Silver Stage

Along the way,Dramatech has not only picked up critical acclaim — their production Ek Jaam Auntiyon Ke Naam (the Hindi version of the Frank Capra movie Arsenic and Old Lace) was selected among Sahitya Kala Parishad’s best plays of 2008 — but also box-office success — over 1,500 seats of their latest production Hello Dolly are sold,and corporate bookings are closed till the end of the year. Even as other groups in the Capital struggle to draw sponsorships and audience,Dramatech is celebrating its silver jubilee with music,dance and laughter — by recreating the Broadway hit Hello Dolly.

“Which song unseated the Beatles from their No. 1 position in 1964? The title song of Hello Dolly! by Louis Armstrong,” says Sagar,who translated the dialogue and lyrics into Hindi for the play. It deals with a young widow called Dolly Levi who wants to marry Vandergelder. The play has enough feel-good ingredients — a happy-go-lucky protagonist,a wealthy but miserly businessman,young lovers and rollicking songs. Sagar based his script on the film version that stars Barbara Streisand and picked up three Oscars,including one for best music. “I would return from work and religiously translate five pages everyday,” he says. The 90-minute-long play unfolds on a grand scale,with lavish period costumes and live music. “Made on a budget of Rs 5 lakh,the play has drawn sponsorships from the ONGC and Aircel,among others,” says Sagar. The lead actors are also astute vocalists and sing all the songs — Puja Shankar,who plays Dolly,is a concert-level performer and manager of bands like Karma6 and Arko from Bangalore,while Gupta took lessons in classical music for his role.

“Often,when I am driving to meetings,I practise my dialogue and songs. My driver knows them all by heart now,” laughs Sagar. The group has been rehearsing the play for the past 10 months and this is where Sagar says he is fortunate that the actors hold responsible positions in their profession. “They bring an extraordinary amount of dedication to the play,sacrificing weekends to rehearse,and staying upbeat through it all. The joie de vivre is very real,” he says. As they say,may silver turn to gold.