The story of a Japanese girl, her struggle with herself, her curiosity to know about new things is all about the play Totto Chan.
The play was splendidly performed by the artists of Vihaan Drama Works at Antarang Hall, Bharat Bhavan on Thursday, marking the sixth day of the theatre festival. The play was directed by Sourabh Anant.
The play is based on a Japanese novel ‘Medogiwa no Totto Chan’ written by Tetsuko Kuroyanagi. It was first published in year 1981 in Japanese language.
The novel is an autobiography of Tetsuko when she was a school girl. After it got published, it became the best seller in Japan. In this story Tetsuko has mentioned about her school Tomoe which is nothing but old train.
The play begins with Totto Chan’s mother coming to know of her daughter's expulsion from public school. Her mother realizes that what Totto Chan needs is a school where more freedom of expression is permitted. Thus, she takes Totto Chan to meet the headmaster of the new school, Mr. Kobayashi. From that moment a friendship is formed between master and pupil.
The play goes on to describe the times that Totto Chan has, the friends she makes, the lessons she learns, and the vibrant atmosphere that she imbibes. All of these are presented beautifully on stage through the eyes of a child.
It described Mr. Kobayashi as a man who understands children and strives to develop their qualities of mind; body and his concern for the physically handicapped and his emphasis on the equality of all children are remarkable.
The play ends on a sad note when their school Tomoe is destroyed in the bombing of World War II. But, Mr. Kobayashi tells children that he will built a better school.
The play was beautifully staged with vibrant lighting designs and intelligent direction.