The fifth edition of the annual national solo theatre festival, aptly titled Ekaa, will kick off at the Bhanja Kala Mandap auditorium here on Saturday hosted by the city-based Mirror theatre group in association with the famed Utkal Rangamanch Trust of eminent theatre personality Anant Mahapatra.
The four-day festival will feature eight mono-acting plays by theatre groups from Kolkata, New Delhi and Odisha. Each evening will witness two productions commencing at 6.45 pm. The inaugural evening will showcase Chadhei (bird), a play based on an Odia short story penned by Paramita Satapathy. The script has been adapted for the stage by Anant Mahapatra, who has also directed the play while Dharitri Khanduala will be the actor.
Pabitra Papa (The Sacred Sin), the other presentation of the evening, is a short story by Ajay Mohapatra that has been adapted for stage by Prasant Mohapatra, who has been the director and the actor of the play as well.
The two productions, slated for the second evening of the festival on Sunday, are Darpanare (in the mirror) and Priya Vidushaka (the beloved joker). Darpanare has been scripted by noted playwright, director and light designer Simanta Mohanty while Siba Sankar Tripathy, the brain behind the solo theatre festival, essays the dual role of director and actor. Priya Vidushaka, the next play, is based on a story by eminent writer Jagannath Prasad Das which will be staged by Subhransu Parida in the triple role as the actor-director-playwright.
The third evening will have legendary Russian writer Anton Chekov’s Vidushaka adapted for stage by New Delhi-based theatre director Sukumar Tudu, who is also its director and actor. Similarly, Nisanga Nayaka (The lonely Hero) by playwright Rabindranath Das will be staged by director-actor Jyoti Panda during the evening.
Curtains will come down on the festival on Tuesday next with the play Chenae Hasa (A Slice of Smile) followed by Badada (Elder Brother). Adapted for the stage by Antaryami Sargharia, the first play is based on a short story by Chandra Sekhar Dasburma. It has been directed by Kailash Mohapatra while Nirod Parida essays the character. Badada, to be staged by its Kolkata-based actor-director-playwright Goutam Haldar, is a stage adaptation by Haldar from legendary writer Premchand’s literary classic.
The festival seeks to explore the challenges associated with arresting the audience attention through the rare solo acting genre, explained host Mirror theatre group foundder Siba Sankar Tripathy.