An accomplished storyteller, he runs the gamut of emotions from engaging joviality, forceful command or drunkenness to uncertainty, poignant tenderness or devastated grief. – Caroline Smart
“The Power To”
A power pact one man performance by Pranesh Maharaj
The power to …what? The power to forgive? The power to hit? The power to work? The power to pray?
From the Bard to the latest Hollywood or Bollywood story, from serials to features; nothing is spared in confronting ones fears, falling in love and above all the satisfaction of vengeance. Do we not find ourselves in this modern world; constantly seeking retribution and compensation? It is becoming a need to want. Yet our faiths are diminishing. Not just right before our eyes but we are the ones completely and utterly responsible for this diminishing faith.
There seems to be a tendency to pray and be religious only when necessary and most times to show face; all this whilst Nightclubs are getting busier and the sale of alcohol and drugs are soaring. This is a yard stick for our faith in … well, faith.
Picture this: You are have a zest for life and big dreams; yet they are stifled negligibly by incidents that you are able to pick up from, dust yourself and move on. But then; something happens that becomes a game changer and you just cannot move on. What do you do? Do you seek retribution for your life? Do you seek vengeance? Do you seek compensation? How do you move on?
Krishna Gopichund is in a similar position. A friendly neighbour visits at the time when he is packing to leave the house and area in which he was born. Boxes and boxes of memories locked in his mind. Krishna needs to leave and has no other choice. The choices he does have are what chapters of his life does he leave open and which ones he needs to close. Because without closure moving on will be almost impossible.
Amidst the memories of gory happenings and melodramatic imagery are laughter and fun riding parallel with tragedy, grief and sacrifice. “The Power To” is a one man play that focuses largely on societies ailments and how its effects can ruin one single life at a time. We read of tragic stories in Newspapers and watch them on TV news and all sorts of available media. Some stories make us shrug whilst most are just something that is happening to someone else. What if it was you?
The Play runs at the Stanmore Regional Hall on Friday 09 December 2016 at 19h00 and at the SSD Temple Hall in Stanger on the 10 December 2016 at 6pm.
Tickets for the Phoenix run are available at Maharaj’s Prayer Goods in the Phoenix Plaza and the Mount Edgecombe Plaza.
For the run in Kwa-Dukuza tickets are available at Raymens Supermarket in Stanger Manor or CHandini’s Tours in Stanger.
Engaging emotions, delicate presentation and a real journey of tragedy. A must watch. – Taresh Harreepershad