Written by: Farheen Abdullah
Posted on: April 18, 2018 | 
| 中文
Soo e Daar Chalay
Inspired by Greek mythology and a play by Sophocles, Antigone is a tragedy by Jean Anouilh, written during the height of the Nazi occupation of France. The story revolves around Oedipus, the King of Thebes and the father of four children, and his family. Upon Oedipus' death, it is agreed that each of his sons, Eteocles and Polynices, would ascend the throne every year, one after the other. After the first year, however, Eteocles, refuses to step down. Polynices is furious and the two brothers kill each other in a duel, making Creon, Oedipus's brother, the king. Creon orders that Eteocles be buried in honour, while leaving Polynices’ body to rot. However, Antigone, Oediopus’ younger daughter, wishes to bury her second brother as well, and decides to rise against Creon.
Originally performed in Paris in 1944, Antigone has been translated into Urdu by Khalid Ahmed, and the play by the name of ‘Soo-e-Daar Chalay’ was first performed by Tehrik-e-Niswan in Pakistan, under Khalid Ahmed’s direction. More recently, Soo-e-Daar Chalay, was performed by NAPA graduates, also directed by Khalid Ahmed, followed by a two-day performance at The Second Floor (T2F), on 14th and 15th April, 2018.
Dedicated to the late Sabeen Mahmud and Asma Jehangir, the latest performance had a few glitches to overcome, before they could nail the act. The biggest challenge came in the form of the venue, since T2F isn’t designed for theatre performances and is, thus, much smaller than other venues where Antigone has been previously performed. Additionally, the organization has been struggling with attracting audiences for a while, which resulted in the room being half empty at the opening performance. Hence, the show started twenty minutes after the scheduled time. Nevertheless, the director made efficient use of the limited space, through minimizing the transitions between scenes, through usage of props. What was particularly interesting was how Khalid Ahmed himself stepped in to serve as the narrator, introducing each character, and facilitating the listeners’ understanding of the plot.
However, the cast of the play itself rose to the occasion, fulfilling the high expectations of their viewers. The strength of the play was the acting. With an almost equal number of male and female performers, everyone did justice to their characters with remarkable prowess. While Aisha Iqbal as Antigone, captivated the audience with her calm aura, others like Monazza Fatima Naqvi as Ismene, did a stupendous job with their dialogue delivery. Similarly, Irfan Bardai as Pahredar was commendable in his role of an officer along with Nadir Hussain (Creon), whose patched up white hair was a distraction from his excellent delivery. The technical details, which the artists paid attention to, should also be appreciated. While the small scale of the performance did not require much voice throw, dialogues were still delivered in a clear and audible manner. The actors were also careful, never to have their backs to the audience, even when exiting the stage.
It was a ninety minutes long play, and some run on dialogues could have been cut short, but all the scenes were necessary for the progression of the plot. With its simple and minimalistic approach, Soo-e-Daar Chalay proved that at the end of the day, the main element necessary for putting together a great play, is good acting. Even though the team did not have an elaborate set, props, or costumes to aid their performance, they put together a stimulating and interesting performance.
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