'Death and the Maiden' play at NCPA explores trauma, justice and revenge

Ben Kingsley and Sigourney Weaver in the 1994 film adaptation. Pic Courtesy/ Futurefilms on Youtube

Neil Bhoopalam is bound to a chair, as Ira Dubey holds a gun to his head. Sounds like a fracas that got out of hand, but those are scenes from the rehearsal of Bruce Guthrie's latest production, Death and The Maiden. An adaptation of Ariel Dorfman's 1990 psychological thriller, the play has parallels to A Clockwork Orange or Hitchcock's Third Man, says Guthrie. Exciting as that sounds, the text proved a challenge to ensure a safe emotional space for actors, as they explore such deeply traumatised characters.

Ira Dubey in a moment from the rehearsal. Pics Courtesy/NCPA

Dorfman's play centres on Paulina, a former political prisoner during the rule of Augusto Pinochet, who believes her husband is hosting a man who was once her torturer. "It is a compelling story that makes us contemplate how a society or an individual deal with it [emotional or physical trauma]. Or can they?" says Guthrie.

Compartmentalisation

(From left) Neil Bhoopalam, Ira Dubey, and Vivek Gomber

This is where the role of an intimacy specialist becomes key in theatre. The director says the role acquires particular relevance owing to the exposed nature of the stage. "It enables actors to approach the emotion as just work. Having somebody in the room that is not only looking at the storytelling, but is also able to improve the methodology of our approach, is important," Guthrie says. It is, he reveals, a role with increasing relevance across the Indian stage.

This task falls to

Emilia Cadenasso (on floor) and Bruce Guthrie observe a scene

Emilia Cadenasso, the intimacy specialist and movement coordinator. An educator at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, London, Cadenasso says, "Theatre is a space where everything has to be spoken openly. There is nowhere to hide. We have to rip open our masks, and admit that there is darkness in humanity, and it includes us."

Sustainable craft

(From left) Ira Dubey, Neil Bhoopalam, and Vivek Gomber at a rehearsal

In the play, Paulina's recollection of the trauma in prison pushes her deeper towards terrible actions that mirror those of her own torturer. This is the facet of emotional intimacy that Cadenasso addresses. She explains, "The idea is to create a situation where actors can go in and out of an environment easily. It is all about sustainability." This required the use of movement and music as key tools.

Emilia Cadenasso

Incidentally, Franz Schubert's String Quartet No 14 is a powerful and traumatic motif in the play. The movement director countered this with simple musical exercises. "If trauma passes through our body, our body holds the key. How it remembers the music, and how our mind remembers it can be different. I cannot take care of their psychology, but I can work with their bodies to help separate the two experiences," she says.

(From left) Gomber and Bhoopalam rehearse a scene as Cadenasso (sitting on floor) and Guthrie watch on

Having three experienced actors in Ira Dubey, Vivek Gomber, and Neil Bhoopalam was an added asset. Guthrie adds that it has been hard work owing to the ‘complex vocabulary and emotional grammar' of the text. "There is a thin line between vengeance and justice. The play explores just that," he concludes. Talk about emotional balancing.

FROM May 7 to 10; 4 pm and 7 pm
AT Experimental Theatre, NCPA, Nariman Point.
LOG ON TO ncpamumbai.com
ENTRY R500 onwards (members); Rs 500 onwards (non-members)