Listen to My88 FM’s presenter Madeleine Jaine Lobsey chat to multi award-winning director Michael Futcher about the relevance, story behind and history of George Orwell’s 1984 ahead of Shake & Stir’s critically acclaimed production coming to The Joan this June.

Scroll down to read the full transcript, find out more about Michael Futcher and Madeleine Jaine Lobsey and book your tickets to see 1984 by George Orwell.

1984 by George Orwell plays at The Joan, Penrith on Friday 13 June at 1pm & 7:30pm.

Click Here to Book Tickets Now

FULL TRANSCRIPT

Madeleine
I’m lucky enough to be joined today by Michael Futcher, who is the director of a George Orwell classic that is the play version of it, of 1984. Welcome Michael.

Michael
Very good to be with you.

Madeleine
Really good to be with you. Well, I’ve got to say I am a bit obsessed with 1984 because I’ve just read the book about Orwell’s wife and found it completely fascinating. And it’s, I can’t believe how many years ago the book was written. And this play, you doing this play again, is really a resurgence of it?

Michael
Yeah, absolutely. So prophetic. You think that Orwell wrote this play as a sort of a warning against totalitarianism just after the end of the Second World War. And at the time, you know, obviously it was very close to the bone the world having been through World War Two. And then, as the Cold War then kicked in, and we were all sort of still a little bit tense about Russia and, you know, the communists, and you know the West I’m talking about. And then there seemed to be a quieter period, you know, through the 80’s and the 90’s, and the world seemed to be, at least on the surface, getting on a little bit better with each other.

Madeleine
And here we are again.

Michael
Here we are again. It’s coming around again and the thing, I think, the interesting thing about, about this is not, it’s not so much an East versus West thing. It’s a sort of a, it’s a more, sort of subtly threaded through, through the through the West, even now, you know, and where we’re battling with ourselves, you know, as opposed to, you know, the enemy, the so-called enemy, which makes it far more pertinent, I think.

Madeleine
Yeah, I think so. I think so. And I think that’s part of it, whether you realise it or not. But George Orwell, you know, he’d just lost his wife. Originally, they’d spoken about writing this book together a long time ago. She even wrote a poem called 1984 and after her passing, there he was with tuberculosis, sort of facing his own mortality, and at the same time, personally terrified of getting a knock on the door that communists were going to come and get him. And I feel like it’s such a…even though it’s about a really big, broad, big picture, thematically, it’s a really personal story. And I think even for all of us now, there’s that battling with ourselves about, how would I be in these circumstances?

Michael
Of course, of course, you know. And it’s about a sort of a…the thing that happens to the protagonist, Winston Smith, in the play, you know, he faces a choice. You know, you either just run with the crowd, go with the crowd, don’t put your head above and you put up with a lack of freedom. You have to find some sort of courage within yourself to step out of it and really take a risk, which is what happens in the play. And it’s a fantastic exploration of the inner journey, you know, which drives him to that point. And then, you know, we see the consequences of that throughout the show. And it’s absolutely chilling. You know, throughout the whole production, you know that there are any number of points that people are going to slap their heads and go, “Oh my goodness”, you know, this isn’t that far away as it was. Maybe, you know, it’s certainly closer to us than it was 20 years ago, that’s for sure.

Madeleine
Yeah, I think so. I think it’s the perfect time for it to be rebooted and put on stage. And I think you know for everybody, whether you go to the theatre or not, this may be an opportunity for you to go and engage with something, even if you’ve never been to the theatre, and see a story that you can find yourself in and find the world in, and enjoy that visceral experience of seeing real humans on a real stage using their voices to tell a story.

Michael
That’s right, and it’s a really, you know, tight piece of theatre. And we embrace technology in the show as well. And so, it’s not just a sort of few actors on the stage in a black box, you know, that we use, obviously, in the world of 1984 the tele screen is, you know, omnipresent. Yes, that’s what we kind of, we sort of replicate that in this production. But there’s a few sort of…what we hope are interesting ways that it is used, you know, to explore, Winston’s inner world as well as, you know, the outer world of the party, you know. And so, I think people will be, will be fascinated by that when they watch it. And of course, the relationships in the play are really… it’s a human journey amid the, you know, the sort of the terribly dehumanising effect that the ruling party has. As on a subject, we follow Winston and his love story with it, with a girl called Julia. And, you know, we see them trying to live, live some sort of a normal life, if you can, have a normal life in that sort of situation. And what they do, you know, to kind of take back little normal, little wins, you know, getting a bit of fresh coffee, yeah, getting a bit of bread, that isn’t just sawdust, you know.

