Prachyanat to stage ‘Himmot Bai’ tomorrow

Prachyanat School of Acting and Design’s 24th batch will stage ‘Himmot Bai,’ an adaptation of Bertolt Brecht’s ‘Mother Courage and her Children’ by Utpal Dutta, tomorrow at 7:30pm at National Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy.    The play is directed by Monirul Islam Rubel. In 1939, Berthold Brecht wrote his play ’Mother Courage and Her Children’ set against the Thirty Years War (1618-1648) between the German Catholics and Swedish Lutherans. Mother Courage is among Brecht’s most famous plays, and has been considered by some to be the greatest play of the 20th century. His work attempts to show the dreadfulness of war and the idea that virtues are not rewarded in corrupt times.   The action of the play takes place over the course of 12 years (1624 to 1636), represented and follows the life and hard times of a canteen woman named “Himmot Bai” who feeds, trades with, and lives with soldiers as they fight on the battlefield. The courageous lady‘s three children—two sons who join the army and a mute and deaf daughter—get killed in the atrociousness of war. But the mother keeps on running with the basic instinct—the urge to live.    The director’s note says: “While Brecht depicted a horrible war in western world through the play, Utpal Dutta’s adaptation focuses on the political conflict between Hindus and Muslims in the Mughal reign.  However, in Prachyanat’s production, we present a war where no country or time has been specified since the horror of war is always the same. ‘Himmot Bai’ represents the sacrifice and courageous role story of every mother victimised by war.”