Newsmakers: Theatre 2008

Shivangi Singh

The year has not been good for theatre, although some very interesting plays and musicals have been staged. The dominance of technique over character and economic slowdown has had an adverse impact on the theatre.“It is evident that the present scenario is gloomy, and you can say that the theatre has entered the Dark Age. It will remain so for 10-15 years,” says Suresh Sharma of NSD. Internationally, the month of December is said to be the peak season for theatre, but events which had always depended on funds by big corporate houses are now dependent on the goodwill of actors to forgo royalties and put up performances hoping to tide over expenses with ticket sales. The theatrical recession is starting to bite at the top as well as the bottom. Veteran Broadway producer John Breglio is quoted as saying, “The harsh truth is that the statistics will be very sobering and there will be a lot of empty theatres in January. It’s going to be a very tough road in terms of big, expensive new shows. No one’s jumping in, taking risks.” However, theatre has been in news for a number of reasons this year. Here is a flashback: India

Sanjay Leela Bhansali`s ‘Padmavati’ received a standing ovation when it was staged in Spoleto, Italy. ‘Padmavati’, Bhansali`s version of a 1923 ballet written by Albert Roussel, has been widely applauded and appreciated.

Renowned playwright and actor Girish Karnad was elected as one of the world theatre ambassadors by UNESCO`s International Theatre Institute.

Hema Malini along with daughters Esha and Aahana Deol, brought the Ganges river and the issues surrounding it onstage at the invitation of the Indian Business and Professional Council (IBPC), in Dubai, for a classical dance recital to mark India`s 62nd Independence Day.

Shobhana, the leading Bharatnatyam dancer and South Indian actress enticed the audience with her dance drama ‘Maya Ravan’, at the Nehru Centre auditorium in Mumbai. The musical also featured narrations by Naseeruddin Shah, Milind Soman, Jackie Shroff, Revathy and Tabu. Shobhana was seen playing the ten-headed demon king of Lanka in the dance-drama.

One of Italy`s most popular operas ‘Violetta, a Traviata’, a three-act musical drama by Guissppe Verdi, was performed in New Delhi by a crossover cast of Indian and European artistes, which drew a packed house. The opera, inspired by Alexander Dumas` play ‘Lady of the Camellias’, was brought to Shri Ram Centre for Arts in the national capital by Rajasthan-based Neemrana Music Foundation.

Canadian born Indian comedian Russell Peters performed at Siri Fort Auditorium and left Delhi bursting in guffaws during his show. His rib-tickling and irresistible humour had everyone in splits, even when he poked fun at favourite Bollywood actors.

National School of Drama celebrated its golden jubilee year. The fiesta showed twenty-two plays of several languages from various regions of the country in which 428 artistes (213 children in them) participated. Fourteen groups staged traditional performance of music, dance, acrobatics and martial arts.

Paying tribute to noted playwright, late Vijay Tendulkar, and staging some of their most loved productions, the National School of Drama`s (NSD) repertory summer festival was a treat for theatre aficionados in the city. Famous plays like Prasanna`s Acharya `Tartuffe`, Nadira Babbar`s `1857: Ek Safarnama` and M.K. Raina`s `Banbhatt ki Atmakatha`, Kafka`, `Ram Nam Satya Hai` and `Uttarramcharitamanas` were staged.

The 30th Prithvi Theatre Festival, acquired a unique status because all the 10 plays comprising the festival repertoire was handpicked by the guru of modern Hindi theatre, Satyadev Dubey. This year`s festival is, in a way, a tribute to the master playwright, Satyadev Dubey.

International

Daniel Radcliffe shed his Harry Potter image and clothes to portray a troubled young man who blinded six horses in this revival of Peter Shaffer`s Tony-winning play, Equus.

A highly intellectual and visually-packed reading of Richard Wagner`s final opera ‘Parsifal’ by Norwegian director Stefan Herheim, was rapturously received by the first-night audience of the prestigious Bayreuth Festival.

