Among the other plays being staged in Chandigarh are Ratan Thiyam’s ‘Macbeth’, Pranjal Saikia’s ‘Indipity’, and Saurabh Anant’s ‘Hasyachuramari’, Littette Dubey’s ‘Kanyadaan’, Feisal Alkazi’s ‘Kartik ?!3’, S.M. Azahar Alam’s ‘Lohar’, Sonal Mansingh’s ‘Pancha-Kanyaa’ and Atul Kumar’s ‘Khawab Sa’.

Photos By Life In Chandigarh

Apart from the plays in the evenings, there will be allied activities in the mornings like Master Class, Living Legend, Conversation, Interface and a couple of seminars. Sculpture workshops will also be organised.

A Master Class is slated on March 22 with C.S. Krishna Shetty, Living Legend on March 22 with Dr. Attamjit Singh and Conversation with Dr. Satish. On March 24, there will be a Living Legend with Mohan Maharishi and Conversation with Shantanu Bose. Another Master Class has been slotted for March 26 with Nalini Kamalini. An Interface with Dr Varinder Mehandiratta and a Conversation with Vijay Kapoor will take place on March 31. Seminars will be held April 1 and 2.

The Chandigarh leg of International Theatre Olympics 2018 is being organised by the National School of Drama (NSD) under the aegis of Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India, in collaboration with Department of Cultural Affair, UT Chandigarh /Chandigarh Sangeet Natak Academy. 

About Theatre Olympics 

The Theatre Olympics was established at Delphi, Greece in 1993. The Theatre Olympics presents some of the greatest theatre practitioners from around the world. It is a platform for theatrical exchange for students and masters, where a dialogue despite ideological, culture and language differences is encouraged. Apart from Delphi, the Theatre Olympics has been held in the following countries: Japan (1999), Russia (2001), Turkey (2006), South Korea (2010), China (2014), Poland (2016).

Details of some of the plays

BANDISH 20-20000HZ

Director: Purva Naresh 

Group: Aarambh Mumbai Productions LLP, Mumbai

Playwright: Purva Naresh

Duration Of The Play: 2 hrs 15 mins

Language: Hindi,

The Play

In a green room four artists come face to face with each other. Two are yester-years’ divas and the other two are young heart-throbs of the nation. They are all set to participate in an event celebrating 70 years of Independence in a small town of India. Soon crisis begins to emerge. The male heart throb of the nation is banned… There is a power failure… Beni Bai refuses to sing. As the event team tries to cope with these issues, we get a glimpse into the history of bans on artists and their artistic journeys. In the end the artists leave the green room. Will they still be worthy of the stage?

DZIADY – NOC DRUGA

Director: Piotr Tomaszuk 

Group: Teatr Wierszalin, Poland

Playwright: Piotr Tomaszuk

Duration Of The Play: 2hrs

Language: Polish

The Play

1820’s – Poland and Lithuania are under Russian occupation. Poles and Lithuanians are deprived of civil rights. They are oppressed, imprisoned or sentenced to forced labour deep into Russia and Siberia. Guślarz begins the ‘Dziady’ feast under the sacred tree. Ghosts conjured up by Guślarz appear for the feast. Ghosts gather in the cosmos. A young man’s ghost seems to be stuck between the sky and the earth. It is the ghost of a poet. The other ghosts reveal their divine plan to him. The young man’s ghost writes an inscription: ‘Gustaw Died, Konrad was Born’. Then he falls to the floor, fainting. The ghost wakes up. He recognizes the cell of a tsarist prison in Vilnius. He starts writing a poem about his imprisonment, inventing his fellow prisoners who are played by other ghosts.

The prisoners of Vilnius tsarist prison tell their stories. Konrad himself fights with God. Evil spirits appear in the cell. They flee as a priest comes after being called by the nearby monastery. Konrad has a vision of future events. Konrad receives the gift of prophecy. The prophecy foretells the triumph of the oppressed and the failure of the tyrants. Under the sacred tree the ritual comes to an end.

Guślarz walks away along with his ‘Dziady’ ritual.

KHAWB SA

Director:Atul Kumar 

Group: The Company Theatre, Mumbai

Playwright: William Shakespeare

Duration Of The Play: 2 hr 30 mins

Language: Hindi

The Play

We  cannot  know  whose  dream  this  is……….Perhaps  Quince  dreamt  of  Titania  and

Titania imagined lovers while lovers dreamt of Puck and Puck conjured up a donkey.

 In dreams there are no anchors; images and sounds waft in and out of the mind. Often becoming so real, so under the skin that a dreamer could fall or fly or even remain suspended mid-air, all the while cocooned in a the warmth of a blanket.

Inspired by the bizarre and extraordinary quality of a human dream, The Company Theatre presents an ensemble of 16 dancers, actors, singers and musicians, all weaving together a landscape of Shakespeare’s fantastical vision, A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Bodies and voices drift from real to unreal, moving like a daze or even a possession might move. Sometimes slowly and sometimes suddenly, the performers create and attempt to transport the audience into other realms of experience, led by song, words, music and dance

MACBETH

Director: Ratan Thiyam 

Group: Chorus Repertory Theatre, Imphal

Playwright: William Shakespeare

Duration Of The Play: 1 hr 40 min

Language: Manipuri,

The Play

Scene One: While returning after victory Macbeth and Banquo meet three witches on their way back. Witches prophesy Macbeth’s becoming the next King.

Scene Two: Captain bringing the news of victory to King Duncan.  Duncan declares Macbeth as the Chief of Cawdor.

Scene Three: Letter from Macbeth delivered to Lady Macbeth. Macbeth returns home and informs Duncan’s arrival. Lady Macbeth takes the decision of killing Duncan.

Scene Four: Arrival of Duncan and welcome gesture of Lady Macbeth and arranging feast for him.

Scene Five: Conspiracy inside Macbeth’s chamber.

Scene Six: Macbeth meets Banquo and his son in the middle of the night. 

Scene Seven: Macbeth prepares to kill Duncan.

Scene Eight: Murder of King Duncan. 

Scene Nine: Chaos in Macbeth’s castle.  The news of King’s assassination spreads all over.  Macbeth orders to kill Banquo.

Scene Ten: Killing of Banquo and escape of his son.

Scene Eleven: Court scene. The ghost of Banquo appears suddenly.  Macbeth behaves like an insane man. Hospitalization of Macbeth. 

Scene Twelve: Macbeth comes back to meet witches. The witches encourage Macbeth but warn him to refrain from Macduff.

Scene Thirteen: Malcolm’s preparation for war against Macbeth.

Scene Fourteen: Soldier witnessing the moving Birnam woods towards Dunsinane.

Scene Fifteen: Soliloquy of Macbeth. News of Lady Macbeth’s suicide.

Scene Sixteen: Macduff chases Macbeth. The final battle and the death of Macbeth.

Epilogue: Sweepers cleaning the area where Macbeth was killed --- thus depicting the cleansing of evil from the society.

RATHER RASHI

Director: Sukracharjya Rabha 

Group: Badungduppa, Goalpara

Playwright: Rabindranath Tagore

Duration Of The Play: 1hr

Language: Rabha

The Play

The chariot during the Rath yatra called Mahakaal (lord of time/Shiva), does not move when pushed by Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas. Among all the worst crises of human civilization is the immobility of time. The rope of the chariot is a symbol of the bond of human relationships. These relationships in the course of time had diluted the role and rights of many and kept them suppressed. To a certain extent, the chariot is a metaphor for the division of society into different castes and sections.