The stage is set as Prithvi Festival enters its 35th year

Entering its 35th year the Prithvi Festival has a handpicked lineup that pushes the boundaries of theatrical performancesIf you are interested in a subject or art form you keep your eyes and ears open for new works experiences discussions and so on You hear of something mdash a trigger mdash you explore it and you discover says Kunal Kapoor trustee Prithvi Theatre referring to the everevolving continuous process of curating the citys muchloved Prithvi Festival Starting tomorrow the theatre lovers mecca in Juhu will play host to 26 performances over 11 days with the Jalandharbased Nooran Sisters practitioners of the Mirasi music tradition flagging off the eventWith performances featuring an unusual blend of Indian and western forms of dance and a recital bringing together two different periods of Western music fusion seems like one of the themes for this years editionAlso view Photos Shashi Kapoor Vidya Balan other celebs at Prithvi Theatre FestivalKunal KapoorAlso read Comeback of the veterans at Prithvi TheatreAll art is at some point is fusion mdash influences and experiences cannot be ignored in the creative process Its a healthy sign it means the arts are alive and growing says Kapoor At the festivals core of course is a lineup of plays with six premiere productions and five fringe theatre plays along with discussions by veteran theatre personalities including Girish Karnad and Alyque Padamsee Cant get out of work early on all 11 days Heres our dossier of the best picks sights and sounds from the festivalON November 3 to 13AT Prithvi Theatre and Prithvi House Janki Kutir Juhu Church Road JuhuLOG ON TO bookmyshowcomCALL 26149546Fusion all the wayKathak and flamenco seem like chalk and cheese but shift your eyes to just the foottapping and the similarities begin to dawn on you Its been established that the roots of flamenco can be traced back to Rajasthan It was the gypsies from the region who travelled to eastern Europe before finally settling in Spain says Aditi Bhagwat who has been trained in the Jaipur gharana of Kathak Bhagwat and flamenco artiste Kunal Om will present Flamenco Katha a fusion dance where they will weave together the two art forms to the beats of the tabla and cajoacuten a percussion instrument from Peru along with the violin and harmoniumAnother interesting fusion performance is Baroque Meets The Beatles a music recital by the Symphony Orchestra of India featuring works by masters of the Baroque period Bach Vivaldi and Handel The programme will also feature popular songs recomposed in the style of the Baroque mastersON November 4 6 pmFrom the veteransSenior theatrewallahs whose association with the venue goes way back will present new productions at the festival including Makarand Deshpandes Spot On about what happens when scientists go on strike Arghya Lahiris Iron set in a womens prison and Naseeruddin Shahs reading of his favourite poems in English and HindustaniON Through the festivalLOG ON TO prithvitheatreorgExperimentally novelCatch the premiere show of Without a Song by Divya Jagdale in pic which revolves around a married couple that cant look at the world the same way any more Another fringe theatre production to watch out for is Naha Le Re Bhai Directed by Chitransh Pawar it is a satire on the the Indian judicial system and draws from a reallife scenario where a woman whose husband refuses to have a bath files a divorce petition against himON November 8 7 pm Without A SongRamleela with a differenceIt may be 70 years since Partition but examples like these are a reminder of how political boundaries seldom translate into cultural barriers At the firstever performance of Shri Shraddha Ramlila in Mumbai viewers can expect dialogues like Banunga kahar ki bijli sharara maut ka doonga mita kar safaehasti se unko aaj dum loonga The awardwinning Faridabadbased group known for its Ramleela in a mix of Urdu and Hindi owes the unique script to its founders who migrated from what is now Pakistan and brought along with them the beauty of Urdu coupletsThe production is called Ramleela War Against Evil Our aim is to portray the victory of good over evil throughout the course of the play through smaller instances involving other characters as well and not just at the end which is what is typically associated with the epic shares Ankit Makhija The 12day run has been adapted for the festival into a sixhour performanceON November 12 3 pm onwards