July 27, 2008	Sunday	Rajab 23, 1429

KARACHI: Though still not on a large scale, one is getting to see more and more good plays in the city. Here one must add that the National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) is playing a major role in presenting sensible productions to the recreation-starved megalopolis. Quality plays help in developing the taste of the people, but this can happen only when it is done on a regular basis.

Chicago, a musical in the vaudevillian tradition, is one such play. A delightful two-hour story presented by Made for Stage Productions, the premiere, which took place on Friday at the Arts Council auditorium, is based on the Broadway musical of the same name. The production was premiered in the

United States in 1996 and is Broadway’s longest running musical with more than 4,684 performances.

The original play was written in 1926 by journalist Maurine Dallas Watkins, about criminals and crimes she had reported on and the injustices of the criminal justice system.

The original production, which was choreographed by Bob Fosse and became extremely popular because of it, has his style strongly etched on all the later productions.

For a person who is directing for the second time, it was an ambitious attempt by Nida Butt to incorporate live music and songs in the play, along with numerous dances thrown in for good measure.

A live orchestra is playing the original soundtrack of Chicago each evening for the next nine nights, accompanied by a live choir, all students belonging to Napa.

Seldom does one see such a well-executed play. Having rehearsed for six months, not once did any of the cast fumble their lines or make a wrong move.

All the actors performed well but Sanam Saeed as Roxie Hart, a chorus girl, Nida Butt as Velma Kelly, and Faraz Lodhi as the lawyer stood out. All the major characters sang their own songs extremely well.

The set design was simple, unusual, yet elegant. That the play was a hit was very obvious from the response of the audience. One guest remarked that she had recently seen the play in London and liked this one more, although the lighting was slightly weak.

Nida Butt, who is basically a lawyer by profession and dabbles in dancing, has directed, produced and acted in the play. She has also choreographed the dances.

Her directional debut was The Producers in 2006, which, again, was originally a Broadway production.

Said Nida: “Chicago has been my most challenging project. I hadn’t planned on playing the role of Velma Kelly. It kind of happened by default and I am thrilled by it. The play is saucy and spectacular, but how the audience takes it will be known soon enough.

“The story is about the justice system, murder, greed, corruption, violence and exploitation. Sounds familiar,” added the director.