KOCHI: Khalil Gibran’s popular prose and poetry fable, The Prophet, has a spiritual and philosophical quality to it. Transforming such a text, which also deals with the mystery of life, into a theatrical experience is no easy task.
TNIE dissects the play and its underpinning messages that are as relevant today as when it was made
When artistic director Joy P P approached playwright Satheesh Nammu to see it made, the latter was hesitant to take on the project. “As per my reading of the book, it is a philosophical discourse and treads a spiritual path. When Joy approached me, I was reluctant to accept as the work lacked an emotional connection,” admits Satheesh.
To bring this much-needed component, he linked The Prophet with Majeed Sayed’s short story, Kunaar Nadhikarayilekku Oru Raathri Yaatra, and by weaving in a political nature to the adaptation. “Finally, the play had a structure,” says Satheesh.
The play, which was produced with the support of Sangeeta Nataka Akademi, was presented recently at Ala Centre for Culture and Alternative Education in Mulanthuruthy, Kochi, in view of World Theatre Day (March 27).
Gibran’s The Prophet, originally published in 1923, has struck a chord with a generation of readers. The book, which is made up of 26 prose poems, is delivered as sermons by the character called Al Mustafa.
Each one discusses life’s big questions — love, marriage, freedom, prayer, pleasure, beauty, religion, death and so on. These ponderings occur to the protagonist as he is about to sail home after 12 years of exile on an island.
While working on the play, Satheesh and Joy understood the prominence of the work and the need to reflect on these topics given the prevailing world order. “We are living in a dark age, a time when people are learning to hate each other. One needs to look at the current political scenario to know this to be true,” he says.
“The Prophet was written during a time when Lebanon was engulfed in war. Gibran’s work aimed to motivate people. Considering the times we are living in, an artist releasing a work that speaks to people at different stages of their lives would be like a ray of hope for many,” Satheesh adds.
Story
The play is told from the perspective of prophet Al Mustafa’s supporter, Almitra, and how she implements the wisdom mentioned by the former to overcome the challenges she encounters. The playwright used Majeed Sayed’s short story as the major setting of the play. This tale, set in the backdrop of the political unrest in Afghanistan, revolves around two teachers who embark on a journey across the desert and the enveloping war to see two students reunited with their families.
“For the play, we took the story to the sets of a war-torn Lebanon. Here, the school, run by Almitra, gets destroyed propelling the story to that of a journey she undertakes to see two injured students back to safety,” Satheesh says.
During the course of the journey, Almitra recollects the teachings of Al Mustafa. The play primarily focuses on concepts such as love, marriage, freedom, pain and children.
Writing and performance
Though the Malayalam version of Gibran’s The Prophet is available, Satheesh encapsulated the emotions of each verse in the book in his own way. “The dialogues of Al Mustafa were easy to adapt. However, the verses in the book are treated as songs, and the lyrics aren’t exactly verbatim. Working on those was a challenge,” says Satheesh, who penned the lyrics for Pain in the play. Lyricists Aadhil Madathil and Anandhakrishnan worked on the other portions.
The play also adds a contemporary style to the war setting by infusing a rap song. The cultural backdrop of Lebanon was highlighted using dance forms like Dabke. Even puppets were used to present certain narratives, delighting the audience. To further embellish the setting, projection 3D mapping highlighting the paintings of Gibran too was deployed.
In all this, the play’s makers were ensuring that their theatrical adaptation resonated well with all. “A play becomes a success when it can deliver what each viewer has in their mind. That was our aim, and we have done justice to it,” Satheesh adds. The team has plans to stage the play in various venues in the coming days.
