Deepan Sivaraman: ‘In the era of fascist regimes, plays like Ubu Roi remain relevant’
Deepan Sivaraman on his adaptation of Alfred Jarry’s 1896 play ‘Ubu Roi’, which was staged at International Theatre Festival of Kerala; it draws a parallel between Nazi parades and present-day events.
Deepan Sivaraman’s interpretation of Alfred Jarry’s 1896 play, Ubu Roi, was a highlight at this year’s International Theatre Festival of Kerala (ITFoK). His scenographic rendition transformed the stage into a spectacle of parades, engaging the audience from both sides of the gallery. Drawing a parallel between Nazi parades and present-day events, the play begins with a parade — from right to left — of the Supreme leader, and ends with the peasants-led people’s uprising with two jailed fascists moving from left to right, after the cast boldly paints ‘F**k off Fascism’ on the stage, accompanied by a pyrotechnic display spelling out ‘game over.’
Hailed as the first absurdist drama, Ubu Roi satirizes the tendency of the successful bourgeois to abuse his power and become irresponsibly complacent. A departure from realism, it pushes boundaries with its surreal elements. Its bizarre content, mainly its scatological references, caused an uproar when it premiered in Paris in 1896. Parisian theatre-goers, unfamiliar with surrealism, were shocked by its explicit language, depictions of orgies, and graphic violence. The premiere sparked clashes between supporters and critics, leading to the premature end of its initial run after just one night.
A suggestive parody of Macbeth, Ubu Roi features Pa Ubu and his wife, Ma Ubu, as they ruthlessly pursue power in nineteenth century Poland. Pa Ubu dispatches his political adversaries, using a faeces-covered toilet brush, eliminates the king, and usurps the throne. Fuelled by greed, Ubu commits mass murder to seize land from his own citizens. As he attempts financial reform, he realizes he has inadvertently killed all government officials and must personally collect taxes door-to-door. Ultimately, a popular uprising drives the Ubus out of the country. Watching the play in the present context of farmers’ agitation in the country, it seems to mirror our own political reality as well.
A suggestive parody of Macbeth, Ubu Roi features Pa Ubu and his wife, Ma Ubu, as they ruthlessly pursue power in nineteenth century Poland. Photos: Raneesh Raveendran
Sivaraman, a scenography post-graduate from Central Saint Martins 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 Performance Studies Collective based in Delhi. During the last 25 years of his career, he has designed and directed more than 70 productions for various companies and academic institutions in India and Europe.
His notable works include: Khasakkinte Ithihasam (based on O.V. Vijayan’s seminal Malayalam novel with the same name), Spinal Cord (inspired by Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold), Peer Gynt (based on Henrik Ibsen’s play of the same name), Dark Things, The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (an adaptation of the silent German expressionist film of the 1920s, which is also a critical exploration of fascism), Nationalism Project and Ubu Roi.
“As a democrat, I believe in the significance of creating socially relevant art that resonates with people from all walks of life. This ethos is shared by artists across the globe, and it’s a principle I hold dear,” says Sivaraman in an interview with The Federal on the sidelines of the ITFoK 2024. Excerpts from the interview:
Why did you choose Alfred Jarry’s nineteenth century play at this juncture?
For me, Ubu Roi is an incredibly thought-provoking anti-fascist play. I found myself drawn to it during a time of rising right-wing movements worldwide. Naturally, Alfred Jarry and Bertolt Brecht were the first playwrights to come to mind. It was fascinating how Jarry’s work saw a resurgence in the US after Trump’s ascent to power in 2016. That’s when I found myself revisiting the play, despite having already directed it back in 2012. It just seemed more relevant than ever. Simultaneously, I was reading Brecht’s The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui also. It’s a play that mirrors the era of Hitler’s Nazi Germany, serving as a direct allegory, offering a profound reflection on the political landscape of its time. Ubu, on the other hand, is portrayed as a clownish and grotesque king — essentially a foolish ruler. Even his attempts at reasoning are irrational.
Your depiction of the play unbelievably mirrors our life and times. How so?
When working with classic texts, I make it a habit to revisit them, drawing connections to our contemporary lives and times. I strive to localize them. See, we can’t fully grasp French politics and the history of the nineteenth century sitting in Thrissur. Even when we relocated Khasakinte Ithihasam from Palakkad to Kasaragod, we had to make interpretive adjustments, transitioning its form. This approach is crucial; we need to adopt a colloquial perspective on every classic text to make it more accessible to audiences. That’s the real challenge, but also where the magic lies.
Fuelled by greed, Ubu commits mass murder to seize land from his own citizens.
Jarry’s text begins with the provocative word ‘Pschitt’ and continues with mentions of human excrement, vomit, and other gruesome elements. O.V. Vijayan’s novel Dharmapuranam also has a similar start. Did you draw inspiration from Vijayan’s work for this interpretation?