Katie Holmes made her Broadway debut in ‘All My Sons’. Of all Arthur Miller`s plays, this one — his first Broadway success — was perhaps the most Arthur Millerish. Yet Simon McBurney, the experimental British director, gave it a vibrant new staging: stylized, hyperbolic and altogether riveting.

‘Shrek the Musical’, based on the popular DreamWorks films and the book by William Steig, showed stars Brian d`Arcy James as the cantankerous green ogre and was one of the most popular plays.

‘Reasons to be Pretty’, the play of Neil LaBute, American theatre`s very prolific writer, hit hard on the nose. The fine off-Broadway production directed by Terry Kinney (moving to Broadway early next year) struck a nice balance between LaBute`s truth-telling and his moralism.

‘Blasted’ was considered the year`s most disturbing play filled with graphic physical and sexual violence. English playwright Sarah Kane, who committed suicide in 1999, created a highly theatrical scenario in which horror goes beyond terror in a blistering production from off-Broadway`s Soho Rep.

Disney’s ‘The Little Mermaid’ by Richard ZoglinSara Krulwich was applauded for its sheer theatrical exuberance and polish. Gorgeous settings, special effects turned out to be spectacular.

David Cronenberg`s sci-fi terror movie ‘The Fly’ took on a new life in the Canadian director`s first foray into the world of opera. ‘The Fly’, described as a classical re-imagining of the 1986 movie about an eccentric scientist who turns into a massive fly, opened the new season at Los Angeles Opera.

‘Mamma Mia’, movie adaptation of 1999 West End musical became the most successful Hollywood film musical of all time and the highest grossing film of all time in the United Kingdom.

Damien Hirst made news by selling USD 198 million worth of art in Sotheby’s hosted sale - a new record for a single-artist auction.

While art markets in the US, UK and several other countries have taken a blow with top auction houses like Christie`s and Sotheby`s selling below estimated prices, Indian artists together with their Chinese counterparts have been able to sufficiently weather the storm so far. The art market in India growing at 35 percent today stands at approximately over Rs 1500 crores. In the European circuit, Indian art today commands a value, which is 300-400 per cent higher than what it was 4 to 5 years ago. The year 2008 has been one of many firsts in the country for the art market. In its very first year the `India Art Summit`- the first art fair in the country modelled on the likes of international fairs such as Basel Art Fair in Spain is said to have attracted over 10,000 art enthusiasts including art collectors, investors, artists, critics, curators and students from across India and overseas. Contemporary artists, like NS Harsha, Atul Dodiya, Subodh Gupta and TV Santosh performed well. SH Raza, Tyeb Mehta, FN Souza, Rameshwar Broota, Jogen Chowdhury and MF Husain are amongst those whose works fetched the highest prices.

According to art collector Harish Padmanabha, "popularity of modern artists will hit the stands once again. No one can take away credit from stalwarts like Husain, Raza, Tyeb Mehta, Gaitonde and Ganesh Pyne." We hope that the year 2009 comes up with several masterpieces in art and theatre. Good Bye Vijay Tendulkar died at his residence in Pune after prolonged illness. He was 80. Armed with a rare insight into the human nature and the courage of conviction, he mercilessly dissected social aberrations with particular emphasis on the baser instincts in man that shocked the orthodox Marathi theatre. William Gibson, author of such Broadway hits as ‘The Miracle Worker’ and ‘Two for the Seesaw,’ died at the age of 94. Paritosh Sen, one of the founders of the contemporary Indian art movement, died at a due to lung infection. Sen was a founder member of the Calcutta Group, an art movement established in 1942 that played a significant role in the birth of Indian modern art. Leading British post-war playwright Harold Pinter died at the age of 78. The London-born author, director, actor, poet and political activist had become widely known for the sarcasm and moral vigour that inspired his work over more than 50 years. For more on Art & Theatre, log on to Spicezee.com »