Swapnadal's ‘Helen Keller’ heads to Melbourne for 64th staging

Swapnadal's acclaimed monodrama "Helen Keller" will be staged in Melbourne, Australia, on June 6, marking the production's 64th staging.

The performance will take place at Chandler Hall at 6 pm on Saturday (June 6) at the invitation of the Renaissance Drama Society Melbourne. Director Zahid Repon and actress Juana Sobnom travelled to Melbourne on May 29 to participate in the production and related events.

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Written by Apurba Kumar Kundu and directed by Zahid Repon, the play explores the life, struggles, achievements and philosophy of Helen Keller. Juana Sobnom performs the solo production, portraying the remarkable journey of the American author, educator and activist, who overcame the challenges of being deaf and blind to become one of the most influential voices of her time.

The production has previously been staged at the invitation of the Bangladesh Embassy in Tokyo and has been showcased at four international theatre festivals in India, earning praise from audiences and theatre practitioners alike. It has also been featured at six international virtual theatre festivals.

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The June 6 programme will begin at 5 pm with a reception honouring theatre personality Kamaruzzaman Balark, who recently received the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) 2026, one of Australia's highest civilian honours for contributions to arts and culture. The staging of "Helen Keller" will follow the ceremony.

Alongside the performance, Repon will conduct a workshop on Bengali theatre practices for local theatre practitioners under the auspices of Renaissance Drama Society Melbourne.
Repon's work is already familiar to Melbourne audiences. 

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In 2023, his production of Rabindranath Tagore's "Achalayatan", staged by Renaissance Drama Society, received widespread appreciation. A documentary chronicling the making of the production, "Tritiya Bhuban" (Beyond Boundaries), later garnered recognition at several international film festivals and was screened at Melbourne's Showbiz Cinemas.

Centred on Helen Keller's life and the transformative influence of her teacher Anne Sullivan, the play highlights Keller's advocacy for women's empowerment, humanity and social justice. It also reflects her opposition to war, violence, racism and the culture of militarisation.

To mark Helen Keller's birth anniversary, Swapnadal will stage the production once again on June 28 at the Studio Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy in Dhaka.