NAPA's laughter festival takes a paranormal turn with 'Wapsi'
The play is a commendable adaptation of Noel Coward's 'Blithe Spirit'
KARACHI:
The National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) Laughter Festival is underway since last week and brings three new comedies to the stage. The festival kicked off with Good Luck Darling, an original by Athar Shah while taking a rather paranormal twist with Wapsi, the second and ongoing play.
Being an adaptation of Noel Coward's Blithe Spirit, Wapsi features seven, extremely flawed characters - an essential element for a potential comedy - being stuck in an inter-dimensional situation. The play is directed by Zarqa Naz, who graduated from Napa in 2016.
The main characters include Mansoor (Syed Arsalan), his wife Areeba (Najma Kifayat) and his late wife Naureen (Erum Bashir). Other characters include their maid, Reshma, a psychic medium, Khanum Batool and the couples' guests, Dr Adil and his wife, played by Mahjabeen Rehman, Shumaila Tariq, Faizan Chawla and Safia Bhalaisha respectively.
Wapsi revolves around the return of a dead wife's soul, portrayed as the young and free spirit who intends to separate her husband from his present wife. Naureen, as played by Bashir is the strongest, given her no-strings-attached attitude from the mortal world, since she's dead anyway. It also allows ample room for a theatrical performance which Bashir pulls off remarkably.
On the contrary, the character of Mansoor, inspired by Charles from the original play, has been explored quite fractionally with respect to his occupation as a novelist. However, when perceived from a commercial lens, the sheer touch of his subtle playboy humour feels justified. With the character having married thrice, the irony of understanding women and not being able to cope with them is also quite colloquial.
The revamped plot takes from local archetypes, presenting the two wives as extremely jealous individuals who are constantly competing with one another for a man's attention. However, being directed by a woman, the play irrevocably shows how the competition between the females is reinstated by a man in their lives, given he always ends up paying more attention to the one he doesn't have.
Naz's approach to Bashir's character is quite coherent, as she makes her jump around from one corner of the stage to another, drawing the audience towards her playful side. Making it easier to forgive her flaws and unfaithfulness, while making it difficult to love Areeba, regardless of her honesty.
This makes Mansoor's divided attention justified as well, leaving ample room for comedy without feeling sorry for anyone. While also delivering the inspiration that Blithe Spirit takes from - with its title being driven from Percy Bysshe Shelley's ode To a Skylark:
"Hail to thee, blithe Spirit! Bird thou never wert.. Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thoughts."
Naz's choice of music being Noor Jehan's, Mujhe Apni Duniya Main Wapas Bula Le, also appears quite ironic for a comedic moment - since it is the very song used by the psychic medium to bring back Naureen. The song wishes for the past to return while the play shows how this reappearance can become toxic.
Aside from the commendable execution of certain characters, Wapsi fails to do justice with its ending as the second last scene looked forced and the last seemed too abrupt. It certainly pays off in terms of the funny and emotional moments, but the character of the maid could have been better developed.
Have something to add to the story? Share it in the comments below.
The National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) Laughter Festival is underway since last week and brings three new comedies to the stage. The festival kicked off with Good Luck Darling, an original by Athar Shah while taking a rather paranormal twist with Wapsi, the second and ongoing play.
Being an adaptation of Noel Coward's Blithe Spirit, Wapsi features seven, extremely flawed characters - an essential element for a potential comedy - being stuck in an inter-dimensional situation. The play is directed by Zarqa Naz, who graduated from Napa in 2016.
The main characters include Mansoor (Syed Arsalan), his wife Areeba (Najma Kifayat) and his late wife Naureen (Erum Bashir). Other characters include their maid, Reshma, a psychic medium, Khanum Batool and the couples' guests, Dr Adil and his wife, played by Mahjabeen Rehman, Shumaila Tariq, Faizan Chawla and Safia Bhalaisha respectively.
Wapsi revolves around the return of a dead wife's soul, portrayed as the young and free spirit who intends to separate her husband from his present wife. Naureen, as played by Bashir is the strongest, given her no-strings-attached attitude from the mortal world, since she's dead anyway. It also allows ample room for a theatrical performance which Bashir pulls off remarkably.
On the contrary, the character of Mansoor, inspired by Charles from the original play, has been explored quite fractionally with respect to his occupation as a novelist. However, when perceived from a commercial lens, the sheer touch of his subtle playboy humour feels justified. With the character having married thrice, the irony of understanding women and not being able to cope with them is also quite colloquial.
The revamped plot takes from local archetypes, presenting the two wives as extremely jealous individuals who are constantly competing with one another for a man's attention. However, being directed by a woman, the play irrevocably shows how the competition between the females is reinstated by a man in their lives, given he always ends up paying more attention to the one he doesn't have.
Naz's approach to Bashir's character is quite coherent, as she makes her jump around from one corner of the stage to another, drawing the audience towards her playful side. Making it easier to forgive her flaws and unfaithfulness, while making it difficult to love Areeba, regardless of her honesty.
This makes Mansoor's divided attention justified as well, leaving ample room for comedy without feeling sorry for anyone. While also delivering the inspiration that Blithe Spirit takes from - with its title being driven from Percy Bysshe Shelley's ode To a Skylark:
"Hail to thee, blithe Spirit! Bird thou never wert.. Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thoughts."
Naz's choice of music being Noor Jehan's, Mujhe Apni Duniya Main Wapas Bula Le, also appears quite ironic for a comedic moment - since it is the very song used by the psychic medium to bring back Naureen. The song wishes for the past to return while the play shows how this reappearance can become toxic.
Aside from the commendable execution of certain characters, Wapsi fails to do justice with its ending as the second last scene looked forced and the last seemed too abrupt. It certainly pays off in terms of the funny and emotional moments, but the character of the maid could have been better developed.
Have something to add to the story? Share it in the comments below.