Title: The Alkap theatre tradition and Third Theatre
Abstract: The essay by Syed Mustafa Siraj presents an insider's view on the emergence and decline of the indigenous Alkap form and its role in society during the period of its glory in the 1950s. Siraj explains that the Alkap is a comic satirical form of indigenous theatre having its origins in North Bengal among the humblest rural people. There is no written form of the play, nor a playwright. The actors have a basic notion of the framework of a play, and they go along with it improvising on the spot and taking the audience with them. Much of it is theatre of protest, but some deal with issues related to bourgeois life such as dissolution of social ties, existential crisis, etc. The author, himself a celebrated artist, gives a detailed description of the form, the role of the actors and the performers of dance and music with many examples including the interaction with local people. The different experiences related to the form, ranging from the comic to the poignant, are revealed. There is also a section on Jhanksa, the legendary King of Alkap, who was responsible for the great popularity of Alkap in the 1950s. Theatre cannot function without the active participation of the spectators, and the meaning and implication of audience participation are brought out in the essay. The author also deals with a second element in the form which is the incorporation of maya in the fabric of the performance that is woven around the harsh realities of life. The illusion represents the dream world of the people, often presented in a humorous manner, and there lies the basis of its immense popularity. But the Alkap often takes the dreams and shatters them against the grim, familiar experiences of reality – in fact, that is its purpose. The Alkap group to which the author belonged could not communicate with the Calcutta spectators. Rural society changed to a great degree, and there were urban interventions that led to the changing of the name of Alkap to Pancharas, signifying its end. Scholars and mainstream urban theatre groups were mostly indifferent to the form. The author concludes with the line 'A wide Caucasian Chalk-Circle could have come up out of the Alkap performance. But it did not.'
Publication Year: 2021
Publication Date: 2021-09-27
Language: en
Type: book-chapter
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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