Aliya Abreu
PANAJI
While the atmosphere at the Nirmala Institute of Education (NIE), Altinho, on Thursday had a festive buzz with most of the students fully immersed in getting ready for the Abolianchem Fest to be held on February 1, thirty students at the Institute were caught up in the air of the 19th century. On February 9 these students will be performing an adapted semi-musical version of Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” at 5 pm, at Ravindra Bhavan, Margao.
Directed by Fr Walter D’Souza from the Archdiocese of Bombay, the two-act play is set to bring to life the lives of the five Bennet sisters - Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Catherine, and Lydia - with dialogue, music and dance.
While the script for the play was adapted by Fr D’Souza, with inputs from the cast, the songs have been chosen from several genres, with the lyrics adapted to suit the script. The singing will be live, sung to karaoke tracks of the songs. There is also a treat for lovers of dance for there will be at least three ballroom dances and two contemporary dances in the play.
An NIE production, the props, sets, make-up, costumes, sound and lights of the show are being done entirely by the cast members. And that includes designing and assembling a giant grand piano!
As “The Goan” caught up with Fr D’Souza in between him running around with the students to get the props in order, he explained that this is the first time he is directing a play in Goa, although he has directed several plays in Bombay and directs on average two plays a year.
Though the experience has been challenging (he shuttles between Goa and Pune where he is currently doing his PhD), his director’s task has been made easier by the fact that the students are very talented. “They are all amateurs, but they pick up fast once I train them and practice on their own. There is a lot of willingness to get things done, and till date, nobody has said no,” he said.
He is in Goa three days a week, where he stays on the NIE campus and works with the students during the day.
The students have been working on the play since September last year when Sr Millie Pereira, the event co-ordinator and English method master encouraged students of all subjects to come forward and audition for the play. Fr D’Souza then selected the cast of thirty. Sr Pereira shed light on why NIE decided on “Pride and Prejudice.” “Jane Austen’s works have a universal appeal and this particular classic includes themes such as unconditional love and acceptance of the other which transcends societal norms,” she said.
It hasn’t been a bed of roses for the cast though, who have had to balance their BEd course work along with rehearsals for the play. “The institute has been very co-operative, giving us the liberty to practice for the play some times for many hours, and has offered any help we need,” said cast member, and First-Year BEd student Avril Antao,
Fr D’Souza, however, explained that though the production is being organised on a grand scale, the point of the production, more than to be a spectacle, is to benefit the students at NIE for personal growth and also probably help them organise plays once they become teachers in the future. This vision was reiterated by officiating Principal Dr Delia Antão who said, “Preparation for this play under the expert direction of Fr Walter is an excellent opportunity for our trainees to stimulate their creativity, develop interpersonal relationships, sharpen organisational skills, fine-tune their communication and language skills, learn time management, resourcefulness and of course the art of acting.”
For those theatre lovers, students of literature and those simply interested in a love story with a lot of music and dance, tickets for the play are available at Furtado’s Music store in Panjim and Margao, and at NIE.
