DPS RK Puram celebrated the spirit of Theatre with its annual Theatre festival: Theatron 2024
Delhi Public School R.K. Puram proudly presented the Inter-School Theatre Festival, Theatron 2024–2025, organised by the Expressions Theatre Club. The club members, fuelled by a consistent “Thirst for Theatre”, worked under the expert guidance of Principal Ms. Padma Srinivasan and Teacher-in-Charge Ms. Sanya Taneja. The club is renowned for its commitment to discipline, creativity, and ambition in the school theatre circuit.
Theatron 2024 stood as a beacon of expression, showcasing boundless dramaturgical talent. This grand festival attracted students from nearly 50 schools across Delhi NCR and other parts of the country. The fest consisted of 12 events, allowing students from classes IX-XII to showcase their exceptional creative and theatrical skills. The event witnessed a footfall of around 1400 theatre enthusiasts. Their passion for theatre contributed to the vibrant atmosphere that defines Theatron.
Theatron 2024 presented a diverse spectrum of 12 distinct events embodying the theme ‘Thirst for Theatre’, such as:
Street Play (Nukkad Ki Goonj): The participating teams were asked to prepare a 7-minute long play on the theme provided. The esteemed jury members were Jayprakash Singh, who has received numerous prestigious awards for playwriting, and Purushottam Bhatt, who has been involved in various plays since 1969.
Stage Play (Stage-a-Thon): All participating teams, consisting of 4–5 performers, were to prepare an original 5-minute stage play on a topic chosen from various ambiguous themes provided. The esteemed jury members were Ramesh Manchanda, who has acted in more than 100 plays and has directed more than 50 theatre productions, and Mohammad Ali Shah, who has acted in mainstream Hindi films that have won national awards.
Advertisement Enactment (Ads Act): Participating teams were tasked with creating amusing advertisements for equally amusing topics or products provided to them. The esteemed jury members were Joginder Singh Panwar, an actor with over 25 years of stage experience in professional theatre, and Nakshatra Sachdeva, an actor, practitioner, poet, anchor, mimicry artist and voice-over artist.
Shakespearean Monologue (Thespian Coliseum): Participants were to prepare a 2–3 minute monologue or soliloquy from a list of Shakespeare’s works provided to them. The esteemed jury members were Harriet Raghunathan, who has taught Chaucer, Milton, Shakespeare and eighteenth-century writers, among others, and Vaishali Chakravarty, an actor, drama-in-education expert and entrepreneur.
Poem Enactment (Play-o-Poem): This event was a theatrical enactment of an adapted or self-composed poem based on the theme ‘Seven Stages of Man’. The esteemed jury members were Manish Bharadwaj, the Associate Director and Actor Trainer for his school’s annual production, and Shefali Chopra, who has been writing her own scripts and directing plays for almost 15 years.
Movie Making (Lights, Camera, Action!): This was an online movie-making event which included teams of 4–5 participants and was submitted online by the 31st of July 2024. The esteemed jury members were Sourabh Yadav, a writer and filmmaker based in Delhi, and Vikram Singh, who founded DogTail Films in 2021 and is the Creative Director for The BLUNT.
Mime Act (मूकाभि नय): Participants had 3 minutes to wordlessly convey genres like tragedy, horror, action thriller, comedy, and mystery. The jury included Aakriti Sethi, a PhD student in international relations at JNU with a strong theatre background, and Namrita Sharma Jape, a seasoned actor, director, designer, and theatre teacher with over 24 years of experience.
Standup Comedy: Participants delivered a 3-minute bilingual performance judged on humour, wit, fluency, expression, content, and creativity. The jury included Sahil Sharma, an accomplished theatre artist from Delhi, and Swati Sodi, a renowned theatre artist, Founding Director of Spin-a-Yarn Productions, and Manager at Choreotheque School of Contemporary Dance.
Dance Drama: Participants had 3 minutes to creatively depict dramatic intensity through Indian or Western dance on the theme “Epic Echoes.” The jury included Bali Balyogeshwar, known for his versatile dance styles, and Ankita Alemona, an interdisciplinary artist specialising in Kalaripayattu, theatre, and film.
Courtroom Drama (Res Ipsa Loquitur): The courtroom drama was a 6–7 minute act portrayed in English/Hindi that involved the usage of props, costumes, and a basic courtroom setting. The esteemed jury members were Sumit Rawal, who is a well-renowned Drama Facilitator, and Raj Sharma, an Indian actor who has worked with various Bollywood films and web series.
Surprise Event (Bolt from the Blue): The Bolt from the Blue was a Surprise Event that embodied spontaneity and had to be delivered within 2 minutes. The esteemed jury members were Himanshu Mam, a trained theatre teacher for IBDP and IGCSE, and Siddharth Shaw, an actor recently seen as the lead character of Do Gubbare on Jio Cinema.
Mimicry: Mimicry was a 2–3 minute act where participants portrayed a famous personality or public figure. The jury included Prabhat Sengar, an actor and director with experience in Delhi, Jodhpur, and Lucknow, and Mr. Ajay, who has worked with the National School of Drama for nearly a decade.
The awards were distributed by the Principal, Ms. Padma Srinivasan, along with the other members of the Jury. The prize for overall winners was bagged by Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, and Delhi Public School, Noida. In her address, Ms. Padma Srinivasan commended the Expressions Theatre Club’s efforts to put up a successful event of immense magnitude. She appreciated the tireless efforts put in by the teacher in charge, alumni, hostellers, and the outgoing batch of class XII.
The events engaged the audience and the participants in thought-provoking ideas with compelling themes that shed light on various social challenges. Each event initiated vital conversations and fostered awareness. They were not just designed to entertain but also to inspire change. Theatron blended fun with thoughtfulness, making every performance a playful and insightful exploration. The enjoyment that the audience derived from the performances was coupled with food for thought, underscoring the unique essence of theatre.
