SATURDAY, MAY 18, 2024
Pio Esteves
Tiatr ‘Zobabdari’ written by Joaquim Dias, directed by Nilesh Mahale and presented by St Dominic Dramatic Troupe, Merces was staged on the concluding day of Kala Academy’s 49th Tiatr ‘A’ Group Competition.
The story revolves around two families, namely Luis (Satyawant Tari), his spouse Myra (Maria Martin), daughter Judy (Smithal Hoble) and two sons Pedru (Maverick Alvares) and Joku (Bryan Fernandes) and Remy (Luis
Santan D’Melo) and his nephew Clive (Sachin Chowgule).
Myra makes a comeback from abroad and she is disappointed as her husband Luis has turned into an alcoholic. Her two sons also follow her husband’s footsteps. But daughter Judy is serious and pursues her college studies.
On the other hand, there’s Remy taking care of his nephew, who is disturbed after the demise of his parents. Judy and Clive were studying together earlier and Clive had shown inclination towards Judy.
Judy declined Clive’s proposal then as she wanted to pursue her studies. But when she comes to know that Clive is now mentally unstable, she is curious to know the cause of it. Judy’s mother steps in Remy’s house and is willing to provide service. Remy explains everything to Myra as far as providing a regular dose to Clive is concerned. On the sly, Judy tries to investigate the medicine taken by Clive and the consequence of its overdose. What follows next is well presented in the second half of the drama.
Tiatr ‘Zobabdari’ highlights the role of guardians towards their offspring and what are the dire consequences when they fail in their responsibility. It carries a good dose of suspense throughout, with wild revelations in the second half.
There are good performances on stage with Satyawant Tari projecting himself as the drunkard, followed by Myra displaying sobriety. Smithal stands out in her acts, while Maverick and Bryan as siblings entertain with pills of laughter though they tend to overreact at times. Luis Santan is good in his character, but Sachin excels in change of characters instantly.
In the section of songs, the opening song is a choral, followed by a duet from Camilo and Cybil on care for animals. A duo by Simran Rodrigues and Monica Fernandes and a quartet by Shania, Kingsley, Anjelica and Bencia carried good messages to the audience. Francis Azavedo and his team provided good music to all the renditions.
The stage sets by Cruz Sequeira, background music by Sachin Chowgule and light designs by Nilesh Mahale were good.
