Theatre That Shocks And Provokes
Mumbai Theatre Guide
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Wednesday, 13 Mar 2024
Dear Reader,
Theatre That Shocks And ProvokesSometimes, an issue may require a shock-'em approach, but then the question also arises, how much is too much?
A report by Sian Cain in The Guardian, about "a theatremaker, who will be drugged unconscious on stage in Melbourne this year, in a controversial and highly lauded theatre work about sexual violence," could just be taking it too far.
The play, CADELA FORÇA TRILOGY: THE BRIDE AND THE GOODNIGHT CINDERELLA will have its Australian premiere at Rising Festival. It is directed by and stars Brazilian artist Carolina Bianchi, who recounts her experience of being drugged and sexually assaulted, before taking a drug on stage. According to the report, "Once unconscious, female performers then move her body around, even at one point inserting a speculum and camera into her vagina, with a live video feed shown to the audience in a simulation of a post-rape forensic examination."
The New York Times rightly wondered if this was ethical, calling it "deeply unnerving to experience this scene, knowing that the main protagonist will have little to no memory of it, even as it lives on in the heads of hundreds of audience members."
The co-director of Rising, Gideon Obarzanek is quoted as having called it "one of the most extraordinary shows I have seen in the last 10 years...It took me days to process what I had seen. What was so fascinating was the staunchness of Bianchi, about her position that she's reached over a long time through research on her own experience, but [also] about violence against women. The fact that she goes on this narrative journey with no physical agency – it is a very unusual thing."
The show has provoked extreme reactions in in Europe, and audiences are warned beforehand about what they will see. Bianchi reportedly travels with a doctor "who monitors her health and limits how often she performs the show."
A production like this, could, of course, never be staged in India, where several venues do not permit THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES, but that does not mean the concerns about rising violence against women cannot be expressed through the strong and effective medium of theatre.
"Perhaps, therefore, ideal stage managers not only need to be calm and meticulous professionals who know their craft, but masochists who feel pride in rising above impossible odds."
- Peter Hall
Aarambh's Rangmanch Ka Rang-Punch
HAI MERA DIL
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