A performance for the terminally ill

On 8 December, our Playback Theatre team performed at Karunashraya in Bangalore. This is a hospice for terminally ill cancer patients. Most of the patients are dying and are provided basic treatment with lots of love. The care is mostly free of cost.

At about 4:30 in the evening we reached the venue. The patients were all wheeled to an open space. There was a pool of water close by, filled with fish. A small bird stood there on the steps. We were filled with trepidation, wondering how the peformance would go…

There were about twenty patients. Quite a few of them were bandaged and some of them didn’t utter a word during the show. About 40 of the support staff including the nurses joined to watch the performance. Umesh P N was the conductor and his interaction was primarily in Kannada, keeping in mind the audience.

‘What I like best about Karunashraya is that the nurses and the staff treat us with a lot of love and try their very best to insulate us as far as possible from the pain.’ 
‘If I have another life I would like to serve others just like the sisters and nurses here.’

The stories that emerged were stories of innocense – of childhood. Of copying exams and getting caught. Being sent home by the Head Master and then when the parent pleaded, of relenting and then of the triumph of passing the exam honestly.

For a moment there were smiles all around. The participants enjoying, laughing. Some of them taking in the performance silently. The support staff enjoying every minute of it, celebrating the key moments. The actors performing to their best and ensuring that they did justice to the stories. Arif on the guitar adding to the ambience.

One lady, in a wheel chair, her body ravaged by cancer, her limbs taught, the veins bulging…she probably had very little time to live… She shared a story of her childhood. Her voice filled with excitement as she recounted long lost days of games and bunking classes and care free moments. Her excitement was boundless and as she shared we could see a warm glow in her face. This was a truly beautiful moment.  

One lady who was blind began to get completely involved in the sharing as we progressed. She shared – ‘Your performance has been like a rainbow in our lives…I will never forget this lovely evening that you have gifted us’.

(The performers included Nagabhushana S, Rangarajan, Siddharth Joshi, Sumana, Sujitra, Ajmal Aboobacker, Irada P P & Rajesh P I. Music was conducted by Arif Mohammed. )

– Rajesh P I

~ by Sibu Vaz on December 12, 2007.