THE SHAKESPEARE SOCIETY

1. About the Society:

Instituted in 1924, The Shakespeare Society is the oldest collegiate theatre society in India. The society was originally founded with a three-fold objective of producing an annual Shakespearean play, studying Shakespearean drama and observing 23rd April as Shakespeare Day every year. But as the society progressed, its objectives and horizons widened. Today, The Shakespeare Society extends far beyond its titular motif – Shakespeare and stands as one of the most active, creative and skilled collegiate theatre societies. The society’s rich alum base has further shaped and contributed to its growth and expansion.

The society has a riveting annual event calendar including a launch production, an intra and inter-college national level theatre festival which witnesses a participation of 1000+ students, external performances, panel discussions, play-reading sessions, an annual production and a plethora of creative sessions and workshops facilitated by professionals. The society also collaborates with other societies to organize collaborative events and to provide non-competitive spaces for enthusiasts to showcase talent and hone their craft.

The society truly allows young artists and performers to explore their expressive boundaries and equips them with necessary life skills. Being an open society, ShakeSoc as we call it, believes that there is an artist in everyone and the society with its resources provides the perfect breeding ground for nurturing their ability, passion and aesthetics for story-telling. ShakeSoc serves as a platform to engage with all the different elements of theatre – acting, direction, production, scriptwriting, lights & sounds, make-up and costume, and marketing & publicity. The society also encourages political and civil discourse, imagination, empathy, inclusivity, originality and education through art.

What makes The Shakespeare Society particularly unique is that it combines meaningful theatrics with a legacy of excellence. To that effect, the Society has successfully been able to carve out a niche for itself under the umbrella of collegiate theatre and beyond.

2. Executive Council 2022-23:

Co- General Secretaries:
Akanksha Shahi (III B.Sc. Chemistry) and Rhea Mathew (III B.Sc. Chemistry)

Financial Director:
Kevin Joy Varghese (III B.A. History)

Internal Operations Heads:
Manasvi James (III B.A. English), Joanna Chhavi (II B.A. English), Pratyusha Chakrabarti (II B.A. History), Elizabeth Jacob (II B.A. History)

External Operations Heads:
Karen Roanna Thomas (III B.SC. Chemistry), Aadyot Prakash (II B.A. Philosophy), Nivedita Mahapatra (II B.A. History), Amarissa Nayak (II B.A. English)

Publicity Heads:
Lakshiya Nicholson (III B.A. English), Insha Shakeel (II B.A. History), Loraine Joseph (II B.A. English)

Treasurer:
Richik Chakraborty (II B.Sc. Programme)

3. Sponsorship Proposal: View

4. Events:

Something Sketchy: This event is organised to let budding theatre enthusiasts put up skits, stories, poems etc. and portray their skills for acting, direction and script writing. It is a platform to get exposure to performance and build a theatre community in the college.

Rajpal: Held in the memory of our former Principal and Society President, W.S. Rajpal, the Rajpal Memorial One-Act Play Competition is held both at the Intra and Inter-collegiate levels. Open to all students of College—theatre veterans and newcomers alike—Intra Rajpal offers the opportunity for everyone to immerse themselves in the world of theatre. The month-long Rajpal season often sees students donning multiple hats, working in direction, production, acting and management to bring their visions to life, culminating in a three-day fest where up to 20 plays are staged.

Inter Rajpal is one of the most prestigious events in the Delhi theatre circuit. The Society reaches out to around 50 teams from various colleges of Delhi University and beyond to put up plays, along with the winning Intra-Rajpal play from St. Stephen’s College. After receiving pitches from around 30 collegiate teams, they are then invited for screening—with as many as 500 students participating in the process—after which 12 teams are selected for the final event. Panning through a duration of three days, Inter Rajpal is the product of the efforts of students occupying various managerial departments on behalf of the Society.

The competition is judged by established theatre professionals. Dr. N.P. Ashley, Jaideep Pandey—experienced theatre practitioners as well as College faculty members—have previously judged Intra-Rajpal. In the past, Harriet Raghunathan, Neel Chaudhari, Sunit Tandon, Ravi Raj Sagar, Saattvic, and Prabhjot Singh have taken up this role for Inter-Rajpal. On the final day of the event, the judges announce the winners and that is followed by the famous Rajpal Dinner—a tradition which had its inception in the early 2010s—in which all the teams and the judges come together and have a meal cherishing the sense of community that theatre forms within us.

Padley Memorial Theatre Discussion: Started by one of the former principals of the College and Society President, H.W Padley, this discussion is a platform for theatre practitioners, professors, and students to come together to discuss and debate issues of importance in the field of theatre, providing a platform for theatre enthusiasts to bring their own subjective experiences and perspectives about theatre to the table.
In 2021, panellists Mallika Taneja, Zorian Cross and Sunit Tandon were convened to an audience of students and faculty alike for a discussion on the topic “Six Feet Apart”. The discussion was moderated by Prof. Ann Susan Aleyas.

In 2019, panellists Arjun Ghosh, Mallika Taneja, Dhwani Vij and Benil Biswas shared their views on the topic “Identity and Culture in Theatre”, with Dr. N.P. Ashley serving as the moderator.

Workshops: Every production or event requires learning of techniques and training in various aspects of theatre. The Society organises various workshops throughout the year. All aspects of theatre, small or big are explored with professionals in each field, including our own alumni. A few workshops being planned for this year are- diction and projection, ideation and script writing, direction, acting, lights, production, makeup and costume etc. All these are extremely important for the successful organisation of any play.

Annual Production: The Annual Production is the cherry on the cake for the society. Organised at the end of every academic year, the Annual Production is a thrilling and wonderful experience for each one associated with the society. All the techniques learnt throughout the year from workshops, Intra and Inter-Rajpal are put to use at the Annual Production. In the year 2021-22, the 91st Annual Production was Mad Woman in The Attic, an adaption of Jane Eyre, a novel by Charlotte Bronte, with elements from Macbeth.

5. Social Links: The Shakespeare Society

6. Photo Gallery:
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