A highly acclaimed stage adaptation of George Orwell's classic political satire Animal Farm, written in 1945 as a comment on Stalin's rule of the Soviet Union, comes to Strode Theatre in Street, on Wednesday at 7.30pm.

Suffering under the cruel and neglectful husbandry of Farmer Jones, the animals in his farmyard are planning a revolution, initiated by the most intelligent animals: the pigs Napoleon, Snowball and Squealer.

Under "Animalism", the pigs promise all animals will be equal and all the suffering will end.

And indeed, the animals succeed in throwing Mr Jones off the farm and proceed to destroy all the whips, nose rings and reins that have kept them in servitude.

They decree that henceforth no animal shall have dealings with a human or enter the farmhouse, sleep in a bed, drink alcohol or kill another animal.

When Farmer Jones returns to recapture the farm, the animals fight valiantly to drive him away again, and the bravest ones receive medals.

However, Napoleon, who hasn't fought with the others, also awards himself a medal, and soon there is strife among the pigs…

In an amazing one-man performance, adapted from Orwell's novel by Guy Masterson, actor Gary Shelford takes on all the characters himself with physical and vocal dexterity, which is comic and poignant by turns.

The production was originally performed at the Edinburgh Festival and has toured to great acclaim throughout the world and garnered raving reviews most recently at the Adelaide Fringe Festival.

Tickets are £9.50, concessions £8.50, available online at www.strodetheatre.co.uk or from Strode Theatre's box office on 01458 442846.