Chennai’s season of music — Margazhi – is known world over as the traditional month of music and dance each year. With over a month dedicated to the arts, it is only natural that one wonders why theatre hasn’t found a prominent place in this festival in these many years. As a way to bring about an entire ‘season’ for theatre in the city, a group of theatre companies and thespians have come together to promote August as the month of theatre in Chennai starting this year with ‘Live In August’.
“When we first tossed the idea of Live In August, the attempt was to make it like the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (The largest arts festival in the world that takes place every August for three weeks). It’s where every theatre group is self-reliant, without worrying about auditoriums and other things when they put up a show,” says V Balakrishnan from Theatre Nisha, who has directed Sons and Fathers, which explores the relationship between sons and fathers in Indian mythology.
The biggest problem with respect to the theatre scene here in Chennai is that not many people are aware of what’s really happening on the theatre front. People think theatre here is small, but it has come of age, according to Mathivanan Rajendran from Stray Factory.
What Live In August will do is take the worry off about incurring loses while putting up a performance and that’s the best thing about the initiative, Rajendran adds. This year, the Alliance Francaise’s Michelin Auditorium, the Goethe Institute, Amethyst, Spaces and the bars of some hotels have come forward to offer their spaces for free. “Since there is no specific organiser, it’s difficult for this model to fail. If I or someone else is busy next year, someone from the other theatre groups will then take up the mantle. But only as long as the free space is available,” he adds.
The fact that it opens up many opportunities to perform is a good enough reason to take this initiative forward, says Venkatesh Harinathan, who has coordinated with director Deepa Ravi for her children’s play on behalf of Stray Factory.
“Not only will it bring newer audiences to theatre, but it will also give us the opportunity to work with new people, which is what we always aim to do,” he says.
First-time director Tanvi Patel is in agreement with Harinathan. “It is a great opportunity for me. I’ve always wanted to direct because I think that will make me a better actor,” says Patel, who is co-directing Rumors by Neil Simon with Nayantara Nair (Representing Stella Maris and Masquerade Youth Theatre).
There might be more theatre groups and performers in the city than the number of people willing to watch it, feels Gowri Ramnarayan, director of JustUs Repertory. What we have to do is cultivate an audience that will relish theatre and Live In August is a positive step in that direction, she adds.
There definitely have been many hiccups in setting up Live In August this year because it’s, after all, the first time around, admits Balakrishnan.
But there is no harm in hoping for bigger and better things for the future. “You never know, maybe in about three or four years, August will really be the ‘season’ for theatre in Chennai!” he says.
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