Good news for theatre lovers in Mumbai!
The Royal Opera House will host Natya Velhal, the first-ever four-day Marathi theatre festival, from April 6 to April 9, 2023.
The festival is designed in such a way that the audience can experience a range of topics through the performances, including sangeet natak, suspense, humour, thriller, folk, lavani, love stories, and experimental, all under one roof.
Natya Velhal, Opera House Rangamanchavar Marathi Natakanchi Parvani is an initiative to encourage regional theatre groups and welcome the audience to experience the grandeur of the Royal Opera House through their favourite Marathi plays and musicals.
Grand opening
The festival opens on a grand note with a mystery-themed play called '38 Krishna Villa,' further lined up with a suspense thriller called 'Kaali Raani' both directed by renowned actor Vijay Kenkare. Followed by 'Sir Premacha Kay Karaycha,' a stellar story about the dilemma of love.
Performances by stalwarts
The festival will host performances by some of the radiant stalwarts of the Marathi theatre industry, such as Girish Oak, Makarand Deshpande, Suchita Thatte, Gajanan Paranjpe, Amruta Subhash, Madhura Welankar Satam, Saurabh Gokhale, Anita Date, Sandesh Jadhav, Gauri Jadhav and many more.
Dramas
One cannot miss the journey of the language from the birth of the Marathi language till today, it's fun and facts, gossip, singing, dancing, drama, and dialogue is a quality and beautiful interweaving of the play 'Madhurav - Boru Te Blog'. The humorous and edgy, dark comedy play 'Punashcha Honeymoon' takes us on a journey through a couple who revisits their honeymoon destination to get a breakthrough in their stagnant relationship.
The festival also stages 'To Rajhans Ek,' an experimental drama that explores the mentality of farmers and murder mystery 'You Must Die' is grand and imposing, as one has come to expect from Vijay Kenkre’s plays. 'Prasthan Urf Exit,' is a play directed by Alok Rajwade, about an old couple that is confronting the idea of death.
Dance Musical
Also staging a unique dance musical 'Jay Shanakra Vidyadhara' a lively, dance musical performance of popular dramatizations of the works of the well-known playwright Vidyadhar Gokhale.
Lavani ke Rang
The festival will end on an electric note with an exhilarating Lavani dance performance - a traditional art form of Maharashtra. 'Lavani Ke Rang' gives a glimpse into the world of traditional Lavani artists from the viewpoint of an enigmatic and quirky theatre Malkin from the Sangeet Bari tradition.
