Theatre is all set to promote people-to-people contact and understanding of diverse cultures at the ninth Asia-Pacific Bureau Meet of Drama Schools that kicks off tomorrow at NSD. By Saritha Saraswathy Balan
The National School of Drama is positing the strong performance tradition of the Orient and showcasing its diverse expressions vis-a-vis Western theatre.
As host of the ninth edition of the Asia Pacific Bureau (APB) Meet of drama schools, it has participants from 14 institutions, including those from Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. The festival tomorrow will see representatives from 20 countries, including observers, faculty and students.
The rare dramatic confluence will examine contemporary performance culture in Asia, the elements of traditionalism, modernisation and other factors that have contributed to drama, in the form of content, form and style. What makes this edition of the Meet special is the active participation of students. “The student-teacher proportion is 6:1 from each drama school. The increased participation of students in this edition makes it different from the previous ones. We are here to teach drama and to bring the best out in the students,” said Prof Waman Kendre, director NSD. Asked why Pakistan does not figure in the Meet, he said that drama schools in Pakistan are not members of the APB.
So how would the language barrier be done away withIJ “There would be interpreters to translate,” said Tripurari Sharma, NSD professor. “Cross-culture mixing and matching themes, stories and performative concepts will enrich the art of theatre through this festival,” she added.
All participating schools will explore the nuances of different cultures in theatre performances as well as their technical aspects. “Theatre is all about adapting and becoming a new art,” Kendre said.
This edition also has an elaborating learning programme. It will consist of festival performances, directors’ meet, interactions and workshops. Each school will conduct a workshop for all the other participants to shed light on their school’s training methodologies through a series of exercises. There will also be a practical session, where studio space will be provided to each school to perform. The schools will have a 45-minute student presentation which will be held in the Flexible Performance Space at NSD.
NSD views the Meet as a platform to showcase the rich Indian performance heritage as well as its contemporary and traditional theatre to the world. The core idea is to showcase the diverse cultures of the Asia- Pacific region when juxtaposed with Western theatre, which needs to be explored and exchanged between theatre artistes, playwrights and viewers.
The Asia-Pacific Bureau of Theatre School was established in 2008 under UNESCO’s International Theatre Institute. Each year APB Meet is rotated among different member-schools from countries across the Asia Pacific region. It will conclude on October 25.