Head to this children's musical play that uses the mosquito as a protagonist

It is a busy Christmas Eve down at Turtle Studios in Versova Inside the roomy loft space Saurabh Nayyar and his team from the Jubilee Theatre Company are running through the final choreography rehearsals for their musical Amidst the flurry of movements our eyes linger on the wings and black costumes worn by a few actors making the familiar yet annoying sound of mosquitosA moment from the final dress rehearsal on stageThe performance marks Nayyarrsquos first musical aimed at children and is titled Wosquito Mosquito Nayyar has written a play for children before but this is his first time directing one A mosquito might not be the most appealing protagonist for a childrenrsquos musical we tell him ldquoExactlyrdquo he chuckles adding that the insect becomes the perfect metaphor for an individual painted in black by society and nature ldquoThe negative association is quite deep in our psyche The theme of play reflects the violence and hate present in society and how we can choose to break the cycle To convey these complex ideas you have to simplify it to an image that children immediately recognizerdquo he points outAnd so the story of Kittu a newborn mosquito came into being She strikes up a friendship with a human child mdash also named Kittu mdash and rebels against the culture of harming humans This idea Nayyar remarks flips the script on a childrsquos perception of the mosquito ldquoThink about it The quest is to find positivity somehow and if one person chooses to be optimistic will they survive What challenges do they face And will others accept themrdquo he muses While it is an interesting twist on the Christmas spirit of sharing and kindness we wonder if children will be able to grasp such lofty ideas ldquoThey are smarter than you thinkrdquo the director assures usNayyar left adjusts a cast memberrsquos makeupThe rehearsals shed further light on the simplification of these concepts The movements are physical dramatic and comic They are choreographed to catchy music by Sridhar Nagraj ldquoThe music takes the story forward We must remember it is the most effective tool of communication for childrenrdquo Nagraj notes And so there is a chameleon in a catchy green outfit performing a jazzy number a maid doing the flamenco and a soothing lullaby on the stage As we watch the actors jump around mimicking gibberish lines there is a silliness that appeals to the inner child in usldquoTheatre is all about physicality You can show more with expression and movement than with words That is also the way children learn bestrdquo says choreographer Niketa Saraf For Nayyar the musical has already made its mark It has been picked up for a performance at the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival in January 2024 ldquoThe aim is to travel with the play Despite having a small team we hope to take it to schools across the state perform and get the idea across to children They are after all the key to the futurerdquo Nayyar explainsON Today 12 pm and 4 pmAT Prithvi Theatre Janki Kutir Juhu Church Road JuhuLOG ON TO inbookmyshowcomCOST Rs 350