Nina Rapi - Plays

Plays

Nina Rapi's Ithaka was first performed as a staged reading in 1989 at Riverside Studios by the Women's Theatre Workshop. Dimple Godiwala referring to Shadow,one of the key characters in the play, wrote: 'Shadow is where we begin to recognise the depths of sexuality (and otherness) we all possess...To invite an introspection which rests on the shadowed self we need to recognise that our sexualities, however they may have been moulded, are based on a certain opacity of self.' The play was described as ‘theatrically inventive, often surreal, witty and funny’ by David Hunter; then literary manager of Bush Theatre, London. The play went on to become published in Seven Plays by Women, Aurora Metro, winner of the Raymond Williams award,1991; and to win Best Play Award at BITS Theatre Festival, Pirani, India, 1995.

Many of Rapi's plays since then have been critically acclaimed; The Guardian described the 1993 production of Dangerous Oasis as ‘inspirational’; and What's on as 'sensitive...powerful...excellent.', Time Out wrote of Dreamhouse (1991) as 'Atmospheric and economical. Highly commendable new work.' & of Josie's Restrooms (2000) as ‘nipple gripping’. While the critic Eleftheria Raptou wrote of Edgewise (2010) 'Nina Rapi creates her own fascinating, multi-layered world and brings to light the social, existential and ultimately political impasse of a society in total, protracted crisis. Our crisis.'

Rapi's most recent production Kiss the Shadow had a performance presentation at Soho Theatre Studio and extracts performed at the Lyric Theatre Studio; and Southbank Centre as part of the 2010 London Literature Festival. When reviewing the play, Diva magazine said, ‘Rapi elegantly explores the conflicts between state and individual, between private and public actions and between freedom and responsibility. It's dense, provocative and often very witty...It's exciting to see new theatre from one of London's most under-rated writers.’