Retrieved via the Wayback Machine. Originally posted by Yazad Jal

Theatre for me is more than the acting, lights, sounds, sets and props. It needs to have a little bit of magic. Large West End musicals sometimes have that magic. Cats had it. And sometimes folk theatre performed in the back garden of an old library has it.

Four short stories on cricket, ghosts, antique shops and jalebis. Poignant and playful the stories were told in a simple manner. All the actors were on stage all the time. Those not playing a part sat quietly in the background, merging with the set. The props used were basic, but managed to transform the actor into the character. An obviously false beard, but it made the masterji look authentic. Just a dupatta covering the head for a conservative housewife. And a ribbon in the plait for a little sweet schoolgirl. The acting was so real that I was there in the school, out in the street eating jalebis, and driving down Chandni Chowk to an antique shop.

I later spoke to two of the players, the husband wife team of Digvijay Savant and Shivani Vakil. There stories were first adapted by Ramu Ramanathan from Yuva Katha and first performed on 9/11! They’ve been adapted especially so that they could be performed anywhere - in school libraries, laboratories, even corridors! The sets and props are there to give a flavour of the lok-natya or folk theatre and appeal to a wide spectrum from South Bombay snobs to suburban security guards! Shivani adapted the jalebi script for her students at Walsingham School, and Digvijay has worked with street children from Aasra in Thane.

Short Stories from Around the Country. Performances by Shivani Vakil, Digvijay Savant, Anupama Jayaram, Jasvinder Singh & Dilshad Eidbam at the David Sassoon Garden on February 8 at 7.30pm