Poranadi (the Outcast)

Lankalakshmi

Karnnabharam (The anguish of Karnna)

Karnnabharam (The anguish of Karnna)

Collaboration, the base of creation'

Anna Salas

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SEARCHING FOR CREATIVITY: Italian drama director Andriya Kusomano speaking at a 'Social, political, cultural and aesthetics surroundings of Collaborative Theatre' yesterday at the Regional Theatre. Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi chairman TM Abraham, theatre actor K Kaladharan and Prof Chandradasan participated.

"Collaboration is the base of creation," tells Andriya Kusumano from Italy. The concept means so much to the director, stenographer, performer, painter and installation artist all-rolled-into-one theatre activist.

So, collaborative creation is what in US called devised theatre. It is a form of theatre in which the script is developed not by a writer or writers, but originated from collaborative, usually improvisatory, work by a group of people.

However, the work is developed not necessarily through the performers, but usually it could be so. This form could be easily connected to the street theatre.

Surprisingly, it is not always distinguishable from improvisational theatre, but by the time a devised piece presents itself to the public, it usually has a fixed form.

The improvisation is confined to the creation process, and either writer, director or the performers themselves, will have decided exactly what is to be included and the running sequence.

"Collaboration turns on the expression of the natural emotions and also it helps bring in a complete change in the social and political field in the West" he added.

The renowned director and vice chairman of the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi TM Abraham explained the drawbacks of the collaborative theatre.

"The politics of funding helps escape from the real daily life and the collaborative creation is trying to ruin the language and the writing process," he observed.

The seminar discussed the subject 'The perception of scientific, cultural, political and aesthetic view of the collaborative theatre'.

Andriya Kusumano presented the Western view of the theatre art, especially in the collaborative theatre.

The seminar was conducted at the Regional Theatre as part of the 4th International Theatre festival of Kerala yesterday.

Collaboration is the theatre of the future and it is trying to find a venue in Malayalam theatre, actor K Kaladharan said.

The Lokadharmi Theatre Group and Mazhavillu, a children theatre group, founder Prof Chandradasan made the introduction speech at the seminar.

In the morning session, a talk show with Rajasthan Institute of Folklore secretary Kuldeep Kothari, and in the evening session musical programme were held.

Courtesy –City Journal 03 February 2012

Lankalakshmi@Kottayam

The play Lankalakshmi is performed at Darsana Auditorium Kottayam on 29th January 2012, as part of the vilambara of ITFoK 2012, organised by Kerala Sangeet Natak Academy.

“The plot of this play is not just the frailty of a king who is an admirer of beauty. War, diplomacy, ethnic conflicts, ups and downs of ethics, etc are engrossed in it… It originated from the blood that surged from the severed breast of Soorppanakha. That river of blood is ferociously flooding down, with all its fury. Betrayal, Deceit, Destruction, and Death have taken charge of the four destinations…. Now, there remains just a single resolution….”

This play is about the anxieties and agonies of war. It can be said that war is the protagonist and antagonist of this play, and is reflected in different shades in different characters, with Ravana as the key metaphor. Death is projected in all its intensity; the death of heroes is continuously taking place, one after the other. Amidst the continuity of deaths of dear and near ones, the play envisages the plight of Ravana caught in the cross-roads of life and death, the ultimate fate of an egoist reveling in his physical and mental prowess.

The play starts when Rama and his army has crossed the sea, reached Lanka and is waiting outside the fort of Ravana; the war is imminent and near. The first act of the play portrays the internal conflicts and turbulence in the Ravana clan at the face of the war; different voices rise within the race.

"All the treasures in the three worlds should belong to Lanka," is the motive force that leads Ravana. He went after women, not just because he fancied them, but also to enrich his pedigree, to glorify Lanka. In its wake might have come, lurking shadows of crime and curse. Sita is the priceless jewel that should be part of Lanka, even if she is married to another man.

The conflict between Ravana and his brother Vibheeshana goes back to their childhood. His companionship with his uncle Suparsvan reveals the generosity of give and take, although decision-making is the prerogative of Ravana. The conversation between them is like an inner monologue. The love for his brother Kumbhakarna is another tender knot that breaks his heart. His pride in his son is a pointer to his shattered persona as he hears the death of Meghanadhan. His intimate bond with his wife Mandodari is another aspect of his noble nature. Soon the enemy enters his palace, ravishes Mandodari.

