Fridae

Open Space presents a dramatized reading of two monologues written and performed by R. Raj Rao

The Wisest Fool On Earth & Vanaprastha Ashram



About the plays:

The Wisest Fool on Earth, written in the UK in 1990, sees Jay, 34, speak to his audience from a washroom window where his gay lover hides him when his father unexpectedly arrives. He is scatological and exhibitionistic, and, among other things explains why he became a male prostitute. Gieve Patel calls The Wisest Fool on Earth "one of the most important plays written in India over the last decade."

Vanaprastha Ashram, written in Canada in 2008, sees Jay at age 52 speak to his audience from the roof of a Bombay skyscraper.

R. Raj Rao is the author of, among other books, the novels The Boyfriend (Penguin India, 2003; translated into French and Italian), and Hostel Room 131 (Penguin India, 2010). He is co-editor of Whistling in the Dark: Twenty-one Queer Interviews (Sage, 2009). Riyad Wadia's 11 minute short, BomGay (1996), was based on his poems.

Rao teaches at the Department of English, University of Pune.

Date: April 1 2011

Time: 5.30 pm at Open Space

The readings may be followed by a discussion.

(This event is free.)

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Open Space is a social network for young people interested in exploring and building a more equal, sustainable and inclusive world. OS is a forum for new ideas, expression, dialogues and learning on issues that concern young adults and their future. Share your views, articles, films and creative expressions on OS, and participate in our programmes. Open Space is an initiative of the Centre for Communication and Development Studies, which also manages India’s leading resource base on social justice and development issues www.infochangeindia.org.

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