Five classic short plays came alive on stage last Friday at JT Pac. Explaining the title, ‘Classic Milds’ , producer Akarsh Khurana of Akvarious Productions says, “Normally classics are assumed to be heavy and boring. We chose classics that could be served in an entertaining way and would be enjoyable by everyone,” he says.
True enough, every play had its moments and entertained the audience. The first play was Alfred Sutro’s ‘The Open Door’, about a man struggling between his feelings for his friends’s wife on the one hand, and his inability to betray his pal on the other. The play is just one scene in a study room where the two characters are battling with their feelings. The performances, especially from the male lead here is slightly affected and the dialogues do seem to pose a challenge, making the drama somewhat underwhelming.
The second play, Tom Stoppard’s ‘A Separate Piece’ is splendidly entertaining and very well-performed. The play presents an unusual situation where a man called John Brown coolly decides to seek a room in a private hospital where he can live. This despite the fact that he has no illness. The hospital staff is confused about his situation and end up giving him a room since he is willing to pay. But as the days pass, his situation seems very unsettling to everyone around. John likes the routine, comfort and privacy of the hospital and shows no signs of leaving.The play raises many subtle philosophical questions and is very entertainingly played out.
Lucille Fletcher’s suspense thriller-’Sorry Wrong Number’, originally a radio play, is again compelling drama. The play is set in the dimply lit bedroom of an affluent neighbourhood. At the centre is a bed ridden lady desperately trying to reach out to her husband through a telephone operator. A cross connection occurs and the lady finds herself listening to a conversation between two men who are planning on a murder. She is horrified, as their proposed victim has an uncanny similarity to her. Panic-stricken, she calls up the police who deal with the matter with characteristic indifference. Will her fears come true after all? The play boasted of a wonderful performance from the central character, and stayed engaging till the end.
‘The Still Alarm’ by George S Kaufman, a one act comedy about two men who cooly go about their work even as the hotel they are staying at catches fire, evoked plenty of laughs from the audience.
Last was Neil Simon’s comedy, ‘A Defenseless Creature’, about a woman who barges into a bank and aggressively and untiringly argues with the gout-stricken manager for the money her husband has lost. She pleads, she cries, she swoons...and won’t give up.
Normally one challenge that Indian actors face while performing an English classic is to pull it off with plausibility. Akarsh Khurana believes that as long as actors are not intimidated by the language and play their characters with conviction, the boundaries of nationality can very easily be crossed.