A difficult script dealing with human situations

4th in the series begins with a fine act

Arundhati Raja’s production ‘At Home At The Zoo’, the fourth in the series at the ongoing Deccan Herald Theatre Festival, saw its first performance at Ranga Shankara on Friday evening. An adult drama scripted by playwright Edward Albee, the play presented by Jagriti group was a non-stop performance of 90 minutes.

“It’s been a challenge directing it since Edward Albee’s scripts are tough. ‘At Home At The Zoo’ is all about human situations but there is this absurd twist, a sort of black comedy coming in, which is rather realistic because it reflects how we actually are as human beings. I am hoping that people will watch it and start thinking about themselves and human situations in general,” said Arundhati, ahead of the show, adding, “Theatre never gives solutions but can only make people think.”

Mother-daughter duo Asha and Pooja, regulars at the festival, expected a funny performance as they remarked, “Jagriti presented a fantastic performance last year as well. We are hoping for something similar in terms of the quality and impact.”
Dr Padmini Isaac, another spectator, also said that she looked forward to a stimulating performance.

Though the play did not open to a packed house, the audience present surely seemed to be enjoying and thoroughly grasping the act on stage. It revolves around Peter and his wife Ann, a couple enjoying a comfortable marriage in New York, living with their daughters and pets, until one day when Ann walks in and says ‘we should talk’.

Following their talk, Peter decides to go to the park to regain some comfort. Then comes along Jerry who’s full of stories and looking to talk too. ‘I’ve been to the zoo’, he says, and Peter’s life is turned upside down.

With a message
The play comes with the message that sometimes a person has to go a very long distance out of his way to come back a short distance correctly. The performance was well-directed and each of the actors lived up to their parts. Roy Sinai as ‘Peter’, Vandana Prabhu as ‘Ann’ and Swetanshu Bora as ‘Jerry’ gave stellar performances and received great appreciation from the viewers for enacting a difficult script wonderfully.

‘At Home At The Zoo’ will now be staged on Saturday and Sunday at Jagriti Theatre and on March 5 at Chowdiah Memorial Hall at 7.30 pm.