Passion!!!

Well, what is so great about this play? Let me see... Although some might say that the play was boring and waste of money....I still saw the relevance of watching. Spending RM20 to watch an hour play was surely not a waste of time. INSPIRED by Carlos Saura’s award-winning film Tango passion brings together two of the most respected artistes in the performing arts — director Joe Hasham and choreographer Judimar Hernandez. With Datuk Faridah Merican as the executive producer, Hasham as director and Hernandez as choreographer, Passion stars Aris Kadir, Amy Len, Steve Goh, Loi Chin Yu, Elaine Pedley, Nell Ng, Thou Chun, Dalili Azahari and Joseph Gonzales. Unlike the film which pays homage to the tango dance form, Passion will be brought to life through rich, contemporary dance. However, the essence of the tango will not be lost. The audience can look forward to experience the sensuality and intrigue inherent in the tango but woven into a fresh, new set of movements by Hernandez. It goes beyond the simple love triangle. Under Hasham’s distinct direction, the narrative thread which ties together the whole performance becomes a powerful reflection of the human condition. Set to the music from the film, Hasham’s vision coupled with Hernandez’ exquisite choreography guarantees an intense performance that is both aesthetically appealing and deeply moving. I expected a play with dialogues and it turned out that the only dialogue in the play was “Life is so strange. I loved her for four years and she betrayed me. Life is so strange.” These are the only utterances that the play “Passion” offered. Then, you might wonder what is so great about watching this play. Well, in order to substitute the absence of dialogues, the actors had to convey their feelings, their thoughts-the passion through their facial expression. Compared to other plays that I have watched, this plays offers more of the music and lightings. This is because the music and the lighting increase in the amount when the tension in the play increases. The director brilliantly controls these two variables in order to attract and sustain the audiences’ attention. Thus, I believe we surely should watch more plays by different playwrights and directors in order to appreciate drama better.

Thirty days...A Review

This is a play about love and betrayal, 'Thirty Days of September' treats the sensitive and generally taboo issue of child sexual abuse. It endeavors to lift the veil of silence which surrounds child sexual abuse and addresses the issue unflinchingly. It builds on the trauma of Mala who lives with the haunting memories of her abused past. Her abuser - her uncle subconsciously lives with her all the time, as part of her dirty reflections. He damages her natural growth, deters her from pursuing her love interests beyond the ominous 30-day period and scars her soul every now and then. As Mala withers under the psychological pressure extorted on her by the abuser; her mother watches silently, living her own pain - suffering mutely. Exploring the painful problem, Mahesh Dattani raises valid concerns and structures a world of optimism where the wrongs can stand corrected and resurrection of brutalized faith is possible. But none of this happens without another man's willingness to help the two women bury their traumatic past and find ways of rejuvenating their present. Deepak, Mala's boyfriend, becomes the agent of change here. He dares to unmask the evil, even at the cost of his love. He hits the women hard until they hit the rock bottom. Finally, there is no way but to come up - face the wrongs and dare to correct them, notwithstanding the challenges the process of correction entails. By marking a daring departure from norm, the play ensures that we, as a society, no longer take comfort in the routine of uttering word "incest" in gutless undertones. The play also brings us closer to the reality of abused children -pleasure does form a part of their pain, but finally the consequence of dangerous games can only be dangerous. Our only way to fight danger is to recognize it and crush with generous doses of brutality lest we are ready to condemn innocence to lifelong death.

Check it out-mahesh dattani's profile!!!

Mahesh Dattani, born in Bangalore on 7 August 1958, studied in Baldwin’s High School and St. Joseph’s College of Arts and Science, Bangalore.He has worked as a copywriter in an advertising firm and subsequently with his father in the family business. His theatre group Playpen was formed in 1984, and he has directed several plays for them, ranging from classical Greek to contemporary works. In 1986, he wrote his first full-length play, Where There’s a Will, and from 1995, he has been workingfull-time in theatre. His major plays are Dance Like a Man, 30 Days in September, Bravely Fought theQueen,Final Solutions,Tara, On a Muggy Night in Mumbai.Dattani is also a film-maker and his films have been screened in India and abroad to critical and public acclaim. His film Dance Like a Man has won the award for the Best Picture in English awarded by the National Panorama.In 1998, Dattani won the Sahitya Akademi award for his book of plays Final Solutions and Other Plays, published by East–West Books Chennai, thus becoming the first English language playwright to win the award. Dattani teaches theatre courses at the summer sessions programme of Portland State University, Oregon, USA, and conducts workshops regularly at his studio and elsewhere. He also writes plays for BBC Radio 4.‘[Dattani’s work] probes tangled attitudes in contemporary India towards communal differences, consumerism and gender… a brilliant contribution to Indian drama in English.’—Sahitya Akademi award.