Written and Directed : Jyoti Dogra Cast : Jyoti Dogra
BLACK HOLE Review
An extraordinary revelation is made by the twin Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) detectors, based in Livingston, Louisiana, and Hanford, Washington, USA. Gravitational waves arriving on the earth are measured for the first time on these detectors.
These space ripples are produced during the final fraction of a second of the merger of two black holes.
The event confirms what Einstein had predicted 100 years ago - that gravitational waves exist. But what had merely remained as a prediction by one of the world's great geniuses, was witnessed for the first time on this very day. Needless to say, this event made an otherwise ordinary day on earth into an extraordinary one.
It also sparked a passionate zeal in actress and playwright Jyoti Dogra to devote herself - almost as a religion - to astrophysics. The theatrical expression of which is the play BLACK HOLE.
However, the play juxtaposes this with a personal crisis and loss.
BLACK HOLE explores themes of science with the shattering frailties of human existence through the lens of a loved one's cancer diagnosis. The resultant work is a devastatingly poignant expression of love and loss. The 90-minute solo performance is an intense exploration of cosmic insights and personal struggles with death and meaning.
Armed with extensive research including a visit to CERN, and a grant from the India Foundation for the Arts, Jyoti Dogra sets about the play, by just ... walking. Along the edges of a white bedsheet.
As the play progresses, the white bed-sheet evolves into different metaphors: from galaxies, to the mingling of two spouses. And yet, there are also moments when it is stripped of all meaning, and addressed as the inanimate object it really is. The whiteness of the bed-sheet is discussed, and even credited to a washing powder!
The standout moments are when the bedsheet is used to explain different concepts of astrophysics, which really helps dummies like me!
Although at times, one could get bewildered and disconnected from the performer's deep interest in black holes, the beauty of this information is revealed when it is used to explain human experiences like love, affection and loss.
Are we all individual black holes - mysterious voids that are too dense for the world? Or perhaps the principle of singularity in black holes can explain the profound sense of oneness that can only be felt with a soulmate.
However, the play is not all dense - no black hole pun intended!
There's also Jyoti Dogra's characteristic humour bringing a sense of bubbliness into the performance.
However, in between mining for neutrinos and searching for cosmic enlightenment, Jyoti offers the reason for which she has chosen to rely on her pursuit as a form of escape. Not just for her, but for a matriarchal figure who has been diagnosed with the dreaded C-word.
When faced with the dread of impending mortality, this mother figure tells the protagonist, "Mujhe kuch naya bata... Kuch aisa jo iss sab se bada ho" (Tell me something new... something which is bigger than all this)
And so, in hospital visits and gloomy dinners, the woman inquires of black holes and the space. To escape from the dreariness of her actual life.
As a performer, Jyoti Dogra delivers a captivating performance. Her walk is so impactful that it conveys deep meanings and helps divide the narrative into multiple themes. Her body is a potent tool, and she has definitely crafted herself as one of Mumbai's leading proponents of the Grotowskian method. The sound too has an ethereal quality to it, adding a sense of intrigue and mystery to the material.
BLACK HOLE is a play which you may like or not, but one that will definitely make you think. About the smallness of our human existence. About existential questions. About life, and most importantly, about the vast, vast space.
*Divyani has worked as a journalist for The Quint, where she was also among the Founding Team members. While there, she also hosted and produced a podcast and fronted several standups. She's also worked for The Times of India group. She's now a theatre and film actor.
