Noises Off by Michael Frayn is, undoubtedly, an iconic play globally. It has been produced and re-produced, acted and re-enacted time and again. The latest production by The Company Theatre, which is reviving its 10 years old production with a different cast, is without doubt one of the best productions of the play.
 |
| A scene from the play Photo: The Company Theatre |
Atul Kumar is touring Delhi with his version of Noises Off. The plays were performed on 16th, 17th and 18th of August at the Kamani Auditorium in Mandi House, Delhi. The play directed by Atul Kumar not only adds value to what Frayn had written three decades back, but had ele ments of Atul as well spread all over, and one could clearly see a distinct performance overall. The play can clearly be compared to any decent international performance of the same production. The set plays an important part in the production of Noises Off. It has an elaborate set and Atul treats the audience with a great set. To top it all it was the brilliant performance by the cast which makes you laugh without a pause. The actress who played the character of Brook was brilliant. She won the heart of the audience with her brilliantly timed pauses and delivery of dialogues.
Noises Off which is essentially a farce by Frayn is a brilliantly written play with a plot of a play within a play. The play within the play which the cast is performing is “Nothing On”, a poorly written play by the fictional writer Robin Housemonger. There are right moments of exaggeration and overplay which adds to the farce and brings laughter in the auditorium. It is the subtle change in the mannerism of the actors which needs a special mention. Every actor on stage, including the fictional backstage, manages to create the chaos a theatre production goes through. The play Nothing On is so poorly written that one can only laugh and can do nothing else! The motivation of Frayn writing Noises Off was a performance of another play in the year 1970 which he saw from the backstage and enjoyed more from there, and decided to write a play which talks about this part of the stage.
 |
| A scene from the play Photo: The Company Theatre |
What makes Atul’s version of Noises Off a masterpiece in itself is the brilliant set, overwhelming performance by the actors, more exaggerated version of “Nothing On” and few extremely honest people on stage! We at My Theatre Café only hope that Atul does not stops this revived performance of Noises Off, and more and more people see it to understand the other side of the stage!
This review first appeared in My Theatre Cafe on August 19, 2013
No comments:
Post a Comment