Nissar Allana's Talk on 8th Oct 2016 at NGMA, Mumbai

One of the most important aspects of Ebrahim Alkazi's work in the theatre, is the emphasis he laid on the setting for his plays. This was an aspect of modern Indian theatre that was in the germinal stage, as there had been practically no training in the field of set design in India post Independence. Set Design for Alkazi was also very important, because he stressed that the importance of set design in theatre as an integration of all the arts, and therefore theatre was not just about the performer. Set design, lighting, costume design and music were as integral to a play as was the actor, and in fact these other elements, drawn from the other arts, facilitated the actor in his expression of the play and in interpreting his role as a character in a play.

Alkazi was greatly influence bu the Swiss Theatre designer and architect Adolphe Appia, whose theories on scenography were to change the course of European theatre at the turn of the 20th century. Alkazi interpreted Appia's concepts of theatre and adapted these ideas to his own work. The theatres Alkazi designed, played an important part of the stage design, because these theatres provided a new possibility for integrating stage design with the action of the plays.

Essentially Alkazi's stage designs could be categorized formally into different styles that he used in his designs, and the talk analyzes these ideas.

For Press Listing

Please find details for the upcoming talk:

Name of the talk: Alkazi Designs The Stage – An Illustrated Talk by Nissar Allana on the Scenography of E. Alkazi

Date: 8^th October, 2016

Time: 6 pm

Venue: National Gallery of Modern Art, Sir Cowasji Jehangir Public Hall, M.G Road, Fort, Mumbai.