This weekend, watch the complex dynamics of a marriage unfold on stage with a touch of humour and quirk
Nitransha Sinha and Vishal Srivastava in moments from the play
Sarah and Richard are like any other modern married couple in love. But after a few years of being together, mundanity has begun to eclipse the romance in their lives. And like most people in love, they start exploring ways to rekindle that spark. While her husband is at work, Sarah, in the afternoons, is visited by a lover, while Richard often finds himself with a prostitute in town. The affairs, however, are not secret. In fact, they are each other’s extra-marital love interests — slipping in and out of the roles of being husband-wife and lover with ease. Can the make-believe lover becomes more beloved than the real-life partner? Watch this marital drama unfold in British playwright and Nobel Prize-winner Harold Pinter’s quirky one-act play, The Lover, presented by Prayogshala Foundation, this weekend.
The play is directed by experimental theatre-maker and actor Vishal Srivastava, who co-founded Prayogshala Foundation. It features Srivastava, essaying the role of Richard, while actor, handicraft artiste and décor specialist Nitransha Sinha plays Sarah. Lucknow-based Srivastava, who is also a poet and digital painter, has been working in the theatre circuit since 2007, and first staged The Lover in 2016.
“The story revolves around roleplay that a contemporary married couple adopts to add some spark to their marriage. They don’t have kids and live in a secluded location. The husband pretends to be a lover of the wife, and visits her, and she enjoys it,” he tells us. However, gradually, the husband starts feeling possessive about his wife. “He starts to wonder if his wife will end up falling in love with the lover or boyfriend. Things start to get dramatic,” he reveals.
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The play, performed in English, has minor tweaks for the Indian context. Sinha adds that the play, which packs intimacy, humour, drama and masala, has already had a fun run in Lucknow. “A lot of couples do role-play, but it’s not something that’s discussed openly. Once you’re in a relationship, life does get monotonous because things start replaying themselves. So, I think a lot of couples will relate to the play,” she signs off.
On: October 30; 8.30 pm
At: Veda Factory - Art Studio, Bungalow no. 120, Aram Nagar Part 2, Versova, Andheri West.
Log on to: insider.in
Cost: Rs 200
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