DR ISRAFEEL SHAHEEN REFLECTS ON THEATRE
Dr Israfeel Shaheen is a noted director and professor at the Department of Theatre and Performance Studies, University of Dhaka. He graduated from the National School of Drama in Delhi before completing his PhD from Rabindra Bharati University in Kolkata on 'Street Theatre in Bangladesh' in 1999. The Daily Star recently engaged in conversation with the director to discuss the current projects under his belt as well as evaluate the factors that contribute in shaping the future of the upcoming generation of theatre students and practitioners in Bangladesh.
Dr Shaheen is presently directing Macbeth, set to be staged between October 9-14 by Master's students of the Department of Theatre and Performance Studies at the University of Dhaka. Apart from that, he is also developing a theatre project highlighting the struggles of the Rohingya refugee community. Dr Shaheen postulated that in order to succeed as a theatre practitioner, apart from the most basic requirements such as dedication, grit, passion and the ability to work hard, one must also have thorough technical knowledge of all that goes behind putting a production in motion, which includes familiarising with theatre diction, scriptwriting, character improvisation, set design, light design, sound design, stage management and production management, along with a multitude of other aspects. He also proposed that theatre should be included as an academic subject in educational institutions which will help garner social, familial and administrative support for theatre workers, further contributing to their success in the industry. Additionally, Dr Shaheen believes that the lack of research centres for theatre in our country has been a hindrance to the development of the subject in Bangladesh's context, but he is optimistic that an organised effort by the theatre industry could potentially change that.