Agleyum Cliyopatrayum as an evocative theatre work merges the ancient Lithuanian myth of Egle, the woman who married a serpent, with Shakespeare’s ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ to explore the feminine experience of love, power, loyalty, and transformation across cultures and time. Through six vivid scenes, the actor embodies both Cleopatra and Egle—two women from vastly different worlds whose lives are shaped by intense love and tragic choices. Cleopatra, the magnetic queen of Egypt, navigates love as a political force, facing betrayal, longing, and ultimately choosing a powerful death over submission. Egle, an innocent village girl, is drawn into a mystical undersea world when she marries the serpent prince Zilvinas. Her tale is one of love gained and lost, culminating in a mythical transformation into a tree—an enduring symbol of strength and sorrow. The play transcends language and geography to connect audiences with deep human emotions and the shared complexities of womanhood.

Director:

Chandradasan, founder and artistic director of Lokadharmi Centre for Theatre, Kochi, is a versatile figure in Indian theatre—a designer, director, dramaturg, and writer. With a Ph.D. in Theatre/Cultural Studies. He has designed and directed over 50 plays spanning classics, Shakespeare, musicals, and devised works in multiple languages, including Malayalam, Hindi, Finnish, and English. He has served as a Fulbright-Nehru Fellow and visiting faculty at institutions like Pomona College, USA, and the NSD New Delhi, Varanasi, Bangalore, & Rangayana Mysore. A prolific writer, he has published original plays and numerous articles on performance studies. His distinguished career is marked by awards, including the Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award (2004) and the META Award for Best Play (2008), underscoring his significant contribution to global and regional theatre

Director’s Note

This performance, Agleyum Cliyopatrayum (Egle & Cleopatra) is an exploration of the complex, often tragic, terrain of feminine love, strength, and transformation. I am fascinated by how these two women—one a political strategist who wields love fatally, the other an innocent who finds resilience in an unchosen marriage—are connected by love’s ecstasy and ultimate pain. The solo actor seamlessly evokes key emotional moments from each life, transitioning between the royal queen, the serpent’s wife, and the narrator. The stage is centred on a Sarpakalam, Kerala’s ritual snake floor art, grounding the mythic atmosphere in indigenous tradition. Through physical theatre, live painting, and Salim Nair’s haunting score, the performance creates a sensory, immersive experience. The final, trance-like dance wiping the kalam is a release—a voyage of emotion and memory transcending language and geography

Group:

Lokadharmi, established in Kochi, Kerala, in 1991, is a prominent Centre for theatre training, research, and innovative performance. With 41 productions to its credit, including collaborative works and children’s plays, Lokadharmi has received significant critical acclaim. The group’s work has been featured at major national and international festivals. Group’s production of Karnabharam secured three Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META) in 2008, including Best Play. Lokadharmi’s repertoire includes adaptations of classics like Medea, Lankalakshmi, Kaali Nadakam, and Poranadi.