Four Legs Good Two Legs Bad (2005/2006)

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"... a beacon for how small scale touring theatre should be done. Professional and highly talented performers, a clear understanding of their text and their audience and a totally original approach to a text."

Craig Harris, Oldham Theatre Workshop

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 Mal Smith, Guy Hamilton-Hopkins, and Kerry Frampton in Splendid’s 2005 production of Four Legs Good Two Legs Bad (photos: Lewis Wileman)

A vibrant adaptation of Orwell’s classic ‘Animal Farm’. 

Our three talented performers populate their farm with power-mad pigs, heroic horses and subjugated sheep in a riotous hour of vital contemporary theatre complete with puppetry, film, bad dancing and the show stopping production number, ‘Things Can Only Get Better (On Our Farm)’!

By turns hilarious and horrifying, Four legs good… turns Orwell’s allegory into a 21st century warning, reminding us how quickly a revolutionary dream can become a totalitarian nightmare, how regime change can be a false dawn, and how now as much as ever, power corrupts.

Does that pig remind you of anyone?

One of the projections that were part of the production

Tour poster design: Kerry Frampton

Splendid Productions’ ‘Four Legs Good Two Legs Bad’
Toured Sept 2005 – March 2006
Based on: ‘Animal Farm’ by George Orwell
Adapted by: Mal Smith
Directed by: Mark Tillotson
Songs by:  Mal Smith
Design by: Kerry Frampton
Music & Projections by: Ben Hales
Additional music by: James Atherton

Cast & Characters

Guy Hamilton-Hopkins: Old Major, Snowball, Benjamin, Sheep, Cow, Newsreader
Mal Smith:
Squealer, Muriel, Boxer, Mollie, Sheep, Newsreader
Kerry Frampton: Napoleon, Clover, Sheep, Dog

with thanks to: Broadway Theatre Barking, The Jerwood Space

More about Four Legs...

“… a beacon for how small scale touring theatre should be done. Professional and highly talented performers, a clear understanding of their text and their audience and a totally original approach to a text.”
Craig Harris, Oldham Theatre Workshop, Oldham

“The performance was highly professional and with excellent Brechtian reference points – worth every penny.”
Andrew Rogers, Ralph Thoresby High School, Leeds

read more…

“… a beacon for how small scale touring theatre should be done. Professional and highly talented performers, a clear understanding of their text and their audience and a totally original approach to a text.”
Craig Harris, Oldham Theatre Workshop, Oldham

“The performance was highly professional and with excellent Brechtian reference points – worth every penny.”
Andrew Rogers, Ralph Thoresby High School, Leeds

“Splendid’s reworking of Animal Farm is a thoughtful, humorous, full throttle piece of Brechtian theatre which has the audience enthralled from the outset. Boxer, Napoleon, Snowball and  Squeeler are portrayed using only company’s unerring ability to use tone, posture and facial expressions to incredible effect, whilst twisting Orwell’s satire to poke fun at today’s world leaders.  The simplicity of the set enhances the actor’s physical presence on stage; using only a table, a curtain and a video screen, Orwell’s Animal Farm is dragged in to the 21st Century using news footage, multi media animation, and a child’s toy farmyard.”
Joe Littlewood the Co-ordinator at The Arts Centre, Chesterfield College, Sheffield Rd, Chesterfield

“It was gold-dust.”
Guy Levesley, Repton School, Derbyshire

“Splendid Productions have created a fast-paced, energetic romp of a show in this highly physical, musical adaptation of George Orwell’s Animal Farm. The cast of three throw themselves with vigour into a host of characters and draws smart parallels between the world of the animals and our modern world, using media imagery. Innovative, stylish, funny, thought provoking. “
Jess Hemmings, Samuel Whitbread School, Bedfordshire

“It was beyond our expectations. The students were captivated by the performance describing it as awesome – praise indeed.”
Elaine Witherspoon – Martin –Wickersley School & Sports College, Rotherham

“Everything about the performance was amazing. The use of song and dance was funny and captivating, whilst still putting the point across… Characterisation was impeccable.”
Heather Drewett, student at Wickersley School & Sports College

“Fantastic interpretations, the performance was entertaining but very informative. Your perception was extremely outside the box, thoroughly enjoyable and the quality of humour used was immense.”
James Wright, student at Wickersley School & Sports College

“The performance was superb – far exceeding expectations”.
Ravinder Jhite, Halesowen College

“A very valuable and stimulating afternoon for our students.”
David Stokes, Bradford Grammar

“Best TIE in the market! You’re brilliant.”
Phil Gascoyne, Brookfield School, Chesterfield

“As a teacher this has been the most inspiring and interesting thing about the play. It has given them the language and understanding of a style of theatre that is hard to grasp or even appreciate from books and even study (although I do my best to bring it to life we are always constrained by simply giving examples. Here they experienced it for themselves)… The feedback from all was that they thought it was an excellent piece of theatre. Thank you.”
Emma Bradley , Thomas Rotherham College

“High quality work. Many thanks for an excellent day.”
Sara Howells, Windsor Boys’ School

“The performance was high quality, fast paced, creatively inventive and innovative.”
Kym Martin, Cobham Hall, Kent

“As a company you are highly professional and extremely talented.”
Berj Tekerian, St. Bernards Catholic School, High Wycombe

“Thank you, the pupils gained so much. It was a clear and engaging piece, which raised questions and was an excellent demonstration of the relevance of Brecht today.”
Danielle Hawkins, Chichester High School For Girls

“Uniformly first-class!”
Rhodri Punter, Queen Anne’s School, Caversham, Berkshire

“Lovely atmosphere and the pupils were totally inspired.”
Pip Cawte, Corsham School, Wiltshire

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