Articulating From Within
At Inside Out, an ongoing theatre workshop at Our Sacred Space in Hyderabad, one won’t witness distribution of handouts or scripts which are meant to be learnt, rehearsed and showcased by the participants within a fixed timeframe to prove their mettle.
Instead, the facilitator gives them spot assignments like enacting a scene from your past which involves so-and-so emotion. One can put whatever elements they want to in their performances – attitude, acting, music, dance, painting, storytelling and anything which one feels connected to.
Devendranath Sankara-narayanan, the facilitator of Inside Out, a performance researcher and practitioner, prefers this method over assigning scenes from famous plays. “Let me put it this way, if you give me a script from one of the plays by Shakespeare or even Kalidasa, I won’t be able to connect with the character. And if I can’t identify myself with the character I am enacting, I can’t perform,” says Devendranath about his approach.
Everyone is an actor
This approach of Devendranath which appears to be similar to role play, is not quite the same. While in role play, one consciously assumes the role of an assigned character, the Inside Out programme promises to bring out the ‘unconscious version of yours.’
“Everyone is a performer, an actor in the real life. Theatre is just a little exaggerated version of what we do everyday – love, laugh, cry, get angry, worry, calm down, panic etc.,” says Devendranath. The way we tune our mind and bodies reflexive to our immediate societies over time is what we remain unconscious of.
“Having worked as a teacher for a long time, I can say that theatre is one way in which one can become conscious of this side of us,” says Devendranath.
One for everyone
Currently there are two modules under Inside Out – one for actors and the other for senior citizens.
The ‘Theatre for actors’ module is for people who are serious about acting. Participants work with body, movement, voice and mind using techniques from Kalari, Yoga and Japanese Budo. It is held on Saturdays and Sundays from 2:30 to 6:30 pm.
Geeta Durairajan, professor at EFLU, a participant from this module says, “I will call it an emoeting workshop. There is no spouting of memorised lines. It is therapeutic, meditative and most importantly it is fun to be here.”
The second module is for those who have crossed 50 and is held on weekdays, from Tuesday to Friday between 10 am and noon.
“I performed only for about 20 minutes, but had to show a range of emotions, including joy, happiness, a sense of liberation, resentment, and uncontrollable anger. I didn’t know that I could do all this till now. Something had been catalysed inside me. I felt calm and happy,” says one of the participants.
The first of these 20-hour workshops started on March 7 and concluded on March 23. The second one has started recently, but you can call the facilitator and join on any day.
Starting April 15, Devendranath is planning to conduct workshop for children focusing on the same concept.
For more information, you may contact 90300 13344 or visit Facebook.com/OurSacredSpace