Gurgaon kids perform to a full house despite Saturday’s storm

Gurgaon saw a crazy dust storm followed by heavy rains on Saturday evening, but a theatre performance by Gurgaon kids still saw a packed house at Zest in Apparel House. The play was the first to be held at Apparel House after Epicentre shut down last year. The group had struggled to make their eighth annual summer dance work last year, given the scarcity of theatres in Gurgaon.
Directed by Swati Mohan, the play 'Be A Pumpkin! It’s Great!' was a part of Danza Performing Arts’ 9th Annual Summer Dance Theatre Production and had performers as young as five. “This was just a total surprise. We hadn’t expected this kind of a response. I had thought that we will not go forward with this year’s dance production because it is just not possible to do anything in Gurgaon anymore! But we’re standing here and we did it,” said Swati.
A dance performed to explain the plot of the play
Despite a power cut in the middle of the performance, the young artists performed to loud claps and cheers by Gurugrammers, who made sure to boost their morale while the lights were out. The play was about being who one really is and not giving into pressure from others, and started with four clowns showing how they live life like a pumpkin, without a care in the world. It then went on to portray how fairy tales are not just for kids and why adults should not abandon playfulness. Every act was followed by a synopsis, with a little sher-o-shayari by Malti Sawhney.

“This was so refreshing. I really like watching plays and it had been so long since I attended one here. The kids were great and the play was so gripping,” said Siddharth Prasad, an audience member. Many had come to watch the play only because it was happening in Gurgaon after such a long time. “Of course I had to come! There was a dearth of theatres in Gurgaon and the very fact that there was a play happening in the city made me come here. Hopefully, we’ll have more plays in the city now,” said Shivalika Chauhan, another audience member. The play concluded with dance performances on songs like I Got That Feeling, The Greatest, Best Day Of My Life by the kids from the play.
Despite heavy dust storm and rain, Gurgaon kids performed the play to a full house on Saturday
A SERIOUS CONVERSATION: Clowns Nidhu Nayar, Anuvrat Patil and Anchita Patil, in the play
Actors show the working of a clock and pendulum through dance, depicting how everyone is rushing through time
Malti Sawhney, narrator of the play
- Shambhavi.Modgill@timesgroup.com