The Script
The Script, October 2007. Issue 10.

Dear Drama lover,

 Hello again! The theatre scene is red hot in the month of October with lots of theatre and new plays happening. Naseeruddin Shah premieres the Greek tragedy 'Antigone', and Jaimini Pathak presents his new musical, which will also be part of the Prithvi Festival in November, called 'Tukra's Dream'. Also coming to Prithvi this month is Anahita Uberoi's 'Bombay Black'.

 On the QTP front, we are geared up to travel to Bangalore with our play, CRAB which will be performing as part of the Ranga Shankara Festival. Also Thespo at Prithvi continues to serve you some more youthful talent with the Marathi play 'Baby' being performed.

 In this month's edition of The Script, Bhavita Bhatia gives us an insight on the current situation of Marathi Theatre and Akanksha Gupta reviews Manav Kaul's Ilhaam. 

And not to forget, our monthly Great Texts reading is on the last Monday of October. Look forward to seeing you there.

Yours Sincerely,
On Behalf of Q Theatre Productions,

Himanshu.
Editor, The Script.

Quick Links:
Corno-Q-pia:  The President is Coming, Crab, Thespo 9, Thespo at Prithvi & Great Texts.
Point of View:  Akanksha Gupta reviews Ilhaam.
4 Corners: Bhavita Bhatia gives us an insight on the Marathi theatre scene.
Up & Coming:  All the exciting plays happening in the city!
Great Stuff:  Workshops and much more!
Curtain Call:  Noel Coward tells us about the state of acting.

Corno-Q-pia
The horn of plenty of QTP events and happenings.

QL

Point of View:  
This month Akanksha Gupta reviews Manav Kaul's 'Ilhaam'. The views expressed in this article are those of the author. You are welcome to agree, disagree or comment by emailing us at qtp@vsnl.com.

A PSYCHOLOGICAL 'ILHAAM'

 The word ‘Ilhaam’ is essentially an Urdu word and broadly means ‘Enlightenment’. Written and directed by Manav Kaul, the play is about a man who journeys through the realm of his own mind towards the farm yards of ilhaam. However the existing threads of a human life and relationships prevent him from crossing over.

 He is a bank employee, a husband and a father. The protagonist is your regular guy who lives to serve his family and perform his duties but lately he has been coming home late. He spends most of his time in a dilapidated garden talking and playing with imaginary characters. Many think he is possessed, many others think he is mentally ill but he continues to state, “Mujhe ilhaam hua hai.” Soon words make no sense to him and he himself begins to speak in gibberish and all this he does unintentionally. Childhood memories flood him and he is haunted by the many inevitable questions about life. Drawn between meaningful and meaningless, where what is meaningful to him is meaningless to others, he resorts to medicines as desired by his loved ones to remain somber.

 Is it philosophy or is it psychology? Is it about a greater truth, a higher state of being or is it about psychological trauma and suppressed emotions. It is never clear and it is within this ambiguity there lies the real beauty of the play. The dialogues and the verses employed give it a philosophical texture however there are enough references of a possible psychological overtone.

 What may seem difficult is to play the ambiguity of the character, but actor Kumud Mishra who plays the protagonist does it effortlessly. Right from enacting a child-like innocence to a grown man’s apprehension, Mishra interleaves the nuances of his character very skillfully, bringing it alive.  Supported by an equally good team of actors the content of the play by far reaches its audience. The set is simple and quite lucidly demarcates the different interior and exterior locations such as the garden and the drawing room on the same platform. Details such as the bright orange and green checkered upholstery used for the cot and the cushions though seem a little out of place. Lights and music are done well and add to the atmosphere of the play.

 The play holds within its nucleus a promise for deeper individual interpretation, giving its audience reason to retrospect and self-analyze the true meaning of life, however what is ilhaam and the underlying spirituality to it, take a miss leaving possible lacunas for misinterpretation.

Akanksha Gupta
This article has also appeared in Newspaper in Education by Times Of India.

QL

4 Corners:
Bhavita Bhatia gives us an insight on the Marathi theatre scene.

 With a glorious history dating back to 1843, Marathi theatre has remained one of the most vibrant in the country, with gifted artists like Vijay Tendulkar carving a place for themselves in its rich history. But with a dwindling number of audiences pouring in since recent times, one pauses to ponder where we stand today. With respect to history, contemporary, ‘modern’ times and the connection of the stage to its audience, we ask theatre practitioners themselves to answer this question.

