Going bonkers over Bengal Bungalow - Jehan Aloysius

Date:15/09/2010
Source: Daily News

Bengal Bungalow was written by Jehan when he was just a schoolboy, and first performed an extremely successful, sell-out run in 2004. The play is a mad mix of situation comedy and physical humour, much in the style of British bedroom farce

It’s time for theatre lovers in Colombo to prepare for the wildest and wackiest production they’ll see for some time! CentreStage Productions will be premiering their outrageous comedy, Bengal Bungalow, this week at the Lionel Wendt Theatre from September 17 to 19 at 7.30 p.m.

Mahout Finds his Elephant in Trouble

The Pilot Arrives in BengalThe Pilot Arrives in Bengal

British and Indian characters take centre stage. Pictures by Dino Corera

Written and Directed by Jehan Aloysius, Bengal Bungalow has been creating quite a buzz in the city with many outrageous viral videos on YouTube as well as Facebook groups and events dedicated to the show.

Jehan says that tickets are selling like hot cakes at the Lionel Wendt Theatre. He added that, as the show will be performing for a limited run of just three days, theatre lovers should not delay in booking their space at Bengal Bungalow.

The proceeds will support the troupe’s humanitarian endeavour, the StageHands Project, which has conducted volunteer workshops around the island for the last five years.

These theatre-based workshops have focused on Social Theatre, Theatre for Development, Trauma Therapy, as well as physical and mental rehabilitation of those living with mental and physical challenges.

The plot revolves around a British family residing in India, whose home, Bengal Bungalow, becomes a bizarre circus when a British pilot decides to accidentally crash his aircraft through the newly refurbished guestroom.

The pilot loses his memory as a result of the crash, leading to a host of comic misunderstandings, misdemeanours and misadventures. As more characters, both British and Indian, ranging from a notorious robber, a hapless priest and an enraged mahout, make their appearance, the play skyrockets towards its hilarious climax.

The cast includes Anabella Brochard, Shehan Wijeymana, Keshiya Leitch, Sachintha Dias, Heshan Perera, and Dino Corera. Also look out for new comers such as Shehantha Abeyesundare, Trevor Kroon, Malik Hannan and Anoop Kapukotuwa.

The characters in Bengal Bungalow are indeed more wildly over-the-top caricatures of the British and Indian characters they represent, so be prepared for lots of slapstick comedy and possibly the most outrageously fake Indian (yendiyan) and British (Brrritishhh) dialects! Sit back and join in the madness that is Bengal Bungalow!