Printable CopyANIMAL FARM
The State Theatre Company of South Australia
The Space
Until 30 Mar 2019

Review by Doug Phillips

How on earth can you possibly condense Orwell’s classic “Animal Farm” into one hour and 24 minutes? It shouldn’t be possible. Yet that’s exactly what the State Theatre Company of South Australia has done. And when I say “done”, I mean “Well Done”.

The back of house departments have done a great job here, but it’s Renato Musolino who carries this production on his shoulders. Superbly cast, he achieves the impossible feat of playing every charterer, and the narrator, of this incredibly written and timely/important tale.

Musolino’s character portrayals are all intensely considered and precisely executed. The audience feels for each individual character differently, with emotions ranging from hatred and disgust to despair and agony.

84 straight minutes of dialogue is no mean feat, and Musolino deserved every bit of the standing ovation he received. The copious amounts of saliva the front row were subjected to would even be forgiven when considering the standard of his performance.

With the subject matter of this production, it would be interesting to hear the thoughts of the high-profile state politician who attended this performance. Orwell’s classic is a tale of warning that should have been heeded 70 years ago and has never been more alarmingly important than it is in 2019.

Playing until the end of the month, “Animal Farm” should be seen by every high school student, uni student, employee, voter, and politician in Adelaide.