When Feisal Alkazi says that he is adapting the Hollywood film One Flew over the Cuckoos Nest for the stage,it sounds like a challenge. One Flew. is a cult Hollywood film and,as any fan of the lead actor Jack Nicholson will point out,adapting it for the stage would be anything but a lark. I had staged a play based on the film 30 years ago and thought it was time to revisit it. Though the story is American,it is relevant to Delhi, says Alkazi. Titled The Cuckoos Nest,the play follows a free-spirited protagonist who has been admitted into a mental asylum. As he rallies other patients to challenge the draconian rules of the establishment,the protagonist turns the head nurse into a formidable enemy. This clash between the system and the rebel can only end bitterly. Alkazi,who has been a counsellor with a city-based institution for several decades,aims to get his audience thinking about mental health. The way in which people treat schizophrenics and mental illness patients is deplorable, he says. Most of my plays are women-oriented,so I was keen to work on a male-centric theme this time, says Alkazi. Jaipreet Singh,an actor who has been with the group,Ruchika Theatre,for five years plays the lead. He is dynamic and has great histrionic depth, says Alkazi. Internationally,some of the best films have been adapted from theatre and vice versa. The film had won all five major Academy Awards; Alkazi hopes that the play will win him a few hearts and minds. The Cuckoos Nest will be staged on July 6 and 7 at Indian Habitat Center (24682001) and on July 13 and 14 July at Epicenter,Gurgaon (0124 2715000)
