Victor Hugo comes calling at Lotus temple

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The circular stage at the Lotus Temple has been turned into a barn and glints with lights to welcome Victor Hugo, with a leading English theatre group, The Footsbarn, formally having opened its doors to stage its masterpiece, The Man Who Laughs, in New Delhi on November 14 and 16.

“All things are in this laugh of mine, at which you laugh today!” The Footsbarn Travelling Theatre is bringing with them an exquisite pageantry of love, humour, tragedy, music and physical theatre.

THE STORY

The play is set in England in 1690. A nobleman, who has offended the King, is put to death and his son is punished with a permanent scar across his face: A grin that will remind him “to laugh forever at his fool of a father”. As he grows to manhood, the scarred boy journeys through our bizarre world, always half-sad and half-smiling.
The adventure of the play begins on the coast of Cornwall in a stormy night, where Footsbarn began its own epic journey 35 years ago and the protagonists are travelling clowns. Set against the background of a Shakespearean world, they travel to Southwark fair and the royal court in London. An epic, a great human adventure to be told simply and fully, what’s more exciting?

THE NOMADIC TRAVELLERS

Renowned for their visually acrobatic adaptations of classics — Shakespeare and Molière, for example — that transcend the barrier of language with a unique blend of visual theatre, music and magic, the group will play in a mixed version of French and English. Footsbarn has produced nearly 60 plays and travelled worldwide and is a truly multi-national group. The actors possess a multiplicity of talents and theatrical techniques all of which inhabit and enrich every performance.
“We wanted to do this story from a very long time. It is realistic and full of emotions. It is easy for people to correlate. Victor Hugo wrote this novel in 1860 and is certainly the most loved author. Translated into a number of languages and adapted for the stage and screen innumerable times, our adaptation of the story has been appreciated by the audiences wherever we have performed,” informed Paddy Hayter, artistic director of the group.
Footsbarn gets its name from the barn owned by the Barn family in Cornwall where the group began its rehearsals in 1971. The idea to set up the company was to take theatre to people who didn’t have access to it. “We used to perform on the beaches, in villages and on streets to take theatre to the people who could not afford to watch the plays in theatres. In 1975, we started performing in a tent that could accommodate around 200 people. Today, the theatre has a space of around 600 people. During the late ’70s, we had to leave our country but we chose to be around Europe. The times were changing, theatre was evolving and so was the company. What began as an English theatre group started turning into an international group with Polish, French and Greek artistes joining it. Since then, we have been touring countries like France, Germany and India, conducting workshops and performing at various places. The language barrier no more exists and we perform in Greek, French and other languages as well,” said Hayter.
The group first came to India in 1995 with the adaptation of their play Romeo and Juliet. “That was a five city-tour and after that it was in 2005, a seven-city trip. After that we have got an opportunity this time to be here,” he says and adds that, over the years, he has seen the Indian audience evolving and youngsters getting more and more interested in English theatre.

AN AFFAIR WITH INDIA

“The most amazing experience was when five Indians joined us when we did a workshop in Kerala. Though not all of them are with us, one of the Indian actors we had, opted to marry a French girl. Indian musicians are great to work with. We will be looking for more artistes during our workshops in Europe soon. I find them eager to work with them for some good English productions. They are always open for cultural exchange and they love to talk. It feels amazing,” he added.
Not only actors, the Footsbarn Theatre Group is also working on a project related to India.
“We are looking forward to building a theatre tent in India with Indian architects. This will open up the exchange of theatrical activities which will encourage more theatre tours to India,” said Hayter.
“After completing their Indian tour, the group is looking forward to work with Indian actors and musicians for their next production, The Tempest by Shakespeare,” concluded Hayter.