The play is designed to be an intimate experience to the audience where the acting area merges and diffuses into the audience area. The presence of Sita and Soorppanakha depicted with paintings. The throne, palace, and the mighty Himalayas, where Ravana travels are abstracted into a multilevel set painted by monotones of blue.

The music has sounds of rain, thunder, wind, birds, and animals to create the ambience of a war field surrounded by ferocious sea of blood.

The narrative of the play takes place in a three dimensional space with varying perspective. The three different narratives used simultaneously merges and juxtapose to create a more universal meaning to the whole rendering. The text written by CN Sreekantan Nair is sandwiched between the Recital of Adhyatma Ramayana written by Ezhuthachan which is based on Bhakthi and Ramayana by Kambar (rendered as Tholpavakoothu) which treats Ramayana down to earth and looks into the potentials of the text as a performance.

The Artists Participating in the show at Kottayam are, VR Selvaraj, Johny Thottunkal , Ajaikumar Thiruvankulam , Madan Kolavil, Jolly Antony , Cijin Sukumar , Shaiju T Hamza , Joshua Antony K , Adithye KN, Manosh, Kishore NK, K Viswanatha Pulavar & Group Koonathara, Shoranur, Pattanam  Rasheed Prasanth Madhav, Gireesh Menon, Jenson, Jebin Jesmes, Charu Narayanan, Sukanya Shaji, Usha Shaji,Sanosh Palluruthy, Pattanam Rasheed and Arun R Kumar.

This is the Sixth performance of the production

Lankalakshmi @ Bharangam 2012, New Delhi

Bharat Rang Mahotsav was established a decade ago by the National School of Drama to stimulate the growth and development of theatre across the country. Originally a national festival showcasing the work of the most creative theatre workers in India, it has evolved to international scope, hosting theatre companies from around the world, and is now the largest theatre festival of Asia.

The 14th Bharat Rang Mahotsav will be inaugurated with a visually beautiful production of Rabindranath Tagore’s highly symbolic play, ‘The King of Dark Chamber – ‘Raja’ directed by Ratan Thiyam with Chorus Repertory of Manipur. As a tribute to Tagore on his 150th birth anniversary, the festival has a focus on his works with 14 productions and 4 Allied events from among the 88 plays in the main repertoire and 11 Allied events.

At the forefront of the International section this year we have a focus on contemporary Polish Theatre with three very vibrant productions. Other countries represented in this festival include, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, South Africa, United Kingdom, China, Japan, Italy, Pakistan, Israel, Turkey, Afghanistan, and Nepal.

A series of wrap around programs around the festival includes a talk on interactive sessions with the directors, a seminar on “The multi-disciplinary approach of Tagore’s performance language” and 5 photographic exhibitions.

The Schedule of the fest can be obtained from the link http://www.nsdtheatrefest.com/festival.php

Parallel Festival:

Bharat Rang Mahotsav is accompanied by a shorter festival in a second city, with selections from the main repertoire, extending the scope of the Mahotsav and sharing its fare with theatre lovers outside Delhi. The second festival has to date been held in Bengaluru, Kolkata, Mumbai, Lucknow, Bhopal and Chennai. This year it travels to Amritsar, Punjab.

DATES: JAN 8-22, 2012

Theatre from Kerala is represented by

1. Lankalakshmi 

 

(Playwright:CN Sreekantan Nair, Dir: Chandradasan, Lokadharmi ) @ Meghadoot 3/Rabindrabhavan – 5.00 pm on 9^th January 2012

2. Khud and Khuda

(Solo Performance by Gireesh , playwright :Rabindranath Tagore, Dir: Kavalam Narayana Panikkar, Sopanam Thiruvananathapuram) @Sammukh, 6.00 pm on 10^th January 2012

3. Marimankanni

 

(Playwright: M.N.Vinaykumar, Dir: V. Abhimanyu, Janabheri, Thrissur) @LTG 6.30 pm on 13^th January 2012

4. The Water Station

 

(Playwright: Shogo Ohta, Dir: Sankar Venkateswaran, Theatre Roots & Wings, Thrissur) @ Abhimanch, 8.30 pm 14^th January 2012

5. Jalam

 

 

(Dir: Madhu Gopinath & Vakkom Sajeev, Samudra Centre for Indian Contemporary Performing Arts, Thiruvananthapuram)@ Abhimanch, 8.30 pm 15^th January 2012

 

6. Peer Gynt

 

 

(Playwright: Henrik Ibsen, Dir: Deepan Sivaraman, Oxygen Theatre Company)@Kamani, 7.00 pm on 20^th January 2012.

