Head to Thane for a performance that takes you to a secret venue, blindfolded, where you'll experience four stories in complete darkness
Members of the cast interact with the blindfolded audience at the first edition of the Darkroom Project
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Did you play darkroom as a child? The game that is a version of the traditional hide-and-seek, involves a participant looking for his hidden teammates, but with a twist. The team is allowed to hide in a single room that is pitch dark.
With its new production called The Darkroom 2.0, the Rangaai Theatre Company creates a similar situation, where the audience meets up at a central location in Thane, is blindfolded and taken to a secret venue three kilometres away for a performance. Unlike a traditional performance, the project allows the audience to decide its course, travel through a massive space while not just seeing the stories being performed — of course, all in the dark — but also challenging the other senses for a heightened sensory experience.
A member of the audience blindfolded by a performer
"We had tried a similar concept two years ago, but that was simpler in form. Primarily, we wanted to experiment with different kinds of theatre. We had blindfolded the audience from the gate to inside the venue. It was a platform performance," says Tushar Dalvi, Rangaai Theatre Company, of the idea's genesis.
"After our success from last year, we decided to push our limits. We 'kidnap' the audience in a van with blindfolds. They are then treated to four classical dark stories by Saadat Hasan Manto, Ismat Chughtai, Munshi Premchand and a true story written by an anonymous author. Upon arrival, while still blindfolded, the audience is greeted with characters from the story whispering in their ears. It is said a smell can bring back memories, so we expose them to distinct scents for each story. They also have the power to decide the fate of the characters, who at times, themselves invite you into their stories," says Dalvi, adding that the performers share jokes and stories with the audience, blurring the line between actor and character, transferring them to a virtual reality.
All four stories will be presented in Hindi and feature female protagonists, who are victims of social atrocities. The one hour 45-minute-long experience will feature a crew of 25 artistes and technicians, including musicians.
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