A mélange of songs, dance and theatrics

A colourful dance sequence

According to Sadi Mohammad, director of Rabiraag, "While the other three popular dance-dramas of Tagore, namely Shyama, Chitrangada and Chandalika are often performed, Shapmochon is relatively less publicised. Hence we wanted to perform the dance drama." It took the crew two-and-a- half months of rigorous practice to stage this work.

Shapmochon is the story of a repulsive king who has been cursed by the gods. Rabindranath Tagore wrote it in 1931 on the occasion of his 70^th? birthday. During Tagore's lifetime he had introduced several changes and adjustments to the play. However, what has remained consistent throughout the 80 odd years, is its immaculate mélange of songs, dance and theatrics that was also evident in the Rabiraag performance. Tagore was also very particular about the colour for the stage settings and attire of the artistes in Shapmochon. There was no lack of that in the performance as Shamim Ara Neepa, Shiblee Mohammad, Sohel Rahman, Abul Hasan Tapan, Ireen Parvin, and Shammi Yasmin fascinated the audience with their well-coordinated costumes and performance.

Another unique point in the performance was the use of live music and songs. The singers sung in rhythm, maintaining their own individuality yet being perfectly comfortable with the interdependence required to give the flavour of oneness for the play. The artistes exhibiting their talents in this field were Sadi Mohammad, Amina Ahmed, Lili Islam, Shopon Dutta and many others.