Through writing her play House of Joy, playwright Madhuri Shekar claims that she wanted to escape modern-day America. So she set her play in 17th-century India, in an imperial harem replete with oppression, and then discovered that a story of taking action in the face of injustice wasn’t as distant as she expected.
Now, local South Asian arts organization Pratidhwani is teaming up with Seattle Public Theater to present the Northwest premiere of House of Joy. “I first came across House of Joy in 2017,” said co-director Agastya Kohli. “Pratidhwani was co-producing Represent – A Multicultural Playwrights Festival with our partners, SIS Productions, eSe Teatro, and Hansberry Project, and Madhuri Shekar shared this script with us which was still under development.”
Pratidhwani included House of Joy in that 2017 festival. “The play has since gone through quite a journey, including a complete rewrite by Madhuri!” Kohli reported. “We’re glad to finally bring a full production to Seattle after so many years of being with this play.”
In House of Joy, a bodyguard named Hamida makes a decision to combat the oppression she sees in the harem, and swords and secrecy are deployed. “It’s fierce, it is very theatrical, and our concept to use Indian classical dance as the vocabulary for stylized stage combat really caught everyone’s imagination,” Kohli said.
Kohli is co-directing the show with Moumita Bhattacharya. “Once I conceptualized how Indian classical dance forms can tell these stories through movement, it all clicked into place for me,” he said. “Except I am not a dancer or a choreographer, and that’s when I approached Moumita.”
Like Kohli, Bhattacharya had been introduced to House of Joy multiple times, initially finding the play charming but unfinished. “Years later, I read the updated play and I was blown away by the textured storytelling, the nuanced characters, and the inherent subtext that left much to interpretation by the directors,” she recalled. “I feel fortunate to have had a chance to tell this apparently South Asian but truly global story to the Seattle audience.”
In addition, Bhattacharya, like Kohli, has been a member of Pratidhwani for many years. “She is an accomplished Odissi dancer, choreographer and director, and it made perfect sense for us to work on this play together,” Kohli said. “Mou and I have spent a number of hours thinking through the script and fleshing out the concept of our production.”
Together they explored many questions. “Who is the ‘House’?” Kohli began. “What is the source of the magic of the House? How do we depict that, how do we tell the story of love and loyalty? Of politics, strategy, oppression and freedom?”
Once they settled on some answers, Kohli and Bhattacharya divided up the directorial tasks. “I took the lead in directing the show with actors and the script,” Kohli described, “and Moumita took the lead in developing movement, combat, and other choreography to tell the story.”
Bhattacharya built upon the basic stage directions written in the script. “Through dance, we have brought to life, literally and figuratively, the House that Madhuri Shekar lovingly imagines in her play,” she said. “Establishing a relatable grammar of movement for what is magic, what is real, and what is in a character’s imagination has been a journey in discovery.”
Kohli and Bhattacharya’s history of working together at Pratidhwani gave them the foundation for interweaving their individual creative elements. “The collaboration has its roots in a place of mutual respect and a shared artistic view,” Bhattacharya said. “The process has been organic, at times challenging, of course, for two very highly opinionated people, but what I hope has ultimately resulted in a show that is so much more superior for the collaboration.”
And they couldn’t have done it without the contributions of Seattle Public Theater. “Pratidhwani is creating the show, and all artists, performers, artistic choices, and associated costs are Pratidhwani’s to bear,” Kohli said. “SPT, on the other hand, is providing the venue, including rehearsal space, marketing, box office services, and production management support.”
Ultimately, for Kohli, House of Joy is the outcome of teamwork: “We brought all the participants together and stitched it all into one seamless performance.”
House of Joy runs from May 16 to June 8 at Seattle Public Theater, 7312 West Green Lake Drive North, Seattle.
