The Rafi Peer Theatre Workshop`s World Performing Arts Festival was an eventful fare this year. It was the theatre company`s 25th festival, it was held without a sponsor in trying times of terrorist threats and recession and three explosions took place during the festival, too.
Having experienced the first explosion, I must say I have also joined the increasing league of unfortunate Pakistanis experiencing terror firsthand. Thank God there were no casualties or serious damage. But more on the blasts later.
The festival was a pleasant montage of all kinds of performing arts and some of the performances were thoroughly enjoyable. On the fifth day, the Rifco Arts from the UK presented the hour-long comedy It Ain`t All Bollywood about a girl obsessed with the artificial world of Hindi films. She is eventually brought out of her self imposed exile by her childhood Irish friend who recognises her on his frequent trips to her house as the courier guy. A beautiful story, simple and aesthetic props, brilliant acting and humour made the play fun to watch.
The first of Abbas Jutt`s solo nautanki performance was scheduled in the Punjabi Cultural Complex`s auditorium on the night of the folk music concert. It was ironic that a talented singer like Abbas was scheduled to perform in the same time slot as folk artistes like Saeein Zahoor and Arif Lohar, but in a separate auditorium where only a handful of people came to hear him. The organisers should have accommodated him in the folk concert which would have given him a bigger audience. Abbas`s renditions of the folk tales of Sohni Mahiwal and Sassi Punhu in traditional Punjabi style were sonorous yet ill-placed before a nearly empty auditorium.
The Qadir Ali Baig Theatre Foundation from Hyderabad Deccan in India performed Raat Phoolon Ki, an unscripted 70-minute act of poetry, music and dance. Qadir Ali Baig was a poet and a lover of the performing arts, and many of his poems became songs for the Indias Hindi film industry. The play was produced by Begum Razia Qadir Ali Baig, directed by Mohammad Ali Baig and the poetry was recited by well-known actor Arif Zakaria. The
combination dance was derived from various Indian classical genres and it was choreographed and performed by Dr. Alekhya Punjla and her troupe. The beautiful fusion music to which the dances were performed was composed by the famous santoor player Rahul Sharma.
The Aakar Puppet Theatre from India delivered a fabulous performance in the name of Dhola Maro. It was a Rajasthani folk legend of a princess and her beloved prince who comes to marry her defying all odds including a spell-casting envious witch, a horned monster and a huge python.
The props were an exquisite representation of the rich and colourful Rajasthani culture and the puppeteers handled the string marionettes very skillfully. In one of the scenes, a single puppeteer balanced the prince holding the princess on a dancing camel. Other scenes like the puppets breathing, juggling a ball and doing a peacock dance completely won the audience over. Children loved the hour-long performance and many ran to the stage after the show to check out the puppets up close.
The Ariel Theatre from Bulgaria performed Clever Peter for young children. The story was based on the Bulgarian folk tale of an adventurous, trickster peasant called Peter who goes about helping the poor and wriggles out of difficult situations by using his wits. The technique used was hand puppetry and the two puppeteers did an okay job as they fumbled with the English at times.
The Hungry Heart Festival (India) performed As The Sun Sets.It was a story of a family coming to terms with the family`s patriarch Viraj dying of cancer in old age.
The play explored human feelings beautifully as in the end the daughter realises her mother`s worth. The play had some really good acting by Prabha Tonk (wife),
Anjali (aunt) and Danish Iqbal (servant).
A day prior to the closing of the festival, the National School of Drama, India, presented Azizun. It was captivating play set in the 1857 period of Kanpur. The play revolved around a courtesan called Azizun who is in love with Shamsuddin, a soldier with the East India Company. Shamsuddin decides to join the rebellion and when his frequent comings to the house of Azizun get noticed by the Company officers, she decides to join the rebels and her house is used for the secret revolt movement.
The play was simply enchanting as the sets were put up on three sides of the camp making the audience feel as though they were sitting in a 3-D theatre. The script was a mix of pristine Urdu and bits of Hindi. Soul-stirring dialogues such as when Shamsuddin convinced other soldiers to join his revolt against the Company and said “Tumhain khud mein aur khuda mein faisla karna hoga” were a treat to hear. The stage was set at different elevations hence Azizun`s house was actually a two-storied building. Another platform with stairs positioned behind the audience was used effectively for the revolt scenes.
