Bombay Theatre Company's upcoming play Ride Home airs on July 18

Take a 'Ride Home’ with Bombay Theatre Company’s latest online production
Cast of Ride Home
Cast of Ride Home

Bombay Theatre Company’s latest production, Ride Home, is known to be one of their best plays in terms of execution. Director Raveesh Jaiswal has tried to make the road journey as close to reality in this play (that’s written by Julianne Jigour, an LA-based playwright) that features US-based actors Julio Hanson and Anthony Rutowicz. “This will be one of our best plays when it comes to execution. We have tried to make this play very real and I am sure the audience will be visually quite intrigued with the performances. We will actually show a road journey in the play,” assures Mumbai-based Raveesh who has pioneered virtual theatre in India amidst the pandemic. To date, his theatre company has staged over 25 theatre productions virtually in India as well as abroad. Raveesh talks in detail about his third international collaboration which will be staged in Los Angeles and will be screened live on Bombay Theatre Company’s Instagram page. Excerpts.

What kind of production changes were mandated given that it’s for a digital platform?

In our Instagram plays the core production team actually consists of the actors themselves who manage the entire live show. The actors are in tune with the entire execution process including the nitty-gritty.

Tell us about the play and its characters?

The play is about two friends — Fred and Billy whose friendship is tested when Billy reluctantly picks up Fred for a ride back home in the middle of the night. Their friendship is tested when Billy’s resentment collides with Fred’s deepest fears. It’s a very well-written play and has a wide scope for any actor or director to decipher the story in-depth to curate a fine and intriguing performance. In some way, it might fall under the category of an abstract play. Julianne and I had deep conversations with Julio Hanson and Anthony Rutowicz and we kept adding layers to the performances.

You have already staged 25 productions virtually. How are the audience, theatre directors and actors warming up to the new medium?

The actors have loved the live medium, primarily because they are able to present themselves to the audience in real-time akin to the stage. The audiences are still getting used to this medium.

What’s next?

We have been working on our first physical play, The 6 pm Struggler, since 2020 and unfortunately because of the lockdowns we haven’t been able to stage it. Hopefully, if things get better, we will stage it soon in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru.

The play will be staged on 18 July 2021, 10 am. On Bombay Theatre Company’s Instagram page

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