A couple enter the third decade of marriage even as their eldest daughter finds herself trapped in a failing one. The son doesn’t want to be hitched, while the youngest daughter is enthusiastic about her upcoming arranged marriage. On the stage of Kausi Theatre this is a microcosm of marriages in contemporary Nepal, acted out in a two-hour play.&nbsp; Bidushi (Ranjana Bhattarai), the youngest daughter of Rukmani (Loonibha Tuladhar) and Krishna Koirala (Aashant Sharma), is getting married to a man based in the US, a person she has never seen before.&nbsp; The family has come together for the wedding, with Hema (Kenipa Singh Pahari) making the trip from Australia to be part of the celebration. Her husband, still in Australia, is not in touch with her.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230927070944_976c38a2cdcdb1e91bc42c946991002f583d9943678fb287d4e11fe4c4a5529f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20230927070944_976c38a2cdcdb1e91bc42c946991002f583d9943678fb287d4e11fe4c4a5529f" data-rendition-name="original" width="960" height="640" loading="lazy" alt="Wedding Album"> </figure>  Amid wedding preparations, their sibling Rohit (Sudam Ck) tries to reconcile his own relationship with his girlfriend to the other marriage proposals coming his way. Meanwhile, Rukmani and Krishna’s own 30-year marriage is tainted by Krishna’s past abuse of his wife.&nbsp; There is added tension in the home because of the strained relationship between Rukmani and Kusum Didi, the Koiralas’ housekeeper. &nbsp; Wedding Album is directed by Katha Ghera co-founder Akanchha Karki, who also adapted the play into Nepali from Indian actor and dramatist Girish Karnad’s 2011 play originally written in Kannada, which Karnad translated into English himself.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230927070916_c512eec6955be86eed0064de5a3cfd944f0ce20a2fc12804421610eb9f2555fc.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20230927070916_c512eec6955be86eed0064de5a3cfd944f0ce20a2fc12804421610eb9f2555fc" data-rendition-name="original" width="960" height="959" loading="lazy" alt="Akanchha Karki NT"> <figcaption>Director Akanchha Karki. Photo: AKANCHHA KARKI/FACEBOOK</figcaption> </figure>  Against the backdrop of the various conjugal conflicts, director Karki gets the cast to tackle issues including mental health, misogyny, domestic abuse, sexual violence, self-worth, and the female psyche. As individual stories and hidden truths of each of the family members unfold, Karki weaves these issues through their interaction with each other—showing how each personality constantly contradict itself. &nbsp; For instance, Bidushi is headstrong, outspoken, progressive, sexually liberated. She confronts men who sexually assault her in a cafe. Yet she is ready to be married off to someone she has never met. She is unable to understand why her sister is in an unhappy marriage.&nbsp; Hema lives with her family in Australia but is not more tolerant. She still disapproves of her brother’s Christian girlfriend. She is aware, but silent about her father’s abuse of her mother. Even as she tells her sister that it is okay to leave the relationship if she is not happy with her soon-to-be partner, she struggles to comprehend that she could leave her own crumbling marriage.&nbsp; Middle child Rohit plays the ideal, responsible, long-suffering son fending off unwanted marriage proposals. But his personality is transformed once out of the home. He also agrees that his sister Bidushi should leave her husband if the relationship breaks down, but mistreats his own girlfriend.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230927070944_f35d97f6b552b5698ee333662acce965465e704fb9d1d7463b4ef91dbea739bf.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20230927070944_f35d97f6b552b5698ee333662acce965465e704fb9d1d7463b4ef91dbea739bf" data-rendition-name="original" width="960" height="640" loading="lazy" alt="Wedding Album"> </figure>  The Koiralas are educated and ‘liberal’, but still willing to marry off their daughter to someone they have not met before. They are not impervious to the inherent wastefulness and spectacle of extravagant South Asian weddings meant to show off wealth, rather than a contained celebration of love. The strength of the play lies in its cast. LoonibhaTuladhar and Ashanta Sharma are brilliant as Rukmani and Krishna, while Kenipa Singh, Sudam Ck, and RanjanaBhattarai hold their own as the three siblings. The supporting cast is solid, if a bit melodramtic at times.&nbsp; The clever staging and set design enhance the production. Director Karki does not employ unnecessary movement just for the sake of covering the entire stage. A particularly poignant scene sees Rukmani and Krishna at opposite ends of the stage, their anger palpable. Meanwhile, props and music have been used sparingly. As the end of the play approaches, there are a lot of loose ends in the stories of the siblings and parents. Perhaps as in life itself.&nbsp; Wedding Album will play at Kausi Theatre in Teku until 14 October.

