When the audience enters Ball Theater to see Jim Cherry’s “1984” (a stage adaptation of George Orwell’s iconic novel), they must trade the cozy red bricks and warm yellow lights of Wabash’s campus for two cold, imposing and lifeless concrete pillars bathed in frigid white light. Situated between them, the leering AI-generated face of Big Brother — equal parts Bezos, Zuckerberg and Musk — is angled to the point of uncanny eye contact with the audience. An eerie, ambient humming and Big Brother’s striking, artificial smile are the final ingredients which perfectly set the tone for a striking and timely production.
While the set design establishes the tone before the play even begins, it is only the first of many parts which form the thematic whole. Once the play begins, the true soul of “1984” comes to light: the performances. Each actor skillfully weaves between dystopian-robotic and humanely personable, and from the very first scene, each character’s traits are steadily conveyed without the need of overexplanatory dialogue.
The first performance on display is Nicholas Kvackoff ’29 as Syme, a faithfully timid and unassuming take on the character. Kvackoff’s performance shines during interactions with his co-leads, in which he comes off as passionate about his duties yet too unpersonable to be called a friend. Andres Ornelas ’29 sports the artificially enthusiastic and intellectually uncurious persona of Parsons with a contagious (and appropriately overbearing) zeal. His inauthenticity stays well hidden behind his cheery persona, fulfilling his thematic role as a foil to the protagonist’s ideals.
Speaking of which, three performances dominate most of the showtime, and intricately bounce off of one another.
Beginning with Sean Bledsoe ’26 as O’Brien, a performance packed with misdirection and subversion. Bledsoe plays the demanding role of a demeanor-chameleon, fitting into no less than three distinct mannerisms as the play persists. His shifts from soft to fiery are sure to leave an impression on the audience.
Next is Isabella de Assis-Wilson, who plays Julia with a particularly resonant nuance. The Julia character starts off in a complicated way, with her loyalties and intent shrouded in mystery but still second to an unassuming personality. As it becomes time for her unclear mannerisms to dissolve, Assis-Wilson rapidly warms up with an intelligent and genuine disposition. Her standing in relation to the protagonist must evolve quickly to fit the script, and she impressively packs a lot of development into a very quick turnaround.
Finally, Preston Parker ’26 lights up the marquee in his role as Winston Smith. Parker brings an emotionally visceral energy to the stage, with several moments of stunning and intense physical acting. He embodies every glow of joy and sting of pain that Winston feels, and directly channels it into the audience, who can’t help but latch onto the character for the entirety of the show.
Where the acting is the heart of “1984,” the directing and stage management are the muscle. To match the bleak script, the blocking also invokes a robotic feel. The set smoothly glides on and off stage in the same mechanical manner that the artificially-created loudspeaker passive-aggressively orders his workers around, making it sometimes feel as though the power of Big Brother is so inescapable that he is directing the whole show.
Thankfully, Cherry takes back the wheel with clever visual gags that break up the despair. There is joy to be found from George Shagley’s ’26 portrayal of Martin, who casually sits atop a torture device, to a charming cameo by Cherry’s daughter Katherine as Gladys Parsons. Much like life, the play still feels human even amidst the harshest backdrops.
Sonically, the production soars with an immersive and industrial ambience. Cherry’s voice acting, as well as the uncanny AI figure it emanates from, brings lifelessness and corporate indifference to the loudspeaker. This automaton is the cherry atop Cherry’s impressive directorial vision.
Despite Wabash being relatively far removed from the authoritarians and manipulators of the modern world, “1984” delivers these relevant themes from the world stage to the proscenium platform of Ball Theater. Brought to life by impressive performances and a strong directorial vision, “1984” is the production that Wabash needed.