Day four of the Deccan Herald Theatre Festival saw the performance of ‘Closer’, a play written by Patrick Marber and directed by Siddhanth K S of ‘Lights Off Productions’. An exotic blend of theatre with jazz, it explored the politics of love, lust and everything in between in a way that was bold.
The play revolved around Alice, a stripper who wanted to feel loved; Daniel, who wrote obituaries; Anna, a photographer; and Larry, a British dermatologist. Chance encounters, cheeky humour, shuffling of lovers, and the everlasting battle of the sexes lined the play. The adaptation focussed on the interactions between the four, some romantic and some not, and the relationships that were built and destroyed over the span of three hours.
But what made it stand out from other plays of the romance-drama genre was the artistic approach used, which made the play seem like a movie playing itself out. For instance, parks, photography studios, homes and hospitals were all recreated beautifully on the stage, while the warm lighting added to the film-like experience. The live background music was another charming addition — the saxophone, bass, piano, guitar and singing created the right mood for such a storyline. Some of the dialogues were quite strong as well with lines like ‘Lying is the most fun a girl can have without taking her clothes off’ and ‘You love her like a dog loves its owner’.
“It was quite entertaining and the music was exceptionally nice. It was good to see racier, uncensored content in India. It seems like playwrights have more artistic freedom now,” notes Janaki, an audience member.
Nita D’souza, a regular at the theatre festival, was also content. “It was bold but good, though it certainly ruffled a few feathers. The acting was decent and it was evident that they have put in a lot of effort,” she says.
Vaishali Deepak, one of the actors, shares, “I enjoyed the process and challenges of making up my character, Alice, and becoming her. It took me time to get used to her, but I started living her and it was great.” She adds, “The play’s quite bold, but after a point, it wasn’t a big deal for me.”
Siddhanth K S, the director, chimes in, “It’s been a fantastic experience working on it for the last 25 days. The play was longer than expected, but it’s almost exactly how I wanted it to be.”