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Marriage drama

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1c849c7e80680e0af364jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1366"/><figcaption>All photos: MONIKA DEUPALA</figcaption></figure>The Great Animal Revolt begins at Teku’s Kausi Theater with a pig’s rousing speech calling for revolution against a human oppressor.As Old Major the pig (played by Aayush Niroula) delivers his call to arms, other animals in the farm snort, neigh, bleat and cluck in righteous rage and indignation — the farm’s human owner has oppressed them for long enough, and they will tolerate it no more.As the farm animals unite, driving out their stumbling drunk of a human owner. The pigs (Kepoleon, SB, and Chaaplus are the Nepali versions of Napoleon, Snowball and Squealer) take charge, promising the other animals a ‘Prosperous Farm, Happy Animals’. The line seems to be straight out of the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/oli-vs-dahal-1-upmanship/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepal Communist Party</a>’s 2018 slogan of ‘stability and prosperity’.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1c879c7e80680e0af365jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1380"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1c8a9c7e80680e0af366jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1366"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1c8e9c7e80680e0af367jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1366">Theatre collective Katha Ghera’s <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/finding-george-orwell-in-burma-emma-larkin,1432" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Animal Farm</a> is directed by its co-founder Akanchha Karki, who also adapted the play in Nepali from Prashant Kumar Nair’s English dramatisation of Orwell’s 1945 classic.Karki has made the play relevant to the current Nepali milieu in 2021, infusing the original source with relevant commentary on the country’s socio-political climate.“I was privileged having been raised in Kathmandu. As I grew up, I became aware of the society around me, and I felt the wrath of injustice, which I channeled into this play,” says Karki. “Rage is an important feeling.”Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/oli-vs-dahal-1-upmanship/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The price of a kiss</a>, Ashish DhakalWhat is most striking about the play is Karki’s deviation from Orwell’s original source material to include female voices and experiences in the play. Snowball, for example, as SB is female, and played by Ojaswi Bhattarai. She is the idealistic pig eventually cast out from the farm by Kepoleon when her ideas begin to threaten him.And the sheep, played by Sebita Adhikari, are not stereotyped as just followers,  she is in fact the only character throughout the play who has the gumption to leadership, fully knowing the repercussions of her actions.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1c919c7e80680e0af368jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1366"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1c959c7e80680e0af369jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1366"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1c989c7e80680e0af36ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1366">“It is definitely a criticism of the original work,” says Karki, speaking about her choice to characterise some original characters as female. “I have often felt that women are driven away, suppressed, gas-lit and considered a threat — much like like SB was in the play — when trying to lead, or have an opinion because their ideas are brighter and bigger than others in the room. The characters are a reflection of those shared experiences.”The same goes for Mala the mare who is more than the self-indulgent, vain Mollie from <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/ministry-of-alternative-facts-1984,3662" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Orwell’s original</a>. She is, ultimately, the only character that has agency in the play: leaving the farm of her own free will after directly addressing the audience. This is a critique also of Orwell’s shortcomings in his characterisation of her as a weak-willed female.The play is also infused with moments of hilarity, largely through Rishikesh Basyal’s enthusiastic performance as Kepoleon’s mouthpiece Chaaplus. Basyal’s delivery of the now-familiar line “Sneeze a few times, drink some turmeric water, and drive the virus away” when the animals panic about <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/do-nepalis-need-covid-booster-shots/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">an epidemic</a> sweeping through neighbouring farms is relevant and inspired.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1c9b9c7e80680e0af36bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="2048" height="1366"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Ingi Hopo Koinch Sunuwar and Ojaswi Bhattarai are memorable as the power-hungry Kepoleon and idealistic SB respectively, and Roshani Syangbo, Prayash Bantawa Rai, Binita Lama Gurung, and Sebita Adhikari turn in earnest performances as the three horses (Bhakta, Malati, and Mala) and the sheep respectively.“Why is it so difficult to remember why we began, and how we ended up here?” asks Malati the mare towards the end. By this time, the animals have fully realised what the play has been moving towards all along — that all animals are equal, but some are indeed more equal than others.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/review/all-the-world-is-a-stage-in-kathmandu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">All the world is a stage in Kathmandu</a>, Sewa Bhattarai“The play is a reflection of the fact that in each of us there could be a power-hungry pig, or a blindly follower horse, or a donkey who knows something is wrong but refuses to speak up about it,” says Karki. “Sometimes it is due to convenience, sometimes it is fear, sometimes it is indifference.”The director adds, “I hope the play can contribute in some way to how we as a society can be more empathetic and compassionate towards the world around us.”Animal Farm will play at Kausi Theatre in Teku until 18 December 2021.

