Tiatr ‘Vavttoll’ written by Pedro Vaz and directed by Vasudev (Vikas) Chopdekar and presented by the Taleigao Dramatic Troupe, Taleigao was staged on the second day of Kala Academy Goa 50th Tiatr ‘A’ Group Competition 2024-25.
The curtains unfold to a scene wherein David (Joaquim Almeida) and his spouse Sarah (Maria Fernandes) assemble at the cross to celebrate their only son Edmer’s (Allwyn Souza) wedding with Tamara (Candida D’Souza). The landlord Adolf (Custodio Cabral), their neighbor, Jacob (Pedro Vaz) and his daughter, Beatriz (Kashvina Cardozo) come together with people from the vicinity for the litany.
As the celebration continues, Edmer’s friend, Jayden (Maverick Alvares), who is a lawyer, drops by and his presence there leaves Tamara perplexed. The landlord also has some revelations to make regarding their newly wed daughter-in-law to David and Sarah.
Tamara’s ex-boyfriend Collin Raposo (Prashant Paddekar) steps in to blackmail her. If all his demands are not fulfilled, then he threatens her of uploading all the videos stored in his mobile on social media.
Tamara is hapless, but she tries to convince him about marriage. No attempts can change the mind of Collin and Tamara finally gives in. Meanwhile, Edmer comes with the good news of pregnancy and his promotion at work.
Tamara shares the good news with Collin and he instantly demands abortion. On the other hand, Collin is in love with Sheena (Shanifa Pais), on the sly.
With the help of Collin, Tamara works out wicked plans that will distance her from her husband and in-laws. She even intends to own her husband’s house and property.
As David and Sarah are abandoned on the streets, who comes to their aid? Will Tamara realize the true colours of Collin? Who assists in this mission? What is the end result?
Tiatr ‘Vavttoll’ (Storm) is a family melodrama with a good dose of suspense unveiled in the concluding scenes of the drama. It highlights the dire consequences of mistrust and infidelity among spouses.
As guardians, Joaquim and Maria have given fine performance. They are ably supported by Allwyn and Candida as newlyweds and Maverick Alvares, Custodio Cabral, Eurico, Shanifa, Wellington, Shekhar Naik, Isaiah, Aciano, Santana and Warner. Prashant Paddekar displays his talent as a villain.
In the comic acts, there’s Pedro Vaz, Kashvina Cardozo and Gibson Vaz with a good dose of laughter pills under their sleeves. Kashvina is quite natural in her witty dialogues and flexible in body language.
In the section of songs, solos by teenagers Ozilia and Aciano and Allwyn, Stacie and Kashvina (adults), a duet by Livia and Kraig, a duo by Rosario and Custodio and a quartet by Custodio, Kashvina, Gibson and Stacie were appealing to the ears. Selwyn Braganca (trumpet) along with his band members Theodore Alvares (trumpet), Louis Mascarenhas (keyboard), Bernabe Fernandes (bass guitar) and Xavier Minguel Fernandes (drums) provided good live music to all the singers on stage.
Special mention needs to be made about the stage sets by Kapil Chari, including the light design by Sainand Volvoikar. Sagar Gauns assisted with the background music, while Amita Naik handled the make-up backstage.