Politics of Resistance against Capitalism in Transcultural Adaptations of Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle by Ajoka Theatre in Pakistan

Abstract

Brecht’s canonical literary work and its controversial
indigenization in Pakistan can offer a valuable transcultural adaptation
study because it was performed through a radical theatre with a distinct
dramaturgy and political philosophy in two different cultural contexts
and historical frame of references. As the foremost representative of
Brecht’s radical dramaturgy, philosophy and literary works in Pakistan
since 1983, Ajoka theatre utilized these adaptations as socio-political
spaces to challenge dominant discourses on the rise of dictatorship and
capitalism in Pakistan. At present, previous researchers explored
Ajoka’s signature performance from formal criticism: visual and aural
elements however, intellectual content: playwright’s particular thesis in
mind and use of play as a vehicle to prove a point are still unexamined.
This contextual study endeavors to fill this gap by exploring and
examining the political dimension of these theatrical adaptations of
Brecht selected work in light of Hutcheon’s theory of adaptation and new
historicism. This article also investigates the political and cultural
factors which necessitated the import and adaptation of Brecht’s work in
Pakistan.