“Thoughtcrime”, “Big Brother is watching you”, “Cold War” and “2 + 2 = 5”.
These concepts originate from George Orwell, the author behind classics such as Animal Farm and 1984. During the turbulent 1930s and 1940s, the British writer became deeply committed to exposing totalitarian systems and defending the individual in the midst of political rhetoric and mass movements ranging from the far left to the far right.
Where can truth and freedom be found – and do they truly exist – when ideological battles take over everything? Are people willing to do anything to gain or retain power, from rewriting their own history to reporting on or cancelling those closest to them?
From another troubled era – our own – director and playwright Tore Vagn Lid encounters Orwell in a new musical production that continues to explore his captivating and dangerous universe. Taking the love story at the heart of 1984 as its starting point, Vagn Lid moves through Orwell’s writing and into the world of today.
Here, it is no longer only “the Party” and “Big Brother” that represent surveillance. In the age of algorithms and artificial intelligence, surveillance can increasingly become about the art of monitoring oneself.
On stage
Trond Espen Seim, Torbjørn Berglund Eriksen, Hanna-Maria Grønneberg, Maria Omarsdottir Austgulen, Jonas Strand Gravli and Eirik Hellerdal Fosstveit
Production team
Playwright and director: Tore Vagn Lid
Set designer: Kyrre Bjørkås
Lighting designer: Martin Myrvold
Costume designer: Charlotte Høyem Osburg
Sound designer: Glenn Erik Haugland
Graphics and model work: Julia Jayko Fossland
Producer: Silje Vigerust Vinjar
By Tore Vagn Lid, freely inspired by George Orwell.
Running time: 2 hours 20 minutes (including interval)
