BANGALORE: The much acclaimed play, Boy with a Suitcase will come back for an India tour this month. The play will be staged at Ranga Shankara between April 17 and 21. The play is a co-production between Ranga Shankara and Schnawwl Theater Mannheim, under the Wanderlust project of the German government. It opened to a rousing welcome in Germany and India in ‘11 and is now on a tour of India within the framework of Germany and India 2011 - 2012: Infinite Opportunities. It is written by Mike Kenny and directed by Andrea Gronemeyer.
More than just a play, Boy With a Suitcase marks a cultural collaboration where Ranga Shankara Bangalore and Schnawwl Theatre Manneheim, both theatres with programmes for children, came together on a mutually enriching theatrical journey. A three year partnership where the cast and crew on both sides worked together both officially and unofficially, in an effort to embrace and understand the culture of the other.
Boy With a Suitcase follows the tradition of legendary tales of adventure and travel. The more obstacles in your path the merrier the adventure! Except that here the adventurer is a young 12 year old, on whom the adventure is thrust thanks to the circumstances of his life. Moving and funny in turns, it tells the story of a boy on the run in search of that elusive land where all problems end. The play is as much a tale about displacement and war, as it is about the search for Treasure Island, except that when he finally finds it it’s not quite what he bargained for. Though Boy With a Suitcase has been designed and created for the young, it is essentially a play that is intended for people of all ages. It is as much for parents and educators as it is for children. Andrea Gronemeyer is one of Europe’s best known theatre directors working specifically with children’s theatre and with this play she strikes a perfect balance between Eastern and Western aesthetics and drama
Tickets are available at the Ranga Shankara Box Office, indianstage.in and bookmyshow.com.