Shristi Karki

‘Prosperous Farm, (Un)happy Animals’

<figure><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111016118/636d14949c7e80680e0a9984jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>All photos: Bijay Tamrakar/One World Theatre</figcaption></figure>Sara and Callie are taking a walk late at night through the West Village. They have just been out at a bar and the night is young. Against the colourful high-rise of bricks and windows projected onto plywood screens, they give into the whirlwind of emotions long overdue and they kiss.Enter an angry bystander (this is New York, after all) and what could have been the best night of their lives turns into an ugly nightmare. He attacks the two lovers violently, and Sara suffers injuries that sends her into coma.This is where American playwright Diana Son’s Stop Kiss begins (we don't exactly know when the attack has happened: is it before the start of the play or after the first scene?), and it is being staged 23 years later at Shilpee Theatre in Battisputali. Directed by <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=438#.YaSLftBByUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Loonibha Tuladhar</a> and presented by One World Theatre (OWT) with support from the US Embassy, the revival is an English-language adaptation.This is perhaps the first play staged in Nepal in recent times, and one of the first to focus on queer women. The premier on 25 November coincided with the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stop_Kiss" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the play</a> will run till 4 December to overlap with  16 days of activism. <img width="2120" height="1192" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111016118/636d14979c7e80680e0a9985jpeg.jpg" alt="">Mitini Nepal estimates that 38% of lesbians and 62% of transgenders in Nepal continue to face violence in Nepal. Recently, countries like South Korea and Japan have used the Covid-19 pandemic as a ruse to discriminate against <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16160#.YaSMndBByUk" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the LGBTQ+ community</a>. The situation in Nepal is not any better. Discrimination aside, people who belong to the LGBTQ+ spectrum have few safe spaces to open up, and feel comfortable in their own skin.But, surely, for many young progressives today, the play might appear demure or too gentle. “There isn’t enough sex,” one might say. Or “Why are there no mobile phones, so much of the trouble could have been avoided with a mobile phone!” After all, in the two decades since the play was first produced, much has changed in the world.But a lot remains the same. Stop Kiss is not merely a lesbian play from the 1990s North America. It is also a reminder that despite vicious attacks and protests the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Night-and-%20Day,3145" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">LGBTQ+</a> movement around the world today has reached a point where its members can consider getting married, holding hands and expressing themselves. <img width="2120" height="1192" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111016118/636d149b9c7e80680e0a9986jpeg.jpg" alt="">And it is even more important in a country like Nepal where progress is incremental, and the reminder is encouragement to fight for one’s right to love without judgement and violence. Tuladhar and Kavita Srinivasan’s co-direction and the cast of Stop Kiss do not shy away from this scope and significance of their stage production.Tuladhar admits she was nervous at first, unsure whether she was right for the role. “But violence against women and the queer community in our society takes many forms, and often it is quiet and we don't even realise that we are being violent,” she says. “The play felt important and necessary because through it people can reflect and make their voices heard.”The show's co-director, Kavita Srinivasan echoes this. “Even now many women and queer people are not comfortable going out alone, especially at night,” she says. “But why should we have to fear to exist in our own society?” <figure><img width="2048" height="1368" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111016118/636d149e9c7e80680e0a9987jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Ranjana Bhattarai and Samapika Gautam shine as Callie and Sara, their chemistry natural and profound. Bhattarai plays Callie’s New York ‘up in the air’ traffic news reporter like a dancer who listens to the music rather than only memorise the steps. Gautam is the perfect counterpart, as grounded and methodical as Sara, a third-grade teacher.The two women are riotous together – they dance, laugh and yell, their hands make wide gestures as they try to wordlessly communicate the stirrings in their hearts, perhaps felt by both for the first time. There is also tension between them, as they do not know the right thing to say or to do.But Bhattarai and Gautam convince us that in their apparent differences is touching resonance. Both intense and hilarious, they carry the entire emotional weight of the play in their performances, going from unsure awkwardness of new acquaintances to wild, gushing nervousness of first-time lovers. <img width="2120" height="1192" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111016118/636d14a19c7e80680e0a9988jpeg.jpg" alt="">The supporting cast is also impressive. Gaurav Bista is perfect as the agonisingly heterosexual George, Callie’s on-and-off boyfriend. <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2014/09/09/blood-and-mud/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Loonibha Tuladhar</a> steals the scenes as Mrs Winsley who witnesses the attack on the protagonists. Anahita Sarabhai is excellent as the Nurse, and Sushrut Acharya as Detective Cole and Bruno Deceukelier as Peter make the most of the few scenes they have.But the real stars of the show are certainly the relentless crew-members, who have the toughest job at Shilpee every night: making sure everything looks seamless on stage and nothing falls over and breaks during the countless scene changes. The story is told out of order, so it unfolds in sets of ‘before’ and ‘after’ the attack.The set design is aptly minimalist and modern, and the soundtrack of hit 90’s tracks (think Cyndi Lauper’s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIb6AZdTr-A" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Girls Just Wanna Have Fun</a>) adds to the whole ‘concrete jungle where dreams are made’ vibe of New York.While the shadow of the altercation looms large, crass and imposing, and the play has much in common with a Greek tragedy – the violence happens off-stage and there is a sense of foreboding throughout (we find out about the attack and the coma very early on). <img width="2120" height="1192" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111016118/636d14a59c7e80680e0a9989jpeg.jpg" alt="">But Stop Kiss is far from the stereotype of sad and fatal <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Finding-refuge-in-cyberspace,3146" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">LGBTQ+</a> stories that either end in death or separation. Instead, it is open-hearted, warm and determined to impact audiences of all ages and background.“While the physical, external violence forms the backbone of the play, there is also a second kind at play here, borne of shame, judgement and discrimination,” adds Srinivasan: “Hopefully the play will create momentum for conversations to make our society truly inclusive, not just in plans and speech but also in action.”Stop Kiss is playing at Shilpee Theatre in Battisputali until 4 December 2021. Runtime is 2 hours and 10 minutes with no intermission.Tickets: Rs500 and Rs700 for front-row seats9861053015/stopkiss@owtnepal.orgShowtimes: 5:30PM, with an additional 1PM show on 4 December.

