A Mormon couple struggling to come to grips with their sexless marriage and life in a fast-paced city where nice guys finish last, a gay couple coming to terms with the harsh reality of HIV/AIDS and a tough-talking lawyer who is willing to bend the rules if the price is right. Angels in America follows the stories of a series of seemingly unrelated characters as they are thrown together by circumstances out of their control, and their lives become intertwined.

Set in New York City in the mid 1980s, a dawn of a newly conservative era in American politics, Angels in America, written by Emmy award winner and Oscar nominee Tony Kushner, explores issues of sex and sexuality, religion, politics and morality. As all of the characters face watershed moments in their lives, they are forced to confront and reconsider their entrenched, stereotypical and narrow views of the world.

From the moment the play began, I was struck by the extremely effective use of technology to reinforce the sometimes brutal themes that it explores. As the play opens, an increasingly cacophonous collection of audio clips from news reports about the ravages of HIV/AIDS plays whilst powerful images are displayed on a large, transparent projection screen that remains on stage for the entire performance.

Multimedia is cleverly used as the dramatic action unfolds – scene changes are signalled by new images appearing on the projection screen. Further, as the play reaches its climax, the stories of the gay couple Prior Walter (Beejan Olfat) and Louis Ironson (Angus King), and Mormon couple Joseph Pitt (Tyran Parke) and Harper Pitt (Abi Austen) are played out simultaneously, separated only by the screen. This emphasises the parallels between the seemingly diametrically opposed existences of these two couples, heightening the intensity of the play’s message.

I was particularly impressed with the performance of Beejan Olfat, whose portrayal of the dying Prior Walter evokes a strong emotional response from the audience. He effectively conveys a juxtaposition of strength and resignation as he faces his impending mortality at the hands of HIV/AIDS, and the collapse of his relationship.

Although she played a relatively minor role, Elaine Hudson’s deadpan performance as Hannah Pitt, a cheerless, grouchy Mormon, was one of the highlights of the play. Her comic timing and abrupt demeanour brought humour to what is otherwise a rather heavy-going experience.

With a running time of about two-and-a-half hours, this play was longer than it needed to be and sometimes moved rather slowly. Some of the scenes that were included seemed to add little to the performance as a whole, and could probably have been removed altogether. However, if you’re patient enough to overlook this, the Angels in America is a confronting, yet enjoyable experience, and is well worth seeing.