Construction on at Islam?s residence

Feb. 24: ?Weekend theatre? will be the new flavour for drama enthusiasts of the city from April this year.

Theatre personality Baharul Islam has come up with a studio theatre on the premises of his residence, which also houses the Seagull Theatre Academy.

?We want to create a space for theatre-lovers of the city. Therefore, we will stage regular plays every Saturday and Sunday. We will also let out our premises to small groups at economic rates. In fact, we will provide the lights, generator, sound and air-conditioner for the room,? said Islam.

The Seagull Studio Theatre, with a sitting capacity of 150 people at a time, has been set up on the lines of Prithvi Theatre of Mumbai. ?Our sitting arrangements can also be changed without any kind of technical problems,? he added.

Christened after Chekov?s famous experimental play Seagull, Islam?s repertory troupe aims to experiment with the various nuances of theatre. He feels that his efforts, aided by his equally talented wife Bhagirathi, have been fairly successful. Seagull has emerged as one of the prominent theatre troupes of the region with their plays winning appreciation both at the regional and the national levels.

Seagull has so far staged a number of plays sucha s Jatra, Uruka, Guwahati Guwahati, Aharar Edin, Antigone, Saraighat, Gentleman, Tughlaq, Puntila & His Man Matti, Court Marshal and Shakuntala. Besides staging plays, Seagull has also organised a number of workshops and seminars on theatre at different places. The group publishes a theatre journal called Imukh regularly.

?Our group aims to improvise on the existing styles and forms of Assamese theatre with systematic practice and training. We are trying to promote Assamese plays and also take Assamese theatre to the outside world,? he said.

?In 1990, we started a full-fledged institution called the Seagull Theatre Academy with support and assistance from the National School of Drama (NSD). Our academy offers a one-year course in dramatics as part of the NSD?s extension programme,? Islam said.

He said Assam basically has three main types of theatre ? folk or traditional, mobile or commercial and amateur or positive. ?Folk theatre is almost dying though mobile theatre is a huge commercial success. Nevertheless, there is immense potential for theatre in Assam. But it?s sad that the authorities have not even formulated a policy for theatre nor is it included in the academic curriculum,? he added.

As part of promotional activities, Seagull had organised two national theatre festivals in the city, which was attended by prominent directors from different parts of the country. ?We have staged plays at Nandikar Festival, Calcutta; Sangeet Natak Akademi Festival, Hyderabad and Bharatrang Mahotsav in Delhi,? Islam said.