AFTER THE END Play Review

Tarun Agarwal	Host-A-Performance \| Schedule

Written and Directed : Bernard Dafney Cast : Sumukha Prasad & Anusha Shetty

AFTER THE END Review

AFTER THE END is about a scenario where a nuclear explosion drives people indoors and how survival pushes friends into becoming adversaries. As Mark and Louise stay together, they go through various phases including affection, co-operation, hate and even rape and murder attempt. Dennis Kelly's play has been staged across the world and is known for being hard-hitting. Bernard Dafney has done full justice to the play as it evokes strong reactions.

The play opens with visuals of happenings across the world, followed by a phase of affection between Mark and Louise. Apparently. Louise was rescued and brought in by Mark to this place. The nuclear explosion happened suddenly while weeks before that they had a normal life wherein they were socializing with their group of friends. Their phase of affection wherein the girl is treated on a pedestal takes a toxic turn when the boy forces her to play a game and threatens to starve her if she refuses to comply. The situation worsens after this phase where trust is completely lost. The play was written in 2005 and has aged well as the lockdown era adds to the realism of the plot.

The play is an actor's delight as they get to perform a wide range of emotions and deliver many types of dialogues. Anussha Shetty, as Louise, and Sumukha Prasad, as Mark, deliver the nuances embedded in the writing. Their chemistry of friendship, one-sided love, hate and threat are all brought out well. The repartee and exchanges they have are delivered with rare perfection and look well rehearsed. Sumukha carries well the undercurrent of a boy who deeply hates Louise for not loving her back.

The sets and the costumes are starkly real - items we find in our homes - this makes the effect of the content even more devastating. The various utensils, games and storage is at once simple and impactful. The lights by Trinetra Tiwari creates silhouettes which makes it possible for grim scenes to make it to the stage. Overall, the art work is commendable because even though the director is not originally from India, it is deeply authentic. The authenticity makes the audience feel that it is something that could have happened to someone they know.

This Dafney Productions play is a must watch for theatre and film professionals because of the craft. Bernard Dafney imports interesting techniques from California, the place he was raised in. It shows how much more can be achieved with minimum means. In spite of the long duration of play, of about two hours, the script is never improvised meaninglessly. The initial 15-20 minutes can be rewritten as after it takes off and has you hooked.

Tarun Agarwal is the author of a book, Hope Factory

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