On the third day of the National Theatre Festival, an adaptation from a Shakespearean romantic comedy was staged at Antarang Hall, Bharat Bhavan.
On Sunday, the play, Kasumal Sapno, an adaptation of Mid Summer Night’s Dream was performed by Ujagar Dramatic Association, Jaipur and directed by Ajit Singh Palavat.
The play is a romantic comedy that portrays three interlocking plots. All the incidents and events happen only in one night. Further, it portrays the events surrounding the love stories inter connected and creating huge confusion. These include the adventures of four young lovers and a group of six amateur actors, who are controlled and manipulated by the fairies that inhabit the forest in which most of the play is set.
This play is a wonderful combination of romantic stories blended with comic incidents that also includes fantasy and fairy tales. It is a drama that showcases a world of dreams of four lovers and their confusions.
The play was like a feast for the theatre-goers. As the Shakespeare’s plays always demands a huge backdrop, sparkling costumes and correct body language. The artists managed to captivate the attention of the audiences and the lighting effect added more zeal in the performance.
While talking about the play, Ajit said, “I was never good in English, cut yet reading in English that too Shakespeare was my desire. I took “Midsummer’s in Hindi. After reading the translation of two renowned authors, I found, though the plot remains the same, the sense of conversation changes the environment, the local, and the play in the language that is close to me i.e. Rajasthani.
And what else could give more color to Shakespeare than Rajasthan. The musicality in the text itself helped tie to incorporate few per formative art forms juxtaposed with the extinct folk form of Rajasthan — Naqal to create an innovative performance style.” The audience enjoyed the show whole heartedly as the play was a unique presentation in itself.