In addition to the main line-up of plays at ITFoK 2020, the festival also stages a program of performance poetry. What does poetry mean when it is being performed? Is performing poetry a reference to transgressive aesthetic or dissident political practice? I am delighted to invite M R Vishnu Prasad and Sudheesh Kottembram, who have co-curated an excellent program of performance poetry titled 'Kalathatt'. Kalathatt refers to a wooden leaf-thatched open platform, which served as resting stations for pedestrians and travellers in Kerala. The famous performance poet, Kunchan Nambiyar, is believed to have used these spaces as his stage for Tullal performances. The program 'Kalathatt' accentuates the memories of a performance tradition which has historically emerged as a composite form of theatre and poetry. Kalathatt features 16 eminent poets from all generations in Kerala. As part of International Theatre Festival of Kerala. Do come! January 20-29, 2020, at KSNA Thrissur.
