigious and popular world-wide, and it's something I am really trying to explore more of. So when I saw a sale pop up for the play of 1984 (I think it was on lastminute.com), I made sure E and I snapped up a couple of tickets for a matinee showing.

I didn't know what to expect from it, having read the book but not seen the movie or any other adaptations.

It was a creative, effective production, and I think they captured the overall essence of the novel very well. It wasn't easy to watch, and it shouldn't be. The thing is, and I know it's a very subjective criticism, the characters of Winston and Julia were not at all what I had envisioned in my head when I read the book. I read it a long time ago, but I still remember distinctly the image I had of them - not in terms of looks, but their persona, their aura and the way they stood for what they did - and it was difficult to reconcile that with the actors I saw on stage.

Again, I completely understand that this is purely my opinion! I just want to give my honest thoughts.

I'm sure that many others have seen this and gone away impressed and moved, and in many ways I was both. It just wasn't quite what I had in mind.

Maybe I should try watching the movie? In any case, I am still very glad that I went to see it and this hasn't put me off trying to go to more plays in the least.



7 comments:

  1. Interesting, I went to see this on Monday night having got tickets for £19.84 each (I liked what they did there) from Time Out. It was definitely the most sensory play I've ever seen and apart from the relatively short length I can definitely see why they didn't have an interval as the build up would have been broken. I think it's always hard to translate books which are so much about a personal perspective and narrative onto either stage or film which are essentially third party experiences. I'm not sure what someone who hadn't read the book would make of it though.

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  2. I imagine this to be a really atmospheric play! I haven't seen any adaptations, but the book is one of my very favourites! x

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  3. I went to see this at the Almeida before it transferred! When I came out I couldn't decide whether I'd loved it or whether I felt stricken or even traumatised by it... I felt from the moment that the lights went down at the beginning that I was on a horror house-style rollercoaster and that things could only descend further from there, which was well done. The big reveal worked very well - in a way that I simply wouldn't have visualised when reading the book. Although I don't know if we saw the same cast, I know that I'd definitely imagined Winston as a lot older and plainer - the guy who played him was sort of cute though pretty weedy. Julia, too, was a lot prettier than I'd envisioned. I suppose that's theatre for you though...xx

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  4. Don't watch the movie it was horrible.....

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  5. It's ok to be critical, and I'm sorry to hear that it didn't
    match with what you read in the books...
    The 1984 Playhouse is a nice looking building! Xx

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  6. I didn't even know they made 1984 into a play! I also am not sure how I'd feel about it if I saw a play because I also have specific images of the characters in the book. But I really like your pictures, especially that black and white one :]

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  7. This probably isn't what I should have taken from this post, but I love that they offered 101 tickets for £19.84! Seriously though, I always find it difficult when there's a clear picture in your head about something, and then it's portrayed differently.

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