During the small length of time in which I managed to watch the performance, it felt like I was transported to another world. The music, the subtle and graceful dance and the language was magical. The play unfortunately could not conclude due to the explosions even though the actors brilliantly carried on through the earlier disruptive fireworks at the match in the nearby Qaddafi Stadium.
The Rafi Peer Theatre Workshop`s Come Back To The Coffee House One More Time Rafi Peer was also staged the same day. It was about Rafi Peer and the fact that he was far ahead of his time and believed in empowering people to be change agents themselves through the use of performing arts. The dialogue was a mix of Urdu, Punjabi and English, and set in different time periods. Rafi Peer`s ideology was narrated by the characters who themselves are trying to understand the depth of his thoughts long after he has departed the world.
Directed by Salmaan Peerzada, the play made an ingenious use of props and there was attention to detail as when the coffee house setting was created there was the faint clink of real cups and silver in the backstage to bring in the real touch. Though some of the audiences found the play difficult to understand, according to Tasneem Peerzada (press director), the play was a new technique for the Pakistani audience who have not been exposed to its subtlety.
As we left the final performance and walked on the pavilion round the open-air theatre, the first explosion took place. It was definitely not a firecracker this time. But we knew it was a low-intensity bomb as the sound was not loud enough. As we stood with our back to the theatre, a woman in one of the handicrafts stall before us looked above us at the walls of the theatre and let out a most terrifying scream.
My husband and I turned around to look above us in what seemed like a moment cast in eternity as we thought there was a bomber right above our heads waiting to explode his explosives-laden jacket! But there was only smoke and dust rising and as the woman ran screaming towards the theatre, people panicked and started running towards the exit points. Some RPTW staffers got hold of the woman as she fainted and it transpired that her young son was in the theatre for the concert. What was commendable was the calm that the RPTW staff showed in treating the lady. A worker announced that the sound was that of a gas cylinder exploding, perhaps in a bid to pacify the panicking crowd.
As we left the premises unhurried, the scene outside had changed to scores of ambulances, a news coverage van, and police contingents moving into action. The second explosion took place when we were leaving the Qaddafi Stadium`s exit gate and it had been a good 20 minutes since the first one took place. Later, it saddened me to know that three people were injured, not due to of the explosions but in the panicky stampede that ensued.
AS THE SUN SETS
Among the Indian performances during the festival was one staged by the Hungry Heart Festival. Though witnessed by a small audience like most performances at the festival, the 90-minute play, As The Sun Sets, was a poignant, fast-paced presentation of engrossing events that unfold the lives of a family in a familiar situation — finding ways to live through the death of a loved one.
Scripted and directed by Smita Bharti, As The Sun Sets, is a story of that time in life when we are victimised by the unlimited limitations of old age and spend less and less time with our spouses and other family members, hence, leading to a situation where misconceptions and misunderstanding take our lives over. Busting the illusion of `eternal time`, As The Sun Sets juxtaposed the strength of a long-loving marital relationship with strident declarations of a life-long hatred; emotional mix-ups leading to hostility between mother and daughter in contrast to endearing bonding between the 75-year-old step-father, Viraj, and step-daughter Sammy played by Shena Gamat .
An ever-green matron Vishesh, Viraj`s younger sister, played by Jollay Anjali, and the songster servant Lallu, together rock the household with their lively banter. Bringing alive the supreme spirit of a septuagenarian man and a 60-plus woman. It is replete with nostalgic Bollywood oldies, as well as blasting hits, songs that fit every occasion and dances that epitomise relationships and celebrate life and its vicissitudes. A lonesome doctor, played by Brian Martin, romances Sammy and aspires to marry her, as he visits the family to apprise them of Viraj`s fatal and incurable illness.
The play revolved around the dysfunctional family that, in fact, possesses extraordinary strength and courage to make the best of life and indulge in it. The Virajs find a great leveler in the ailment afflicting the head of their family and his ultimate death, as Viraj, played by Inder Misra, is diagnosed with prostrate cancer soon after his 75th birthday. His wife Sakina played by Prabha Tonk, and step-daughter Sammy, dismayed by the news struggle to find their own independent ways to keep the old man alive.
