By George,its classic

To be enacted in the city on August 5,at Regency Ballroom,Hyatt Regency,it will be one of Shaw’s three creations to be staged. Titled ‘By George’ and produced by Motley,a theatre group ,the performances have been directed by Naseeruddin Shah. So expect a classic show of Shaw’s comic prowess and his attention to detail. Apart from Village Wooing,a one act play titled, How He Lied To Her Husband and a long poem,English Pronunciation,on the peculiarities of spoken English will be presented.

The lead characters in Village Wooing will be played by Faizal Rashid and Ahilya Kumar,while How He Lied To Her Husband will feature Anand Tower,Emit Shah,Aseem Hatters,Kenny Desai and Trisha Patel. Desai will also recite English Pronunciation. Talking about the play Rashid,a graduate of the acting batch of the FTII,says,”The play has a different quality about it – it works entirely on words and dialogues.”

The medley,which has been showcased in other cities before coming to Pune,faithfully portrays Shaw’s trademark wit,his ability to go beyond the obvious,armed with humor and his masterful use of the English language. The adaptation points to the current state of Indian theatre where a lot of inspiration still comes from literary masters. But,Rashid feels that there is no dearth of original work either. “There are a lot of playwrights who are doing wonderfully well,” he says. “The Writer’s Block,organised every two years,produces excellent work. Plays like Interview and Raga are so splendidly written. It’s all adding a lot of value to the craft.”

Apart from plays,Rashid has acted in a few films like Raavan and My Friend Pinto. But he is of the opinion that there is still a lot to be done as far as theatre is concerned. “I have looked at films but it is theatre that inspires me. There is so much happening in theatre,in Mumbai specifically,where I am now based.” Mumbai,according to Rashid,is full of talent -of both actors and playwrights.

Working with one of the finest actors of the countries only gladdens Rashid. “The kind of freedom that Naseeruddin Shah gives to an actor,the way he understands the finer nuances of portrayal of a role and the way he balances film and theatre is just great.”