An eight-day international theatre festival, organised by troupe BotTala, is going to kick off today evening amid much festivity and fanfare at Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy. It is going to be the first international theatre festival by BotTala where, besides noted local troupes, troupes from India and America will stage shows. Emeritus professor Serajul Islam Choudhury will inaugurate the show as chief guest, while seasoned theatre activists and leaders Ramendu Majumder, worldwide president of International Theatre Institute; noted thespians Ataur Rahman and Mamunur Rashid; Golam Kuddus, president of Sammalita Sanskritik Jote; Liaquat Ali Lucky, director general of BSA; thespians Lucky Enam and Sara Zaker and the playwrights and directors whose plays will hit the stage will be present as guests at the inauguration ceremony.
The festival will feature a total of 10 productions in over eight days. All of them will be staged at National Theatre Hall of BSA.
Apart from the host troupe BotTala, a host of top local troupes like Aranyak Natyadal, Prachyanat, Theatre, Theatre Art Unit, Nagarik Natya Sampraday and Theatrex will stage their recent productions. Thus, Dhaka’s audience will have an opportunity to witness the best productions of the year by local troupes.
Indian troupe Rangashram will stage a play and American theatre actor Kawalani Lee will present a performance on the concluding day of the festival.
To add more vibrancy to the festival, the organisers have arranged other performances like mime, performance art, music, street theatre and puppet show every afternoon, preceding the theatrical show, in front of National Theatre Hall.
Today the festival will begin with a dance performance by dance troupe Turangami, which will be followed by the host troupe’s presentation of The Trial of Mallam Ilya.
-With New Age input
