Roland Schimmelpfennig's THE GOLDEN DRAGON... Shows in Bangalore and in Kerala...
January 5, 2012 12:00:00 AM IST MTG editorial
The British Council is delighted to present the India Premier of THE GOLDEN DRAGON, a funny theatrical tale of modern life dealing with issues of migration, all seen through the lens of a local takeaway. Spiced with humour and tragedy, it charts a journey from far off China to your local takeaway and back and reveals what really goes into that bowl of hot and sour soup.
The play opened in Mumbai on 10th January in association with the NCPA. It plays in Delhi at the Bharat Rang Mahotsav on 12th January and will then be performed in Bangalore and in Kerala. It will play at the Jagriti theatre in Bangalore from 13th to 29 January and will then be performed at the International Theatre Festival of Kerala in Thrissur on 2nd February.
Dates at the Jagriti Theatre, Bangalore: 13th to 29th January (Every Thursday to Sunday)
Thursday - Saturday- One show at 8 pm
Sunday - 2 shows at 3 pm and 6.30 pm
Contact Jagriti box office (41242879) for tickets
(11.30am-1.30pm; 3.30pm-6pm; except Mondays; till 7.45pm on show days)
About the Play:
"Number 6: Thai soup with chicken, coconut milk, Thai ginger, tomatoes, button mushrooms, lemon grass and lemon leaves (hot)."
The Golden Dragon is one of those local Thai/Chinese/Vietnamese restaurants that are ubiquitous throughout every town and city. The whole world is there, in that one frenetic kitchen - everyone connected, everyone in a hurry, everyone looking for somewhere they can call a home.
Five actors play a variety of characters - some Asian cooks, a woman in a red dress who leaves her husband, some air stewardesses, the man who keeps the shop next door, a young woman whose boyfriend doesn't want their baby - which highlights the interconnectedness of their lives in and around The Golden Dragon. The actors play across gender and age to present the characters in true Brechtian style - this is not a naturalistic play and it demands that the audience follow their own moral guide and sense of empathy to guide them. The production is comprised of 48 short scenes, shifting location and characters fluidly from one to another. Characters shift through the performer's physicality, vocal tone, accent, symbolic costume items and through introduction within the text which sees the actor narrate their own character.
"The Golden Dragon is funny, accessible, intelligent, warm, and ultimately thought-provoking: those of us lucky enough to have seen the show at the 2011 Edinburgh Fringe know what a delicious treat is going to be served up in India. And like all the best arts, The Golden Dragon is a feast of entertainment but also movingly profound, raising questions about migration, and the effects of globalisation on ordinary lives, that give us all food for thought." says Adam Pushkin, Head of Arts, British Council India.
75 minutes without interval
Director: Ramin Gray Writer: Roland Schimmelpfennig Translator: David Tushingham
Cast: David Beames, Ciaran Kellgren-Parker, Ann Firbank, Judith Amsenga, Jack Tarlton
Before taking his post at ATC earlier this year, Ramin Gray was International Associate and Associate Director at the Royal Court Theatre from 2000-09, and has also directed for the RSC, Out of Joint, Liverpool Playhouse, Gate Theatre as well as major theatres across Europe and Russia.
Roland Schimmelpfennig is Germany's hottest contemporary playwright. Previous work performed in the UK includes Ramin Gray's production of Push Up at the Royal Court Theatre and ATC previously presented ARABIAN NIGHT. In 2010, Schimmelpfennig was awarded the Muhlheimer Dramatists Award for THE GOLDEN DRAGON. Schimmelpfennig also received the highest Playwriting Award in Germany, the Else-Lasker-Schuler-Prize, to honor his entire oeuvre.
*Mumbai Theatre Guide takes no responsibility for change in schedule
