"Grainy, indirect lighting,flat-black walls and an industrial stamped-steel floor pit firmly place the latest Actor's Gang play in the world of 1984. Rather than being a story set in a West Hollywood bar 22 years ago, though, this is Michael Gene Sullivan's adaptation of George Orwell's novel about a totalitarian tomorrow ruled by an enigmatic leader named Big Brother. Sullivan has boiled down the books 300 pages to a scant 100 minutes, culling the story's political essentials while retaining the melancholy whimsy of it's hero's life."
The LA Weekly

"George Orwell's 1948 nightmare about democracy's descent into the hell of Big Brother government, mind control and absurdest cruelty erupts into reality on the REDCAT stage, using Michael Gene Sullivan's brilliantly condensed script to tell in flashbacks the familiar story of illicit love in a terrible future with power, pace, and horror."
The Hollywood Reporter

"(The play) is a harrowing experience, ...Sad as it is to say, (Orwell) would find himself right at home and sick to heart in 2006. Ulitimately, that is the point of this production."
The Daily Breeze

Brent Hinkley, bruised, shackled and disheveled, makes a harrowing Winston, Sullivan does an exemplary job of distilling "1984's" political essence... Sullivan and Robbins manage to communicate the pointed richness of Orwell's thought... The Actors' Gang production "1984"... knows how to clear a path for its trenchant, and still sadly undated, critique."
Los Angeles Times

"The pace never slows, except to take a needed exhale during intermission." "This version of 1984 effectively argues that Orwell's messages remain as relevant as they were in 1949 perhaps even more so."
Los Angeles Downtown News

"Michael Sullivan's adaptation subtly infuses the work with modern political rhetoric and smart dialogue. The play is complex, but very well thought out, and it shines through all of the performances...The real winner here is Orwell himself. His foresight and uncanny ability to predict the future that was a frightening possibility, and to us a shameful quotidian, is deeply resonant."
Los Angeles Alternative

"The Actors' Gang production of Michael Gene Sullivan's adaptation of Orwell's 1984... achieves vibrant immediacy... the play and production engage us fully; cast, director, designers, and writer have clearly done their jobs well, with flashes of brilliance."
World Socialist Web Site

"Brilliant."
Arianna Huffington

"This is not your father's George Orwell."
DailyBulletin.com

 
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