Adakar to Showcase Australian Talent at the 8th Theatre Olympics in India

After its Successful run in Sydney, Adakar’s play ‘Shri 420’ has been selected as part of the showcase at the 8^th Theatre Olympics, hosted by the National School of Drama in India. The ‘Shri 420’ cast and crew will travel to India to perform their critically acclaimed adaptation of Molière’s ‘Tartuffe’.The 8^th Theatre Olympics will take place from 17^th February to 8^th April 2018 in 17 major cities across India, and will include 500 plays and 700 ambience performances from across the world.

Adakar will be travelling to India with a team of 18 performers and back stage crew and will have 2 performances of play “Shir420” in Delhi at the Kamani Auditorium on 26^th March and in Mumbai at Rabindra Natya Mandir on 28^th March.

The Theatre Olympics were established in 1993 in Delphi, Greece as the first international theatre festival. The Theatre Olympics seek to engage in cross-cultural exchanges through theatre’s rich and diverse heritage and experimentation.This will be the first time that the Theatre Olympics are hosted in India, having previously been held in countries such as Poland,South Korea and China. Adakar’s team will have the opportunity to participate in allied activities like exhibitions, seminars, and interactive workshops with leading luminaries of theatrical world.

“We are delighted and honoured to be selected to represent Australia at such a prestigious theatre festival. The selection process was tough and rigorous, and it is humbling to know that Adakar has been nominated among the 43 foreign plays to be showcased at the Theatre Olympics. Team Adakar is incredibly excited to travel to India and to perform in front of an international audience,” said Adakar’s Artistic Director, Saba Zaidi Abdi.

Adakar will be performing ‘Shri 420’, an Indian adaptation of Molière’s 17^th century play ‘Tartuffe’.  ‘Shri 420’ was adapted for Adakar by eminent Indian theatrical personality Atul Tiwari, who also co-directed the play alongside Saba Zaidi Abdi. The play, originally staged at Sydney’s NIDA Theatres, uses a comedic lens to analyse society’s religious zeal and class divides. The India team will star Prasad Durafe, Nisar Sirguroh, Aparna Vats, Saba Zaidi Abdi Avantika Tomar, Jyotsna Sharma, Smarjit Dey, Abhishek Sood, Jagat Sharma, Deepak Joshin, Farjad Mehmood and Aditi Dey.

“The international travel costs will be borne by the individual theatre groups. Adakar is proud to say that all its members have come forward to buy their tickets which shows their commitment and passion for theatre. While we actively sought sponsorships and travel grants for the cast and crew members to travel to India and showcase Australian-South Asian talent on the global stage, we did not receive any support from local sources,” one of the Adakar ‘s members said.