Curtains down on The Company Theatre’s celebrated play ‘Piya Beharupiya’, last shows in Bengaluru on July 15-16 

The Company Theatre’s Piya Beharupiya, a musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, is ready to close its curtains. Having seen 270 shows across the globe over the last 10 years, its last performance will be in Bengaluru on July 15 & 16.

A musical adaptation of one of William Shakespeare’s best known romantic comedies Twelfth Night, The Company Theater’s Piya Beharupiya is ready to close its curtains. The production will perform its last set of shows in Bengaluru at A.D.A Rangamandira, J.C. Road, on July 15 and 16 at 7 pm. 

Commissioned for The Globe Festival in London back in 2012, the play, directed by Atul Kumar, is a bold and intense interpretation of its original version. Translated by Amitosh Nagpal, the play boats an impressive originality that perfectly complements the Nautanki style of the performance. Despite performing over 270 shows across the globe, the production has gained a repetitive audience.  

Sticking to the original names of the characters, Piya Beharupiya is set in Olivia’s household. Two campaigns are being quietly waged — one by the lovesick lord Orsino; the other by an alliance of servants and hangers-on against the high-handedness of her steward, the pompous Malvolio. When Orsino engages the cross-dressed Viola to plead with Olivia on his behalf, a bittersweet chain of events follows. But soon enough, mistaken identities and romantic interests converge, and the comedy is set in motion. 

With the production ready to pack its set, director Atul Kumar shared with The Hindu his journey with the production and the decision to let go of the play. “We have done more than 270 shows, and most of us are done with the play on a creative level. We could have reinvented the play with new actors, but that would compromise the quality of the play. I prefer to close it when the play is up there and in people’s memory. When plays come to an end, some people express themselves and some do not, which is totally alright,” he says.  

Talking about the relevance of the play 10 years since its debut, Atul says “Our awareness of the content of the play has changed in these 10 years. There are many things in the play which we ourselves find problematic today, be it political or body shaming. The entire team and I were ignorant of this when we made the play, and the audience kept taking it. But today there is no way any production team can escape from what they put on stage. My 17 year-old daughter, who was 6-years-old when the play was adapted, pointed out things that shouldn’t be in the play as she got older. The play kept changing and morphing over time. The actors got more comfortable and there was more room for improvisation.” 

“Another reason we want to end this journey is the tight schedule of the actors. The entire cast has turned directors and producers themselves and run their own theatre companies now, which is great and that is how it must be. All of them have grown with the play and have moved forward in their lives professionally and personally. Getting the dates of so many talented artists, and scheduling time to rehearse and perform the show is not easy,” Atul adds.  

Filled with unforgettable characters, the 135-minute piece has a cast of remarkable actors — including Sagar Deshmukh (as Orsino), Geetanjali Kulkarni (as Viola), Mansi Multani (as Olivia), Gagan Riar (as Toby), Mantra Mugdha (as Andrew), Trupti Khamkar (as Maria), Neha Saraf (as Feste), Saurabh Nayyar (as Malvolio) and Amitosh (as Sebastian).