ONE ACT PLAY COMPETITION IN KUWAIT.
On Friday 28th of this month I had an opportunity to watch the annual One Act Play competition organized by United Club of Utorda at Gulf English School, Auditorium, Rumeithiya. It was a programme comprising songs and 5 One Act Plays, 4 from the competition while the 4th of Joe Ferreira was not. Thank God it was held on Friday 28th of this month because due to the current tense situation in Kuwait many of the people would have remained at home only instead of taking risk and attending the programme. While writing these lines, in Kuwait people are in pensive mood as yesterday 30th there was some trouble in Salmiya, which is not very far from the place where the programme was held. Security is tight around this and surrounding areas. God only save this country and save us from the hands of evil people who are trying to create commotion in this peaceful country from where we earn our sustenance. We are come here to work and gain our livelihood. For this reason everyone should be more careful while moving out. It is not nice these days to roam in the night especially after the show is over. We must pray to God to protect this country from the hands of evil people.
The programme was started at 4.30 instead of scheduled time 3.30 and in the beginning the hall was not even half full but gradually more and more people seen coming. Having no required audience is creating a negative effect in the hall and pressure on the organizers. Because of the tense situation people are refraining from attending such shows and risk their security and since yesterday�s incident at Salmiya people are going to take more care, which is very imperative. Life security is more important than attending the shows in Rumeithiya.
As a matter of fact I must congratulate the organizers for successfully organizing this programme though qualitatively the programme was not of high standard. All the Plays were not of high standard though first two deserve little more appreciation not because they were excellent but they were better than the others � as to say, something is better than nothing. Inspite of this all those directors and writers along with their artistes who took so much of pain and trouble and put in lot of efforts to stage their plays deserve highest compliments. They spent money from their own pockets and spent their precious time to bring in best of their calibre. Ignatius the Xelvon received the first prize for his play �Suryak Laglam Guiran� while Salu Faleiro got second for his �Kimsam�. It was admirable to see Salu even bringing a goat on the stage to fit into his play. These two plays deserve little more attention because both of them had some matter in them and their artistes also played their roles better than those in other plays. However, according to many who attended this programme Salu�s play was better than that of Ignatius� and as such Salu should have received the first prize and not Ignatius. The failure of many of the artistes and their plays was partially due to the failure of defective mike system. This is not the first time the mike system failed in this hall, earlier too it happened. It was very pathetic at times to notice people watching this programme making mockery of the artistes performing on the stage and their plays. For tiatro and Konkani lovers it was very hurting. The artistes, directors and organizers should not give chance to the people to get bored while watching such shows. In this situation the entire image of Konkani itself is getting corroded. In fact year by year the quality of the One Act Play competition is diminishing and if nothing is done to arrest this trend then organizing such competitions will lead to failure. In Kuwait we have many talented artistes and dramatists and they can in unison create wonders on Konkani stage in Kuwait but since a few years back by applying the principle of �To Aslear Aum Nachona�, a powerful wedge has been created on Konkani Stage. Worst still is the logic of some of the so-called Konkani Stage stalwarts and organizers to succumb to the dictat of the destructive elements who are all out to destroy Konkani Stage in Kuwait. It is surprising how even the people involved in the Church affairs are also become party to the destructive elements when they should be God fearing and loving. I am sure these people involved in the Church only to promote themselves and not to be just in their approach for any situation.
Among the sideshow songs, the trio of Sylvester-Donald-Laurent deserves compliment, duet of Roney & Jasmine, solo of Bab Agnelo, duo of Seby & Seby. But among all the songs the best compliments should go to Zoro Coelho for his beautiful solo on beautiful and intellectually high topic �Ush � Ush�. The so called super Star of Konkani Stage Jose Rod and author of �To Aslear Aum Nachona� rendered his old song �Tiatrist� which he rendered earlier too, so also Michael D�Silva rendered both his old solos which we all heard in earlier shows. Both the young children like tiny tots rendered their songs admirably well. Thank God at least they in the name of Konkani songs showed their mastery over Konkani otherwise rarely we see in Kuwait our children speaking in Konkani. Seby & Seby in their duo entreat everyone to maintain unity amongst the tiatrists. I appreciate their plea and song nicely worded and nicely sung but I would have still appreciated them if they had to show their guts and openly disclose who are the tiatrists who are destroying the unity amongst us in tiatro fraternity. Aren�t they aware that �To Aslear Aum Nachona� is the method of disunity and destructive factor amongst us in Kuwait? Where are the right thinking tiatrists and others who are keeping their silence on this hara-kiri committed on the promotion of tiatro due to the arrogance of one so called super star who is backed in his destructive ideas by all who bow their heads like sub-human beings?
A. Veronica Ferandes, Kuwait.
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