Attend this three-day workshop in Andheri to learn more about playback theatre

Participants engage in exercises at previous workshop

While improvisation has been a popular technique in theatrical storytelling, a workshop in Mumbai, conducted by Preeti Birla Nair, will now give enthusiasts a chance to develop unique skills for playback theatre. "Playback theatre is a unique improvisational art form where the actors don't come with a pre-decided script or story. We work with stories from the audience - feelings and personal experiences that they share with the actor and other members of the audience," says Nair. Explaining further, she adds, "We have certain structures and forms, which helps the actor decide the form to present the story in. What happens within the form though, is completely up to the individual actors. The audience sees a slice of their life played out for them. Watching your story play out can have a profound impact on the teller and the audience at large." Nair's workshop will provide an immersive experience of this process.

Nair trained in playback theatre in 2015 after she quit her job in Human Resources in Singapore. "I had been in the profession for 20 years and was at crossroads about whether I wanted to continue my corporate career or if I wanted to let my passion for dance, movement, theatre and expression come to the forefront instead of being just a hobby. I had Googled for theatre-based development, and the search threw up ‘Playback Theatre' for me. At the time, the Centre Of Playback Theatre in New York was offering a programme for the first time in South East Asia that was taking place in The Philippines. I attended that session and what I experienced was way beyond the world I was living in. What touched me was the essence of playback theatre, which is about connecting to human beings," says Nair.

Preeti Birla Nair

In a typical playback theatre set-up, the actor starts by asking an audience member basic questions, like ‘How was your day?' and ‘How are you feeling?' "These are called non-narratives. They are feelings but not stories by themselves. While responses to these questions are being performed by the actor, a message goes out to the audience that these guys are not here to train us or to judge us. They are simply here to listen and mirror. The only difference is that sometimes, when it is mirrored, it shows up things that the audience may not be seeing. To me, that is the beauty of playing an experience back as an art form. One can use the body, movement, sound, cloth, music, colours or metaphors to give an aesthetic to your story," shares Nair. "There's something magical when people feel comfortable enough to share their experiences. Our days are filled with so much pressure to be the perfect man or woman; everybody is busy striving to achieve this and so they are out of touch with what happens in the inner space. I think these spaces and circles are needed more and more," she adds.

In the course of the workshop, participants can expect to take part in improv games, working with their body and expression, sharing their own stories and stepping into the others', apart from learning basic forms of playback theatre - understanding principles, rituals and ethics of the art form. On the last day, participants can invite friends and family and perform for them to get a real taste of what it's like to
perform playback theatre for a live audience.

On June 23 to 25; 9.30 am to 4.30 pm
At (Day 1) SweatOn Club, Vasant Valley Complex, Goregaon East; (Day 2,3) BaDumTish Interactive Space, JB Nagar, Andheri East.
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Cost Rs 12,000 onwards