Kirati Ibsen on Stage

Imagine if Henrik Ibsen was not born in Norway, or harder even, what if he was born to a poor Kirat family in remote eastern hills of Nepal.



Not many would have been imaginative enough to cast him as Kansare, a mythological Kirati hero as director Birendra Hamal did in “Death of Happiness”. [break]The play based on the three poems of Ibsen – The Tear, Amid the Ruins and Dance of Death – was staged at Rashtriya Nachghar on Sunday as a part of “Culture in Theater”, an international theater festival.



The play was also critically acclaimed in Ibsen Theater Festival at Gurukul last year.



However, to those who had never heard of Ibsen, or even to those who hadn’t bothered to read his biography, the play is all Greek.






The play develops with Kansare’s metaphorical narration of his childhood. Indeed, Hamal’s mastery is often felt in his metaphors and powerful body language. Nevertheless, in the play the metaphors only puzzle the already confused audience.



For instance, the four metaphorical characters, who appeared to be some phantom-like in the beginning, had a very undefined role. They weren’t just narrators; nonetheless, they didn’t have any defined role either.



And of course, four narrators would’ve been a great idea only if they had managed to speak in sync. While the scene of “bad guys’” marching would’ve made a powerful performance, thanks to the broken rhyme, it only made them look like weird clowns. And most interesting of all, Kansare’s mother always ends up giving up unexpected responses. For instance, when the local insurgents come to take away her son, she replies good-humouredly, “He is not at home babu”, as if the insurgents were angels.






In any case, it is interesting to observe the parallels between Kansare and Ibsen. Ibsen’s childhood plights, financial difficulty as well as moral conflicts stemming from dark secrets hidden from society are artistically woven into the life of Kansare. And just as Ibsen, Kansare too insistently seeks for truth and liberation.



Nevertheless, the climax, when Kansare meets his fatal fate is pretty confusing. After leaving his home in search of liberation, the hero founds himself stuck in the wild wave of mad sea (of course, metaphorically). And there, almost as in Martin Scorsese’s The Last Temptation of the Christ, a beautiful woman appears out of nowhere. However, unlike in the movie, Kansare gives up with the first temptation only and is smitten to death by her.






I am not sure, if this metaphor has anything to do with Ibsen’s illegitimate relationship (from which he had a son, whom he never met) or it simply is a tribute to Ibsen’s feministic views, nevertheless, the climax does not say anything helpful, except perhaps the fact that Kansare isn’t really allergic to women.



With all that, it would be unfair if I forgot to praise the lighting system, and stage setting that were brilliant. The play is followed by Samaya Sarir Yatra by Hamal himself, before the festival officially concludes with Krishna Bhakta Maharjan’s Charya dance.