Set in colonial times in a fictitious Indian town, Piya Behrupiya is a colourful desi reboot of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. This kitschy stage production was originally commissioned by London’s Globe Theatre and finally makes its Middle Eastern debut in Dubai this weekend.
The play is a collaboration between Dubai’s Tall Tales Production and Dubai Community Theatre & Arts Centre.
“We were looking for an all-round production that would give Dubai something it had not experienced before,” says Asad Raza Khan, a co-founder of Tall Tales. “Piya Behrupiya is that perfect mix of music and theatrical elements, and caters to all ages and ethnicities. It is a play that is a true reflection of Dubai’s multicultural set-up.”
The two-hour production keeps the storyline of Shakespeare’s original comedy – about twins who are separated when their ship is wrecked. But the script is written in English, Hindi and Punjabi, blurring the lines between classical English and regional Indian theatre, while the musical score feature songs from rural India – Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Punjab. The sets and costumes evoke a feeling of colonial India in the early and mid-1900s in all its pomp and glory.
In 2012, the Globe Theatre commissioned Mumbai’s The Company Theatre to work on an Indian adaptation of a work by Shakespeare. The company chose Twelfth Night, and veteran theatre actor/director Atul Kumar was put in charge. The fact that it staged its 100th show in Chile a few weeks ago is a testament to how popular Piya Behrupiya is with audiences all over the world.
Original article by Ujala Ali Khan
Continue reading at The National:
Desi adaptation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night comes to Dubai
Comments
Facebook
Twitter
Contact
Elan.tv
Comments