Dubai group’s little play in Hollywood
dubai — The biggest ‘little’ play festival is happening in Hollywood and the big news is that for the first time the UAE is part of it. Dubai-based theatre group Third Half Theatre has been invited to perform in the first ever Short+Sweet Hollywood festival to be held at the prestigious Stella Adler Academy of Acting and Theatre in Los Angeles.
From the past two years, writer and director of the play, Sanjeev Dixit, and his group, have been participating and winning in the international Short+Sweet play festival, the world’s largest 10-minute theatre festival.
“Ours was the first original written play from Dubai to win at the festival,” he told Khaleej Times.
An excited Dixit said: “We have been quite active in the Dubai Short+Sweet Festival since its inception in 2013. The last two years have been exceptional for us with our plays garnering several plaudits. Short+Sweet is a global festival brand that aims to provide audiences with exciting and contemporary works that challenge and entertain.
“The creator and founder of the festival, Mark Cleary, contacted us and invited us to the inaugural Short+Sweet Hollywood that takes place all of September at the prestigious Stella Adler Theatre in Los Angeles. So in many ways it came completely out of the blue, and frankly we’re still reeling.”
The play, Tréteau, has been one of the group’s most successful pieces, winning Best Overall Production, Audience Choice, Best Director, and Best Script at the 2015 Short+Sweet Dubai festival.
Talking about the theme of the play, Dixit said: “Tréteau in many ways is a distillation of the love for the theatre that each performer shares with the audience.
“It’s an amalgamation of various styles, themes, and genres — an attempt to condense the magic of the theatre into 10 minutes. So, in effect, it has elements of all the above, except that the play doesn’t take itself too seriously.”
A rigorous ensemble piece, the sometimes confounding play has won audiences with its fluid script and inventive staging.
Teams from all over the world will be arriving in Los Angeles for the festival in addition to teams from LA and the rest of America. All the actors in the play are working professionals and have day jobs, far removed from the world of theatre and are in the age group of between 20 and 30. “We have Indian, Lebanese, and Emirati representation in the cast,” Dixit said.
The group debuted with Michael Frayn’s hilarious Noises Off and has since gone on to stage plays ranging from short monologues, ensemble pieces, to large scale full-length musicals.
In fact, after coming back from LA, Dixit will be giving the final touches on Malhaar’s Jashn-eAwadh which stages at the Centrepoint, Ductac from September 30 to October 1.
Short+Sweet play festival is taking place at the Stella Adler Theatre, Hollywood Boulevard from September 8 to September 25, 2016. Third Half Theatre’s troupe of eight departs on September 20 and will be performing on September 22, 23, and 24.
Explaining his foray into theatre, Dixit said: “I’ve been dabbling in the theatre from as far back as I can remember. Dubai offered me immense opportunities and allowed me to be a part of almost every theatre group in various capacities, mostly as an actor.
I started Third Half Theatre in 2012 with the intention of focusing on original work and in creating theatre that we manifestly won’t make excuses about.
Often the word amateur is bandied about as being in some way diminutive, but for us it simply means what the word stands for: One who loves.
It is this notion of zero compromise on quality and the craft that has now given us the opportunity to take our original play to L.A.”
saman@khaleejtimes.com