The atrium fills with people. The chatter of kids is incessant. In the well of the atrium is a stage strewn with books and other articles of a home. The bell rings and the lights go out.
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The atrium fills with people. The chatter of kids is incessant. In the well of the atrium is a stage strewn with books and other articles of a home. The bell rings and the lights go out. Instinctively, there is a hush. When the lights are back, it is on the stage and the fun starts. Prithvi Theatre is an ideal place that dedicates its work to the children of Mumbai.
I’m here with my kids for the first time. “A play!” scowls my daughter. They are used to 3D movies in multiplexes and entertaining outdoor spaces. A play is something they are unfamiliar with and it seems to be an unworthy fun-agenda for the week. “What is a play?” asks my son.
As the play begins, it’s fun to watch the faces of children, mine including, shrieking with delight when the actors tell their story and elicit participation. Every child wants to answer the query posed by the actors. Half the time the audience — the children and adults — are in splits.
Kids having a blast at Prithvi. PICS COURTESY/Manish Mansinh
Prithvi Theatre is a subsidiary of a trust created to promote theatre in India. Built by actor Shashi Kapoor in memory of his father Prithviraj Kapoor in 1978, the space hosts workshops, play and is a space where theatre people can rehearse. Growing with the theatre is the famous Prithvi Café and its famous cutting chai, the Prithvi bookstore and the Prithvi Gallery. Every November, the theatre becomes home to the annual Prithvi Theatre Festival, with a theme that changes every year.
Every summer — from April to all of June — the theatre brings out a range of plays especially for children. If you are part of the mailing list of Prithvi you will see the wide array of plays that are on show. Titled Summertime@Prithvi, plays are planned and put up targeting children from the age of three onwards.
Plays for children are programmed at 11 am and 3 pm to 12 pm and 4 pm, all week during the season. Summertime@Prithvi is aimed at exposing children to the wonders of theatre and in the bargain, creating a future audience who appreciate, understand and love theatre.
At the end, the kids are invited on stage to dance with the actors and the children surge on the dais to dance and chat. When the lights come up we stream to Prithvi café where apart from the usual fare, kids can tuck into smileys, Masala French fries with cheesy dips and assorted sandwiches, made especially for children.
Rating: 4/5
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