Timely YEP production of Animal Farm at the Everyman this February
by Educate Magazine January 31, 2020 · Previews
Young Everyman Playhouse (YEP) will perform a Laurence Wilson adaptation of George Orwell’s controversial novella Animal Farm from 12-15 February at the Everyman.
Featuring YEP actors with direction from Everyman & Playhouse staff in collaboration with set design and stage management students from LIPA, the play continues the company’s run of politically aware productions.
In a world where news headlines are dominated by Brexit, austerity and corruption, YEP are presenting the Orwellian classic, based on events in Stalinist Russia, for 2020 audiences.
In November, YEP took on Jim Cartwright’s seminal play Road which deals with social deprivation in a northern town. This follow-up will see the young actors morph into the tired, overworked animals of Manor Farm.
As Farmer Jones is drunk, his livestock plot a revolt. Pigs Napoleon and Snowball look to smash the inequalities of the farmyard and build a society which is fair to all the animals. However, things soon start to unravel and the promised utopia evades the animals.
YEP associate director Chris Tomlinson said: “Animal Farm is an incredible, timeless play and it couldn’t be more current for the political climate we find ourselves in today.
“I feel we always need to call things out and challenge those who are in power, and I think this play shows the dangers of what happens if we don’t. Bringing a play like this in challenges perceptions and thoughts.”
Laurence Wilson’s theatre credits for the Everyman include Urban Legend, Lost Monsters, Cardboard Guitar Man and Tiny Volcanoes. He has also created work for television, film, radio and theatre companies including Paines Plough, Menagerie Theatre, Dukes Theatre and 20 Stories High, for which Blackberry Trout Face won Best New Play for Young People, the Brian Way Award in 2010.
Animal Farm is at the Everyman from Wed 12 Feb to Sat 15 Feb, https://www.everymanplayhouse.com/whats-on/animal-farm
