This production stunned audiences in 2012 and is set to pack even more punches this time around.
Be warned, audiences should strap themselves in for a terrifically-frightening theatrical event set against a towering wall of plasma screens. Nelle Lee both stars and adapted this version for the stage and has done the mental and physical preparation to tackle such an intense role.
This show is like a theatrical show-bag, there are goodies squeezed in left, right and centre. Screens, live-feed footage, lust, sex, love, torture, betrayal and of course — rats. It's the kind of show that gets you thinking and will make you want a good strong drink before you head to bed that night.
Your role is?
I play the role of Julia. By day, she is a proud member of the Junior Anti-Sex League and works at the printing press churning out cheap porno booklets. By night, she does anything she can to rebel against the party; black-market chocolate, red lipstick and sexual rendezvous in her secret spot in the forest.
Fav line in the play and why?
“If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face — forever."
Although I do not get to say this line in the play, each and every time I hear it, I get a tingle down my spine. Orwell chose each and every word in this sentence for a reason; they conjure such vivid imagery and they still make me shudder with fear.
Most vulnerable moment on stage and how do you prepare for this?
I would have thought stripping down to my underwear on stage would have been the most physically vulnerable — the Cremorne is an intimate theatre and that front row of audience members are RIGHT there — but I got over that pretty quickly (thank goodness!). So without giving too much away — the moment when Julia faces Winston after their 'betrayal' is definitely the most emotionally vulnerable.
Describe the experience of being involved in such a dark and twisted production?
I love doing this show. That said, I loved reading the book in high school, so I guess it is my type of story. We're in the middle of a huge national tour of this production, and it is so important for us all (cast and crew) to check in with one another after each performance, usually over a glass of wine. It is a taxing show for everyone, particularly for Bryan (who plays Winston). Although it is not as physically demanding as some other shows I have been involved with in the past, emotionally it leaves you in a place which can be quite exhausting if you don't shake it.
How important is it for people to have an understanding or awareness about this subject material?
Although the future date Orwell prophesied about has passed, this book is still as relevant as the day it was published in 1949. If you really think about it, you could say that it is becoming more and more relevant with the advancement of technologies. Surveillance and CCTV surround us and record us on the street, in supermarkets in stairwells to our apartments. Orwell warned us against a world where everything is monitored and the government controls every aspect of our lives. I think it's incredibly important that we sit up and think about how much of it has actually become a reality.
'1984' will be performed at the Cremorne Theatre, QPAC from July 15.
