Prabin Khatiwada, Namrata KC, and Dhruba Satya Pariyar, an actor, director, and theatre critic respectively will have a conversation with Suraj Subedi, a film/theatre critic on the existence of theatre criticism in Nepal, which is yet to develop as a genre and a worthy subject to invest on.
Shishir Upreti as the panel facilitator will have in-depth conversation with 2 education stakeholders and 2 theatre scholars exploring the possible horizon of theatre education and its challenges in Nepal, which is yet to develop into any university courses. Veteran theatre scholars Abhi Subedi and Shiva Rijal will panel this session together with the dean of TU Kusum Shakya and director of Curriculum Development Centre Khilanath
Khmer Community Development, a Phnom-Penh based NGO in Cambodia, is bringing a presentation on Forum Theatre for personal and group empowerment in communities in Cambodia. The goal of Forum Theatre is to encourage social change through promoting empathy between different social groups. In Cambodia, this approach has been used by KCD to empower communities, including minority groups and youth; teach them to express themselves and address their personal challenges, build understandings for each other.
Palpasa Cafe Drama Book
A drama adaptation of best selling Nepali novel Palpasa Cafe is coming out in book form as Palpasa Cafe Play. The book is published by Nepalaya Publication Nepal, which is the same publication that published the original novel. The adapted play was produced by Theatre Village Nepal under the directorial of Bimal Subedi, a NSD graduate, and was performed in Mandala Theatre Nepal from 22 April - 8 May with houseful of audiences. A discussion entitled ‘From text to stage: practices of theatrical adaptation’ will follow after the book launch.
From text to stage: practices of the theatrical adaptation
Panelists Narayan Wagle, Nayan Raj Pandey, Upendra Subba, writers whose work has been adapted into drama, and Bimal Subedi and Deeya Maskey, two directors who recently adapted one of the panelist’s stories into play will sit together and discuss the metamorphosis of text. Writer/journalist Basanta Basnet will moderate their coming of age in terms of adaptation practice.
Naatak Palpasa Cafe Book Launch followed by Panel Discussion- Theatre and Literature
नाटकमा शब्दको आकृतिः के लेखिदैंछ, कस्तो देखिदैंछ?
We believe that theatre in Nepal has a lot of potential and can be a very powerful tool for social change. So we are organizing this panel discussion with some of the leading theatre practitioners in Nepal. The panelists will discuss the challenges that theatre outiside Kathmandu faces, ranging from a lack of infrastructure and support, to a lack of audience engagement. They will discuss the need for more government support for the arts, and for more training and support for theatre artists.