Shakespeare said, “All the world is a stage” but unless young minds are guided in the right direction, they may never find their way to the stage even in their own hometown. For over ten years, Arundhati Chattopadhyaya has been shining the guiding light for young adults towards theatre and visual arts in Goa. Through the Sunaparanta Theatre and Visual Arts Programme, she will be leading ‘In Stages – Theatre Company for Young Adults’ this year, at Sunaparanta Goa Centre for the Arts, Altinho. The short course of 15 sessions is open to youngsters in the age group of 11 to 16 years. The session will be conducted from July 30 to November, every Saturday, from 3.30pm to 5.30pm.
Arundhati Chattopadhyaya, studied Bharatanatyam in Mumbai, and she simultaneously pursued theatre. She moved to New York City, the world’s most famous avenues for Broadway, where she taught dance and acted in off-Broadway experimental theatre productions. Moving back to India, she made her home in Goa, where she brought this vast treasure trove of theatre experience. “I do you miss my theatre days in New York. I miss the rehearsal time, hanging out after rehearsals discussing other productions, costume fitting. Friends and colleagues, are constantly sending information, the internet is a fantastic source to check and of course social media is so dominant that news is shared so fast these days,” says Chattopadhyaya.
Facilitated by theatre director Chattopadhyaya with a team of creative professionals, the participants will be guided to write scripts adapted from short stories, learn the principles of acting, movement, costume design and performance. “Sunaparanta’s art and theatre programmes are directed at fostering the imagination of young minds. This places them at the forefront of learning and thinking, where they become the protagonists in open and process-based art and theatre practices. I never know what possibilities lie ahead and it’s the not-knowing part that drives me to new challenges and creativity with the new batch each year, which turns out to be a total surprise at the end of the year. It’s well worth it, says Chattopadhyaya.
What are the key focus areas of the course? She explains, “The curriculum is designed to activate the unlimited potential of imagination through live, interactive and animated sessions. The key focus is to make each participant express their creativity and thoughts in their own individual styles. Some are shy, some are born leaders, and spending time with one another in a very open space, helps kids to overcome their inhibitions and gain confidence. There is no right or wrong.”
After the pandemic, this will be the first physical classes of the year. The past two years have been extremely challenging due to the pandemic. “Classes were held via zoom and not all participants had good connectivity to attend. Sometimes in the middle of our session, I would find kids had disappeared and then I would get a message later regarding their poor WiFi. It’s very frustrating for both the facilitator as well as the participant. Theatre is so physical and we really missed human contact. With all these shortcomings we managed two productions, ‘Red Blue Green: The Adventure of the Citizens of the Red Garbage Bin’ (story on garbage issue) and ‘Safe Spaces’ (protecting your spaces from alien invasion),” she says.
Children, who need a boost in their confidence while expressing themselves, take longer to adjust and Chattopadhyaya is constantly aware of who needs more encouragement. She feels the challenges may be in their speech projection, concentration,
group thinking.
She is working with an exciting group of facilitators who will be working with the kids. Keya Ann Dsouza (choreographer), Asavari Gurav (visual artist), Juliette Ravel Roychowdhury (textile designer) and Srinivas Mangipudi (multi-media artist) will motivate the youngsters. “I am really looking forward to exploring ideas with this group and the new participants. I find kids believe in changing our environment from the bottom of their hearts and I am looking forward to creating a piece that deals with that. It could be the story of Goa or any other part in the world, where human greed takes over our consciousness,” concludes Chattopadhyaya.
