1984 (York)

1984

Theatre Royal, York

18.9.2014

Having enjoyed this new version of 1984 while on a recent trip to London, I was pleased to be able to see it again, this time a little closer to home.

I was interested to see if the play, employing it's various devices  designed to wrong-foot the audience and confuse the senses, would be equally effective with a repeat viewing. A front-row seat gave a different perspective on the play (I was seated much further back in the stalls in London).

In a nutshell, 1984 was every bit as powerful, shocking and thought-provoking this time as it was the first time around. There was even an unscheduled ''breaking of the fourth wall'' when a temporary technical fault brought a member of the behind the scenes crew centre stage to announce a break in the action while the problem was sorted.

Highly recommended - but definitely not for the faint hearted - 1984 is an impressive reworking of the classic story. Find out more about the play and keep up to date with the tour over at the official website.