Common experiences of loss and bereavement lead to the beginning of a cautious association between the estranged Sakina and daughter Sammy, after the latter loses her 10-year-old son`s custody to her ex-husband based in Canada. It is only then that Sammy realises the pain that Sakina has to put up with by having to live with an alienated daughter. As death eventually knocks on their door, the family turns around and starts observing, some of them at lives well-lived and others at dreams lost or abandoned along the way. Finally they rediscover what really lasts beyond death. Sakina and Sammy find a new relationship, one of affection and understanding, after Viraj breathes his last. With her newfound love for her daughter, Sakina asks Sammy to consider Doc`s proposal and get settled, while Sakina starts working on a plan to help Sammy get her son back from her ex-husband.
The dialogues of the bilingual play were brisk and full of impact, as was the acting of all of the performers, especially Viraj and Sammy as played by Inder Misra and Shena Gamat. The oldest member of the cast was 76, while the youngest was 26 years old. — Faryal Shahzad
IT AIN`T ALL BOLLYWOOD
There`s a lot to be said about a minimalist set comprising a free-standing door, a lamp shade and a wall. All of them with the same white-gold print. That`s it. That and two actors.
The play It Ain`t All Bollywood was presented by the UK-based theatre group Rifco Arts in front of a small but rapt audience in Hall No 1 at the World Performing Arts Festival in Lahore.
Rina Fanatia played both the mother and daughter. The mother was middle-aged, (what sounded like) Gujarati-speaking and determined to sell the house she believed was haunted by the ghost of her deceased and little loved husband, Mohan Lal. She was clearly neurotic and obviously enjoyed the newfound liberation her widowhood had provided.
The daughter, Kiran, was as obsessed with cleaning the house as she was with Bollywood. Hindi films were
obviously her refuge from a neglectful mother and the loss of a much-adored father. She stayed inside all day, daydreaming intermittently of Bollywood songs and situations all of which, she believed, applied to her situation.
Kiran was clearly suffering from depression, but her mother chose to believe that the condition was brought about due to her being `possessed` by some other worldly being. And so she constantly tried to rid the house of so-called evil spirits by reciting chants, burning incense and practising various other means of exorcism.
Enters Tony, an old school friend of Kiran`s and a much-needed breath of fresh air in her life. Tony was adorable and had the audience rooting for his rescue of Kiran right from the get-go. He was determined to remind Kiran of her carefree childhood when they would role-play their favourite comic heroes. Tony, by his own admission, was a loner. He had no friends and saw Kiran as much his own salvation as he hoped to be hers.
Rina Fanatia was equally convincing in both her roles. Her effortless transformation from mother to daughter and vice versa was a treat to watch. Kiran and Tony were both outsiders struggling to find acceptance and companionship. He eagerly accompanied her to a showing of Om Shanti Om at the local cinema, while she gradually felt comfortable enough to resume her childhood role of Wonder Woman.
It Ain`t All Bollywood offered a look at how the offspring of immigrants have transcended the differences of language, culture and religion to find common ground with their fellow citizens. — Saima S. Hussain
KATHPUTLI
“Kathputli is one of the oldest string puppet traditions in India, dating back to the 17th century,” said Nitin Harsh, a representative of Raj Folk Series, the people who brought this ancient art form to the World Performing Arts
Festival.
The Rajasthani kathputli originated as a tribute to Amar Singh, son of Gaj Singh, Raja of Marwar. Fed up with Amar Singh`s headstrong, rebellious streak, his father chose the younger son as his heir, leaving Amar Singh the relatively unimportant kingdom of Nagor as compensation.
Being a proud and valiant Rajput, Amar Singh soon came to the notice of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan who was deeply impressed by the young Raja`s bravery and martial skills. Unfortunately, the closer Amar Singh grew to the emperor, the more jealousy he aroused among the courtiers, especially a certain Salawat Khan who, until Amar Singh`s arrival, had been the emperor`s closest confidant. A bitter rivalry sprung up between the two and culminated in bloodshed when the hot-headed Rajput gave in to his famous temper and slew Salawat Khan in front of the entire court. Suffice to say Amar Singh did not survive many days after this display of temper.
