The National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) is set to stage an adaptation of Neil Simon’s play Brighton Beach Memoirs.
The play, which has been directed by Rahat Kazmi, the head of Napa’s Theatre department, is titled Aik Diary Jo Kho Gayee. Sameena Nazir has adapted the play, scheduled to be performed from January 15 to February 1.
Unlike Brighton Beach Memoirs, which is set in a neighbourhood of Brooklyn in 1937, Aik Diary Jo Kho Gayee depicts the city of Karachi against the backdrop of the 1971 separation of East Pakistan. “Aik Diary Jo Kho Gayee is about a Bihari family that has migrated from East Pakistan to West Pakistan after the debacle of 1971.
The original play addressed themes ranging from sibling relationships to coming-of-age topics, such as sexual awakening, the search for identity and puberty.The events of the play are viewed through the lens of a teenage boy Kaleem, growing up in a middle class family as he pens down his thoughts and experiences in his personal diary.
Aik Diary Jo Kho Gayee would sustain the elements of humour but will ensure that they “come across subtly rather than crudely.”The cast of the play includes Akbar Islam, who will play the role of the patriarch Moinuddin, Ahmer Naqvi as Kaleemuddin, and Bakhtawar Mazhar as Shakeela Begum. Zarqa Naz, Jia Khan and Yasmeen Kalam essay the roles of Rabia, Amina and Yasmeen Kalam respectively.
