Artistes perform Coma, a Nepali play, at the International Theatre and Dance Festival. Picture by Uttam Kumar Pal

Rourkela, Dec. 25: The International Theatre and Dance Festival-2014 has been receiving an enthusiastic crowd in the city.

Despite biting cold gripping the city, the climate condition could not dampen the theatre lovers’ spirit.

The festival, being organised by Spandan, is providing various kinds of treat to the audience. As many as 16 troupes, including five international ones, are taking part in the fest. There are two troupes from Bangladesh and one each from Brazil, Nepal and Sri Lanka. So far, one troupe from Bangladesh and another from Nepal have performed.

“I am eagerly waiting to watch the troupes from abroad. They will open door to the international experimentation for us. Language, so far Sri Lanka is concerned, is a factor. It will be difficult for us to properly follow. In case of Brazil, it should not be a problem as they speak English,” said Uma Bisoi, a theatre lover, who is also a regular in the nine-day jamboree.

Renu Das was more impressed about the inaugural play Raja Himadri by Kazmi Noor from Bangladesh. For Raghubara Das, the Bangladeshi play’s stagecraft and innovative lighting were the most impressive. “Apart from the script, the lighting and the stagecraft were both innovative,” said Das.

Similarly, the Manipuri play was among one of the most-awaited one, which is known for its subtle way of presentation with sprinkling of unimaginable body postures and techniques.

All the plays struck to contemporary topics such as agony and suffering arising out of either exploitation or corruption.

The Nepali play adopted a little comic and satirical method of presentation, which, despite the language barrier, still was appreciated for the touch of Hindi in it. Similarly, for the cosmopolitan crowd here, the Bangladeshi play was also not much difficult as the language is not alien.

Member of the audience Harish Mohanty said: “I can understand Bengali, so I enjoyed the play thoroughly.” Pulin Mansingh, a theatre artiste, said: “I watched the Assamese play and listened to the dialogues very intently. Somehow, I managed to grasp the essence of it.”