“Rendezvous with My ALTER…Come Dance with Us” is a new English-language musical play about an aspiring dancer whose look doesn’t fit in with the norm of the dance world, and featuring the multinational cast of six actors and eight dancers.

“The story is not from real life although it could be,” says playwright and director Sunaina Gulati.

“It is perhaps sub-consciously influenced from my interactions and experiences. I wanted to write something that didn't involve a conventionally-etched protagonist. What I find in a large number of mainstream shows is that the central-characters of these productions have somewhat predictable traits – their looks, skills and certain other characteristics set them apart from the rest. When reduced to the lowest denominator, they're similar.”

“I wanted my lead character to not look, sound or feel like her story deserves to be told. Having said that, I think everybody has a story and sometimes, as I have tried in Rendezvous with my ALTER it is important to listen to those we normally don't hear from.”

Trained and worked in broadcast journalism, Sunaina has been a performing arts aficionado for years.

“I am passionate about writing stories and using live performances to tell them. Four years ago I staged my first play ‘Ek Baar… Phir’ (‘Once… Again’) which was about the triumphs and tribulations of an Indian-Thai family in Bangkok. It had some bits of dance as well and the audience liked that.”

“For ‘Rendezvous with my ALTER’, I wanted to do something that was outside my comfort zone at the same time more universal. Once I starting putting things on paper, it was evident that the story lent itself to being a dance drama. Also, as the drama gets quite intense in certain parts the dance sequences choreographed by Olivier Vinkler from Le Studio provide a fantastic contrast and balance it out. The fact that I do enjoy dancing helped me to appreciate that aspect better. I would say it's about 60% drama, 40% dance.”

“The music of the play is a combination of both – original compositions as well as compilations of existing tunes. Most of the music is pre-recorded, and is not being played live. For one number, we do however feature a local group The F.O.X! Project; they will be singing live (to their pre-recorded track) as part of a scene.”

“The play is a combination of two extremes; it has a dark side that is contrasted heavily by the different kinds of dances ranging from lyrical jazz, hip-hop to some ballet, contemporary, tango, salsa etc and the music has been created to reflect that. The dance theme is meshed into storyline and I find it lifts the mood and atmosphere on the stage.”

“Rendezvous with My Alter” performs at Chalermkrung Royal Theatre (next to The Old Siam Plaza) this Sunday (December 7) at 7pm, and Monday (December 8) at 7:30pm, as well as next Sunday and Monday. Tickets are from Bt 800 to Bt 1500, bookable by calling 081-337-8047. More details are at http://rendezvous-with-my-alter.jimdo.com.