Do we really need another play version of Animal Farm? Definitely!
This is the fourth play version of Orwell's brilliant satirical novella of Stalinist Russia that is eternally relevant and perhaps never more so than now. Tatty Hennessy's fresh new version has just played at Theatre Royal Stratford East and received five-star reviews, before embarking on a regional tour. This is a vibrant and bold adaptation in two acts with twenty-seven scenes and features a cast of thirteen actors. It is prefaced with four lines of advice, which make it very suitable for production in schools:
- The animals in the play all look like us
- The humans don't look at all like us
- Anyone can play any part
- Assume good intentions for as long as you can.
This version doesn't require masks for the animals (like the Peter Hall/Adrian Mitchell version) or a chorus, but is nicely split into episodes. It even features a new character, Milo the carrier pigeon, who acts as a stand-up comedian and whose monologues are prefaced with: ‘You're not gonna believe this, lads … my mate Coco knows this sparrow …’. The dialogue throughout is inkeeping with Orwell's but has a sprightly modern air. For example, when Squealer is accused of stealing milk in Act 1 by Boxer, he says: ‘I don't even like milk. Claggy. Isn't it?’
There is another really funny character, Minty the lamb, who has a conversation about ‘the electric fence feeling’ with Clover. These contemporary touches reminded me of the recent Peter Rabbit movies and Act 1 is peppered with witty and ironic dialogue. Rather than using a story teller and emphasising the fairy tale element, Hennessy opts for a Pathé 1940s-style newsreader with cut-glass English that introduces the characters before Act 1 beautifully.
Act 2 begins with the newsreader introducing the characters again, only this time the casualties of the rebellion – Mollie and Snowball – have their names skewed and redacted in the broadcast. Act 2 obviously becomes darker as the revolution is betrayed, Napolean is corrupted by power and Farmer Pilkington makes his Manor Fam deal.
This is a subtle and lively adaptation with many modern parallels about toxic leadership in times of crisis. This fourth play adaptation of Animal Farm is brilliant and a welcome addition. In fact, one might say: all adaptations are equal but some are more equal than others …