In 1944, The Glass Menagerie catapulted Tennessee Williams from an unknown playwright into one of America’s most popular thespians. It has since been celebrated as one of the most poignant memory plays ever written, exploring the themes of nostalgia, family and unfulfilled desire.
Students and faculty from St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata (SXC), breathed fresh life into this classic. Adapted by Arjun Sengupta, a professor of the college’s department of English, the production expertly dovetailed loyalty to the source material with novel perspectives that reflected today’s realities.
The story of Amanda, Tom and Laura resonated deeply with Xaverians, as a packed Fr Depelchin Auditorium thundered with equal parts laughter and applause. The play’s key plot lines — a single mother trying to raise her children while struggling to understand them, a warehouse worker shelving his creative dreams to feed his family, and a girl grappling with a piercing inferiority complex — struck a powerful chord.
‘The play’s exploration of loneliness and the struggles of fitting in resonated with everyone’
“A production of this scale has been staged at SXC after nearly 40 years,” said Arjun Sengupta
“In a world that is more connected than ever before, people, especially students, are feeling lonely and isolated. I believe the play’s exploration of loneliness and the struggles of fitting in resonated with everyone,” said director Arjun Sengupta.
Sengupta deserves appreciation for his direction, approaching every character with empathy, while also leaving them vulnerable to ridicule. “This was one of the first plays I saw 20 years ago, and it left a very deep impression. When I told the management of my desire to stage it in college, they enthusiastically agreed. It’s even more special, since a production of this scale has been staged at SXC after nearly 40 years!” he beamed.
The cast, featuring students from the departments of Mass Communication and English, deserve equal praise. Upamanyu Banerjee brought alive the heartbreaking conundrum of being Tom, while Josya Mitra expertly balanced between Amanda’s adorable and annoying sides. Rashmi Banerjee captured Laura’s pain with remarkable sensitivity all the while preserving her innocence. Aviraj Bhowmick essayed a brilliant Jim O'Connor, exuding both charisma and fantastic comic timing.
One of the most impressive aspects was how the Wingfield household of the 1940s felt surprisingly contemporary. Sengupta added that there was an intentional tweaking of the elements to make the play more accessible. The production stood out for its minimalist setting, augmented by lighting and sound that blurred the lines between dream and reality.
‘Today’s performance was a revival of SXC’s long theatrical tradition’
Bertram Da’Silva was involved in the play’s music and lighting
“It's been a fantastic experience. He's (Arjun) been working on it for the past six months. I joined two months ago. We fine-tuned it and the production took off over the past week,” said Bertram Da’Silva, vice principal of the arts and sciences department at SXC, who helped out with the play’s music and lighting.
The feedback from the audience reaffirmed the play’s impact. “This evening soothed my soul, and I fell in love with Prof. Sengupta’s vision. The lighting, sound and acting came together, and I didn’t even realise how two hours passed,” said Kohana Sarah Mitra, a third-year student of English. The play resonated not only with the St. Xavier’s present students, but former ones, too. “Watching the production felt like stepping back into Prof. Sengupta’s class. It was a perfect balance between the playwright’s vision and the director’s interpretation. My regret of not being born to watch the original performance has now been laid to rest,” chuckled Ahana Mukhopadhyay, an alumna of the English department.
In the end, what worked for the play was its simplicity — examining a conformist society’s reaction to people who don’t fit in. The management promised that this was going to spark a fresh wave of theatre at SXC. “This auditorium played a crucial role in the thriving culture of English theatre in the city, staging the best plays by Shakespeare, Chekhov and George Bernard Shaw. Today’s performance was a revival of SXC’s long theatrical tradition,” signed off Rev Dr Dominic Savio, SJ, principal, SXC.