Though the raja perished centuries ago, he gave birth to an art form that endures to this day, relating the story of his bravery and valour. The skill of making bits of wood and fabric come alive has been passed down through the generations within the nomadic tribe of Rajasthan known as the Bhat Kalakar, who refer to it as Amar Singh ka Khel and revere it as a story depicting Marwar ki Shaan.
While a few of these artistes performed this historic art, it was sad to note that something so unique and time-
honoured drew a pitifully small crowd. But the artiste gave their best nevertheless and the audience, especially the children, were entranced by the riot of colours, the lively action and the slapstick comedy.
Like all Rajasthani kathputli shows, this one too featured a court peopled by courtiers, ministers, jugglers, courtesans, jesters and of course, the emperor himself. Each `character` would be introduced accompanied by a drum roll and carried out its own little act. Thus the `dancers` gyrated with all the prerequisite matkas and latkas, the jugglers juggled with balls and then, to the accompanying oohs and aahs of the audience, their own heads (which they conveniently took off their shoulders and put back on.) Horse riders performed amazing equestrian feats, making their horses fly though the air with nonchalant ease, and all the background characters danced around exuberantly.
It was amazing to think that all these actions were performed in perfect harmony by just two people who held the strings; pulling, twitching, and manoeuvring them without a hitch to make each character do just what it was supposed to.
Amar Singh may be long dead but his soul lives on, thanks to the skill of the Bhat Kalakar and the people who promote this fine art form. — Shagufta Naaz
NATURAL HIGHS
The eleven days of plays, puppets, dance, comedy and music — every last dreg was needed to drown away the blues that Pakistan is going through. This realisation hit me when I was standing in front of the stage on the rock night.
The brilliance of the World Performing Arts Festival was and always will be that it provides an array of entertainment which appeals to a large range of audience. Ghazal, pop, rock, classical, world music; all these nights provided ample opportunity for everyone to dress up, sit in the open-air theatre at Alhamra, and for three hours forget that there were problems to be dealt with.
The interesting thing about memories is that they are strongly linked with the sense of smell. Each of these nights had a distinct odour — the ghazal and folk nights smelt of paan mingled with the overpowering smell of excitement; rock night was visited by the perfume of Mary Jane and world music night tantalised the teetotalers with the sweet overripe smell of sugar whisky.
The most iconic moment of the festival in terms of music was Abida Parveen bowing to a standing ovation on the
mystic night. The euphoria that often follows charged sermons by great figures was reflected everywhere — Abida`s control of the crowd with a drop of her voice in the middle of Mast Qalandar, the stupor that overtook everyone during the crescendo of her songs and the way everyone greeted her post-performance backstage. It was a performance that in retrospect overshadowed the explosions and the memory will be held precious for a long time to come.
Saieen Zahoor, who performed on the folk and mystic nights is always noteworthy. Even though his repertoire of songs is now slightly frayed and threadbare, his vocal range and timbre are worth catching at every performance.
The ghazal and pop nights were confusing this year. The family of Amanat Ali Khan and Hamid Ali Khan was all over the place with performances on both nights. Some would say that the pop night presented them with a commercially viable option, though both nights seemed to pander to similar aims. The night was saved from abject repetition by the graceful performance of Tina Sani. Paying homage to poet Faraz Ahmad, she reflected what can be termed a “complete product” as her musicians were colour-coordinated, the orchestration was very pleasing to the ear and the entire performance was an ode to smart business moves.
Contrary to the rock night, the pop night was a parallel universe where bad music was good, where `live` meant `playback` and where comic attire was confused with couture and fashion. Up close and personal, the person behind the lens can observe more than the artistes imagine and Circle of Trust seemed to be singing or talking into a mike that was switched off.
Aaroh from Karachi performed for the first time at the festival and their performance was defined by the energy of the lead singer. Farooq was all over the stage, bouncing like a pogo stick, leaving no corner ignored. His act was in stark contrast to Strings` who were supposed to be the highlight of the night.
