One Year of Wait: Playback Goes On-Ground
We mark a very special day on our calendars. February 10, 2021- our first on-ground, physical Playback Theatre performance was conducted on this day in over a year. A special Wednesday spent with a special audience, the Yuva Ekta Playback Theatre Group performed for the boys at Majnu ka Tila as part of our on-going work at the project site. This performance came at an opportune moment when we were closing the first part of the first module (read more about it here) with the boys. The performance titled ‘Relationships that define me’ was a platform for the participants to talk about important people that matter in their lives, and the emotions they elicit.
For our Playback group, it was a chance to perform physically, refreshing the skills we had learnt first as practitioners of the art form. The excitement was captured by our social media team with enthusiasm, right from covering the pre-performance warmups to the moments right before the beginning of the performance. The performing cast was equally excited and couldn’t wait to get started. The eagerness was portrayed through the performance. The actors quickly adapted and flowed into Playback forms with ease. The audience responded with enthusiasm and the performances of stories were met with applause. The most prominent relationship we explored was 'friendship'. The boys reminisced about their time outside, with their friends, and all the fun and laughter that followed. Some of the boys have been inside for over three years, so there were also stories of hope. A hope that the friendships and bonds they have created inside will be with them even when they step out. To encapsulate the feeling of our first on-ground performance in over a year is difficult. The nuances are what made it memorable. The fact that actors could physically touch each other while performing, could respond in real-time, and the fact that internet speed didn’t slow us down, all added to the magic. We thank our actors and crew for putting on the show, and the boys for trusting us with their stories. We hope to generate more such opportunities in the near future.