In her 2017 book How I Became a Tree, author Sumana Roy revisits the human-nature relationship. “It was impossible to rush plants, to tell a tree to ‘hurry up’...,” Roy writes, as she explores the idea of transforming herself into a plant. Inspired by Roy’s thought, city-based theatre practitioners Jyoti Rana (25) and Akshay Raheja (25) have designed a theatre exhibition with students of The Kutumb Foundation—a city-based NGO that is aimed to promote the overall development of an individual through theatre and football. Their first public performance of the play Floral Synthesis took place at the Foundation in Noida on Sunday evening.
The quest for knowledge
For Rana and Raheja, the journey of Floral Synthesis started with the questions of how or why would children find environmental sciences interesting? “Mostly these subjects are overlooked because it is considered that we know these things already. Floral Synthesis gives us an option to personalise similar ideas,” shares Raheja, founder of a city-based theatre group ‘Mrit Pathshala’. While the play does not necessarily communicate the message of saving trees, it pushes the viewer to contemplate the idea. “It is not about why trees are important, it is about the qualities of trees that I see in myself or feel around me, or the things that we overlook,” adds Rana, who works as the head of the theatre troupe with The Kutumb Foundation.
An immersive performance
Divided into six vignettes, this play attempts to create an immersive experience for the audience—by the end of the show, the viewer becomes a participant and not just an onlooker. “Children take people from one point in the studio to another, and each space is designed according to the vignettes—sight, shadows, breath, mobility, and more,” shares Raheja, who has been working on this play since early this year.
Join, view, participate
Theatre is considered an important part of education and it is believed to help develop important life skills. There are a number of key takeaways that the participants will gain from Floral Synthesis. “I would not say that we stepped into [making] this play with that intent but I would definitely add that experiencing this piece of work will help one look at trees differently,” concludes Rana.