City theatre show set to break taboos around erotica

As the founder of theatre and performance arts group, Chennai Arts Theatre, B Charles, who has witnessed and been part of the city’s theatre scene for several years, noticed several subjects remaining a taboo for the stage. “There were a lot of epics that were discussed on the stage. But, I felt that topics like sexuality and sex remained a taboo. Nobody was talking about these subjects. That was how I decided to curate a show named ‘Erotica’, which had its first season last year. Through the show, theatre directors and writers were given the theme of eroticism and were asked to explore it in their own way,” Charles tells DT Next.

After a resounding response from theatre-goers last year, the show is set to return for a second season. “The short plays last year discussed a wide range of subjects — a modern day couple discussing intimacy, a play on the devadasi system, the life of a lesbian couple and another one that spoke of orgasms. We had a great response from the audience last year. The event was meant for those aged above 18, and we had many youngsters, as well as 60-year-olds taking part keenly. We don’t intend to just raise eyeballs, as we are delving into the subjects historically as well,” elaborates Charles.

As part of the second edition, four 20-minute plays will be staged at the Alliance Francaise of Madras on February 29. The plays include Govinda Geeta (directed by Meera Sitaraman), Yeah baby (directed by Sunandha Raghunathan), The Pet (directed by Vinodhini Vaidyanathan) and Puthagam Indri Sollitharen Va (directed by Maya S Krishnan). “While Govinda Geeta, adapted from poet Jayadeva’s work, will include the reminiscences Radha has as she waits for her lover Krishna to visit her, Puthagam Indri Sollitharen Va will be a comical play about a sexpert and The Pet goes into various erotic practices like bondage,” he says.

Playwright Sunandha, who had written the play Yeah baby along with Prateeksha Chandrasekaran, will tackle the subject of eroticism in everyday life. “The play is an excavation of what is erotic. We wanted to explore the theme through an interfaith couple. In the current climate of turmoil in our country, we were keen to delve into how the couple would navigate their way through what is happening around. It is also playful and fun play, with theatrical movements to show eroticism,” Sunandha says. As a director, she always attempts to tell the story effectively, she admits. “I tend to think of the audience as abstract. It doesn’t matter whether an 18-year-old watches it or a 65-year-old. I’m just looking to communicate the story effectively,” she asserts.