Theatre Review : Nothing Like Lear

The play opens in a light tone to Vinay talking about his life, and then speaking in quieter tones about his brother. He says that his brother is around too. Then he starts talking about his daughter. His baby daughter. He takes you through the entire journey of the love and affection of having your child, seeing it grow and then move out. Every small tender emotion connected with parenting was explored; how you hold the baby, how it cries; what you tell it. How do you react to it. And then the pang. It hits. Vinay creates the Kink Learish gist of having affection on your daughter wane away. He does not call her and makes excuses in his mind that she is busy. And then finally he books his tickets and knocks on his daughter's door. To be met by the maid. He screams at her in excitement and this brings the daughter out, who again tells him to go and stay in a hotel. The poignant use of this emotion in the undertone of hilarity is the mark of a glaringly-brilliant-actor.In the next scene he gets macabre and plans to take the eyes of his brother; because in the start of the play he was talking about his childhood and then the eyes. And he gave his eyes to the audience and he needs to take it back. A dangerous-violent-Shakespearean tragedy emotion engulfs you. Vinay Pathak is on stage!The content in the play was endless!The play is worth many-many times watch and I learned Shakespeare watching it; the desire to go and to some work of the bard!

The play starts off to he teasing the audience as to the play has not started; oh it has not; did you think it has, dont worry it has not.With little content and same dialogue ; just presence, gesture and awareness he kept the audience spell bound for the fifteen minutes. And he was not even using the whole of the stage , with just one spotlight on him, so defined and particular.

In a clownish accent, with white on his face he teases you, breaks his own dialogues, breaks his own feelings; jumps from laughter to audacity to sorrow and then back to laughter.

Oh Lord!

A frail and innocent genuineness (originality) flies throughout the performance. He keeps the dialogues simple, does not want to take you into the ramble of big-Shakespearean words; yet he is punning at Shakespeare throughout the performance; while the director of the play Rajat Kapoor sits even quiter in the audience.

The play opens in a light tone to Vinay talking about his life, and then speaking in quieter tones about his brother. He says that his brother is around too. Then he starts talking about his daughter. His baby daughter. He takes you through the entire journey of the love and affection of having your child, seeing it grow and then move out. Every small tender emotion connected with parenting was explored; how you hold the baby, how it cries; what you tell it. How do you react to it. And then the pang. It hits.

Vinay creates the King-Learish gist of having affection on your daughter wane away. He does not call her and makes excuses in his mind that she is busy. And then finally he books his tickets and knocks on his daughter's door. To be met by the maid. He screams at her in excitement and this brings the daughter out, who again tells him to go and stay in a hotel. The poignant use of this emotion in the undertone of hilarity is the mark of a glaringly-brilliant-actor.

In the next scene he gets macabre and plans to take the eyes of his brother; because in the start of the play he was talking about his childhood and then the eyes. And he gave his eyes to the audience and he needs to take it back. A dangerous-violent-Shakespearean tragedy emotion engulfs you. Vinay Pathak is on stage!The content in the play was endless!

The play is worth many-many times watch and I learned Shakespeare watching it; the desire to go and to some work of the bard!

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