It’s just the difference in lingo. In my time, in Sunday school they called it “skit.” Children were made to wear long robes to act out Biblical characters, roles and scenes in front of a reverential audience who sat through in pin drop silence. In School they called it “concert.” The cutest girl dressed as the princess in a flowing gown with rosy cheeks and golden wig; the best looking boy dressed as prince charming in slacks and jacket. Parents sat through those memorized monologues and dialogues with pride in their eyes.
As a gawky school kid in spectacles, I too tried my hand at writing and directing short plays from my literature books and Amar Chitra Katha comics. I’d make my friends act and call the seniors to watch; we’d receive a whole lot of applause, more than merited, making us imagine we could now take the world! As this euphoria spilled passively into college and later resurrected at university, my friends and I put up a post-modern satirical spoof on “Romeo & Juliet.” I was the Romeo and my friend was the Juliet in a mini skirt and cropped hair. We acted out a breakfast scene where, unlike the original script by Shakespeare, the couple was settled into marital domesticity and now engaged in petty squabbles, such as irritation expressed by Juliet over Romeo’s half cooked egg! I remember how my friend’s lecturer and her seniors looked bewildered and shocked, probably because they considered the play to be ridiculously meaningless. So then we both became the butt of fun and laughter for a whole week. We became famous no doubt, but we never got any offers for stage acting again!
It’s a relief to be over with my silly infatuation with skits, concerts and tearfully amateurish plays. And it’s only of late that I’ve been introduced to professional theatre Directors and serious performing artistes, starting with those from National School of Drama, Delhi to all kinds of regional performers. I realize that I’ll NEVER make a performer or a Director, but with all those precious (and hopefully un-wasted) experiences, I find myself eventually metamorphosed into a Theatre Critic – I guess once a theatre person, always a theatre person, in whatever form!!
Theatre as a package term as I see it, is professional performance on a stage in front of an audience that understands and appreciates art. It’s about bringing “real life” onto the stage, yet going a step ahead by dramatizing the happenings of everyday life for special and often exaggerated effects. Recently I went as a “judge” to Armoniosa, the Hunt for the Best Performing Arts Group at IMC, Dimapur. I had fun! Of the 5 schools and 1 children’s ministry that took part in the competition, Christian Higher Secondary School, Dimapur, emerged as the undisputed winner. It was a whole package accomplishment – acting, directing, stage setting, costume and make up, music, sound and light effects, all geared up to perfection. It’s easy to impress any Theatre Critic as long as those right notes are struck with adequate sophistication and finesse.
Armoniosa (Spanish word for “harmonious”) was organized by Asang Imchen, Coordinator of IMC and Robert Longkumer, founder Director of Kid’s Worship Centre, Dimapur. It was an inter school and inter ministry performing arts competition for children between the ages 8 to 15 years. The theme was a given - “The Sower” derived from Matthew 13:1-23 of the Bible. It was interesting to see a whole variety of approaches, right from the traditional textual approach to the contemporized approach, with weighty contextualized adaptations! There was a whole array of artistic effects, from the tightly controlled to the highly innovative and haphazardly creative. However, it was the winning school that made wise use of sound technology, with appropriate music choice. The Best Actor too emerged from this group. He played the role of the “Devil” – like John Milton’s “Satan” in his epic poem “Paradise Lost,” the character displayed a spectacular and grand dark aura around him. He also flaunted a great facial expression (a comic relief effect) and well orchestrated body language. The boy who played “Jesus” from the same group was very emotive, unlike some of the stoic and dead pan facial expressions and unanimated body language displayed in some of the other performers. Credit must be given to the winning group’s Script Writer and Creative Director too, along with the Makeup Artist, Costume Designer and Sets Designer who are all indispensible to a complete stage presentation.
The groups were judged on these criteria: originality, creativity, presentation, costume, stage setting and timing (15 mins for stage setting + complete performance). Cash prizes were awarded to the three winning groups and a trophy given to the Best Actor.
Children’s theatre is not only educative, but also confidence building, prompting them to develop poise and self belief essential for a healthy journey into adulthood. Besides developing art appreciation, they are exposed to a future career option in acting, directing and designing. Theatre for children must be encouraged if society is to move forward and to usher in more seriously the aesthetic and artistic evolution of humankind.
Written by: Susan Waten,
Holiday Abode for Writers & Artists, Dimapur.
