The aftermath of a natural calamity is many things — daunting, painful and depressing, but seldom inspiring. However, for celebrated playwright Mahesh Dattani, the 2001 Gujarat earthquake was an occurrence that spurred him into action to script the play Clearing The Rubble — a take on emotions, deception and other aspects of human nature. Commissioned by BBC Radio to commemorate the first anniver-sary of the disaster, the radio play has been brought to the Bengaluru stage by director Akshay Gandhi of Still Space. Originally written for radio, Akshay and his team have breathed new life into the piece by conceptualising the characters, set, costumes and lighting.
“What spoke to me most about the script was how insignificant we are. And there’s so much beauty in that insignificance. Also the language is so poetic. When I first read the script, I wanted to say those lines out loud,” says Akshay, adding, “The script also gave us the freedom to experiment, explore, research and implement. Today, theatre has become all about execution. But for me, it has to be a process, right from conception to execution. And this particular play was all that and more.”
Feeling small
The plot, while set in the after-math of the earthquake, barely deals with the natural disaster. Instead, it focuses on the subject of how humans are a miniscule part of the universe. “A disaster can be anything, from an earthquake to marital discord. Each person has his or her own definition of it,” Akshay explains. The storyline follows three characters — a journalist, a mother and a young boy, who cross paths at the site of the quake. “From Dattani’s radio play, we have used our imagination backed by months of research and exploration into the subject, to create our own world,” says Akshay of this experimental theatre piece, that will have on stage a puppe-teer, projections and other avant garde elements.
Their research was so in-depth that it led them to draw parallels with the works of sculptor Alberto Giacometti, known for the way in which his art was curiously devoid indicators of race, and to examine the 16 behaviours as proposed by Goffman’s study of human behaviour. “It’s quite a complex piece,
but is thoroughly enjoyable. Dattani has not just played with content but also with format,” reveals the director.
September 7 - 10. At Jagriti Theatre, Whitefield. Tickets (Rs.400) on bookmyshow.com