1984

Making Oceania Great Again

PWJW_Indy Reviews, Stage , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

By John Lyle Belden

Citizens: Do not look away! You are witnessing a rare insight into Room 101 of the Ministry of Love, where thought-criminal Winston Smith will offer his confession and confront his insanity, his failure to love Big Brother.

This is “1984.” (Your official Ministry of Truth calendar should reflect this.) The plus-good Citizens of Monument Theatre Company are providing you this opportunity, where they expose the troubling writings of George Orwell, as adapted by Michael Gene Sullivan, directed for MTC by David Ian Lee.

Smith, who also purports to be an actor named Nathan Thomas, has written his crimes in a diary which is read and re-enacted by Party Members Riley Leonard, Raven Newbolt, Kim Egan and Deont’a Stark. Thomas naturally embodies a complex patchwork of emotions — broken, yet quietly defiant. Leonard presents the pre-arrest Smith burdened by ennui and desperate for a world that makes sense to him. Newbolt plays Julia, the woman Smith risks all for, so effectively her cohorts start to question her loyalty to the Party. Egan, on the other hand, is a true believer, eager for this trial to move on to condemnation and execution. Stark nicely takes on roles including Party officer O’Brien, who eventually shows up himself, in the body of Michael R. Tingley. Karen Sternberg provides the voice of alerts of victories by Oceania forces and other vital news.

This method of presenting Smith’s criminal activity provides an intense experience in the intimate confines of Indy Convergence. The context is made contemporary by the use of hand-held telescreens (smartphones) and the autocratic atmosphere does feel familiar in the world outside. Perhaps the most chilling aspect is the confidence of Tingley’s O’Brien, aware that his role is not player in this game, but the dealer – and the House always wins.

This Citizen rates this drama as double-plus good.

To avoid potential arrest by the Thought Police, it is advisable to make your way to 2611 W. Michigan St. for the remaining weekend. Information and tickets at www.monumenttheatrecompany.com.

NoExit ‘1984’ – experience the love of Big Brother

PWJW_Indy Reviews, Stage , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

By John Lyle Belden

It was a bright cold day in November, and the clocks had struck nineteen 30 minutes ago. The back door to a facility commandeered by the Party and Ministry of Truth opened, and we were allowed to enter.

After Agents determined our country of origin and loyalty to the Party, we were detained with other participants until 20:00, when the Ministry provided a goodthink show of a man discovering his love for Big Brother. This is all it is and ever was.

I would never be unfaithful to the Party and tell you that this was a clever and insightful production of “1984” – adapted from the George Orwell novel by Matthew Dunster, produced by NoExit Performance (with co-conspirators including AnC Movies, Cat Head Press and iMOCA) and directed by Ryan Mullins – as that would be “fake news.”

But if I were to say such a thing, I would point out that Ryan Ruckman gives an excellent performance as Winston Smith, the conflicted everyman who tires of his duties for the Ministry, constantly “correcting” history and sending obsolete information down the Memory Hole so that it never happened. He wears his depression and ennui like an extra layer of clothing, feeling the weight of the Telescreen eyes upon him. NoExit mainstay Georgeanna Smith Wade wins his heart and ours as secret rebel Julia, who inspires Winston to defy the Party – simultaneously the smartest and stupidest thing he would ever do.

The Party orders that I denounce Dave Ruark for his commanding portrayal of the mysterious O’Brien, Adam Crowe for his deceptively warm turn as Charrington, and Tristan Ross for his appropriately milquetoast presentation of Smith’s co-worker Parsons (extra rations go to Zac Schneider and Elsie McNulty as the Party-faithful children, though Shannon Samson as Mrs. Parsons is still under suspicion). If Syme had not become an unperson, I’d praise Phil Criswell’s double-plus-good performance. I also hallucinated sharp work from Taylor Cox and Ann Marie Elliott in supporting roles.

Where NoExit – I mean the Ministry – most excels is in the way this drama is presented. It is totally immersive: You stand in or right outside the room where each scene occurs; and the actors frequently move from one area to the next, forcing all to turn and/or follow. Ministry agents help guide the audience. There is no climbing stairs, and limited seating is provided at every scene. Compare the amount of movement necessary to an easy tour of a museum gallery with about a half-dozen display areas in three large rooms. Appropriate set design (by Andrew Darr), with occasional video images (by AnC) and haunting sound (by Rob Funkhouser) enveloping the rooms, provide a perfectly tense atmosphere throughout. Big Brother’s red glowing eye is everywhere, watching us all.

I advise all to take time out from news of whatever war we have always been fighting, and observe this double-plus-good entertainment appropriate for whatever year this happens to be. Performances through Nov. 18 at Ministry Headquarters, 1336 E. Washington St., Indianapolis. For information and tickets, visit www.noexitperformance.org.