There are certain stories that grip you, move you, change you. Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi, the great mystic poet, is said to have penned many of them. In The Phoenix Players’ staging of Troubadour , conceived and enacted by Salim Ghouse, however, it was the single actor who stood supreme.
The play, which pays tribute to the Tarabdaars, the original story tellers of yore, presents three stories by Rumi, interwoven with poetry. Ghouse gives an immersive performance — if you aren’t lost in his deep, distinct voice, and the words of wisdom he relays, it is the easy physicality he displays that reels you in.
He prompts questions, induces laughter and provides food for thought. And all throughout, he keeps the audience engaged in his performance.
