‘Laila – The Musical’ – A modern British Asian twist on a much loved tale…

April 15 2016

Known as well as ‘Romeo and Juliet’ in the West, ‘Laila Majnu’ originally from Persia, is a similar tale of love and longing and now one of the country’s most innovative theatre companies gives it a different contemporary slant…

By Dimple Pau

WRITER and director Pravesh Kumar, the creative force behind “There’s Something About Simmy”, “The Deranged Marriage”, “Britain’s Got Bhangra” (2010) and now “Laila – The Musical”, puts a modern twist to the story of ‘Laila Majnu’.

The artistic director, of the theatre company he runs, Rifco Arts, based at Watford Palace, believes the story is as relevant now as it was when it was first told.

He told www.asianculturevulture.com: “I’ve always been really interested in this epic love story from the East – ‘Laila Majnu.”

“It’s not only been retold in Bollywood movies in India, but TV series and films in other countries including Turkey and Egypt.

“It made me question why the story wasn’t as well known in the western world.

“The themes in the story are still very relevant today, where family honour can still come before honouring your own heart.”

It’s been five years since Kumar has been involved with a musical, the last being the smash hit “Britain’s got Bhangra” – both a critical and commercial success.

It’s safe to say that this one has a different feel to it but with a similar imaginative and creative journey.

“’Laila’ is a different kind of musical,” Kumar explained, “first it fuses Sufi pop and musical theatre music.

“It’s still light hearted in places but is much more of a love story.

“I’m really proud of what we have created. It takes time to make a new musical, researching the music and producing the script – we’ve been working on ‘Laila’ since 2011.”

The cast is a mixed bag – with familiar faces from Kumar’s previous productions and some fresh faces.

Finding a cast of actors who can act as well as sing makes the whole process that much easier.

“It’s really wonderful to get such a talented bunch. We have three stage debut’s including Reece Bahia who plays Qays/Majnu (small picture top right), he has an amazing talent and singing voice.

“It’s great to work with Rifco favourites like Shin (DCS) who is playing Majnu’s father, he is such a dream to work with, and Sheena Patel, who has been in a few of our shows over the past decade. Laila is played by the very talented Mona Goodwin (small picture top left), who has a wonderful voice and real depth in her acting abilities.”

Creating musicals that work can be hard to get right, with so many elements in play – especially finding themes which cater to a British Asian audience which cross over, thereby satisfying any audience of any background.

It’s no surprise that “Romeo & Juliet” is mentioned in the same breath as this musical but the perspective and cultural considerations allow the story to be told in a new way.

“When making work like this you will always be compared with ‘Romeo and Juliet’. But this story is at least 800 years older and remarkably similar in plot. As a British Asian artist I had to tell the story from Laila’s perspective.

Kumar argued that the themes will resonate with many, regardless of their particular background and that it was a platform for young Asian talent to show what they could do, given the opportunity.

“The themes are universal – they should cross over to all audiences. I would say our core audience are mostly British Asian, very diverse British,” he explained.

“If we tour to venues like Oxford Playhouse or New Wolsey in Ipswich, the audiences then can be very white British. I suppose diverse work should be accessible to all audiences. I feel proud that we are able to give opportunity to new talent and work with real stars like Shin too.”

For any budding screen writers, producers and creatives, Kumar has some advice on how to make it.

“We started off as a small group of creatives, working from home, putting on shows with very little budget.

“It all began because we thought there was a real lack of programming for British Asians. It’s hard work, harder than it may look on the outside.

“You must have talent in the first place, which should be honed with some technical training too.

“Be prepared to not have money for a long time! You can only do this work, if it’s your first love – because the glamour is by no means worth the pain and graft you have to put in.”

All pictures: David Fisher for Rifco Arts

READ THE REVIEW

WHAT works brilliantly in this musical is the combination of a beautiful visual production, spot on music and a great cast.

The use of puppetry shadows open the show, and they are cleverly and delicately put together before we see ‘Laila’ (Mona Goodwin) in modern day Yorkshire, stumble into a library to take shelter from the rain.

As the story unfolds Laila falls in love with Qays (Reece Bahia), we also fall in love with him as a lovesick Romeo who has something of a Zayne Malik look about him.

The chemistry between Goodwin and Bahia is special and believable without being over the top.

The scenes of conflict are engaging with guns and chases. While a plot of this kind is always difficult to pin down and get right, the use of dance and music comes as a fresh way to tackle it.

Sheena Patel and Kush Khanna provide much entertainment as supporting roles, breaking the tension where needed.

They are ones to watch. Surrinder ‘Shin’ Singh Parwana does a fine job as Laila’s father and many women will be able to see their own fathers (in his image), especially at the end.

Musically, Sumeet Chopra’s compositions will have you humming and singing while having your breakfast the next morning – maybe not quite with the same precision or musicality, but this more than suggests she has a good ear for a cute tune.

There are many laugh out loud moments which would break even the harshest of critics – with one highlight being some men dressed in Burkas, singing and dancing.

All in all, this is an entertaining and colourful production which, as Pravesh Kumar desired, gives: “All those silent Lailas a voice to shout out loud and sing”. (Dimple Pau)

AVC Rating **** out of five

‘Laila – The Musical’ – Until April Sunday (April 17) ‘Laila The Musical’, Watford Palace Theatre, Watford Palace Theatre, 20 Clarendon Road, Watford, WD17 1JZ
Tel: 01923 235455

Then on tour from April 27 to June 4 in Ipswich; Leeds; Coventry; Hornchurch (East London); Windsor; and Salford.

For all tour dates, tickets/Info: www.rifcoarts.com