As all roads led to the Tricolour-illuminated Charminar on Thursday, with the country celebrating the 100 crore Covid-19 jabs milestone, Telangana’s flagship theatre festival kick-started at the nearby historic courtyard of the Moazzam Jahi Market. MAUD Minister KT Rama Rao declared the Qadir Ali Baig Theatre Festival open along with actor-singer-theatre artiste Ila Arun.
“It is high time for all of us to come out and start looking at more events. The city is so alive in its art, culture and social infrastructure,” said KTR as he thanked festival director Mohammad Ali Baig for putting the venue to good use. The cream of Hyderabad witnessed the beginning of theatre being integrated into the city’s history, with the internationally-acclaimed English play, ‘Guards at the Taj’. Here’s a list of events and workshops planned as part of the three-day fest
Checkmate
When: Saturday, 8 pm
Where: Radisson Blu Plaza, Banjara Hills
Written by Ganesh Patro and directed by Dr Kotla Hanumantha Rao, this Telugu play is by Dakshinathya Arts Academy. A close relative of the couple makes them pawns and starts playing a game with their lives for survival. The counter moves played by the smart couple with forethought finally leads to a ‘Checkmate’
Out At Sea
When: Saturday, 6.30 pm
Where: Radisson Blu Plaza, Banjara Hills
Written by Slawomir Mrozek and directed by Heeba Shah, this one’s by Alchemy. Three ship-wrecked women left on a raft have run out of food and drink supplies. They have to decide how to survive. The play is a hilarious take on society and the bullies, victims and diplomats who make up the world
Bombay Jazz
When: Sunday, 7.30 pm
Where: Radisson Blu Plaza, Banjara Hills
A semi-autobiographical musical play about Goan and Anglo-Indian musicians who brought jazz influences into Hindi film music between the 1950s and 1970s
Master Classes & Workshop
Sunday, the final day of the theatre fest, will have two workshops. The first at 11 am will be by Ramu Ramanathan on play writing, while the second at 2 pm by festival director Mohammad Ali Baig will be on heritage theatre