Annual festivals
National School of Drama's annual festival for kids, Jashn-e-bachpan is back with its 12th edition. This year, audience will be treated to 25 performances in nine languages. Some of the highlights include Ratna Paksi from Karnataka, Namaskar ji Namsakar from Bihar, Apunbna Pangalni from Manipur and Khel-Na from Assam, among others.
Then there is the Nandikar Theatre Festival in Kolkata that seeks to create a platform for multi-cultural, multi-lingual theatre. Featuring plays for children and adults in several Indian languages, it promises to be a virtual melting-pot of contemporary theatre traditions and cultures, bringing together troupes from all over the country and even beyond.
And how can any list be complete without the annual Prithvi Theatre Festival that is opening this year with Gabriel Emanuel's Einstein, directed by Ratna Pathak Shah and enacted by Naseeruddin Shah. The English play explores the spirit of the lovable figure, who despite being a towering thinker and great scientist, was plagued with disappointments, doubts and failures just like the rest of mankind.
Jashnebachpan
Where: National School of Drama, Bahawalpur House, Bhagwan Dass Road New Delhi
When: November 2 to 14
Nandikar Theatre Festival
Where: Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
When: December 16 to 25
Prithvi Theatre Festival
Where: Prithvi Theatre, Juhu, Mumbai
When: November 5 to 16
Bringing back classics
These are tales that have been staged numerous times in the past decades and have won the audience's heart each time. There are some who attended these plays as children and are now watching them as adults - moulding and remoulding their perspective of the story with each passing stage of their lives. Plays by veterans such as Girish Karnad, Neelam Mansingh and Mahesh Dattani are going to be revisited by two theatre festivals in Bangalore.
The first, Ranga Shankara Theatre Festival, celebrates the tenth anniversary of the space founded by Arundhati Nag and is bringing back plays that have been most popular with the audience, such as Neelam Mansingh's Punjabi version of Girish Karnad's Naga Mandala. There is also Maya Bazaar that is going to be staged by 125-year-old Venkateswara Natya Mandali. The festival kicks off with Atul Kumar's rollicking Piya Behrupiya and ends with Naseeruddin Shah's Ismat Apa Ke Naam.
The second one, Times of India Theatre Festival, celebrates Mahesh Dattani's 30 Days In September starring Lilette Dubey and Dear Father starring Paresh Rawal. The former, a tale of a complex mother-daughter relationship, has completed 200 shows. The four-day festival will also feature a pantomime, Cinderella and Hanuman Ramayana, by Adishakti Laboratory for Theatre.
Ranga Shankara Theatre Festival
Where: Ranga Shankara, JP Nagar, Bangalore
When: October 28 to November 9
Info: www.rangashankara.org
Times of India Theatre Festival
Where: Multiple venues in Bangalore
When: October 30 to November 2
A novel staging
Nikolai Gogol finds himself in the company of Mirza Ghalib and Saadat Hasan Manto as the works of the three writers are adapted and reinterpreted for stage all through November. The first such performance is Ghalib Ke Khat by Pierrot's Troupe in New Delhi. Directed by M Sayeed Alam, Tom Alter wonderfully essays the role of Ghalib in this entertaining performance in which the legendary poet's letters are read and reviewed by his witty wife Umrao Begum, maid Wafadar and his disciple Munshi Har Gopal Taftah. Just like Ghalib, Saadat Hasan Manto too has been a favourite of playwrights and directors, with his works being adapted to various forms of theatre - narrations, short plays, street performances and collages. Atelier Theatre will be performing one such collage titled Kujh Afsaney, based on short stories by Manto. The play will be directed by Kuljeet Singh.
Then there is The Government Inspector, a play adapted from Nikolai Gogol's play, which will be staged as part of Centrestage 2014. The play shows a group of money-grabbing officials in a small town who try to suppress public dissatisfaction before the visit of a government inspector.