Ashish Dhakal

The price of a kiss

<figure><img width="810" height="926" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101132/636b73ca9c7e80680e06235ajpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Photo: DILJUNG GURUNG</figcaption></figure>Dystopian fiction predict a distant future where morals and ethics are forgotten and post-apocalyptic humans kill to survive. But what if dystopia is no longer fiction? What if we are already staring at a climate apocalypse?The play In the Sand and the Snow being staged at Tangalwood this weekend is set in just such a world. Directed by <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/in-the-red-and-brown-water-play-review,1654" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Deborah Merola</a> the screenplay is adapted from The New York Times piece in 2019, Imagining America in 2024 by Adam Rapp. Its name derives from its settings in the two Acts: the Arabian Peninsula (sand) and the Arctic (snow). Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/review/replaying-male-machismo/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Replaying male machismo</a>, Sewa BhattaraiThe curtains part on two soldiers guarding a desert. They are homesick and sing songs to pass the time. An animal wanders between them, and a woman enters with a baby, hurling abuses. Finally she leaves, dumping the baby on them.No spoilers, but tales of crass youngsters killing innocents are a genre unto themselves. They include classics like Lord of the Flies (1954) and the glamourised Hunger Games (2012). But seeing such violence acted out on stage is even more chilling than on screen. It brings out the truth that such violence is being perpetrated in wars around the world there and then, even while we are in the theatre.There are elements of the abstract and the absurd in this play, meandering between disparate incidents without connections. We realise that soldiers are actually actors, and that an audience of 12 people is watching the play. They sit in the front row along with the real audience. But only they get an intermission, and the real audience watches them take a break.  A disturbingly violent scene, another one with intense lovemaking in the restroom are accompanied by graphic descriptions inject absurdity into the play and add elements of meta-commentary. The ‘audience’ gets back to front row seats and watch the beginning of Act 2, which is exactly like Act 1. A woman forces a baby on two soldiers, except that this time it is an icy world.The difference is that this time the performance is interrupted, by a stage manager who accuses a government officer – who can loosely be described as a censor – of not watching the entire play. The reference to government control on the arts worldwide is a raging issue of our times. The stage manager and soldiers forcibly take the officer offstage, raising doubts about whether the soldiers are actors.In the Sand and the Snow raises more questions than it answers. The soldiers do not know what they are guarding, and have no idea what their  orange flag symbolises. The audience, both real and acting, do not know why animals wander into the play. Deaths of characters leave no traces, making you question if they actually happened.These are the times we live in: violence changes relationships and severs connections, whether we are active or passive in our participation in this dystopian reality, whether censorship is increasing in our world, whether it could lead to use of force in retaliation, and whether that makes things any  better.This is a disturbing play. But we live in disturbing times. This is real escapism: where we escape from real-world dystopia to one on stage. In the Sand and the Snow5PM and 7PM, 9 FebClub 25 Hours, Tangalwood

