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 Dolly Thakore
Actor
[English Theatre ]
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 1. Which is the last best play you saw and why?
I see every play in town be it Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, English. Recently I have been very impressed with FIREFACE because it is a very brave attempt at bringing new kinds of non-commercial theatre writing to us. The actors are exceedingly competent. It is a strangely disturbing play sparsely put together yet communicating the undercurrents of an emotional dysfunctional family. But I must also mention Anish Trivedi�s maiden writing attempt STILL SINGLE�.an extremely taut and erudite script which activates the cerebral juices in a mundane situation of a still single modern Indian professionally successful woman, vibrantly reparteeing Dipika Roy, and her encounter with an equally smart but violent male. The compromising end was a bit of a disappointment!
2. Your favourite adda to see a play�
Prithvi in Juhu any day. But NCPA is preferred when a choice is offered because of distance.
3. Your favourite playwright�
Arthur Miller any day!
4. Your favourite play-character�
Linda Loman in Death of a Salesman, and Clytemnestra in �Electra�
5. A play you would like to see filmed. Why?
�Kathija Bai of Karmali Terrace� because it was about the Khoja community and a commanding Khoja dowager who chronicales life reminiscent of a Bombay of a bygone era. It has powerful personal overtones which need to be captured on film. The economically flourishing Khoja community and its contribution to society needs to be fleshed out and shown in all its colour and dimensions of passion, practicalities, prejudices, and picturesque detail.
6. A novel/short story you would like to see on stage? Why?
�Letters to an Unborn Child� by Orianna Fallaci about a defiant journalist who unveils herself defying Ayotalla Khomeini who had decried that all women should cover their faces.
7. The most hilarious play you have seen�
I generally dislike comedy�except British humour.
8. A play, which is over-hyped�
No play for me is over-hyped. I appreciate the effort that actors and the theatre unit invests in any production.
9. An important play (but ignored):
Cannot recall any at the moment.
10. A play character you would like to �dialogue� with�
Othello
11. A passage from an important play that you can recite�
Linda Loman in Death of a Salesman:
Forgive me dear. I can�t cry. I don�t know what it is, but I cant cry. I dont understand it.
Why did you ever do that? Help me, Willy, I cant cry.
It seems to me that you�re just on another trip.
I keep expecting you, Willy, dear, I cant cry.
Why did you do it?
I search and search and I search, And I can�t understand it, Willy.
I made the last payment on the house today. Today, dear. And there will be nobody home.
We free and clear. We are free, we are free, we are free.�
Blanche from Streetcar Named Desire:
�Deliberate cruelty is not forgivable.�
Willy Loman In Death of a Salesman:
�A man is not a piece of fruit. You can�t eat the orange and just throw the peel away.�
Portia�s speech In Julius Caesar:
Nor for yours neither. Y� have ungently, Brutus,
Stole from my bed. And yesternight at supper
You suddenly arose and walked about
Musing and sighing with your arms across;
And when I asked you what the matter was,
You stared upon me with ungentle looks.
I urged you further; then you scratched our head
And too impatiently stamped with your foot.
Yet I insisted; yet you answered not,
But with an angry wafter of your hand
Gave sign for me to leave you. So I did,
Fearing to strengthen that impatience
Which seemed too much enkiondled, and withal
Hoping it was but an effect of humour,
Which sometimes hath his hour with every man.
It will not let you eat not talk nor sleep,
And could it work so much upon your shape
As it has much prevailed on your condition,
I should not know you Brutus. Dear my Lord,
Make me acquainted with your cause of grief.�
12. A classical play that you should have read�
Enbarrassed to confess�Oedipus Rex by Sophocles
13. A play that changed your perception about the theatre�
Death of a Salesman
14. How do you regard the Mumbai theatre scene?
Very vibrant. Enough opportunities for all kinds of theatre in every language. Encouraging to see so many original scripts emerging. Audiences have grown. Actors are truly competent and working hard at honing their skills through workshops. More theatre spaces being experimented with. More and more actors are working full time in theatre. If Theatre received some Sate subsidy, we would �wow� the world even more!.
15. Have you read any interesting books/articles concerning the theatre? Why did you find them interesting?
�When Blanche met Brando� by Sam Stagg. Traces every detail in their search for Blanche in Tennessee Williams� �Streetcar Named Desire� and Marlon Brando�s animal appeal. Fascinating in every detail and every page.
16. If you have ever been a part of a theatre production/s, can you recall an event that was insightful, significant or simply humorous?
My last appearance as a dressed up Christmas tree playing a silent Mother in �Much Ado About Nothing� at the David Sassoon Library directed by Imogen Butler-Cole. It surprised the audience that I spent three hours for seven evenings in this production where I had not a line to speak. But it was wonderful being with a new group of actors with different sensibilities and in an Indo-English production of Shakespeare. I enjoyed every minute of it�and took part in the vigorous warming up and limbering sessions for actors who had speaking parts.
17. Can you think of a foreign production that you found remarkable? Why?
Mummenshans. Their imagery through body language is amazing and mind blowing.
18. Your favourite director/actor/music or set designer�
AS Directors:Alyque Padamsee for his eye for detail, amongst the new ones I would vote for Rehan Engineer, Pushan Kripalani, Waman Kendra; Naseeruddin Shah as an actor; Karl Mendes and Fali Unwalla as set designers. Not partial to any musician.
19. A significant Indian production that you may have witnessed�
Waman Kendra�s ZULWA, and even RANANGAN, and MADHYAM VYAYOG.
20. Life in the theatre without the humble batata-wada or the cutting chai or if you please brownies that are snuggling chocolate bits� or can you recall the best gastronomic experience you�ve had in the precincts of the theatre to date? ![]()
Shetty�s Chutney sandwiches at the Experimental Theatre of the NCPA, and Cold Coffee at the Tata Theatre are a must for me!!!.
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