 One positive development taking shape recently is undoubtedly the new breed of playwrights emerging, with female playwrights also stepping in for the first time in the history of Marathi theatre. And their plays are very promising – namely Manaswini L.R. and Irawati Karnik, who have a different worldview to offer, which is a fresh change, and a major trend now. Or even if it’s been plays by Sandesh Kulkarni, Satish Manwar, Dharmakriti Sumant, Mohit Takalkar, Sachin Kundalkar, Nipun Dharmadhikari and others. Ramu Ramanathan is perceptive in his observation of the young playwrights. “One can sense a certain restlessness. That these young ‘rangakarmis’ are trying to discover and invent, an art, and newer forms, and say something in a contemporary way. But are they are succeeding! Or not? Are they truly courageous? Or have they been contaminated beyond redemption by the times, cruel, as it is?

 Director Waman Kendre is confident about the future though. “There is uninhibited playwriting happening. It will take time to have a play like, say, ‘Sakaram Binder’. But the playwrights are definitely taking the pains to acquire that class.” He stresses on the need for a formal course where education is imparted on the nuances of playwriting. “How else are they supposed to know the various formats plays have been written in? Perhaps workshops, or even a course taught in the University would suffice to some extent.”

 Another development one is eager to know is on the new trends in both, experimental and commercial theatre. Have we made some headway in these two forms in the last few years? Ravindra Pathare, theatre critic reaffirms the old truth: “Comedies have been the trend since the last five years. But what interests me are long-standing plays like ‘Sahi re Sahi’, going houseful at the box-office, with this play about to hit their 2000th show. Even ‘All the best’ is all set to make its 4000^th mark. Every show is housefull. This has never happened in the last 165 years. At the same time, in the last four or five years, several plays have been hit badly.”

 Theatre critic Shanta Gokhale reveals that the trend in the last few years is not only that of comedies, but also towards reviving older successful plays. Besides, she remarks on the resurgence of parallel theatre in the last three years post the strong parallel movement in the 60s and 70s, which had quietened down then. She makes another valid observation, “There are plays like ‘Makadachya Hati champagne’, and ‘Final Draft’ which have moved from parallel to commercial theatre. They are being accepted in the mainstream theatre. But most mainstream directors are not prepared to take the risks that these directors have taken.”

 When asked about changes in forms of plays, she quotes Chetan Datar’s example. “He has perhaps evolved a form of his own by changing the form of his play by employing dance and music.” Ramanathan also makes a few mentions, “I truly enjoy Raghuvir Khedekar's tamasha show. And even Sambhaji Bhagat's stand up ballads. In them, there's the joie de vivre, and panache of performance, spontaneity of a very keen political mind.”

 Categorically, Pathare remains positive about the future of Marathi theatre. “Marathi theatre is ahead of the rest in India. Marathi experimental theatre is known all over the country. Bengal also used to see a flourish of plays on social issues, which has lessened now. The future of commercial theatre seems good… people are now accepting good, serious subjects.”

Director Waman Kendre agrees, “Marathi playwriting is unique in the country. Playwrights of five different generations are writing original plays. This phenomenon is unique feature of Marathi theatre”. However, Ranjan Desai, architect and a set designer has another story to tell. “Marathi theatre has come to stagnancy with respect to theatre architecture. We don’t have adequate theatres, like the ones in the U.S. or the U.K. It amazes me to see some 250 lights at a time on a stage there. They can even accommodate all the equipments… and here we don’t have adequate theatres alone. To add to it, Marathi theatre is always touring – whether it is traveling to Pune or Nashik for shows, or even to Dadar and Kalyan – this imposes restrictions on the set designer too. We can’t even show, say, the first floor on the stage. The play happens only in the drawing room.”

 Sure enough, he points out that set designing is an important feature which cannot afford to be neglected. “If I go to Broadway, I’m not astounded with their acting, but with the sets. If you want people to come back to theatre, keeping in mind the bad economics, you need to design modern theatres”. He quotes the example of ‘Marathi Bana’ with some 100 odd people that have been pulling in crowds. It is only experimentation in the area of presentation that has worked wonders for them – where an orchestra has been performed like a ballet.”

Perhaps Ramu Ramanathan sums it up the best, “Ultimately, good plays linger. Be it ‘Ek Shunya Bajirao’ or ‘Ghashiram’ or ‘Bhoomityacha farce’.”

Bhavita Bhatia is a theatre enthusiast and a journalist for 'The Free Press Journal'.

QL

Up&Coming:
The following is a list of shows you should watch out for this month. The code to it's deciphering is as follows:
in blue are QTP events. 
Those with an (R) next to them means that we have reviewed it, and if you require a review simply email us at qtp@vsnl.com asking for it. 
Those with an (PP) next to them means that it is a platform performance, entry free!