The House of Bilquis Bibi, Oldham Coliseum Theatre
Price from:
£18.50
Opening Times:
28/09/2010 - 02/10/2010
Category:
Plays
,
Theatre
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The House of Bilquis Bibi
Federico García Lorca’s 1936 masterpiece, The House of Bernarda Alba gets a modern update, set in present day Pakistan with a stern matriarch ruling over five unmarried daughters.
In The House of Bilquis Bibi, the eponymous mother presides over a house in mourning. With her husband gone, Bilquis must uphold her family’s honour at all costs – the fates of five unmarried daughters lie in her hands. Her solution: to marry off eldest girl Abida to their cousin Pappo, who is visiting Pakistan from America. Bilquis turns a blind eye to the illicit nightly visits Pappo pays to his fiancée’s balcony. But as she slowly realises that more than one daughter is staying awake for him, the temperature in the house rises and a tragedy unfolds.
This new production comes from Tamasha, the company founded in 1989 by director Kristine Landon-Smith and writer and actor Sudha Bhuchar, whose previous productions include East Is East (a number of Tamasha's original cast went on to star in the hit film) and last year's hit, Bollywood-inspired, remake of Wuthering Heights.
Set in present day Jhang, Sudha Bhuchar’s poetic adaptation tells a personal, yet subtly political story of small lives with global ties.
Singer and actress Ila Arun, a household name in India and set to appear in this year's West Is West (a movie sequel to East Is East) plays the domineering matriarch Bilquis. She leads an all-female cast of nine, which also includes Indira Joshi (The Kumars at No. 42, Grumpy Old Women).
Performed in English with some Urdu and Punjabi.
What people are saying...
“Delicately written and compellingly acted… Ila Arun makes a commanding matron whose threatening stare, tautly drawn lip, and downcast gaze send chills down my spine”
Spoonfed
“Class, complicated matters of the heart and the role of women take centre stage… for powerful, thought-provoking drama, Tamasha clearly triumphs every time”
Official London Theatre
"This intricate play about honour, propriety and fear finds a perfect home in the house of Pakistani matriarch Bilquis Bibi. The life in a small town in Pakistan is beautifully etched in the play" Asian Age