Dystopia is no longer fiction

<figure><img width="1400" height="934" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108141116/636a56d39c7e80680e0547a8jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Photo: MONIKA DEUPALA</figcaption></figure>R ight before by-elections for a seat in the Parliament, the corpse of a man called Bishweshwar or ‘Bishu’ is found below a bridge in Sitapur. Educated and aware young dalit farmers raise their voices for this man. That is how the drama Mahabhoj starts.Bishu has been murdered, but parties politicise his death. Journalists try to take advantage of the situation. Police are complicit with the political parties. Bishu’s friend Binod knows the murderer, but the police conspire to frame Binod himself to hide the culprit.Leaders are merrily enjoying a feast, sharing the stage with the dead Bishu. This is a stark scene depicting how leaders make pawns of ordinary people, and entrenched injustice. The crux of the story is how powerful people make fun of the dreams of the poor and innocent.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/review/private-is-political/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Private is political</a>, Sewa BhattaraiThe drama is based on a novel of the same name by Indian writer Mannu Bhandari. Written in 1979, it begins with the murder of a dalit youth just when local and central-level elections are approaching. Bhandari herself converted the novel into a play, and poet Viplob Pratik translated it into Nepali. Pratik says the novel, written 40 years ago, is still relevant in Nepal. “This drama shows the impact on society when the 3P’s — politics, press and police — are corrupt,” he says.“Vultures are circling a corpse, dancing as they devour it,” says the first paragraph of the novel. Critic Pooja Madan says that writer Mannu Bhandari has evoked vultures as politicians benefitting from  murder. The play is also a satire on an opportunistic bureaucracy. Says director Anup Baral: “A drama should not just give a message, but also portray reality correctly. It should be able to communicate to the audience and raise questions and curiosities."The performance, which is playing to packed halls, shows how ordinary people become hostages and playthings of the media, politics and police. Director Baral says the play is idea-centric, rather than revolving around characters or events like most dramas, while presenting a realistic story in a poetic way.Actor Ramesh Budhathoki plays central character politician Ramesh Bikram. “My character shows how a clever politician can turn the situation to his advantage,” he notes. Actress Sirjana Subba makes an impact as an honest, pregnant police officer and says her character is meant to show that being pregnant is not unsafe.The play also includes contemporary songs by the poet Viplob Pratik. Strong acting by Dayahang Rai, Buddhi Tamang, Rajan Khatiwada, Viplob Pratik and Vijay Baral bring the play alive.  Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/review/all-the-world-is-a-stage-in-kathmandu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">All the world is a stage in Kathmandu</a>, Sewa BhattaraiMahabhoj, Mandala Theatre, Kathmandu5:15 PM, Until 4 Oct

