To quite simply forget your lines when on stage is a nightmare that most actors would have had at some point or another.
American playwright Christopher Durang’s quirky brand of humour ripples through just one such situation in his popular play An Actor’s Nightmare, which a local theatre troop, Version One Dot Oh! (VODO for short), has pieced together with sketches from BBC TV’s comedy series, Monty Python Flying Circus to produce a 70-minute play, which they call When the Pythons Followed the Actor.
VODO has staged this play before and received applause says Vikram Rai, head of productions and actor. Recounting VODO’s journey so far, Rai says: “It began whensome friends with keen interest in dramatics came together to start an informal theatre group in 2004.” And that has now metamorphosed into an integral part of Bangalore’s theatre scene with 10 productions and 60 shows to take credit for.
Krishna, the play’s director decided to combine Durang’s quasi-absurd playlet with sketches from Monty Python. Rai says, “An Actor’s Nightmare is a one act play, a little short we thought. To extend it to a full length play Krishna decided to insert sketches from Monty Python.”
So how popular is Monty Python here? Will the audience connect with it at all? Rai admits that it’s not very popular, except with those conversant with BBC productions. “But the audience doesn’t have to be familiar with Monty Python to appreciate the play,” he says, adding, “We’ve staged it before and it has clicked.” Won’t a combination of the two be disconcerting to the audience? It’s a farcical blend of the two, which doesn’t necessarily need a logical connection, Rai says, “This play is just a mindless comedy.”
But theatre in the city has largely been an elitist commodity. And comedy doesn’t really enjoy a high status in that circle which appreciates serious drama. So will a rib-tickling comedy draw in a crowd?
“That’s a trend which is soon breaking with groups like ours coming in,” says Rai. “We want theatre to become a mainstream entertainment option, rather than elitist. IT professionals and college students make up a chunk of our audience, and gradually with a change in audience, the choice has changed, too. The first question that a majority ask us when they call to book a ticket is: Is it a comedy? So that ascertains that comedy is becoming the popular choice.”
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