The theatre should be able to express the plurality of society, stressed a discussion held at the seventh International Theatre Festival, here on Tuesday. It discussed the devices to take the theatre to villages.
Shankar Venkiteswaran, artistic director of the festival, suggested that the Kerala Sangeeta Nataka Akademi should co-operate with various theatre groups to reach out to the rural masses.
However, many people were sceptical about the scope of the akademi, to stage plays that deal with socio-political issues and gender discrimination. They raised concern about the lack of capacity of the cultural organisation to function independently without any political influence.
The discussion highlighted the need to build small auditoriums in every panchayat to encourage theatre. The akademi should provide opportunity to stage good theatre productions across the State every year, they stressed.
Addressing the “Meet the artist” programme, the Palestinian theatre activists of the Freedom Theatre declared that they were not theatre persons but freedom fighters.
“When the entire world considered Palestinians as terrorists, we were trying to express the identity of Palestine people in front of the world,” they said. The world should know what is happening in Palestine. Innocent people have been portrayed as terrorists and sent to jail. They are undergoing cruel human rights violations, the activists said.
Schedule for Wednesday
Vallappokkam: Radio drama, 10 a.m.
Thozhilkendrathilekku: Nataka Souhrudam, Thrissur, 3 p.m.: The Play is a re-enactment of a historical play staged in 1948 in the same name. It is about the attempt of a group of Brahmin women to attain self sufficiency in the patriarchal society by getting employed.
Fashion Zombie and Touch Screen: Stuart Lynch and Jacob Stage, Denmark, Natyagraham, 4.30 p.m. : It is a combination of two works by Stuart Lynch and Jacob Stage. The Fashion Zombie discusses with passion towards Zombie culture. The premier of the pay was conducted in Stockholm in April, 2014. The Touch Screen is an exploration about the distance between the audience and the actor. The play uses support of physical theatre, dance, music and video projection.
Happy Days: Arica Theatre Company, Japan, 6 p.m.: It’s a theatre presentation of Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days.
Moment Just Before Death, Saga Entertainment, Kochi, 8.30 p.m.: The play brings home an old man’s journey through various facets of life.
