Dramatics at Don Bosco!

To borrow a modern comparison, Subra was our Dhoni in high school. Whatever he touched, turned to gold. He was academically brilliant and never stood second throughout his career. When it came to debates, he was peerless. He could draw, he could compere, he could act, he could sing. It looked as if there was nothing that he couldn't do. We were only thankful that he was senior to us by a year so that we could look up to him with awe and never had to battle with him. But even the best occasionally falter and it is these incidents which supply text for later narration!

Subra had a lead role in the finals of the school dramatics competition. He was to play a mother with a newborn child, stuck in a poverty ridden home. To set the context right, ours was a boys school and some of us had little choice but to essay feminine roles as well. The plot was dark and revolved around the travails of this lady who had to fend for herself and her child and deal with an irresponsible husband as well. You get the drift- a story straight out of an art film. But you could trust Subra. In his element, he would have brought tears to the eyes of  the most hardened eighth grader, which is no mean task.

But that day was different. Subra had to wear a skirt and blouse and cradle a doll which was supposed to serve as the newborn. At the most opportune moment, just when our protagonist exuded pathos and was at his melodramatic best, the doll decided to have some fun. Suddenly, the head of the doll slipped out of the body. It bounced a couple of times, did a few somersaults and fell out of the stage! The script did not deal with this eventuality at all. In a sudden reflex, Subra scampered down the stage and ran after the head which continued to elude him a few times! Soon he hurried back, and in full view of the public, spent the next several seconds fidgeting to screw the head back to the severed body of the doll! It's never easy to get it right and quick in these situations. Meanwhile, he had little choice but to keep the dialogue of the play going which now looked completely incongruous!

The audience was in splits and boys were seen holding their sides and rolling down the aisle! The judges tried their best to appear stern and serious. But the most austere have a tipping point. Just when normalcy seemed to return and the actors got back to their somber selves, the doll's head decided to do the bouncing act one more time! This time, the judges couldn't contain themselves. Their pens and evaluation sheets were cast to the winds and they too joined the laughter riot! It was too comical for even the participants on stage to continue any more. Their giggles turned to loud guffaws and they had to beat a hasty retreat to the green room. Subra was on the horns of a dilemma whether he should run after the head this time or continue the play with a severed baby! Abandoned by his comrades, he stood like that boy on the burning deck! There was little help that the prompter could give. As he turned several shades of red, the curtains came down and brought the play to its most illogical end!
Even the best of comedies hadn't evoked this kind of spontaneous response ever! As far as we were concerned, it was the best play ever and were quite disappointed that it did not win a prize.

There was just one individual who saw things differently. Mrs Clare, who had struggled with this group for months was heard screaming behind the curtains, "How many times did I tell you during the practice sessions not to play exorcist with the baby!!"

P.S. For the uninitiated, playing exorcist refers to the act of rotating the head of the doll so that the face would now be to the back! That's the game high school boys like to play with dolls and occasionally wished they could do the same to those who taught them !!