Faisal Kapadia and Bilal Maqsood are certainly a well-turned-out duo, which is recognised on an international level and they have won many an award. Yet watching them live on stage felt more like coming across them on television as it seemed recorded, complete with post-production and camera moves. Not that they sounded anything less than what is expected of them. Sadly Mekaal Hasan`s performance on the fusion night was cancelled on account of the explosions; otherwise the audience would have had an opportunity to see the difference between a live performance and a great live performance.
The second world music night hosted two very noteworthy performances. The improvised instrumental between Shallum Xavier, Ingrid Kindem, Farhan Ali and a flutist was by far one of the noteworthy fusions heard this year. It had great underlying potential, yet was too short to reach even a buildup.
The other act that everyone should have heard was the group of Argentinean musicians from France. Manosanta was literally the “magic hand of the shaman” that soothes troubles away. At the festival with an awesome session bassist, Marco Jabea who had double-jointed hips in addition to his groovy bass, Manosanta consisted of Louis Pousa as the earnest songwriter and vocalist Thomas Huet, the very sweet drummer and Eddy Homassi, the percussion player with a wry sense of humour. Their music inspired from Tango and Cumbia was perfect for dancing, yet had lyrics that stemmed from the pain of immigrants and real-life tragedies. — Halima Mansoor
Pavel Vangeli`s Prague — The Enchanted City (The Czech Republic)
Put up by extremely talented performers from The Czech Republic, Pavel Vangeli`s Prague — The Enchanted City told the magical story of a little boy, Christopher, who embarks on an eventful adventure to an enchanted city along with his uncle, Albert.
German, Czech and Jewish cultures have all left a very strong imprint on Prague, and this was portrayed by the colourful characters of an eccentric alchemist, a mystic and a curious astronomer who told the story of medieval and renaissance Prague in their own special way. We see houses seeped in timeless history and palaces and churches where doors and windows open all with a sharp rap from Uncle Albert, a whole new world opens up to the young and wide-eyed Christopher.
Magnificently portrayed and a wonderful way of sending one`s message across, the puppet performance that employed different kinds of puppets, masks with strong European influences etched on to them and acting performances underlined the diverse cultural practices, lifestyles and even architectural magnificence that various cultures have had on both the people and the elegant city is Prague. The performance left many in the audience pining for more of the magical fare.
Jack And Joe Theatre — Life Back (Italy/Germany)
Essentially based on the more entertaining concepts of modern clowning, Alexey Merkushev, Adriano Miliani and Mirella Lampertico founded Jack and Joe Theatre some eight years back. Since then the company has toured all over Europe and brought its act to Pakistan for the WPAF 2008 in the form of Life Back.
As is the case with almost all cultures worldwide, clowns play a significant part in entertainment throughout Pakistan as well. They symbolise carefree carelessness, cheerfulness and happiness in these turbulent times and reach out to people of all ages, especially children.
No wonder then that Life Back had a significant amount of children in the audience on the opening day, and the skits based on the various aspects of life were brilliantly rendered by the performers. While it made the grown-ups in the audience contemplate about the deeper meaning hidden behind the seemingly silly antics, the younger ones in the audience took the same for its face value and were seen enjoying themselves no end.
Cie Filles En Tropiques — Fire, Earth, Water (France)
An enraptured audience embarked on a journey of discovery and self-exploration through the experiences of a puppet in Fire, Earth, Water.
Cie Filles En Tropiques demonstrated through the performance how we are getting increasingly entangled in the chaos and confusion of a self-created fantasy. And all it took to raise us to this level of self-awareness was an adventure-seeking puppet who explores nature`s wonderous elements of fire, earth, water and wind that are the very basis of life on this planet. As things come to pass, also revealed to him are the man-made realities and concrete structures that are fast replacing these natural wonders at an alarming pace and at a very dear cost — the environment.
Finally, after imparting the strong social message that “the nature of humans is the same everywhere, irrespective of race, religion or culture, for they all have hope and they all dream” the curtains closed on Life Back with the imposing thought that there is still time for salvation. Is anybody listening? — Faisal Quraishi