REVIEW - The outstanding cast in Animal Farm take us on a rollercoaster of a journey - an incredible performance!

On Thursday, we were invited to the Octagon Theatre Bolton to watch Animal Farm. Our reviewer Abi Holden loved the show. Read what she had to say about this fantastic production...

Animal Farm is one of those classic novels that has been on my reading list for years but I have never got around to reading. Prior to seeing this show, at the beautiful Octagon Theatre, I didn’t really know much about it, apart from the fact that it was about a group of animals on a farm that overthrow the farmer in order to create a better society for themselves, only for it to end up as a totalitarian state ran by some very clever and cunning pigs. I was very excited, before the start of the show, to see how the actors would embody the characteristics of the animals and I was not disappointed. It was phenomenal.

The story of Animal Farm starts with the dreams of a pig, named Old Major (Natalia Campbell - The Tempest, As A Crow Flies). They dream of a world, for the animals, where they don’t have to bow down and do the bidding of humans and where they are all free and equal. They then die, sparking the animals, inspired by a song the Old Major had taught them, to begin to learn and prepare to overthrow the farmer, Mr Jones (a drunkard who only feeds them enough to do what he needs them to and treats them terribly). The pigs, being the ones who teach themselves to read and write first, take charge of the animals and lead them in their revolution against the humans at the battle of the cowshed. At this battle, the pig Snowball (Soroosh Lavasani - The Bounds, Peter Pan Goes Wrong) is injured and the horse Boxer (Sam Black - Animal Farm) is strong, and they are commended and decorated for their bravery in battle. A set of seven rules are then put in place about how the farm, which has had its name changed from Manor Farm to Animal Farm, will be run and the ideals that the animals will uphold to create a better place for all of them. One of these rules is that four legs are better than two and that the animals are forbidden from interacting with the humans, who they see as lesser beings to themselves.

Another of these rules is that they aren’t allowed to wear clothes. A horse named Mollie (Olivia Chandler - Around the World in 80 Days, Animal Farm) is used to a certain lifestyle of being groomed and covered in ribbons. She is told the ribbons are considered clothes and that she is no longer allowed to wear them, which upsets her. She is then caught interacting with a human over the hedge and she disappears to never be seen again. Snowball wants to create a windmill, so the animals have electricity so they are able to have lights and heat, as well as the ability to power machines to do their work for them. The leader of the comrades, Napoleon (Rhian Lynch - A Christmas Carol, 42 Balloons), wants them to focus on crops instead and a vote is taken, which Napoleon wins. Snowball is then banished from the farm, with the pigs stating he was against the revolution, and Napoleon rules that they will build a windmill after all but not for electricity. The pigs then begin to change the rules and begin living in the farmhouse, using the beds (which is forbidden until they change the rule to mean beds with sheets).

The other animals notice this and begin to question the changes. They are gaslit by the pigs into thinking that the rules were that way all along. Squealer (Lewis Griffin - Shut Up I’m Dreaming, Comedy of Errors) is the one that placates the animals and is Napoleon's right hand pig. He carries out what Napoleon has ordered. The pigs then begin to introduce trading with humans, something that goes against their supposed ideals and Benjamin (Soroosh Lavasani), the donkey, remembers Old Major’s original ideas and dream and tells Clover (Natalia Campbell) and Boxer that the pigs are changing what had been originally said. Boxer is under the impression that all should just work harder and that Napoleon is always right, whereas Clover also vaguely remembers what Old Major had said. The pigs make the other animals work to make the windmill, all whilst rationing their food and taking the rest for themselves. One night, a terrible storm hits Animal Farm causing the work that had already been done to create the windmill be destroyed, as well as causing other damage around the farm. The pigs use this opportunity to drag Snowball’s reputation through the mud, stating that it was all Snowball’s doing and that he was in league with Jones from the start. They sentence him to death, as a result. After this, the animals are forced to work even harder to make sure the windmill is completed, causing the animals to strain. The windmill is finished and Boxer becomes weak and unwell, due to exertion and lack of food.

The pigs tell the other animals that he is being sent to a hospital but when the truck arrives, Benjamin reads the van sign to see it says ‘Horse Slaughterer’ and tells the other animals that Boxer is being sent to be killed. A few days later, the pigs tell everyone that Boxer has died, due to the vets not being able to heal him and squash the rumours that he was sent away to be slaughtered by saying the vet had bought the van off a slaughterer and not changed the sign. Clover is not fooled, however. They know the truth. The rules, all the way through, are slowly changed, to fit in with what the pigs are doing, and the rule ‘All Animals Are Equal’ is changed to ‘All Animals Are Equal, although some animals are more equal than others’. Clover is asked, by a younger member of the farm, about what it was like before the revolution and she realises that it hasn't changed at all. It is just the pigs that are in charge now and not Jones. At the end of the play, the pigs are walking on two feet and interacting with humans, whilst wearing clothes. They rename the farm from Animal Farm back to Manor Farm and the animals end the play no better off than they were at the start.

