At a time when most of the productions running in local theatres are adapted and translated from foreign musical plays, bringing an original Urdu musical can be a challenging task. But the team behind Sabz has done it.
Sabz is an Urdu musical play, produced by Umer Hameed, who runs his own theatre company called Hazaar Daastan. Written and directed by Abdullah Farhatullah, the play has been choreographed by Wahab Shah.
Addressing a press conference at Karachi Press Club on Thursday, April 7, Farhatullah said: “Sabz is a play that talks about Pakistan, the nation and our approach towards sociopolitical issues.”
Farhatullah was earlier a part of the team’s behind theatre productions like Bombay Dreams and Come Again.
Introducing the play, he said: “I wrote the play about a year ago and then we held auditions in Lahore around September 2010. In December of that same year, it was staged in that city.”
Talking about the overall response of the play in past, the director said: “Great reviews have come forth, regarding this play, from the general public and the media publications. It has been very encouraging.”
However, the play still had to bear losses. “Though we went into a loss when we staged the play in Lahore, we certainly hope that the Karachi audience is different and will hopefully appreciate our effort,” he said.
Explaining the title Sabz, Farhatullah said: “The colours that we have experienced are of corruption and bribery. Now is the time to experience the colour green. Sabz is about bringing forth the colour of the Pakistani flag, the colour of our nationalism back.”
Though the play is yet to open for the general public in Karachi, certain corporate events have already highlighted the play. “The script is a hit with the audience,” said Farhatullah.
The writer asserted: “This is an original play, not what is happening in England or on the streets of America. This one is about Pakistan.”
When it comes to the production of Sabz, Umer Hameed is not a new name in the country’s theatre scene. Hameed was earlier involved in projects like Phantom of the Opera, Bombay Dreams, Tom Dick & Harry and Moulin Rouge. Speaking to The Express Tribune, he said: “The message that we are giving out to the audience is that of peace, love and harmony. While self reflecting — we wanted to know what our contribution was towards building our nation? The play is an answer to that question.”
The play is tentatively scheduled to run at the Arts Council Auditorium, Karachi, from April 21 to May 4.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 9th, 2011.
COMMENTS (1)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