One week on from our arrival… and the play to be cast tomorrow. Refugee Week seems a lifetime away, but an awful lot has happened in a very brief time. But today was my last chance to assess the students, and happily an unfortunate clash with a production of Dr Faustus, being put on by the one Drama club in all of the campuses, was moved in order to allow both the Aesop students in it to attend my rehearsal as well as perform, and to allow me the opportunity to see it.
For my rehearsal in the morning, I decided to do away with the scripts, and get the students to improvise a scene around their chosen characters. They have been reading extracts to me for the past three days, and though that has not been without its value, in the end it has not allowed them the opportunity to act, only read. It proved to be most valuable, for at least three more major roles have been pretty much confirmed in my mind.
In the afternoon was the production of Faustus at Gomtinagar 1, another of the campuses, so arranged to be driven back (after a nap – it would not have done to nod off, and both of us were feeling rather sleepy. What was of particular interest to me was that several of my cast were also involved in this production; I am desperate for any opportunity to see more of them (though my biggest concern remains that I will not be able to manage all their names, and will leave someone out.)
The production itself was commendable, all the more so when I found out that it had been rehearsed over just one week, which was an extraordinary achievement. In some ways, it was traditional, with use of the curtain to mark the scene changes. I suppose my own biggest concern with it was the use of mikes. Almost inevitably, it made for a patchwork of differing volumes, with only some actors using headsets, while others carried a hand-held mike, while some did without altogether. It confirmed my opinion that a major part of my being here is to demonstrate that theatre can, maybe should, be able to do without such technological aids, and all the more so when they were also being used in a multitude of ways.
The event was also the final production of Dr Manchu Anand, the lady who has been responsible for the Drama club, as she is shortly to retire. This meant that, inevitably, there were various farewell videos, speeches, photos, etc. Which was all very emotional, especially for Dr Anand. I was, as expected, asked to contribute some words, and managed some not particularly coherent comments.
But most importantly, I was able to fill in more roles – I really do think I am almost there. As I have to be.
