Miss Meena, a social play staged by the artistes of Theatre Out Reach Unit of Hyderabad University on the premises of Andhra University Visakhapatnam showcased the talent of its student artistes. The brilliant performance delivered by a team of young artistes made it worth watching. The ease that the cast displayed in metamorphosing into diverse props of the scene being presented with precision in timing and movement a la street play was commendable. With a movie-like treatment complete with a sprinkle of songs, fights and a duet, it has all the trappings of an entertainer.. In a liberal adaptation of 1956 classic tragicomic play The Visit (original title Der Besuch der alten Dame ) of Swiss-German dramatist Friedrich Durrenmatt, the team essayed to present in an interesting manner.
Backwardness, ignorance, illiteracy, taboos, gullibility and sycophancy... all form the cauldron of life in Tummalapenta, a dinky nondescript village, where Malli, a wronged, gullible and good looking village belle, returns after 15 years as Miss Meena, the leading light of tinsel world.
Life is no bed of roses and those who negotiate its uphill journey with perseverance under trying times reach the summit, says Miss Meena. Beneath the exterior of glitz and glamour of this tinsel world celebrity lies seething fury and a strong steak of vengeance against the injustice meted out to her, when she stood helpless at the mercy of her village folk. The narrative unfolds how she lures every one in the village to her side with the promise of development and better life and takes vengeance against Srinu who ditched her in her adolescence.
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Weaving virtual scenes of rural life through diverse formations and taking sharp jibes at the live coverage of events by media, the play worked well in taut treatment. Particularly, her revisiting with Srinu their old haunts where she had dreamt of good life with Srinu was touchingly portrayed. Aswani Swetha in the eponymous role displayed remarkable theatrical talent.
In all a team of 10 artistes took part in the production directed by Indla Chandrasekhar.