Making a Little Difference

Director Zubin Mehta was particularly occupied last month.

Director Zubin Mehta was particularly occupied last month. From deciding the sets to the scripts,costumes,dialogues and rehearsals,he looked into every little detail of Parwaaz,Wings Theatre Academys first childrens theatre festival,involving young actors from 12 schools in the city in the age group of five to 17.

Its an ambitious project, smiles Mehta,who works hard both on and off the stage,making sure that his actors experience the joy of giving it their best shot. The four-day festival,that began on November 1 at St Kabir School and comprises three plays,is a long-cherished dream of Mehta,who wants to introduce more children to the joys of theatre exposing them to various facets of the stage. Many feel that I make my actors rehearse for long hours and push them to be involved in varied aspects,but I make sure that while creating a professional production,they never stop having fun. The responsibility of working in a team,creating everything from scratch and doing their best gives them both confidence and joy, says Mehta,as he goes on to share the line-up which boasts of plays that are both sensitive and entertaining. This includes Charlies Dream,which has been developed and scripted by children,and drives home the point that power and greed go hand-in-hand. The story revolves around a young boy,Charlie,who transports us into another world through his dream sequence.

Another production,Harun da aur Baadshah,is an adaptation of Satyajit Rays On the Run with Fotikch and centres around Jai,who has been picked up by four kidnappers and loses his memory. The third play in the festival is JB Priestlys Mothers Day,which reveals the plight of a mother whose rights and contribution to the household are not recognised. We have made no compromises,and with this festival the aim is to take childrens theatre to another level, says the proud director.

He is part of a movement that is intended to promote childrens theatre. Its only in the last couple of years that childrens theatre in the city has got a professional perspective,with seasoned theatre persons from across the country becoming involved in productions that are both thematically and technically mature. Theatre,as we see today,need not have light,stock music,standard costumes and loud make-up clichés, says Pranab Mukherjee,a leading name in alternative theatre in India. Last month,he directed Yadavindra Public Schools annual theatre production Macbeth. A no-frills play,Mukherjee used a variety of metaphors,live music and video stills to stage Shakespeares powerful tragedy. Presented by 17 talented actors,the depiction went beyond the life and death of a king,to explore human loneliness,guilt and make a comment on the politics of power. The idea is of a reality that re-looks,re-designs,re-analyses and makes this generation fall in love with Shakespeare again, says Mukherjee.

Contributing to the trend is also Vivek High School,which,over the years,has been staging annual productions by their students that are open to the public. It has staged productions by MK Raina,Tom Alter,Amal Allana and Nissar Allana among others. Many remember Mohey Rang De as a grand show that had a cast of 500,seven stages and impressive music. Theatre plays a part in putting things in perspective,and childrens theatre is therapeutic and makes the process of learning and personality development complete, says Allana,former chairperson of the National School of Drama. The NSD,she adds,has an elaborate programme devoted to childrens theatre,with workshops being conducted across India,and Jash-Ne-Bachpan,their childrens theatre festival,always a big hit. The idea is to create time and space and not hold on to the old. You have to let go of things to try something new, she concludes.

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