THANK GOD FOR THE CARNAGE!
It was almost a replay of the P.V. Sindhu vs Carolina final. Make it two Sindhus and two Carolinas playing doubles. There was aggression, there were volleys and smashes and, of course, cuss words. Except that they were verbal ones and played inside an auditorium. A thoroughly enjoyable verbal carnage indeed.
Reconciliation meetings discovered new meanings. Original sins of the unseen but seemingly ever-present young protagonists long receded into the background with the pretentious parents bringing their own subterranean battles to the fore. Kudos to the director for getting the actors under the skin of the characters they played. They made us believe for a moment they were one of us, reprising our own roles, though not in so flashy a way, our own protectionist interventions in the small bits of jealousies and fights of our children.
The sound, the lighting, the presentation and the weaving of the story in and out of the lives of the parents was nicely done. I especially liked the way the incident of the school gang was brought up by one of the parents and how his face lit up in reminiscence. The seasoned actors brought alive the conundrums of every day lives, where fanciful pursuits sometimes take precedence over good parenting.
Santosh Nair
Anna Nagar
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AN ENGAGING DIALOGUE ON CIVILITY
The God of Carnage starts off on a tense note, with two sets of parents meeting to resolve a fight between their sons. The couples are cautious with words while discussing the fight initially, but grow less sensitive as the conversation moves on to the topic of parenting. Before long, they are passionately debating on animal cruelty, gender stereotypes, civility and social responsibility, leading to personal insults. The witty verbal swordplay provides comic relief to the plot, as it unfurls the expectations, disappointments and frustrations of the characters. With a simple narrative, the play effectively demonstrates the complexities of human nature.
Srravya C.
West Mambalam
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LIGHT-HEARTED COMEDY
Four adults discuss their children’s fight over coffee and tarts. The conversation goes from mildly pleasant and mellow to acrimonious, bitter and confrontational — all in the course of 80 minutes. The God of Carnage , produced by QTP, brought together a quartet of very talented actors, all of whom were able to portray a range of moods and emotions..
The four characters — a pacifist boring businessman, his attempting-to-be-moralistic wife, a work-obsessed aggressive lawyer and his uptight slightly supercilious wife — bring to light a variety of issues about children and relationships through conversations that are filled with humour and wit.
The set and costumes were realistic. The play succeeded in the sense that it did not try to portray anything more than light-hearted comedy. A special mention must be made of Shernaz Patel, Sohrab Ardeshir, Anu Menon and Zafar Karachiwala, who were also excellent in their roles.
All in all, it was a pleasant way to end the weekend.
Priamvada Viswanathan
Nungambakkam
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THE BIG BILE MYSTERY
The God of Carnage was by far the most exhilarating experience of all the shows this year at The Hindu Theatre Fest.
The complexities of marriage and parenthood, dysfunctional families, vanity, pretentiousness, egotism... all the usual issues that a regular nuclear double-income household faces today were well portrayed.
The narrative was tight and the actors’ subtle facial reactions were timed perfectly. The stage properties and sets only added more value to the brilliant acting. I still wonder how Anu Menon managed spitting out the ‘bile’ on stage so perfectly. Kudos to Sohrab Ardeshir, Zafar Karachiwala and Shernaz Patel as well.
Ranjani Chandran
Adyar
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UNVEILING THE MASK OF CIVILITY
Playground fights, living room squabbles, angry children, and more. Through the chaos, cacophony, and candour in Yasmina Reza’s The God of Carnage under Nadir Khan’s superb direction, the cast of characters — played wonderfully by Sohrab Ardeshir, Zafar Karachiwala, Anu Menon and Shernaz Patel — conveyed convincingly a simple truth: We often hide behind masks of civility, when in all honesty, we are gods of carnage, ready to pounce, prey, dominate and devour.
Gita V. Pai
Nungambakkam
The Hindu Theatre Fest 2016
The Title Sponsor of the event is YES BANK. The Associate Sponsors are Kauvery Hospital, Hindustan International School and Telangana Tourism. The Hospitality Partner is Taj Coromandel. The Mall Partner is Phoenix Market City (Chennai). The Mobility Partner is Ola. The gift partner is Terra Earthfood. The Radio Partner is Chennai Live 104.8. The Merchandise Partner is Focus Art Gallery and the Event Manager is evam.
