The Broadway adaptation of George Orwells 1984 has been described as punishingly difficult to watch, with several audience members fainting, throwing up and even screaming at actors from their seats during previews.

Jennifer Lawrence is believed to be among those who became violently sick while watching the play on Monday night.

A source told Page Six: midway through the show, Jennifer Lawrence bolted from her seat.

“Several people saw her getting sick in the lobby.

“The ushers were very helpful and courteous in helping her out.

However, a friend of the Oscar-winning actor later told the publication her response had nothing to do with the play, saying: she caught the stomach flu from her nephews” and adding the star is really sick. Lawrence is famed for being forthright about her bodily functions.

Last year she recounted being sick at an Oscars after-party in 2014, saying: Theres this big fancy party, this Guy Oseary and Madonna party.

And I puked, on the porch.

Never one to shy away from her propensity to spew up, she has also admitted to doing the honours at an Adele concert with Emma Stone, reports The Guardian.

Other theatre-goers have also suffered.

Olivia Wilde, who stars in the show alongside Tom Sturridge, issued a message to spectators who had endured particularly visceral reactions.

Thank you! Sending my love to those four people who fainted in the audience. Warning: this is not your grandma’s Broadway. Hope all are ok! Wilde wrote on Twitter.

The play is set in a future where critical thought is quashed by a totalitarian regime.

Critics have described it as worth the cost of your losing your lunch.

The book has seen a surge in sales since President Trumps inauguration, with readers drawing parallels between the current political climate and the world depicted in the novel.

The plays director, Robert Icke, has discussed the significance of the works present-day relevance, telling The New York Times that he and his collaborators dont need to make a big leap to imagine what the world would be like in the future described by Orwell.

In a world where Trumps spokesperson, Kellyanne Conway, has coined the term alternative facts and the President himself has been accused of creating his own reality, 1984s central message, that language can be used as a tool of oppression, has taken on new significance.

The play runs at the Hudson Theatre until 22 October.

The theatre, which has been closed since 1968, has undergone extensive renovations ahead of the shows premiere, which is produced by Sonia Friedman Productions and Scott Rudin.

The theatre is now the 41st venue on Broadway.

The production stars Sturridge as the novels protagonist, Winston Smith, and Wilde as his lover, Julia.

The two are under constant surveillance from the states Thought Police, as they attempt to evade capture and express their love for one another.

The shows lighting, sound and video design, by Natasha Chivers, Tom Gibbons and Tim Reid respectively, have been widely praised.

The New York Times Ben Brantley described the show as an assault on the senses and a horrifying cautionary tale.

He added: Its a study in totalitarian terror that feels all too contemporary for comfort.