It’s Dark in There

A scene from the play Reality Show.

Some stories repeat themselves. Society has a constant need to validate itself through a hero or a villain. This concept of two warring sides creates drama, a constant battle between forces,” says Jehan Aloysius, Founder and Artistic Director of CentreStage Productions in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Aloysius is bringing his debut Sinhala play to Delhi this weekend as part of the Bharat Rang Mahotsav (BRM).

Called Reality Show, the 1hr 40 min production revolves around seven actors who have been summoned to an abandoned theatre for auditions. The group comprises a soldier, who has seen the dark side of war; a boy with a split personality; and a star, who is both adored and demonised by her fans. Instead of meeting the director, they are greeted by his disembodied voice which asks them to dig deep within their personal histories and create the “Ultimate Reality Show”. They have to compete with one another and any failure could lead to a grisly end.

“We live vicariously through others and, what Reality Show aims at, is something so intensely personal and it has an undeniable universality in its quest of identity. Identity is something I feel very strongly about, especially in a post-war Sri Lanka where you have the Sinhalese-Tamil conflict, and there are new manifestations of Buddhist and Muslim fundamentalists,” says Aloysius.

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Past plays by CentreStage Productions have included Shakespearean adaptations and a mix of original scripts. A hard-hitting musical called Rag in 2012 saw gangs fighting and a character committing suicide on stage as part of a script that dealt with ragging.

The play will be staged on Saturday at Kamani Auditorium today, 6.30 pm.