New approach to theatre left the audience in fits of laughter | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

New approach to theatre left the audience in fits of laughter

By Rafay Mahmood

Karachi: The press show of the play Gadha Kaun and an improv performance by Aisa Karoge to Kaun Aaye Ga troupe left the audience in fits of laughter.

Though the show, held under the banner of SpotOn Productions at the PACC auditorium, on Monday, started an hour late of the scheduled time, the powerful performances by the actors overshadowed all the management issues.

The first show to go on stage was Gadha Kaun. Directed by Misam Naqvi, the play is an adaptation of Egyptian playwright Tawfiq el-Hakim’s 1938 play ‘Al-Hamir’.

It is a story about two unemployed young men who convince a delightfully naive farmer that the donkey the farmer has just bought has turned into a human being.

Saqib Sumeer, who plays one of the two young men, with his comic wit and expression, convinces Nazr-ul-Hassan, the naive farmer, that he (Sumeer) is his donkey who has become a man. He then vies with Uzma Khan, the farmer’s wife to have control over the farmer’s mind.

The first thing to be noted about the play was the minimalistic work on the set design, which only had a few wooden blocks and a tree in the corner, but the characters were so strong that they pulled the total attention of the audience towards themselves.

Saqib Sumeer was the pick of the actors as he never let the dramatic irony of the play break. His interchanging of the character between a donkey and a man was remarkable. The incorporation of him being the donkey was the hook in the play as that was the only reason that convinced the farmer that a man could actually be a donkey.

His sudden changes in the voice pattern and his athletic moves added more humor in the play. Moreover, another thing to really look forward to was the fact that there was a real donkey on stage for quiet some time and Saqib Sumeer untied the knot of the donkey twice during the play while still remaining in the character. For this brave step the director needs to be commended as the donkey was so peaceful and stable on the stage that it seemed as if he was also an actor.

Uzma Khan’s also performed brilliantly, who proved herself as a brilliant actress by being agile and varying her speech patterns so comfortably that she might be the next typical Aunty in NAPA plays, a role which was earlier reserved for Bakhtawar Mazhar. Nazar ul Hassan and Zain ul Abideen in the supporting cast also did justice with their characters.

The play was a political satire with a lot of local references and the best part of it was that it was short and engaging and ended just when it should have.
Source: The News
Date:2/25/2010