Mumbai witnessed an enthralling performance when Neil Bhoopalam and Denzil Smith took to the stage with award-winning playwright Sir Tom Stoppard's ‘Every Good Boy Deserves Favour’ in November 2022. Directed by Bruce Guthrie, the play also stars Sohrab Ardeshir, Deepika Deshpande Amin, and Mihaail Karachiwala, who were spectacular. Zafar Karachiwala's cameo as a Soviet general didn't go unnoticed. The play is now back for a second season.

Bruce Guthrie, Head of NCPA Theatre & Films, is pleased with the response the play garnered and shares, "I'm honoured to have been given the chance to direct such a large-scale production. Every Good Boy Deserves Favour's first run was a great success, and we are all thrilled to bring it back to the NCPA in March for another run of nine performances."

Khushroo N. Suntook, Chairman, NCPA, is particularly happy with the outcome of this brilliant script by Sir Tom Stoppard, which beautifully blends theatre and an orchestra. He shares, "It was a difficult play to produce. My congratulations to Mikel and the SOI for their execution of Bruce's vision. The actors were wonderful, and this production was on par, if not better, than any production at the West End or Broadway. It is both an artistic and technical success. The best theatrical production we have ever done at NCPA."  

The play was a perfect mix of how a story and music together enhance the narrative, says Mikel Toms, "Every Good Boy Deserves Favour is very much a one-of-a-kind play for Indian and non-Indian audiences alike. I don't think there's anything quite like it in the Western theatre repertoire. One of the things I like about the play is that it breaks down a "fourth wall" that is very rarely broken down. I love the concept of supposedly background or soundtrack musicians coming to the foreground from time to time; moving from the role of an unconscious commentator to active participant in the drama”. 

What is the Play About:

A dissident is locked up in an asylum. If he accepts that he was ill and has been cured, he will be released. He refuses. Sharing his cell is a genuine schizophrenic who believes himself to be surrounded by an orchestra. As the dissident’s son begs his father to free himself with a lie, Tom Stoppard’s darkly funny and provocative play asks if denying the truth is a price worth paying for liberty. The play premiered in 1977 as a part of Queen Elizabeth II’s Silver Jubilee celebrations. This rarely performed masterpiece features a 40 + piece orchestra playing live on stage.

About the Set: 

Set designer Francis O'Connor puts together a Modern Stage - lights and beds move to bring out the changing worlds of the play. The special attention to triangles and their changing stabilities is brought out through the stage design - augmenting Stoppard's rich dialogue.

Every Good Boy Deserves Favour By Sir Tom Stoppard

Credits:

Written by Sir Tom Stoppard

Music by André Previn

Directed by Bruce Guthrie

Conductor: Mikel Toms

Set Designer: Francis O’Connor

Costume Designer: Pallavi Patel

Lighting Designer: Rick Fisher

Sound Designer: Andy Collins

Movement Director: Rachel D’Souza

Music Supervisor: Matthew Scott

An NCPA Production in collaboration with the Symphony Orchestra of India

Details: An English Play with Actors & Orchestra

Duration: 65 Mins (No interval)

Age Limit: 6+

Venue: Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, NCPA

Show Details: 

Thursday, 9th March - 7:00 PM 

Friday, 10th March - 7:00 PM 

Saturday, 11th March - 5:00 PM & 7:00 PM 

Sunday, 12th March - 5:00 PM & 7:00 PM 

Tickets available on: Bookmyshow