Spectator arts, mainly theatre, have been decimated by the pandemic. With uncertainty over when they can resume staging plays, leading thespians in Kannada theatre are mulling over how the stage may have to reinvent itself to adapt to a new normal.
Samudaya, a reputed theatre group in Karnataka, has been hosting a series of video talks, ‘Samudaya Ranga Chintana’, by directors, actors and playwrights on the way ahead.
Theatre person Prasanna, who was one of the leading lights of the Samudaya theatre movement, delivered the inaugural talk. He said “social distancing” was inimical to theatre which brought people together. “Though we are forced to practise distancing due to COVID-19, social distancing is in itself a disease that has ruined our society. Theatre has the potential to bring society together again,” he said. “None of us should stop theatre. If we are unable to begin staging plays again in the near future, we need to reinvent ourselves. Maybe, we can begin by staging plays at homes with a handful of spectators...,” he said.
Meanwhile, under lockdown, theatre groups have taken to streaming plays online. Rangashankara, the leading theatre in the city, hosted a series of soliloquies by noted actors on their social media handles and is even hosting their annual ‘Mango Party’ online on June 14, Sunday.
Prof. Purushottam Bilimale, Kannada Language Chair, Jawaharlal Nehru University, said theatre practitioners need to reinvent theatre to reflect the uncertainty that migrants face and bring to the stage the unseen vagaries of life in the country today.
The series is aimed at helping the community reflect on the challenges ahead, said J.C. Shashidhar, of Samudaya, which is hosting the talks on YouTube.
