Bottala Rongomela 2014
Theatrex to stage Dakhina Sundori today
Theatre troupe Theatrex will stage its recent and highly acclaimed play Dakhina Sundori today at National Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy as part of the ongoing eight-day theatre festival BotTala Rongmela 2014.
Dakhina Sundori, which was prepared for staging at the TIN Forest Festival at Glasgow on July 24, is, as the troupe claims, ‘a pantheistic narrative of beautiful Bangla by focusing on the Sunderbans’.Written by Shahman Moishan and directed by Sudip Chakroborthy, the play is a masterpiece of its kind. It presents, thematically, the symbiotic relationship and mutual dependence of natural elements including men.
The playwright has exploited a number of resources to present the message he wants to get across. He has imaginatively explored the folk-myths, orally-transmitted stories, belief-systems of the inhabitants of Sunderbans to create a circle which makes the forest appear with a life of its own.
The most exploited myth in the play is the relationship between two mythical characters, Chandre and Bona, who in dramatic turns and twists, ramify to represent nature and animal.
In six imaginary divisions, the play shows how and why the relationship between Chandre and Bona is essential, and also how the modern state-corporate apparatuses are working to infringe that relationship.
The director, Sudip Chakroborthy, has used traditional narrative techniques, acting, songs, music and dance to present the play. Ten performers, along with the director, of Theatrex will perform in the play.
BotTala Rongomela will end tomorrow with two shows by foreign artistes and troupe. American actor-playwright Kaiulani Lee will present her monodrama Mother Jones at 11:30am at National Theatre Hall, while Indian troupe Rangashram will be the last troupe to stage its play Monidwipa at 7pm at the same venue to conclude the festival.
The ongoing festival is BotTala’s first international festival which marks the troupe’s sixth anniversary.
-With New Age input