The great feast of death

<img width="1500" height="1083" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110814114/636a54889c7e80680e0523b4jpeg.jpg" alt=""/>Lee and Austin are brothers who don’t seem to have much in common. Austin is a cultured man with an Ivy League degree trying to make it as a screenplay writer. Lee is a wanderer who lives in the shadows. But when they come together in a difficult situation, it seems they are not different at all: each brims with <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-roots-of-rape/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">toxic masculinity</a>.Nepal-based director <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/08/23/bhagvad-gita-as-opera/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Deborah Merola</a> has chosen to stage this Pulitzer-nominated 1980 play by American playwright Sam Shepard without translation or much adaptation. You can Google the plot, spoilers and all, but we are just going to tell you that Austin suddenly stands to lose his dreams, despite his superior education and manners. And Lee, though on the brink of gaining everything, knows he cannot make it without his brother’s refined education. And so the brothers blame each other for their plight and battle it out, with an alcoholic father and a passive mother added to the mix.Brothers envying one another is familiar to most of us: while Lee thinks that Austin — with his fancy degree and a foothold in Hollywood — is living the glamorous life, Austin thinks that Lee is a daredevil racking up new adventures every day.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/review/the-violence-of-violation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The violence of violation</a>, Sewa BhattaraiThis intense drama simmers with an undercurrent of violence that threatens to explode. And sitting in the present, we cannot help remind ourselves of masculinity today — that however much things change, they remain the same. Lee’s desire to dominate everyone around him is an obvious example but so is Austin, whose manners are a mere veneer for what lies underneath.“This drama is relevant today in the era of Donald Trump, when toxic male machismo is on the rise,” Merola tells us after a rehearsal this week at Kausi Theatre.Perhaps because of its contemporary resonance, the drama is enjoying a revival today with a recent Broadway production starring Ethan Hawke and another starring <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/review/game-of-thrones-familiar-to-nepalis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Game of Thrones</a> protagonist Kit Harington. Set in the US 30 years ago, it is considered a quintessentially American play, but the cast here feel that it has universal resonance today.“We in Nepal think the grass is greener on the other side, and many of us go abroad with great expectations. But often what awaits is disillusionment,” says Divya Dev, who plays the younger Austin. Dreams can come crashing down any time and when that happens, Austin has nothing to hold on to, and reverts to base instincts.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/hop-over-the-gender-gap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hop over the gender gap</a>, Reeti K.C.Alejandro Merola, who is menacing as the older Lee, feels every well-written drama has a wide resonance. “The lone alcoholic who slowly drifts out of respectable social circles and lives a criminal life on the edges is a universal character,” he says. “The play reminds us that there is an increase in such characters today.”Eelum Dixit has a powerful stage presence as the easily manipulated producer Saul who doesn’t speak up against bullies, and Kurchi Dasgupta makes an impact as the lost, possibly depressed, mother who stays indifferent even as her sons fight. Divya Dev is at his best as the melancholy Austin, who appears a gentleman but is full of passive aggression. Alejandro Merola frightens us with his outright hostility until he makes an unbelievable transformation.The drama is a stark portrayal of the unrealistic standards of success that modern society demands, and of the loss of simplicity and innocence. We see these mores manifesting now in Nepal, as well. Says Kurchi Dasgupta, who plays the mother: “Even though it is set in a particular time and place and has a distinctly American feel, you can draw allegories to the current time.” True WestKausi Theatre, Teku6-15 Sept

