Laugh out loud

The Mouse That Roared is a 1960’s Cold War parody which pits a tiny European nation against the United States in a battle to see who can lose the most. The play will be staged at Centrepoint Theatre at the Dubai Community Theatre and Arts Centre in Mall of the Emirates.

The production includes thirty actors from over sixteen different nationalities and various backgrounds. The cast and crew are all working professionals, students and business owners who have come together for the passion of theatre. Even the costumes and props are all being produced locally.

“In a production like this, there are well over 100 people involved,” claims Philip Apaza, the Director of The Mouse That Roared. “The actors only make up part of the mix, there’s also a huge supporting crew working on everything. We even have a group of Girl Scouts interested in getting involved,” he continued.

Balancing work and studies with the astronomical efforts of a large production is never easy, but these intrepid actors have made time out of their busy lives to do so. “I mastered my lines whilst away on a business trip: script in-flight, script after meetings, script at breakfast, script after dinner,” says Nancy Karimi, a Kenyan national who owns and manages two businesses outside of the theatre.

This is Backstage’s 23^rd production since their formation two years ago. “Expect nothing less than a professional production,” says Emma Mubarak, an Emirati who has worked on several Backstage productions and is the Producer of The Mouse That Roared. Dharam Veer Sood, a cast member, adds that audiences will “experience a better quality of theatre than they have so far in the UAE.”

“The UAE provides an amazing array of talent. Dubai has a lot of untapped talent. Theatre is an art, not a science. If I see a talented actor who can perform the role, I don’t care what nationality or race they are,” proclaims Apaza.

“It’s good to work with a multicultural cast who have so many different backgrounds,” continues Kathryn Pepper, a British national working as a Senior Psychologist with the Abu Dhabi police. “There are also different levels of acting experience to work with. And we’ve all had a really good laugh.” Pepper is playing two roles in the play, one being that of the President of the United States. It may seem odd that the US President is being played by a woman in 1960s America, but Apaza feels otherwise, “Theatre allows us to ask a lot of ‘what-ifs’ and Kathryn does an amazing job portraying a strong presidential character. I think the audience will find it enjoyable.”

Beyond gender and national diversity, there is a wide variety of ages across the stage, from 13 to 55. The average age of the cast is 26, but despite this, they look like seasoned professionals as the prance across stage, bows and arrows in hand. The youngest cast member, Ruby Bansal, a 13-year-old student at Repton Dubai added: “It has been quite hard balancing school and social life with the rehearsals. Late nights, and lots of time is taken up, and I get lots of homework, and I like to do lots of activities! My mum has definitely been driving more!”

The play should provide an amusing, lighthearted fun for audience members of all ages. “Following the kind of dedication I have seen in the cast, I can confidently say that the audience should expect to be wowed ,” says Carolyne Macharia, a student playing the leading role of Duchess Gloriana.

“Come see our show!” concluded actor Ahmed Rabieh, echoing the sentiments of the assembled cast.

event details

Catch any of the three shows of The Mouse That Roared on March 1, 2, and 3 at DUCTAC in Mall of the Emirates. For more ticket information, contact tickets@backstagedubai.com or refer to Backstage’s website at www.backstagedubai.com.