BENGALURU: While people born and brought up in Bengaluru whine about changes taking place in the city, new city dwellers feel blamed. The cause to integrate the two is the need of the hour and Bengaluru’s 14-year old theatre group is set to do it.
Yours Truly Theatre has been performing spontaneous improvisational theatre acts, called playback theatre, since its inception in 2003. Witnessing the change and as a part of their new ‘show initiative’, the team members brainstormed the idea of working around history, mainly the history of the city to bind the old and new Bengalureans together.
“Recently a lot of conflicts have been taking place in the city between the locals and those who are adapting to the city. The gap has to be bridged with perspective shared from both sides,” says Nandini Rao, co-founder of Yours
Truly Theatre.
“From my mother’s side I am a pure Bengalurean and my father is from Madhya Pradesh, I understand both sides so I am always defending either sides. The cultural trauma is also to be blamed,” Nandini laughs.
So the group came up with the idea of narrating and enacting history from pictures. The picture is a medium through which history will be triggered.
How will this happen?
This weekend take your favourite childhood family picture shot at city’s historical sites. Put the picture on display and narrate the story behind it. The 10 impromptu actors on stage will perform your story.
“It can be a humorous one or the serious one depending on the tone of the story,” says Shivesh Ranjan, actor and co-manager of this event, which is titled ‘Lore to Luru’.
No discussions take place among the actors, the intuitive play is performed on “Yes and” concept, a rule-of-thumb in improvisation.
Idea from the Place
The place they were invited to perform lead to the idea of this concept. The group will be performing in a eight-months-old auditorium, called Prabhat Kalapoornima. The auditorium belongs to the Prabhat family, who runs the Prabhat Kalavidaru, a Bengaluru theatre group formed in 1930. Located in Basavangudi, one of the oldest settlement of the city, Nandi Rao, who also belongs to the Prabhat family, will be performing there for the first time.
Holic to Luru
“Lore To Luru” is being performed for the first time although the theatre group performs an average of 40 shows annually. In 2011, a similar theatre act called “Bangalore Holic” was performed that talked about pursuit of the old and new Bangaloreans and how each makes city their own.
The event will be held today at Prabhath Kalapoornima at 7.30 pm.