Bengal Bungalow back with a bang
Bedroom laughs in Bengal Bungalow. Pix by Anuradha Bandara
He may seem to have lost his memory and be full of smiles, but beware this fellow has got the kind of charm that might steal your daughter’s heart. Papa’s daughter, Lillian Fenworth is no saint either, and is quite the ‘hot’ topic amongst the locals, with her little ‘escapades’. In fact rumour has it she’s the one forcing the pilot to marry her. Poor Charles Worthing! Of course, what happens in the ‘Bengal Bungalow on September 9 and 10 at the Lionel Wendt theatre stays behind closed doors (cue awkward silence).
The comedy is deliciously tongue-in-cheek, jammed with little‘naughty humour.’ Most of those who have seen it back in 2010, or 2004, would recall sold out shows. The show was the perfect excuse to go to the theatre on a relaxed evening in Colombo.
Back with a bang and an all new cast, its writer and director, Jehan Aloysius, tells us that the new cast brings a new type of energy to the play.
“The production itself is kind of like a vintage piece. And this is the fourth run within the last 12 years. I think it’s also important to keep up with the new audiences, to remember that we are part of the Facebook generation and remember that the jokes have to be a little bit tighter and the humour also sometimes, intensified,” he says.
It’s a kind of bedroom farce comedy, written in the Ray Cooney type of humour , Jehan explains. “You have people jumping out of closets, hiding under beds, a little bit naughty humour and all that. So I think in a way, though I did write it at a young age, I developed it over many years after that.
“People tend to like it and for some reason every time we do it, we do it more as a fundraiser for humanitarian projects,” he adds.
Playwright and director Jehan Aloysius
The Sunday Times caught up with the cast at a recent rehearsal and the first to talk to us is Julian Anderson, 22, who will be playing the ‘pilot’.
“This is the second time, that I’m working with CentreStage productions,” he says, adding that working with Jehan, was the best way to start.
“I’m learning a lot here, this training I’ve never received anywhere else. It’s something I’ll take with me.”
As the story goes, he crashes into the bungalow and loses his memory, Julian explains. Lily sees him and ends up forcibly marrying him and that’s where the plot thickens.
Filling the shoes of Sachintha Dias, who played the pilot in 2010, Julian acknowledges that it is not an easy task when the character has to shift personalites.
“I walk in as the pilot, who doesn’t really know what or who he is. I don’t even recognize my own plane. Then later I get knocked out and when I wake up, I remember who I am and that’s when I turn into the stud,” he says.
ShehanWijemanne (Babs), who plays ‘Papa’, tells us that his character is very calm and relaxed. He is someone who enjoys his freedom and personal space, which is why he built the bungalow far on a hill.
“As the play develops, he starts getting a bit flustered when the different characters start intruding into his space. So that’s when you see the other side of Papa,” Shehan explains.
He concedes that there are certain areas with the character portrayal, where the cast can bring their own element, their twist to it. But in his case, Papa needs to be kept within certain parameters, because everyone else connects to him.
They’ve been at it for the past two and a half months, giving it their all. “Even off stage you try to live that character because you want it to be as realistic as possible,” Shehan explains.
As Jehan lines up the crew, for a somewhat ‘different’photo-shoot, it is a treat to watch their expressions change in a split second as they get into character.
“I’m playing a very different ‘Rama’ to what I played in 2004,”Michael Jayawardana says. He adds that when he began, he found it difficult to unlearn some of the things learnt in the past. “I had to change my voice and make some other physical changes to the character. I want to make it my own.”
The talented troupe includes Anabella Brochard, Nandun Dissanayake, Shehan (Babs) Wijemanne, Julian Anderson, Michael Jayawardana, Jordan Bryan, Patrick De Kretser, Roshane Jayampathy, Tayhani Kannangara and Prabhath Dhevindra.
The show is on September 9, and 10, and don’t let the short lines at the Wendt fool you. The theatre has taken its ticket sales online and word has it, they’re selling out like hot cakes. Tickets are priced at Rs. 2000, 1500, 1000 and 600 (Balcony).