Play-full

Swatantra Theatre will present an English play Hamlet In My School on June 6 at Kalachaya,Senapati Bapat Road. According to the director,Abhijeet Choudhary,kids these days are more mature as an audience to comprehend the world of theatre due to the exposure they get. However,he says that even if one is dealing with a serious play and children are the viewers,one needs to script the storyline and the dialogues keeping them in mind. Adding humour and buddy lingo,he says,helps.

“ I keep taking feedback from my child actors as to what they would have done or said in a particular situation and accordingly we keep improvising,” says Choudhary. Hamlet In My School ,as the name suggests is inspired by the original Hamlet. Adapted by Dhanashree Heblikar,the play is designed considering various aspects of school life. “We are trying to portray how the play is still relevant in today’s scenario,” says Heblikar.

Ashish Mehta of Aasakta Theatre feels that theatre is a live art and it doesn’t need any kind of maturity to understand. However,he adds that for children it a ‘fun’ medium of entertainment. “We don’t need to add moral to the play in the end; kids these days are brilliant and sharp enough to catch the storyline so we don’t incorporate and portray things right into the face,” says Mehta. While targeting a young audience,Aasakta Theatre makes sure that the play should primarily address children. “We stage plots which we would have enjoyed watching as kids,” he explains.

While Bed Ke Neeche Rehnewali by Aasakta was staged on Tuesday,Junglenama will be held on June 7 at Nehru Memorial Hall.

But how do you rate kids as an audience as compared to the adults. Choudhary admits that children are a difficult bunch of spectators to please and if they don’t like something,they won’t give you a second chance. Mehta says,“It is difficult to keep the attention span of the children intact throughout the play. You can’t expect them to watch the play without making noise or without talking to eachother.”

12-year-old Shlok Rajesh Kadare,who has already booked the tickets for one of the above-mentioned plays,prefers theatre to movies while adding,“It’s more creative and fun.”