Kolkata: Theatre groups hit as shows cancelled after Covid spike – Times of India

KOLKATA: Among the 17 shows that Shyamabajar Mukhomukhi had of ‘Andhayug’ and ‘Typist’ in January, only one has not been cancelled. ‘Typist’, which was adapted from Soumitra Chatterjee’s script, was first staged on November 14 and till the end of December, it had staged a dozen shows.
Actor Tapan Das, who was in the headlines for selling fish during the first wave at Shantinagar’s Satadal Pally 2 in Khardah after travelling the world over with the Royal Shakespeare Company for Tim Supple’s ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’, continues to do so. “Things had improved a little. I had taken part in festivals and workshops too. But the situation is tight now. I still sell fish. However, I have not come across anyone new from the theatre world who is selling fish or vegetables in the third wave,” Das said.
The audience count, Das pointed out, has dipped drastically after the outbreak of Omicron. “We are now getting 20%-25% audience from what we used to before,” he said.
“Things started going downhill since January 3 when our Krishnagore show got cancelled. Since then, everything fell like a stack of cards. Now, we hear only one show is happening on January 22 at Joynagar. We are unsure if our play, ‘Andhayug’, will finally be staged at the NSD festival in Agartala,” said theatre personality Poulami Bose. According to Bose, logistics is the main problem if she stages plays even with 50% occupancy. “If someone gets infected after coming to watch our play, the moral responsibility will rest on us. That’s why we can’t risk staging shows now,” Bose says.
Theatre personality Suman Mukhopadhyay too has kept shows on hold. “Few are staging shows now. But I have been talking to producers who admit that theatre is facing a bad loss now. Only a few are in the auditorium. Most viewers are infected and staying at home,” Mukhopadhyay said.
However, not everyone is ready to press the panic button yet. “I am going everywhere. Things will settle down. The less one panics, the better it is,” said theatre personality Sohini Sengupta. Even her father, thespian Rudraprasad Sengupta, is attending Nandikar’s rehearsals daily. “He had viral fever and got all his tests done. After recovery, baba is attending rehearsals,” she added. Nandikar had to cancel just one show in Cooch Behar. Its next Kolkata show will be in February.
On Sunday evening, Abhijit Sengupta, joint secretary of Aneek theatre group, attended Amta Parichay’s play at Puppetorium. “Thirty people were invited in the small theatre space. Everyone came over enjoyed the performance,” Sengupta said. Arup Roy, the secretary and director of Aneek theatre group, followed all protocol and staged its play – ‘Ishwar’ – at the Minerva Theatre on January 7. “The state government has allowed theatres to be staged with 50% occupancy. More than 150 viewers were present at the auditorium for this show. We have our Ganga Jamuna Natya Utsav in Joynagar from January 21 to 23 and invite everyone to stage plays without any fear.”