Replaying male machismo

<img width="4000" height="3000" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110812110/636a37059c7e80680e04833ejpeg.jpg" alt=""/>The Vagina Monologues is being performed in Nepal for the fourth time, and this rendition at the Kausi Theater does not adher to Eve Ensler's classic text. This localised version is based on stories of Nepali women and is therefore much more relatable and impactful to the local audience.The meta performance starts with a group of theatre artists who are actually acting out a rehearsal of a production of Vagina Monologues. Nepali stories have been adapted to fit the original frame of the play -- Nirmala Panta tearfully speaks graphically of the moment she was violated, while a conflict-era sexual abuse victim explains how prolonged her pain has been. These stories are presented in a sensitive, and not sensationalised way, which makes viewers share the trauma themselves.As the women rehearse the pieces, they begin talking about how it relates to their own lives, and story has a desperate intensity because of the scandal rocking Nepal's own drama scene with several male directors stand accused of sexual harassment."If this guy is bugging you so much, why do you still work with him?" one character asks, while the other replies: "Then who do I work with? There isn't anyone else."In another scene, actresses urge one among them to share her story in the mainstream and social media. But then they realise that the survivor is the one who will be blamed, whose life will change dramatically, and who will have very little support to continue her acting career. The scenes in the play bring alive a world of women: how they talk to each other, how they open up gradually after one person starts a thread, how they console each other, and finally, how they often end up being silent because there are no options. But the play also depicts how things are changing by renacting the sexual harassment cases that are rocking Nepal's theatre world in real time. Actresses have accused three noted theatre directors of sexual harassment in a popular weekly tabloid, leading to much discussion and division in the world of Nepali drama. Their confessions led the theatre community temporarily banning some actors -- a significant achievement here. The stage thus becomes the vehicle through which the accusations are documented and spread to more people.  <img width="640" height="480" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110812110/636a37089c7e80680e04833fjpeg.jpg" alt="">The play engages with the current discourse about rape and sexual abuse being a manifestation of power imbalance. The fallback argument is often 'not all men', but the play gives a fitting comeback to that as well: "If I am being followed by a potentially dangerous person and I am scared, it won't help me to say not all men are like that."Directed by Akanchha Karki, the play does not create any strong characters because the cases represent the experiences of all kinds of women. Nevertheless, together the stories create an emotionally intense experience that makes viewers question and reevaluate their values. Several talented actors and actresses bring these stories to life, among whom Loonibha Tuladhar deserves special mention for her perfect timing, both in serious and comic scenes with their dark humour. The play tackles conversations among men about sexuality, abuse, and consent. It presents the viewpoint of a lot of people who think that gender inequality and abuse don't exist, because today women can go out to work, wear the clothes they want, own property, vote, and even chhaupadi has been abolished by the government."The play is based on true events, but you may not believe any of it," says one character sardonically at the end of the play. "After all, it was made by a woman." <img width="4000" height="3000" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110812110/636a370c9c7e80680e048340jpeg.jpg" alt="">Vagina Monologues 4.0:  Private is PoliticalKausi Theater, TekuUntil 11 May

Private is political

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107171148/6369375c9c7e80680e03fe2fjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="900"/><figcaption>Photo: SEWA BHATTARAI</figcaption></figure>Three best friends are at crossroads in their lives, trying to leave their carefree days behind and move to stability. For Anil the solution is investing in art, and he buys a completely white piece with faint diagonal lines across it, also white. When Mahesh laughs at him, Anil's ego is hurt and their friendship falls apart. The gentle Devashish tries to play peacemaker, but we won’t spoil it for you by revealing whether it works in the stage play, Art.Studio 7 has been staging plays for nearly 40 years at the <a href="http://www.hotelvajra.com/">Hotel Vajra</a>, spanning most of the ups and downs of Nepal’s recent history from the Panchayat monarchy to democracy, war and post-conflict transition. Its choice of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/three-paise-opera-sabine-lehmann-nepal,1866">adapted classics</a> and original works all come with a sharp <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=11865#.XBctL9Iza70">contemporary message</a>. The latest offering, Art is no different. The original play by <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/The-Kathmandu,384">Yasmin Reza</a> premiered in 1994 at the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Com%C3%A9die_des_Champs-%C3%89lys%C3%A9es">Comédie des Champs-Élysées</a> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris">Paris</a>, and made it to London and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadway_theatre">Broadway</a>.The play about three friends starts rather slowly, with introductory scenes setting the characters. But soon, the plot thickens as the friends squabble not just about art, but each other and the very basis of their friendship. The blank canvas is not just a painting but a symbol of their youthful bonding.Each viewer can take what is important from the production. Some can see it as a satire on how modern, abstract art fetch huge prices but are not understood by anyone but the artist. What is the use of art that cannot communicate with the viewer? What is the rationale behind their high market value? And if they have such a high commercial value, is it necessary for them to be understood?With very few characters Art’s strength lies in how the characters react to each other and create comic scenes. Anil has turned into a pretentious art hoarder who buys things he may or may not understand, because they are deemed ‘valuable’.Mahesh, meanwhile, retains a youthful brashness, sneering at everything he does not understand and surprised that Anil has moved on. Trying to agree with them both, Devashish doesn't know who he is. This is an interesting interplay of characters and friendships that each of us can relate to: how friendships change with time as our tastes and economic status changes. The director is Studio 7 veteran <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=11646#.XBcsidIza70">Sabine Lehman</a> who succeeds in creating a fast-paced performance that keeps the small audience at the Vajra engaged throughout.Raymon Das Shrestha and <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/a-journey-through-red-and-blue-a-little-prince,3055">Karma</a> are not just convincing, but inhabit their roles as a pompous nouveau-riche dentist and a wannabe cool digital entrepreneur respectively. It is the energetic Kundoon who steals the show, as an indecisive and uninspired Pashmina salesman. With an expressive face and on point comic timing, he creates the most realistic character of a Kathmandu Everyman -- a city boy struggling to make it big on the back of a rich heiress fiancée.Director Lehmann and set designer <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/The-guardian-of-the-shadows-%20G%C3%B6tz%20Hagm%C3%BCller,3352">Ludmilla Hungerhuber</a> make a cameo appearance with a satirical song about the ‘ego and arrogance of the boys’, which raises the play's comic pitch. Hungerhuber has designed a minimalist but pleasing set in which the same architecture is rearranged between acts.  Aman Karna's lively music complements the production, building up to an abstract finale.As the holiday season approaches, Art will be an evening well spent in Kathmandu.Art7:15 PM every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday until 30 DecHotel Vajra (01) 4271545