Ghalib Ke Khat
Where: Shri Ram Centre, #4, Safdar Hashmi Marg, New Delhi
When: November 1
Kujh Afsaney
Where: Shri Ram Centre, #4, Safdar Hashmi Marg, New Delhi
When: November 17, 6.30 pm
The Government Inspector
Where: Experimental Theatre NCPA, Nariman Point, Mumbai
When: November 30, 7 pm
A class act
Two funny and moving performances look at class differences in modern society. Boiled Beans on Toast is an English play by Girish Karnad about a serene, old lady who discovers a passion for horse-racing; a small-town youth devoted to his family, who gets enamoured by the prospects of sudden wealth; a faithful servant who is floating homeless in the streets; and a maid who learns to fight for survival within the confines of a kitchen. The play is directed by Lillete Dubey.
The second is Saag Meat, a Hindi play by Kopal Production, brings to life a story by Bhisham Sahni about the relationship between two classes of a Punjabi family. Jagga, the loyal servant, stays with his wife in a servant quarter. An undesirable incident forces him to commit suicide. Sumitra, the protagonist, narrates the incident while cooking saag meat. At the end of the play, the audience learns the truth about Jagga's death and get to try the freshly cooked meal.
Boiled Beans on Toast
Where: St. Andrews auditorium, Bandra, Mumbai
When: November 1, 7.30 pm
Saag Meat
Where: Sunken Garden, NCPA, Nariman Point, Mumbai
When: December 7, 8.30 pm
A journey into the psyche
Two plays in Kolkata take the audience on a journey through the thoughts and emotions of the protagonist. Icche Kore, directed by Debobrata Banerjee, explores Rupam's quest to become a theatre artist, while battling economic and social compulsions. Similarly, Lady Macbeth provides an interesting insight into the mind of one of Shakespeare's most powerful characters. She suppresses her instincts of compassion, motherhood, feminity for ambition, ruthlessness and a single-minded pursuit of power.
Lady Macbeth and Icche Kore
Where: Sisir Mancha, Kolkata
When: October 31 and November 26
National School of Drama's annual festival for kids, Jashn-e-bachpan is back with its 12th edition. This year, audience will be treated to 25 performances in nine languages. Some of the highlights include Ratna Paksi from Karnataka, Namaskar ji Namsakar from Bihar, Apunbna Pangalni from Manipur and Khel-Na from Assam, among others.
Then there is the Nandikar Theatre Festival in Kolkata that seeks to create a platform for multi-cultural, multi-lingual theatre. Featuring plays for children and adults in several Indian languages, it promises to be a virtual melting-pot of contemporary theatre traditions and cultures, bringing together troupes from all over the country and even beyond.
And how can any list be complete without the annual Prithvi Theatre Festival that is opening this year with Gabriel Emanuel's Einstein, directed by Ratna Pathak Shah and enacted by Naseeruddin Shah. The English play explores the spirit of the lovable figure, who despite being a towering thinker and great scientist, was plagued with disappointments, doubts and failures just like the rest of mankind.
Also Read
Jashnebachpan
Where: National School of Drama, Bahawalpur House, Bhagwan Dass Road New Delhi
When: November 2 to 14
Nandikar Theatre Festival
Where: Academy of Fine Arts, Kolkata
When: December 16 to 25
Prithvi Theatre Festival
Where: Prithvi Theatre, Juhu, Mumbai
When: November 5 to 16
Bringing back classics
These are tales that have been staged numerous times in the past decades and have won the audience's heart each time. There are some who attended these plays as children and are now watching them as adults - moulding and remoulding their perspective of the story with each passing stage of their lives. Plays by veterans such as Girish Karnad, Neelam Mansingh and Mahesh Dattani are going to be revisited by two theatre festivals in Bangalore.
The first, Ranga Shankara Theatre Festival, celebrates the tenth anniversary of the space founded by Arundhati Nag and is bringing back plays that have been most popular with the audience, such as Neelam Mansingh's Punjabi version of Girish Karnad's Naga Mandala. There is also Maya Bazaar that is going to be staged by 125-year-old Venkateswara Natya Mandali. The festival kicks off with Atul Kumar's rollicking Piya Behrupiya and ends with Naseeruddin Shah's Ismat Apa Ke Naam.
