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Mahabharata

Why Not Theatre Toronto

Directed by Ravi Jain
Written and adapted by Ravi Jain and Miriam Fernandes, using poetry from Carole Satyamurti’s "Mahabharata: A Modern Retelling"

Presented in partnership with the Shaw Festival, Mahabharata is a contemporary take on a Sanskrit epic that is more than four thousand years old and foundational to Indian culture. This gripping story of a family feud is an exploration of profound philosophical and spiritual ideas. Why Not Theatre’s large-scale retelling stars a cast entirely of performers from the South Asian diaspora and presents a complex hybrid of cultures balancing East and West, traditional and contemporary. Mahabharata is a visually stunning spectacle presented in two parts that takes audiences on a journey through the past in order to write a thrilling new future.

Company

At Why Not Theatre we push boundaries, build community, and find new ways. Rethink how stories are told. And who gets to tell them. We MAKE great work that takes chances, and tours all over the world. We SHARE everything we have because more artists mean more stories. We PROVOKE change because we believe art should be for everyone. At Why Not we make things, better.

Touring inquiries: Karen Tisch

karen@whynot.theatre

Creative team

Directed by Ravi Jain
Written and adapted by Ravi Jain and Miriam Fernandes, using poetry from Carole Satyamurti’s "Mahabharata: A Modern Retelling"
Original concept developed with Jenny Koons
Set designer Lorenzo Savoini
Costume Designer Gillian Gallow
Lighting Designer Kevin Lamotte
Projections Designer Hana S. Kim and Ann Slote
Sound Designer John Gzowski and Suba Sankaran
Music by Suba Sankaran and John Gzowski
Traditional music consultant Hasheel Lodhia
Producer Kevin Matthew Wong

National Creation Fund investment

The National Creation Fund’s investment of $225,000 allowed Why Not Theatre to bring together the international cast, musicians and the creative team for several extended workshops to collectively develop the three parts of the large-scale project.

Credits

A Why Not Theatre production, in association with Barbican, London, commissioned and presented by the Shaw Festival.

Production partners: Canada Council for the Arts’ New Chapter Program, Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund, The Slaight Family Foundation, Kingfisher Foundation, Deb Barrett & Jim Leech, Lindy Green Family Foundation, Wuchien Michael Than Foundation.

Developed with support from the National Arts Centre’s National Creation Fund.

Performance dates

Past performances

Presented by The Shaw Festival	Feb 28 - Mar 26, 2023	Festival Theatre (Niagara-on-the-Lake)
Presented by The Barbican	Oct 1 - Oct 7, 2023	The Barbican Theatre (London)