It’s celebration time for theatre lovers as the two-week-long Six And the City festival begins at Natarani tomorrow. The festival opens on Friday night with the much-praised play Meanwhile Elsewhere.
Earlier known as the Sunday to Sunday Theatre Festival, it was redesigned after Covid and now runs across two weekends. “We selected six plays from over 200 productions to present this year,” says Mallika Sarabhai.
The opening play Meanwhile Elsewhere, directed by Yadavan Chandran, has received wide appreciation at festivals throughout the year. It takes audiences on an emotional, immersive journey through cities filled with love and longing, often moving viewers to tears.
On Saturday, the festival features Equus, a psychological drama exploring pain, love, passion and the extreme actions they can inspire. Based on a real incident, the play slowly reveals the mystery behind a shocking act of violence. Sunday’s performance, The Nights by Anurupa Roy, reimagines stories from Arabian Nights—tales that have travelled across centuries as entertainment, moral lessons, and stories of power and desire.
The following weekend brings three more productions. On December 12, Purane Chawal, directed by Sumeet Vyas, will be staged. It is a Hindi adaptation of Neil Simon’s The Sunshine Boys, set in today’s Mumbai, about two retired comedy legends who reunite after 12 years for a major comedy festival.
The next day features The Far Post by Yuki Ellias, a creative and physical comedy about dreams, desperation, and the strange things we do to find meaning in life. The festival ends with Runaway Brides, a bold and humorous piece about women who break free from the paths chosen for them. With its surprises and laughs, it promises to leave audiences with lasting memories of this diverse and vibrant theatre festival.