When Aldous Huxley penned his dystopian classic Brave New World in 1931, we were still living in an age of steam.

Yet, incredibly, his seminal work of science fiction accurately predicts genetic engineering, reproductive technology the rise of totalitarianism, social conditioning, information technology, easy long-haul tourism, widespread recreational drug use and wild promiscuity.

At the time, with the world still shaking off the mud of the Great War, it must have seemed utterly far-fetched. Now his vision is, in many ways, already here – and much as he described it.

Having previously delved into the nightmarish future with their extraordinarily powerful 1984, performed in the vault-like basement of the Mathematical Institute, Oxford's Creation Theatre have realised Huxley’s best-known work – and they have staged it in the postmodern world of our shiny new shrine to conspicuous consumption: the Westgate Centre.

We sit – listening to the action on headphones – while the cast run up and down escalators, push themselves against the windows of Joules, White Stuff and Russell & Bromley, move among out seats, and weave among oblivious shoppers who drift by glued to their phones, an unwitting cast of extras, sometimes looking uneasy as they realise they are centre stage as they make their way to the car park.

A large screen featuring close-ups of the cast and screening action taking place on the upper level of the centre, adds to the futuristic feel.

The script has been artfully tweaked by Jonathan Holloway to reinforce its modern relevance and given an engaging local spin (reference is made at one point to Brize Norton Airport, for example).

The story follows anti-hero Bernard Marx (Joseph Richardson) and the beautiful and outrageously promiscuous Poppy Crowne (Sophie Greenham), to whom he is platonically attracted – romance being strictly ‘verboten’ in this world of non-reproductive sex.

His boss, the director of Hatcheries and Conditioning, (a stern marvellously moustached Eric McLennan) wants rid of him though – setting off a battle of wits which, with the arrival of the noble John ‘Savage’ (Adam Karrie) threatens to undermine him and the system. This salutory tale packs a powerful punch and carries a strong moral.

What elevates this production to the status of theatrical masterpiece, though, is the strength of the acting, eye-popping costume design and its stark postmodern setting.

Creation’s achievement is as mindblowing as the ‘Soma’ trips with which the characters self-medicate.

This incredible, beautifully realised show will remain with you long after you leave that temple of consumerism.

Tim Hughes 5/5

* Brave New World runs until August 11 at The Westgate Centre, Oxford. Go to creationtheatre.co.uk