Sonali Bhattacharyya Archives - North West End UK

King Troll (The Fawn) – New Diorama Theatre

9Oct

By Louise PennNo Comments

London

King Troll (The Fawn) – New Diorama Theatre

A “dark and otherworldly thriller” by Sonali Bhattacharyya, King Troll was a finalist for the 2023 Women’s Prize for Playwriting, and now arrives on the London fringe in a production by Milli Bhatia. The topic is the experience of migrants within the UK, and the plot relies on a mystical, magic realism device, the fawn of the title. At first the story appears straightforward, as South Asian sisters Nikita (coolly efficient Zainab Hasan) and Riya (vulnerable Safiyya Ingar) deal with the latter’s application to stay in the country. Photo: Helen Murray When they decide to phone the friend of their late mother, a delightfully eccentric Shashi (Ayesha Dharker), a lifeline and possible sponsor appears to protect Riya, but at what cost? The bold physicality of Dominic Holmes’s Fawn adds ...

Two Billion Beats – Orange Tree Theatre

Orange tree Theatre’s new show ‘Two Billion Beats’ follows two sisters who meet at the bus stop. Both tackling their secondary school experience in very different ways. Asha, the older sister and arguably the smartest in the school is inspired by the revolutionary figures of the past. Bettina, the younger is tackling a revolution of her own, against her bullies on the bus. We meet them at the bus stop, detention and the park as Bettina does her best to avoid being by herself but one day, she asks Asha for help and as their political beliefs and the cause and effect begins to unravel, we question the damage of our actions. Safiyya Ingar and Anoushka Chadha beautifully portray the sisters with such depth and humour, pushing each other’s buttons with rage and burning sisterly love. Their p...

Outside – Orange Tree Theatre

This is the companion piece to Orange Tree Theatre’s Inside which featured three new short plays from emerging and established writers and Outside follows the same format with three more short plays livestreamed from the Orange Tree Theatre auditorium. The three plays have a distinct link in so much that they look at personal connection during difficult times and how healing can sometimes take place through mutual understanding and the ability to forgive Two Billion Beats by Sonali Bhattacharyya features two schoolgirl sisters one of whom is in detention. It’s a slim story but the dialogue between the two sisters (Asha played by Zainab Hasan & Bettina played by Ashna Rabheru) crackled along at a fair pace. It was unfortunate that the performance suffered from some sou...