W!LD RICE TO REVISIT REGIME CHANGE

AWARD-WINNING PRODUCTION OF ANIMAL FARM SET FOR SEP 2003

W!LD RICE’s award-winning production of Animal Farm will return to Singapore theatres from 3 – 21 September 2003.

W!LD RICE’s stage adaptation of George Orwell’s famous book Animal Farm, was honoured with the Awards for Best Ensemble Cast and Best Director (Ivan Heng) at the recent DBS Life! Theatre Awards 2003. Music composer Philip Tan also received a Commendation for his work on the production.

A political allegory that warns of the dangers of totalitarianism and the corrupting influence of unbridled power, Animal Farm tells the story of the animals of Manor Farm, who overthrow Farmer Jones. With the pigs as leaders they create a new state for themselves. A set of commandments is written as a guide for animal life. However, the noble ideals of the revolution gradually degenerate into self-advancement, lies and propaganda as corruption and the desire for power take hold of the leadership.

Says Ivan Heng, “When we first created Animal Farm in 2002 the collapse of the World Trade Centre was very much on our minds. Today we reflect on those tragic events and where they’ve led to and a restaging of this commentary on the consequences of absolute power, betrayed idealism and regime change seems almost inevitable. We cannot know if war will be over by September, but I suspect the times will reveal yet more about the pigs and their schemes.”

Heng emphasises that the 2003 version is not simply a restaging of the successful prior run. “The New Animal Farm will be revamped, revisited and restaged to reflect the confusion, disappointment and frustration of recent times. The members of the award-winning cast have all confirmed their participation.

If last year’s production is anything to go by, the company expects another sell-out run. “We had audiences fighting – and fainting – over tickets. Queues for returned tickets were forming two hours before the show started. I don’t think we’ve ever seen anything like it in Singapore theatre history,” says Heng.

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