BWW Previews: MOTHER COURAGE AND HER CHILDREN at NCPA, Mumbai

A new rendition of German playwright and poet Bertolt Brecht's classic Mother Courage and Her Children will be shown at the Jamshed Bhabha auditorium, NCPA. Directed by Quasar Thakore Padamsee, Mother Courage and Her Children is a biting satirical play that talks about the concerns that we all may be facing in today's world. It talks about survival, entrepreneurship and the absurdity of war. Says Aadyam artistic director Divya Bhatia, "Mother Courage and Her Children is a play about fortitude and hope in the face of adversity. While it is set in a war zone, it is really about how people around the world confront everyday battles and find a way to survive. It is an inspirational tale with a canvas of epic proportions but whose story is specific and immediate. Mother Courage and Her Children is also an ode to mothers around the world, who overcome the gravest of obstacles and challenges, to simply play their parts with determination and courage."

Quasar's ensemble cast will see the return of theatre veteran Arundhati Nag to the Mumbai stage after a gap of 38 years. Nag, who will be playing the title role, will be ably supported by Abhishek Krishnan, Aseem Hattangady, Asif Ali Beg, Bhavna Pani, Bhushan Vikas, Keith Sequeira, Rajat Tiwari, Tavish Bhattacharyya, and Trupti Khamkar.

Brecht wrote the play in 1939 and set it over the course of 12 years (1624 to 1636) that are represented in 12 scenes. Quasar sets it in the Indian context without limiting it to socio-political shades, without setting time restrictions to its narrative and without taking away its universal appeal.

Mother Courage and her children