Reviews

A well-groomed Devil and a harassed God inhabit Deepan Sivaraman’s retelling of Ibsen’s play, Peer Gynt.

 Dipanitha Nath, The Indian Express

Deepan Sivaraman’s Peer Gynt is a visual drama, not confined by the text or a box stage.

Theatre Iran

Words often take a backseat for director Deepan Sivaraman, as he understands space better.

P. Anima, The Hindu

About Peer Gynt

Deepan Sivaraman's Peer Gynt is a contemporary adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's classic play. Peer Gynt, about to die, requests God for a second chance to re-do his life. Curious to see a better version of Peer's life, God grants him the second chance. The performance is about Peer's journey through the follies of his life, which he re-lives after getting the second chance.

This spatially experimental production is very physical, with a strong, visual narrative and ritualistic structure. It is quite a contemporary structure, maintaining the absurdity and poetry of the original text. The story is told through puppets, moving objects, imaginative costumes and ritualistic actions accompanied by innovative Indian fusion music.

Credits

Adaptation, Scenography and Direction: Deepan Sivaraman

Cast:

Deepan Sivaraman as God

Gopalakrishnan Kandamkumarath as Peer Gynt

Anto Komban George as Stagehand

Athira Thaze Nannariyullathil as Green, Nun, Hotel Host, Patient

Aiswariya Aravind as Nun, Mafia Member, Hotel Host, Nurse

Jose Raphael as Priest, Mafia King, Mad Man

Mallu Pacheril Sekhar as Devil’s Dog, Mad Man, Mafia Member

Nidhi Sukumaran Sasthri as Bride, Mafia Member, Patient’s Relative, Chimpanzee

Vinu Joseph as Peer’s Son, Groom, Mad Man, Hotel Host

James Chirayath Varghese as Devil

Rajan Chittilappilly Rappai as Mother, Mafia Member, Mad Man

Ashish Kumar Sharma as Stagehand, Mad man

Assistant Director: Kannanunni Ajayan

Music Composer: Chandran Veyattummal

Sound: Jomet Kizhakkemalayil

Puppets: Anto Komban George

Music Execution: Sajan K.N.

Associate Scenographer: Sarthak Narula

Costume Design: Aliyar Kassim

Lighting Design: Jose Valayil Koshy

Subtitles: Aneta Eliza Swiecicka

Set Execution: Devan Sivaraman

Chinese Script Translation: Ye Shulin

About Deepan Sivaraman

Deepan Sivaraman, a scenography post-graduate from Central Saint Martin’s College of Art and Design London, is a theatre director, scenographer, dramaturge and educator based in Delhi. He is the founding Artistic Director of Oxygen Theatre Company based in Kerala, and the Performance Studies Collective based in Delhi. Over the last 25 years of his theatre career, he has designed and directed more than 70 theatre productions for various companies and academic institutions in India and Europe. Some of his notable works have been performed in several important theatre festivals around the world including Avignon, Alameda, Edinburgh, Krakow, Wuzhen, Prithvi, ITFOK, META and Bharat Rang Mahotsav. He was awarded the Charles Wallace India Trust Scholarship in 2003, The Kerala Sangeet Nataka Academy Award for theatre direction in 2012, the Mahindra Excellence National Theatre Awards in 2010 and 2018 for Spinal Cord and The Cabinet of Dr Caligari respectively. Deepan’s works represented Indian scenography at the Prague Quadrennial in 2011, and he served as the Artistic Director of the International Theatre Festival of Kerala in 2013 and 2023. His notable works are Khasakkinte Ithihasam, Spinal Cord, Peer Gynt, Dark Things, The Cabinet of Dr Caligari, Nationalism Project and Ubu Roi. This is his second production at Wuzhen. 

About Oxygen Theatre Company

Oxygen Theatre Company is an experimental theatre group based in Thrissur, Kerala that explores the possibilities of a contemporary visual language in Indian theatre that can possibly surmount the multilingual barriers, through the collaboration of artists from various disciplines such as theatre and the visual arts. Oxygen aims to produce cutting edge theatre firmly rooted in contemporary Indian life.

The group is made up of a core team of theatre practitioners who have been active in the contemporary theatre scene of Kerala from the 1980s onwards, associating with many leading experimental theatre groups in the country. Its 2010 production Spinal Cord received 10 nominations out of 13 categories in the prestigious META awards and received 7 awards in total including Best Play, Best Direction, Best Design, Best Actor, Best Lighting Design, Best Supporting Actor and Best Choreography.