Madeleine
The same goes for us! Ridiculous in the cost of living that, I mean, it’s also relatable Michael, and I think that’s what we want to leave people with, is, you know, we’re a big advocate of theatre. It’s this is at our local theatre. We don’t always have the opportunity to have great works like this. It’s on June 13 at The Joan, and if people want to book tickets, they just go to thejoan.com.au and they can book tickets there. And thank you for being with us. Michael, what a great opportunity for us to go and confront ourselves at the theatre.

Michael
Yes, never more important than now to see this play, I can tell you.

Madeleine
Yeah. Well, thanks for your time…

Michael
A great pleasure.

Madeleine
…and we look forward to seeing the show.

Michael
Thank you so much. Bye.

MEET THE PRESENTER AND INTERVIEWEE

MICHAEL FUTCHER
Director, Shake & Stir’s 1984 by George Orwell

For Shake & Stir Theatre Co: Jane Eyre (2019, 2022 national tour), A Christmas Carol (since 2018), Endgame, Dracula (2015, 2017 national tour), 1984 (2012, 2014 national tour), Tequila Mockingbird (2013, 2016 Qld tour), Animal Farm (2011, 2013, 2021 national tour). Other Theatre:  Michael has worked over the past 40 years with many of Queensland’s major theatre companies in various capacities, including actor,   director, dramaturg and writer and, with Helen Howard, is the joint artistic director of Matrix Theatre. Michael is also an acting coach for film and tv. As Director: Most recently: Love-Lies-Bleeding (Ad Astra); Diary of a Madman (Matrix); The Mystery of the Valkyrie (Woodward Productions). For Queensland Theatre: Treasure Island (with Matrix Theatre), 1001 Nights (with Zen Zen Zo and QMF), Grimm Tales, Rabbit Hole, The Glass Menagerie and Oz Shorts; For La Boite: Pale Blue Dot, Walking By Apple Tree Creek, The Drowning Bride, James and Johnno, Salt and, in co-production with Matrix Theatre and Brisbane Festival, the critically-acclaimed A Beautiful Life, which toured nationally in 2000 winning Michael Best Director at the Victorian Green Room Awards along with three other awards; For Matrix Theatre: Piano Lessons, The Wishing Well, Citizen Jane, The King and the Corpse!, 1347 and Cutting Loose. In 2009, Michael’s production of The Kursk (Matrix / Metro Independents / Critical stages) toured nationally to over 35 venues receiving a Helpmann Award nomination and three Matilda Awards, including Best Director. Other productions include: Oresteia (Griffith University), Dirty Apple (Opera Qld / Backbone), The Winter’s Tale, Cymbeline, The Crucible (QUT), and Macbeth (Rheingold Theatre Club, London). Awards: Michael has won several Matilda Awards, a Green Room Award and a Playlab Award, and been nominated for a Helpmann Award, an Awgie, and two Queensland Premier’s Drama Awards.

MADELEINE JAINE LOBSEY
My88 FM Girls Just Wanna Afternoons Presenter

Madeleine Jaine Lobsey is an autistic/ADHD theatre maker with a career of over 25 years as an actor, director, choreographer, writer, dancer, singer, project manager, advocate, and teacher. She has acted, written, and directed performances with Junction Theatre Company, Brink Productions, Adelaide Festival Centre, Belvoir St, Griffin Theatre Company, as well as regional tours of South Australia, Victoria, NSW and in feature films.

She is the Artistic Director of Wondiverse (theatre for all) devising, writing, directing, and acting in Adelaide, Sydney, London and Edinburgh. Her one-woman show toured throughout Australia and the UK. Madeleine is currently running theatre making drama workshops for neurodivergent people aged 16 – 30.

Like many women, Madeleine wears many hats and has been a sought-after leader for facilitating programs on transformational leadership for the past 20 years. She has led to individuals wanting to expand the difference they are making all over Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and now globally. She has mentored people from every sector and industry, including Members of Federal Parliament, senior educators, olympians, founders of not for profits including R U OK? Day, leaders in science, the arts and business.

For the past decade Madeleine has thrown her passion for storytelling and the difference it makes into the not for profit and social enterprise sector with a focus on neurodiversity. As a creative strategist she has supported individuals and organisations to dramatically expand their revenue, services, projects and scope.

She is the General Manager of The A List Hub, a national organisation dedicated to autistic and neurodivergent youth being able to access social opportunities and be social their way. She has formed partnerships and produced large scale projects that directly impact community needs. She is also the host of the Girls Just Wanna show weekdays for My88 FM, a board member of the Theatre Network NSW. A mother of three, Madeleine home schools her youngest child.

Listen to Madeleine live on My88 FM at my88.com.au