Lankalakshmi

“The plot of this play is not just the frailty of a king who is an admirer of beauty. War, diplomacy, ethnic conflicts, ups and downs of ethics, etc are engrossed in it… It originated from the blood that surged from the severed breast of Soorppanakha. That river of blood is ferociously flooding down, with all its fury. Betrayal, Deceit, Destruction, and Death have taken charge of the four destinations…. Now, there remains just a single resolution….”

This play is about the anxieties and agonies of war. It can be said that war is the protagonist and antagonist of this play, and is reflected in different shades in different characters, with Ravana as the key metaphor. Death is projected in all its intensity; the death of heroes is continuously taking place, one after the other. Amidst the continuity of deaths of dear and near ones, the play envisages the plight of Ravana caught in the cross-roads of life and death, the ultimate fate of an egoist reveling in his physical and mental prowess.

The play starts when Rama and his army has crossed the sea, reached Lanka and is waiting outside the fort of Ravana; the war is imminent and near. The first act of the play portrays the internal conflicts and turbulence in the Ravana clan at the face of the war; different voices rise within the race.

"All the treasures in the three worlds should belong to Lanka," is the motive force that leads Ravana. He went after women, not just because he fancied them, but also to enrich his pedigree, to glorify Lanka. In its wake might have come, lurking shadows of crime and curse. Sita is the priceless jewel that should be part of Lanka, even if she is married to another man.

The conflict between Ravana and his brother Vibheeshana goes back to their childhood. His companionship with his uncle Suparsvan reveals the generosity of give and take, although decision-making is the prerogative of Ravana. The conversation between them is like an inner monologue. The love for his brother Kumbhakarna is another tender knot that breaks his heart. His pride in his son is a pointer to his shattered persona as he hears the death of Meghanadhan. His intimate bond with his wife Mandodari is another aspect of his noble nature. Soon the enemy enters his palace, ravishes Mandodari.

The play is designed to be an intimate experience to the audience where the acting area merges and diffuses into the audience area. The presence of Sita and Soorppanakha depicted with paintings. The throne, palace, and the mighty Himalayas, where Ravana travels are abstracted into a multilevel set painted by monotones of blue.

The music has sounds of rain, thunder, wind, birds, and animals to create the ambience of a war field surrounded by ferocious sea of blood.

The narrative of the play takes place in a three dimensional space with varying perspective. The three different narratives used simultaneously merges and juxtapose to create a more universal meaning to the whole rendering. The text written by CN Sreekantan Nair is sandwiched between the Recital of Adhyatma Ramayana written by Ezhuthachan which is based on Bhakthi and Ramayana by Kambar (rendered as Tholpavakoothu) which treats Ramayana down to earth and looks into the potentials of the text as a performance.

The Artists Participating in the show at Delhi are, VR Selvaraj, Johny Thottunkal , Ajaikumar Thiruvankulam , Madan Kolavil, Jolly Antony , Cijin Sukumar , Shaiju T Hamza , Joshua Antony K , Adithye KN, Kalamandalam Prabhakaran, Manosh, Kishore NK, K Viswanatha Pulavar & Group Koonathara, Shoranur (comprising of KL Krishnakumar, Vipin, L Lakshmana Pulavar, KL Ramachandran, KN Somasundaran, Satheesh TP, S Sudheesh, and K Krishna Kumar) , Rasheed Kozhikode, Prasanth Madhav and Gireesh Menon, Jenson, Jebin Jesmes, Charu Narayanan, Sukanya Shaji, Usha Shaji, Rose Ligia, and Sanosh Palluruthy.

This is the fourth performance of the production.