Animal Farm

Bloomshed fearlessly explores George Orwell’s Animal Farm with delightful energy, focus and excellent characterisation and then carries the Farm into the realms of Royal Commissions and political attempts to apply and avoid accountability.

The company of Elizabeth Brennan, James Malcher, Anna Louey, Edan Goodall, Lauren Swain, Laura Aldous, Syd Brisbane, Sam Nix and James Jackson display the best of their craft with exceptional physical work to bring the animals to life. They all express the essence of the animals while interacting with the audience, playing for laughs, dancing, and then provoking deeper emotional responses during the darker turns of the play. The performances by Syd Brisbane as Boxer and Elizabeth Brennan as Napolean are remarkable.

The Royal Commission section of the play uses caricatures of contemporary political characters to question the current accountability discourse. Its focus on political interplay to some extent trivialises Orwell’s warning against the unjust use of power and its violent outcomes.

Samantha Hastings and Nathan Burmeister designed the stepped, open U-shaped set and the effective costumes. The set creates multiple spaces which contribute to the fast-paced action. Lighting (John Collopy), sound (Justin Gardam) and stage management (Jacinta Anderson) are real supports for the narrative and actors.

George Orwell’s work attempts to open up one of the deep problems of the ages and this play is a worthy attempt to carry on that exploration. 

Ruth Richter

Photographer: Sarah Walker