The play is free to all and booking is recommended via Eventbrite.
The Middle One, or the Madhyama Vyāyoga, is a one-act Sanskrit play attributed to Bhāsa. With the generous support from TORCH and Queen's College, we are bringing the ancient script back to life with chanting and original dialogue in Sanskrit. The play is comparable with the Oedipus Rex for its subject matter, breathtaking coincidence, and great literary achievement.
A fierce demon demands a member of an innocent priestly family to be sacrificed for his mom's breakfast. How will the family pick out the unfortunate one? With the tragedy looming large, the world protector is also abducted by the demon. Yet soon the demon realises that he has been the subject of manipulation. A more intricate plot is to be revealed.
All of the cast are students at the Oriental Institute, ranging from second year BA to third year DPhil student. The 40-minute captioned performance will be preceded by a 20-min talk "Sanskrit drama: emotion in a dead language". A brief coffee reception will start from 13:30.
A sample verse of the play translated by Janvier (1921):
'Has the mouth and teeth of a lion, eyes the colour of honey, a pleasing, deep voice, brown eyebrows, an eagle's nose, the jaw of a lordly elephant and long, disheveled hair. With his broad chest, his waist like lightening, with the gait of a mighty elephant, and long, stout-shouldered arms, it is evident that he is the offspring of an ogress, and, being endowed with tremendous strength, he is clearly the son of a world-hero'