Art by Studio 7

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107161120/636922659c7e80680e03a127jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/>After staging plays by foreign writers, Mandala Theatre has forayed into an original Nepali folktale, with a sharp contemporary socio-political message.Jalini is a short story in Dhruba Satya Pariyar’s book Kairan that was shortlisted for this year’s Madan Puraskar, and adapted by the author and director Dayahang Rai into a play that is a satire with a message of inclusion.An arrogant king wants to stand out in history, and is told he will do so only if his daughter makes a sketch of him. He imprisons her in a palace so that she can see no other man.The folktale of Rapunzel springs to mind. Even the Buddha was confined to his palace so that he could not see the sufferings of the world. But, as expected, the unseen holds the most fascination, which is what happens to Jalini.Read also: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=19506#.W6Io_s4zbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Highway</a>, Sophia Pande<a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/review/Degree-Maila-review,963" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Degree Maila</a>, Sunir Pandey<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107161120/636922699c7e80680e03a128jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="939"><figcaption>Photos: MONIKA DEUPALA</figcaption></figure>Jalini's story attempts to trace how the imprisonment of women in homes leads to their subjugation, and secondary place in society. It is not just Jalini's body that is confined, but her heart and mind as well. And this just to satisfy the whims of a king unhinged with power. Jalini is not just a princess but a symbol of womanhood, and you will have to go watch the play if you want to find out if she finally breaks out of her confinement.The stage is taken up by a powerfully choreographed movement of the kingdom’s good citizens labouring to construct a palace for Jalini. A woman named Jaljala (so named perhaps to remind us of the mountain in Rukum that became a symbol of the Maoist revolution) speaks out boldly against tyranny, and the plot thickens as Jalini is brought to confront a world she had never seen.The king's attempts to force the people to do his bidding as he ignores their hardships is reminiscent of despotic regimes today. He takes pride in how he has decorated the walls of his palace with pictures of his long-suffering subjects, and thinks that passes for doing something to uplift them. This is obviously a satire on the tokenism and lips service to inclusion in present day Nepal.Read also: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/taandro-film-review,4036" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tandro</a>, Rabin Giri<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/all-the-men-and-women-merely-players/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">All the men and women merely players</a>, Sewa Bhattarai<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221107161120/6369226c9c7e80680e03a129jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000">The play entertains even as it subtly draws the audience to think about caste and gender discrimination. The music changes from dramatic to romantic and fantastic depending on the scenes, adding an audio element to the stagecraft. There are loose ends: some mysteries are not solved even till the end, and there is a distracting scene of a prime minister who does not have a major role in the plot.Bijay Baral as the king deserves special mention for his perfect comic timing. <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/Film-funny-man,1349" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dayahang Rai</a>, the film actor who began his career in theatre has come back a full circle to the stage. He tries not to make this  love story with a political message too preachy or predictable, and he largely succeeds in giving Pariyar’s fairy tale a hopeful and optimistic tint in a darkly cynical world.5:30 PM everyday except MondayMandala Theater, Until Oct 7Phone: 01-6924269

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