Play ‘Photograph 51’ will be staged on July 22

Bangalore Little Theatre (BLT) is staging a play ‘Photograph 51’ on July 22 at Alliance Française de Bangalore and on July 27, 28 and 29 at Jagriti Theatre. The play is directed by Sridhar Ramanathan and Archana Kariappa.

This award-winning play by Anna Ziegler is being produced for the first time in India. The acclaimed play first premiered in West End, London in 2015, and has since been staged worldwide. Their 16th venture under the History Of Ideas programme, BLT aims to use yet another biographical play as a vehicle for inspiration.

Set in the early 50’s in England, the plot follows the story of an unsung hero and brilliant physicist Rosalind Franklin. The young woman, originally played by Nicole Kidman was instrumental in the discovery of what was then called the secret of life: the structure of DNA.

Although Franklin’s work leads to the biggest breakthrough of the 20th Century, she has deliberately been kept out of the history books. “We are talking about an elemental piece of history itself. The story brings in a feminist perspective too as it tells the tale of a genius woman scientist in an age of extreme patriarchy”, said co-director Archana.

The play portrays ambition, isolation, the race for greatness and the politics that follow in any workplace, let alone in a Nobel prize-winning feat. The curious title of the play comes from Photograph 51, the nickname given to an X-ray diffraction image taken by Raymond Gosling in 1952, under the supervision of Rosalind Franklin. “Many people have asked me how an Indian audience can connect to Photograph 51, and what the story has to do with the city. Well, the language of science and emotion are through globally.

This play is important as it not only looks at the science of it all but portrays the drama behind what happened. Bengaluru being an ambitious city, people can relate because it’s about an individual’s struggle in a competitive world,” added co-director Sridhar.

The artistes include Snigda Kundu, Sarena Beriwala, Deepak Padaki, Venkataraghavan Srinivasan, Sanjeev Gadre, Abhijit Raghunandan, Manish Sharma, Solomon Paramel, Guru Prerna, Nevin Pearl, Abhishek Sundaravadanan and Deepak Mote. Tickets are available online at Book my show and at the venue, for afternoon and evening shows.