Ashish Beesoondial : Validating Theatre and Drama in Mauritius

Artistic director of the Caudan Arts Centre, Ashish Beesoondial takes keen interest in new voices and new creative work, particularly in Mauritius and in the region. Former lecturer in English and Drama, the theatre practitioner is currently developing further projects in an endeavour to promote the Arts in Mauritius. He shares with us his pathway into drama, why he believes that theatre/drama should be part of our curriculum, his objectives and projects in the pipeline. 

“All the world’s a stage/And all the men and women merely players”, “As You Like It,” William Shakespeare. Our professional this week is a theatre person who himself plays different roles on stage. Artistic director of the Caudan Arts Centre since a year, Ashish Beesoondial is someone who is driven by his passion for stage performance and drama. 

As a child, he wanted to become a teacher just like his parents. “They had fulfilling careers in teaching, so quite naturally, my dream job was to become a teacher. I think what attracted me to teaching is the ability to impart and engage. But as a child, every job can be a dream job. I also wanted to become a jockey or a football player, before quickly realising I would never make the cut in either of these.” In fact, after discovering acting during his school days, he did not have any second thought about what he wanted to do. 

“I recall acting in a play in primary school that only required me to walk from one end of the stage to the other, but I never acted in other plays in Mauritius. I did enjoy everything pertaining to literature, including reciting bits of ‘Julius Caesar’ with my father. The interest in theatre/performance was always there, although quite latent. But I was offered the chance to do it during my studies at St Xavier's College in Mumbai. There was no looking back since. I started out with acting and then discovered other facets at Shakespeare's Globe, which is what led me to go for further studies in theatre,” he shares. 

Ashish confides that the stage became a way to discover and assert himself. “I started off with a lot of passion and then quickly discovered that the stage defined who I really was and it fed my creativity. This led me to pursue a career in drama.” He started off his career as English and Drama lecturer. “As a lecturer, I found the parallels between teaching and drama so striking. Both serve to empower and I relished the opportunity of working with teachers who were keen to make a difference at the level of the school,” he says. 

Helping to build a creative future

After ten fulfilling years as lecturer at the Mauritius Institute of Education, Ashish has been holding, since a year, the post of artistic director of the Caudan Arts Centre. This new multi-arts venue is the next phase of development at Le Caudan Waterfront and will be officially opened on the 1st of December this year. It comprises a theatre of 430 seats with state-of-the-art facilities and equipment, dressing rooms, rehearsal space, a cafe and parking facilities. 

He shares that the new arts centre will be all about opening its doors to every kind of talent. “We want to provide our audience with a different experience. Keeping in line with our vision and philosophy, we want to present shows from not only professional artists but also from emerging artists as well. We believe in potential and in transforming this potential in high-quality shows. This is why we are inviting artists to register with us on our website, so that we can work together with them and create different events.”

He adds that the Caudan Arts Centre will not only be a space where people will attend performances. “We also aspire to be a creative learning organisation as well - that is, a space for learning and for creative engagement. This is why we will also offer courses in drama, music, dance. We are also going to have a very strong school and community outreach programme. It is essential to provide opportunities to the younger generation to engage with a variety of art forms. It tallies with our vision of building a creative future.” 

As artistic director, Ashish wants to see the Caudan Arts Centre playing a determining role in helping to build a creative future for Mauritius. “Our vision - 'Creativity for all' - stems out of a firm belief that there is creative potential to be developed in Mauritius. All the work that we are doing focuses on this. We also want to develop the creative industry in Mauritius. But I would also like to add that there has to be a collective responsibility to build a creative future. We are therefore looking to build partnerships with other organisations and artists, inviting everyone to be part of this movement,” he states. 

Importance of theatre and drama in our curriculum

As a theatre practitioner, Ashish highlights that he seeks to explore and experiment with different performance styles and traditions in search of a Mauritian theatre tradition. Having directed a number of productions locally, the artistic director trusts that theatre and drama does not have much of a place in our Mauritian society other than entertainment. “Both drama and theatre have the ability to hold a mirror to us and they should be promoted precisely because they can provoke, by making people think, reflect and act. I think we are being surrounded by a wealth of information and entertainment that often numbs us and what is worse is that we do not even realise that these shape and dictate our thinking. Drama and theatre can provide fresh perspectives at looking at the world around us. This is what art does in fact. We need more voices to be heard in Mauritius - not in a political sense, but simply to provoke thinking. Drama and theatre are forms of expression: express what? An idea, a critical moment, a problem: we need to tell and talk about these, be it in a thought-provoking way or in an entertaining way,” he explains. 

He believes that theatre and drama should definitely be part of our national curriculum. “I trust so simply because drama is a natural form of learning. This is what we do as we grow up, role-playing and creating different situations, based on 'what-ifs'. We all day-dream, we all create situations in our minds, we all live through a variety of emotions. Drama and theatre tap upon our own experiences, to use our imagination. Moreover, drama and theatre allow us to better understand ourselves and others. It allows us not only to delve in emotions but also to develop a level of criticality. These are all fundamental for us as human beings. I think this is what Mauritius needs, more than ever.”

Achievements and projects in the pipeline

Ashish Beesoondial shares that one of his biggest achievements so far has been one of the plays he directed and acted in. “From a different perspective though, I would like to think my major achievement is something that I can't quantify or measure or see. If there are people I have influenced through teaching or through theatre workshops or through acting and directing, this could be an achievement, unknown to me, but most meaningful.”

When it comes to a major challenge that he has had so far during his career, the artistic director states that he has faced numerous challenges. “I think there have always been a number of challenges that I have faced. Admittedly, some have thrown me off balance. But then I think resolve is the key term. It is important to find it in order to stand up to any challenge. What helps is drive and belief - in oneself and in the knowledge that others believe in us too.”

Asked about the most important thing he has learned so far in his career, he confides that he has learned to be a keen learner. “All the time. To observe and to learn from others. I think by being a keen learner, we constantly seek to better ourselves. There are always new facets, ideas that we learn from people. Our identity is in perpetual change and the more we take in from others, the better it is,” he explains. 

Regarding projects in the pipeline, Ashish underlines that all personal and professional projects are related to Caudan Arts Centre. “Right now, I am directing and rehearsing our next big show, scheduled on 2nd December 2018, an adaptation of Gershwin's opera, entitled ‘Porgy’. We have adapted the opera to a musical in Creole. The rehearsal process is extremely interesting in the way it is throwing different possibilities.”

How is he looking forward to the future as Director of the Caudan Arts Centre? “With optimism and with a lot of hope. I think we have reached a phase in Mauritius where we can go on to the next level in the creative field. This fills me with a lot of excitement,” he utters.  

Caudan Live

Caudan Live is the first event leading to the opening of the Arts Centre on 1st of December. It is a talent contest open to professional as well as amateur artists from Mauritius and Rodrigues.

Participants will have to compete in five categories: theatre, dance, music, slam and folk and will have to post their video on the Caudan Live website in the chosen category. Participants will then have to share this video on the Caudan Arts Center Facebook page and encourage their fans to vote. The winner in each category will be rewarded a cash prize and will get a professional contract. 

“These are genres that we want to encourage and see at Caudan Arts Centre. With Caudan Live, participants will need to upload their videos on caudanlive.com. The public and the jury will vote and select those who go to the second round, consisting of the Top 5 candidates in each category. Another round of voting will follow and the Top 2 finalists in each category will battle it out on the day of our opening, with a hefty prize as reward. It is important for us that Caudan Arts Centre opens with local artists on its stage. The symbol itself is very strong: Caudan Arts Centre is a space for artists, arts and audience,” reveals Ashish Beesoondial.