Ranga Shankara is rebooting its ‘Staged@RS’ programme from October 10 onwards to present plays exclusively recorded for online streaming. Staged@RS was launched in May with some recorded plays for children that were staged under AHA! - Theatre for Children.
The second phase of the programme kicks off with the Kannada play, Sankramana, directed by Surendranath S., featuring Sihikahi Chandru, Kalpana Naganath and B.V. Shrunga. Sankramana is the Kannada version of the Hindi play Sankraman, written by renowned playwright Kamtanath. The play, in three monologues, portrays the generation gap in a middle class family in Karnataka strained by tortured relations. It has already been staged over 50 times.
“This is the first time we staged the play exclusively for an online audience with multiple cameras,” says Surendranath, who is also Ranga Shankara’s artistic director. His experience working in television and cinema came in handy. “It was different, nevertheless. As theatre artistes, you are accustomed to certain things. For instance, you pause for a bit, waiting for the audience to react. And now, there is no audience.”
Though the government has permitted theatres to reopen with 50% seating capacity from October 15, Arundhati Nag, Ranga Shankara’s founder, is concerned about safety. “We are not going to open this month. Even with half occupancy, I am not sure if it’s safe for people to be inside an enclosed space yet.”
“Until we open, we are planning to reach our audiences through the Staged@RS programme.” Sharanya Ramprakash’s Akshayambara and Abhishek Majumdar’s Desdemona Rupakami are among the next plays in the line-up.
Sankramana will be available to stream from October 10 to 18. For tickets and more information about the schedule visit bookmyshow.com.