Paradip, May 16: Residents of this seaport township had an exhilarating experience of a different kind at an evening in a park recently.
Gathered in the open air and in the very lap of nature, Paradip residents savoured the flavours of drama, dance and art with a hearty mixture of entertainment in a blissful ambience.
The event, organised by Canfest, an organisation espousing theatre movement in the state, left the audience spellbound with their performance.
“We had decided to go for the new-found concept of holding events in the soothing setting of the Smruti Udyan, located close to the sea. With the onset of a scorching summer, every evening people from all walks of life congregate at this park. We hit upon the plan to organise a theatre, dance and art fest to entertain the visitors. Our experiment tasted success since the four-hour event drew a large crowd, including women and children,” said Sriman Mishra, the secretary of Canfest.
“Our children played and were involved in merrymaking while we enjoyed the event. People present on the occasion derived wholesome entertainment with vibrant and pulsating theatre and dance performances. Vocal recitals added to the attraction. Never before we had witnessed an open air performance in a park,” said Abhijeet Mishra, a local resident.
The event began with classical vocals rendered by Prativa Mohanty and her disciples. It was followed by a mellifluous flute recital presented by Jatadhari Nayak. There was also a rendition of Vyanga Kavita by the eminent poet, satirist and theatre person Ramakanta Mishra. A group of child artistes wrapped up the show by presenting the Saraswati Vandana in Odissi style.
“The staging of Odia classic, Shikar, authored by the late Bhagabati Charan Panigrahi, was a major highlight of the event. The simplicity and innocence of tribal settlers and their exploitation by those at the helm of power was superbly portrayed in the play. The drama was recently performed in various cities as part of the International Theatre Festival organised by the New Delhi-based National School of Drama,” said Niroj Pattnaik, a member of the organising team.
