Nautanki Theatre Company (NTC) started Drama~Sutra playwriting project as a maiden initiative aimed at contributing contemporary and socially relevant plays to the Australian stage and literature.
This project is primarily a writer-led collaboration of emerging playwrights from diverse cultural backgrounds working closely with Nautanki team. With the help of a mentor, talent is nurtured, and concepts are developed into an art form that can be presented on the wide stage of theatre.
The project runs for a year, yielding several Australian plays about the South Asian diaspora. Following the 4 phases i.e. groundwork and research, writing, play development, reading; we continue to work with the playwrights to develop their work, with a goal to produce, if possible.
The writers and their mentor meet monthly to develop their work, if suits the scope of the project.
Initiated and managed by Creative Director Neel Banerjee, the project aims to:
- Offer a creative platform to playwrights from culturally diverse backgrounds to showcase their talent.
- Creation and curation of alternate stories and narratives which otherwise wouldn’t have been possible.
- Act as a bridge between writers, published authors and producer enabling creative communication towards participation and teaching.
- Explore freedom to showcase works in front of a wider audience.
During our inaugural year (2017-2018), Kevin Bathman, Roanna Gonsalves and Sonal Moore participated in the program, writing three draft versions of full-length plays. John Suter Linton mentored the team of writers. Following this exercise, NTC worked with Sonal Moore to produce her play ‘Ten Years to Home’ for two shows before a sold-out audience at Riverside Theatre in Parramatta in August 2019.
2021-2022
Nautanki Theatre is excited to work with Tasnim Hossain. A draft play has been submitted and Nautanki will develop and present the work in 2024.
2019-2020
Nautanki Theatre worked with writer Vel Subra. Following the unprecedented advent of COVID, we will be updating patrons about the progress of this project which is at a temporary halt after the submission of the first draft.
2017-2018
Nautanki Theatre launched this project with 3 writers – Roanna Gonsalves, Sonal Moore and Kevin Bathman. This project bursary was supported by SBW Foundation. Nautanki worked with Sonal Moore’s play and produced her work Ten Years to Home in 2019 directed by Jules Orcullo at Riverside Theatre in Parramatta.
Selection for this program is through Expression of Interest followed by a screening. We are grateful to SBW Foundation for providing bursaries for our Drama~Sutra project.
EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
CURRENTLY CLOSED
PLAYWRITING PROJECT OF NAUTANKI THEATRE
Drama~Sutra is a maiden initiative of Nautanki Theatre Company to contribute contemporary and socially relevant plays to Australian stage and literature.
The entire project cycle runs for over 12 months yielding a number of Australian plays about South-Asian diaspora. Project is divided into 4 phases i.e. ground work, play writing, reading and producing. After playreading, Nautanki Company may wish to work with the playwright/s to develop further on the draft versions of play/s with an aim to produce, if possible.
For the year (2022-23), Nautanki company is looking for expression of interest from writer/s who want to write play/s about South-Asian Diaspora or on similar subject.
Please email Madhavi Shankarling, Creative Associate of Nautanki at madhavi@nautanki.org.au with your name, contact number and a synopsis. Writers of diverse backgrounds and/or person of colour are encouraged to apply. Writer/s are paid a bursary/small amount during the writing phase. Cost of research can be supported.
EoI starts in February. Selection is done by Nautanki Theatre and decision are made public by end of March. Playwriting program runs from June to December (Research + Writing) followed by a play reading to an intimate audience in February.