The second one, Times of India Theatre Festival, celebrates Mahesh Dattani's 30 Days In September starring Lilette Dubey and Dear Father starring Paresh Rawal. The former, a tale of a complex mother-daughter relationship, has completed 200 shows. The four-day festival will also feature a pantomime, Cinderella and Hanuman Ramayana, by Adishakti Laboratory for Theatre.
Ranga Shankara Theatre Festival
Where: Ranga Shankara, JP Nagar, Bangalore
When: October 28 to November 9
Info: www.rangashankara.org
Times of India Theatre Festival
Where: Multiple venues in Bangalore
When: October 30 to November 2
A novel staging
Nikolai Gogol finds himself in the company of Mirza Ghalib and Saadat Hasan Manto as the works of the three writers are adapted and reinterpreted for stage all through November. The first such performance is Ghalib Ke Khat by Pierrot's Troupe in New Delhi. Directed by M Sayeed Alam, Tom Alter wonderfully essays the role of Ghalib in this entertaining performance in which the legendary poet's letters are read and reviewed by his witty wife Umrao Begum, maid Wafadar and his disciple Munshi Har Gopal Taftah. Just like Ghalib, Saadat Hasan Manto too has been a favourite of playwrights and directors, with his works being adapted to various forms of theatre - narrations, short plays, street performances and collages. Atelier Theatre will be performing one such collage titled Kujh Afsaney, based on short stories by Manto. The play will be directed by Kuljeet Singh.
Then there is The Government Inspector, a play adapted from Nikolai Gogol's play, which will be staged as part of Centrestage 2014. The play shows a group of money-grabbing officials in a small town who try to suppress public dissatisfaction before the visit of a government inspector.
Ghalib Ke Khat
Where: Shri Ram Centre, #4, Safdar Hashmi Marg, New Delhi
When: November 1
Kujh Afsaney
Where: Shri Ram Centre, #4, Safdar Hashmi Marg, New Delhi
When: November 17, 6.30 pm
The Government Inspector
Where: Experimental Theatre NCPA, Nariman Point, Mumbai
When: November 30, 7 pm
A class act
Two funny and moving performances look at class differences in modern society. Boiled Beans on Toast is an English play by Girish Karnad about a serene, old lady who discovers a passion for horse-racing; a small-town youth devoted to his family, who gets enamoured by the prospects of sudden wealth; a faithful servant who is floating homeless in the streets; and a maid who learns to fight for survival within the confines of a kitchen. The play is directed by Lillete Dubey.
The second is Saag Meat, a Hindi play by Kopal Production, brings to life a story by Bhisham Sahni about the relationship between two classes of a Punjabi family. Jagga, the loyal servant, stays with his wife in a servant quarter. An undesirable incident forces him to commit suicide. Sumitra, the protagonist, narrates the incident while cooking saag meat. At the end of the play, the audience learns the truth about Jagga's death and get to try the freshly cooked meal.
Boiled Beans on Toast
Where: St. Andrews auditorium, Bandra, Mumbai
When: November 1, 7.30 pm
Saag Meat
Where: Sunken Garden, NCPA, Nariman Point, Mumbai
When: December 7, 8.30 pm
A journey into the psyche
Two plays in Kolkata take the audience on a journey through the thoughts and emotions of the protagonist. Icche Kore, directed by Debobrata Banerjee, explores Rupam's quest to become a theatre artist, while battling economic and social compulsions. Similarly, Lady Macbeth provides an interesting insight into the mind of one of Shakespeare's most powerful characters. She suppresses her instincts of compassion, motherhood, feminity for ambition, ruthlessness and a single-minded pursuit of power.
Lady Macbeth and Icche Kore
Where: Sisir Mancha, Kolkata
When: October 31 and November 26