Metroscape

July 26, 1999

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Globe Shakes

Before the days of cool Britannia, warm beer, bad cricket and William Shakespeare defined Britishness. Of late Indian beers like Kingfisher and Cobra have established themselves as firm favourites and the England cricket team has Nasser Hussain as its captain. Now Shakespeare's own theatre, the Globe, is staging a Kathakali version of King Lear -- This Brave New World.

Following the success of last year's Zulu Macbeth, Anette Leday and her Parisian Keli Company have taken the Globe by storm this month. The performances have been greeted with standing ovations and London theatre-goers seem to be lapping up the thundering drums, the chanting and the colour. The fact that the play transposes into the Indian culture surprises no one. It has the ingredients of a Bollywood blockbuster: regal, rich, yet slightly deranged father denies his favourite daughter a dowry because she has defied him.

-Anita Anand

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