Nov 27 2026 to Nov 27 2026 5 p.m.

Where

Sabha Blr

No.44/A, Kamaraj Road, Bharati Nagar, Shivaji Nagar, Bengaluru 560042

Event Description

How Not to Build a Theatre Institution 

A Conversation with Abhishek Mudgal, Sanyukta Saha and Abhishek Majumdar

Moderated by Priyanka Varma 

Artists establish and lead theatre institutions (which include long-standing initiatives) for different reasons — to practice, teach, present, advocate or support the art form, for instance. 

But such undertakings, especially if they function independently of secure government or corporate largesse, can falter or fail. The poverty of infrastructure and support for the theatre are among the external factors that are adduced for the precariousness of artist-led institutions. Internal factors are rarely cited. What if the institution is over-reliant on personal equations and goodwill for its sustenance? Or if its ownership is narrowly concentrated in one or two charismatic personalities? Or if it is too obsessed with legacy concerns to avert obsolescence in a swiftly changing environment?

This session will investigate what might lie inside any theatre institution that could threaten its stability and hamper its growth. Reflecting on their personal experience of founding and running institutions, three theatre artists will tell us about what worked or did not work about the choices they made. Were discontents allowed to simmer, tensions swept under the carpet or challenges left unaddressed? In hindsight, do they regret any missteps or wish they had done some things differently?

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