EnActe Arts Segues Into 2020 With Three Productions In The South Bay

The theater company/production house/incubator EnActe Arts segues into the second half of their 2019/20 season with three productions-including one world and one west coast premiere-during the first six months of 2020.

Founding Artistic Director Vinita Belani-an engineer who also holds a degree in French literature from the Sorbonne-came to the world of arts management (she calls it Artrepreneurship) after taking an early retirement from the tech world, with a mission: "I want to tell South Asian stories that have universal appeal, and bring the voices of the Indian subcontinent in all their multi-faceted glory to the global stage. Our rapid growth is testament to the appetite for the universality of stories and story-telling!"

The Case of the Vanishing Firefish
Written by: Ajay Chowdhury
Adapted by: Vinita Sud Belani and Raashina Humayun
Directed by: Vinital Sud Belani

World premiere of a play based on the novel by tech/digital entrepreneur Ajay Chowdhury-who was one of the founding investors in Shazam-is a funny, fast-paced, fantasy fiction fable for kids and parents that could be likened to going to the aquarium, that is if aquariums had a talking dolphin, wormholes and guest appearances from Stephen Hawking, the Dalai Lama and Gaudi among others; directed by Vinita Sud Belani, who describes it as "Harry Potter meets the Davinci Code" it will feature video projections from the renowned production designer and film director David Murakami and music from World Fusion pioneer Randy Armstrong.
When: January 29 - February 2
Where: Cubberley Theatre, 4000 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto, CA 94306
Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-case-of-the-vanishing-firefish-tickets-82281715827

Bombay Jazz
Written by: Ramu Ramanathan
Directed by: Etienne Coutinho

The loaded relationship and the dynamic between Jazz and the music of Bollywood is explored in this musical which features sax and violins as well as well as rock, Dixieland Stomp, Portuguese Fados, Ellingtonesque doodles, the cha-cha, Mozart and Bach. Not to mention ego, failures, alcoholism, love, passion, and bounced checks (aka "cheques"). History and celebrité, and the music of Hindi films-welcome to Bombay Jazz! Starring well-known Bollywood and British film actor Denzil Smith.
When: February 29 - March 1
Where: Mexican Heritage Plaza
Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/bombay-jazz-california-tickets-79401101833

A Touch of Brightness
Written by: Partap Sharma
Directed by: Vinita Sud Belani

The story explores the purity of the relationship between two young idealists - Pidku, a street urchin and Prema, a young girl sold to a brothel in Mumbai whose optimism about the world would not be dimmed. The play was due to be produced in London in the late 60s when the passports of the entire company set to produce it there were confiscated because of fears of how it would reflect on the prestige of India. The BBC then brought it to life via a radio performance starring the young Judy Dench as Prema, with music by Ravi Shankar in 1967. It would not be produced in India itself until 1973 after a court there ruled that the censoring authority had exceeded its jurisdiction. This is a West Coast premiere.

When: May 1 - 3
Where: Cubberley Theatre, 4000 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto, CA 94306
Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-touch-of-brightness-tickets-84654488855

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