The
second rehearsed reading in the series
German Spotlight 2021, is
The Bus (The Makings of a Saint) written by
Lukas Bärfuss. The translation of the play
from English into Kannada is
sponsored by the Goethe-Institut and is directed by
Rashmi Ravikumar.
About the play:
The Bus by Lukas Bärfuss,
translated and adapted to Kannada as ‘Bussu’, looks at the religious fanaticism and the identity crisis that surrounds ‘believers’, ‘skeptics’ and those who are on the fence. In the Indian context, it tries to bring in the brutality of Hindu extremism, in the seemingly ordinary conversation between a bus driver and an accidental passenger.
Why this play:
The play was selected because of its absurdist take on violence, juxtaposed with fear-mongering and oppression in the practice of organised religion. Religious fanaticism and majoritarian politics are the lived realities of our country today.
Adapting this play and translating it into Kannada is for the director an artistic response to the disturbing narratives of the Hindutva regime in the last ten years.
© Rashmi Ravikumar
Rashmi Ravikumar is a theatre director and facilitator. The intersection of Kannada and English theatre as well as that of playback and proscenium theatre is an area that she loves working with. She also has a background in psychology, which she often uses as a tool in playmaking. She is artistic director of jijji productions, one of the co-founders of citylamps playback theatre and works as a corporate facilitator at Navgati.
She has directed two plays for the Ranga Shankara youth festival and was awarded the
Gender Bender grant by Sandbox Collective and Goethe-Institut / Max Muller Bhavan Bangalore in 2020. She has also performed in over 75 playback and improvisation performances. She is drawn to Gender, Mental Health and Absurdism in performance.
Cast and Crew:
Written by
Lukas Bärfuss
Translated by
Rashmi Ravikumar
Performed by
Shradha Raj, Varun Marichi, Lakshman KP &
Sannidhi Surop
Dramaturgy by
Kavya Srinivasan
Directed by
Rashmi Ravikumar
Click
here to watch the performance. This link will be accessible
till August 20, 2021.
German Spotlight is a joint project of the
Goethe-Institut / Max Mueller Bhavan Bangalore and
Sandbox Collective.
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