O.V. Vijayan’s writings have been a significant inspiration for me, but interestingly, when I embarked on Ubu Roi, I didn’t reference Dharma Puranam. The text of Ubu Roi is laden with references to excrement and vomit. Ubu’s actions, like smearing faeces on people’s faces and throwing it at dinner guests, reflect the chaos and degradation of the time. To truly grasp Jarry’s intent, we must delve into the historical context and understand the events unfolding during those days.
When reading this text in India, it resonates with our present era on many levels. Prescient, would you say?
With every passing era, classic art proves its timeless significance. Hitler may have been merely seven or eight years old when Jarry wrote and performed this play, yet the events of Hitler’s rise were foreshadowed by Jarry decades earlier. The ideology of fascism, manifested in Hitler’s actions, aimed to eliminate existing intellectual thought to establish its own narrative and intellectual dominance. Their targets included academic institutions, historians, intellectuals, democrats, and more, with the goal of erasing existing knowledge and constructing their own version of reality. Jarry’s prescient portrayal reflects this process precisely. It’s astonishing to consider how a 23-year-old could foresee the political upheavals of future decades or even centuries and issue warnings about the dictators to come.
Your visual reference of Hitler in the later part of the play, coupled with the substitution of the post-revolution Russian regime for the Tsars mentioned in the original text, demonstrates a clever interplay with history. What motivated this choice?
In our production of Ubu Roi, we introduce a striking visual metaphor: Ubu growing a Hitler-esque mustache at a pivotal moment, symbolizing his transformation into Hitler and signalling a historical shift. This narrative layer intertwines with motifs from the post-revolution Russian period, including the hammer and sickle, creating a surrealistic atmosphere. The thought was that one cannot slip up on the Russian authoritarian regime post revolution while we go vocal about Hitler and the Nazis. Unlike traditional plays with linear narratives, Ubu Roi operates in a realm where historic characters appear and disappear without a documented chronology. It offers a philosophical outlook, inviting audiences to interpret its visual language and themes.
Can you elaborate on your idea of theatre at this juncture?
My approach to theatre defies conventional dramatic definitions. Rather than prescribing a specific interpretation, I aim to evoke myriad responses through our visual language. It’s like experiencing a complex painting or visual installation with infinite interpretations. In essence, my rendition of Ubu Roi embraces a post-dramatic proposition, departing from the structured narratives of the modernist period.
As Ubu attempts financial reform, he realizes he has inadvertently killed all government officials and must personally collect taxes door-to-door.
The historical brushstroke in your interpretation of Jarry’s text lacks a linear narrative. Was this intentional?
When we impose linear interpretations, we risk stifling the playful essence of art. Our work evokes memories of various fascists who shaped different periods in history. As Indians, we’re reminded of our own brush with dictatorship during the national emergency. The play serves as a poignant reminder of that era, when artists, journalists, and many others were unjustly imprisoned.
We’re witnessing a familiar scene of farmers protesting, echoing a theme deeply rooted in Jarry’s text. Am I right?
In the original play, it’s the peasants who are the first to react against Ubu’s oppressive taxes. This aspect serves as a powerful mirror of our own era, allowing for nuanced interpretation especially for those who are familiar with the text. When I staged this play in 2012, while the plot and performance remained largely unchanged, the political landscape was significantly different. Yet, it still effectively conveyed its political message, albeit in a different context. In the US during the Trump era, the discussions surrounding the play took on a different tone. Whenever the world faces the threat of any fascist regimes, works like Ubu Roi become increasingly relevant. If we were to reproduce this play in the future, I’m certain it would reflect the society and regime of that time as well.
How would a play like yours be received in today’s India?
As an artist, I don’t aim to get into directly commentating on specific issues; that’s not typically my approach. Making overt socio-political statements isn’t the primary role of artistry. Instead, I believe in exploring and interpreting the nuances of our world in an ideological and philosophical manner, allowing for a deeper engagement with the current societal landscape. This is where true artistic maturity lies. Artists like Jarry, Brecht, or O V Vijayan exemplify this approach. In fact, Ubu Roi, which was written over a century ago as a critique of elite cultural dominance, remains a timeless example. I don’t perceive any inherent risk in this method; my work doesn’t overtly reference any specific events or issues.
People have faced repercussions for lesser cultural criticism…
Jarry’s play shares thematic connections with Macbeth, a production that has seen countless interpretations by directors worldwide. It’s natural for people to see reflections of themselves in these works, and while there may be risks involved, they are inherent to the artistic process. However, these risks shouldn’t deter us from creating art; on the contrary, they underscore the importance of artistic expression. Having said this, I would clarify that I don’t subscribe to the idea of art being used for the propaganda of political parties or religious agendas.