My overall impression
As I sat in the theatre before the Orwellian began, I was silently berating myself for not having done research into Orwell before arriving. But I wasted my time worrying. The play was quick-paced, but clear, and easy to stay engaged with. The story-telling in every piece kept me enraptured, and often quite literally at the edge of my seat. Being transported to the world of “Down & Out in Paris & London,” (which was the one piece of which I had no tangential knowledge upon entering) so delighted me that it made me want to read it. And then, comforted by the early comedy, the harsher dystopias of the latter pieces ravaged my soul all the more. I especially loved 1984, which was beautifully crushing and tragically prescient in light of what we’ve learned about our own government this week. There is no better time to see this play than right now. Soak it in while you can.
