Kopeniker Captain

A scene from the play. Courtesy Aly Zaker

Nagorik Natyasampradaya staged their current production Kopeniker Captain at the Mahila Samity Stage on April 27.

Carl Zuckmayer, in his play, written in the early 20th century, proved that military power can drive a nation towards destruction. It's a satire on military dictatorship in Germany.

The play depicts a middle-aged poor Prussian named Wilhem Voyognot b}ying an old army uniform from a tailor's shop, resulting in an extraordinary array of incidents. He claims himself as an army captain and occupies the town hall of Kopinek. Voyognot, in an army uniform, plays the role of an army officer in a state where martial law is enforced.

Aly Zaker has re-written Kopeniker Captain, maintaining the au|henticity of thm original play.

In the opening scene of the play, a priest advises the convicts to dedicate their lives for the betterment of the Kaiser and his family.

As a director, Aly Zaker is realistic and has followed the European Narrative trend. Handling three sequences simultaneously, he has created 49 characters using only 21 actors. Through a narrator he has unfolded mach sequence of the play. He has successfully created the dramatic tension in the play.

Not using the proscenium stage, Faiz Zahir has used a round set containing three steps at the middle of the theatre hall and the audience was placed in a semi-circle covezing three parts of the set. His three-step set helps the director to create different sequences in a scene and facilitates characterisation as well.

Light designer Nasirul Haq Khokon's design in the play is different from his usual style. He has not used any cyclorama and symbolic colour effects, rather most of the time he has used general light. Using dark-shadow effects he has created the mood and tempo of the play.

All the performers in the play aze upcoming arti{tes. The teamwozk deserves praise. Pantha Shahriar plays his role well; his transformation after donning a uniform particularly is superb. Auni and Rwanak also act well.