The cast of six people jumped through different characters with complete ease. The costumes were simple, ragged and patched up boiler suits, which were accompanied with different head pieces to indicate the type of animal they were. It was pure genius, the way that it was done. It helped the audience understand when the actors changed character but also remained simple enough that it, in no way, impacted the action that was happening.

The staging was a large semi circle, with a raised platform towards the back of the stage, which had six revolving doors and a middle entrance. On each of the doors, one of the rules was written in UV paint that lit up just at the right moments. As the play went on, and the rules were changed, new additions were added, often comically by the pigs, on boards, in white paint. It meant the audience could always see the changes that had been made and was quite powerful to witness. At the start of the play, there were CCTV cameras flashing as the audience entered and it felt like you were being watched, which I loved. Throughout the play, part of the stage itself was lifted to create the windmill that was used by the actors to create the illusion of it breaking. At the end, as the pigs became more human, the CCTV returned and it brought it full circle, showing that nothing had really changed. One particular thing that I loved was that when the pig began walking on two legs, the actors used stilts to portray that. I absolutely adored the symbolism that it brought as well as the visual representation of it. It really highlighted to the audience the way that the pigs were higher up in the pecking order of the farm but also how they looked down on their fellow farm animals. It was so moving.

Soroosh Lavasani as Snowball was fantastic, with a youthful energy and an excitement for the change that they were implementing on the farm. His then seamless switch to the old, belligerent Benjamin was amazing. His physicality changed completely, from bouncing around to leaning on sticks that represented the donkey’s front legs. The different voices also helped to differentiate the characters he was playing. The same goes for all of the cast. Their vocal skills were amazing, from the singing to the way they changed their voices for every different animal they played, which for some, especially Olivia Chandler (who gave a crow a Southern Belle drawl, which I loved), was a lot. She was also amazing as Mollie. She really gave the character richness and I have definitely met people that are very like the way that she portrayed the pampered pony. She was whiny and self-centred and didn’t like the way that the pigs ruled. Sam Black as Boxer was insane. His Scottish accent was on point and his physicality as a strong horse was brilliant. He really portrayed the toughness and vulnerability of Boxer perfectly and all at once. In the moments where he was speaking out to the audience, at one of the meetings as a different animal, his ad libs were hilarious.

Natalia Campbell was brilliant in her roles as Old Major and Clover. As Old Major she performs a monologue that was wordy and long but she didn’t make it seem like it was. How she learned all of those words and so well that she didn’t stumble even a little bit, I will never know. The skill on show was awe inspiring. As Clover, her physicality and vocal skills showed the audience that she was a horse without it needing to be said. I was blown away. The iconic horse whinny was uncanny. Lewis Griffin as Squealer had a sinister undertone to the way he spoke to the other animals but was also hilarious. In particular, I loved when they changed the rule about drinking alcohol and he interrupts the animals whilst clearly in a state of toxication but pretending he isn't. His ad libs to the audience were also very funny. The way that he shaped his hands like pigs trotters, and didn’t move them from that position once, was amazing. I kept thinking about how I would definitely have got cramps. If he did, he didn’t show any signs of it. Last but certainly not least, Rhian Lynch as Napoleon embodied a cunning evil that gave me chills. The dead eyed smiles and authoritative nature that she hummed with made Napoleon sinister and unloving as a leader. She was brilliant in the way that her voice changed to a more posh one, towards the end, as she navigated steps and a platform whilst on stilts. It was pure theatre magic.

With the state of the world at the moment, I think the allegorical nature of the story is as important as ever, with history seemingly repeating itself. The story will always have a place in society, due to its political commentary and the way that it warns people of how world leaders promise one thing but then do another. In fact, I think that is what I love about the play. It warns society of the worse case scenario. It also makes you fall in love with the characters. When Boxer was sent away to be killed, I nearly cried. Boxer is such a beautiful character and he is thrown away by the pigs when he is deemed to be no longer useful to them. It is heartbreaking.

Animal Farm is at the Octagon Theatre in Bolton until Saturday 1st Feb. I urge you to go and see this incredible. From the outstanding cast to the amazing staging and costumes, to the rollercoaster journey the story takes you on, you will definitely not be disappointed.

WE SCORE ANIMAL FARM...

Animal Farm is on at the Octagon Theatre Bolton until Saturday 1st February 2025.

WATCH OUR "IN CONVERSATION WITH SAM BLACK & RHIAN LYNCH" VIDEO DISCUSSING THE SHOW


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