The Partition of India is a deeply emotive subject, one that a British theatre company is delving into from a fresh perspective.
Leeds and Bradford based Tribe Arts is keen to reframe and reorient conversations about the Partition from a diaspora perspective that resonates within a contemporary British context. Their initiatives include nationwide screenings of a spoken word film, ‘The Ode to Partition’, culminating in a live interactive theatre production staged at the Royal Armouries in Leeds.
Tajpal Rathore, Artistic Director of Tribe Arts, explains: “The Partition of India is connected to a broader more sensitive period of British history, and we are excited for the Royal Armouries to be hosting and giving space to conversations around a topic that is certainly the zeitgeist, especially given the King’s Coronation.
“We hope audiences will feel inspired to find out more about this dark legacy of British history and that the show in some way goes towards expanding and connecting the history of Partition with the conversations about race and identity for British South Asians today.”
Rathore is also one of the main cast members of ‘The Ode to Partition’, along with Tribe Arts’ Associate Director Samran Rathore, who are joined by the company’s Associate Artist, Saju Ahmed (Leeds Young Authors), and new talent Neemrit Gill. Award-winning composer Niraj Chag has composed the music.
The stage production features a range of diverse voices that represent the communities and people affected by the Partition through a series of commissioned short plays, each directed by a different director. The writers include Abda Khan, Mitesh Soni and Tribe’s Associate Director, Samran Rathore, whose plays will be directed by Gitika Buttoo, Prashant Tailor and Kash Arshad, respectively.
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At ‘The Ode to Partition’ screenings – held in Birmingham over the weekend and one planned for Manchester on May 31 – audiences get a chance to see the film before the live show and discover the wider project in a post-screening Q&A with the creative team. Following the film screenings, the live event on June 10 will be a one-night show and feature a panel of experts.
The ‘Tribe Talk x Partition@75’ is a special edition of Tribe Arts’ flagship ‘Tribe Talks’ programme – an innovative form of participatory theatre where a panel of esteemed speakers motivate the audience to talk, chat, discuss, consider, and fathom the topics of discussion, interspersed with live performance, music and film.
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The organisers feel this edition is by far the most ambitious of all such shows they have staged.
*Info: Tribe Arts