Texas State students to star in Bollywood 12th Night

Two Texas State University theatre students, Manali Sunkara and Josh Kok, will star in Austin Shakespeare’s performance of “Bollywood Twelfth Night” from Nov. 5 through 21 at the Long Center’s Rollins Theater.

One of One of Shakespeare’s most popular plays, “Bollywood Twelfth Night” will feature dances by Prakash Mohandas and songs by Austin singer/songwriter Nagavalli. “We will be celebrating our inperson return to audiences with the most colorful costumes, scenery and lighting – plus lively music and dance,” said Artistic Director Ann Ciccolella.

Manali Sunkara, a junior theater major at Texas State, will play the role of Viola, a young woman who disguises herself as the servant boy, Cesario. Sunkara comes to Texas State from Lambert High School in Suwanee, Ga. She is working on her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting and has worked with Austin Shakespeare this past summer in a read of “The Rivals” as “Fag.”

Though Sunkara has been actively involved on stage since her sixth-grade production of “The Little Mermaid,” Sunkara credits Bollywood dancing as her gateway into performing. This is what originally caught her eye for the role of Viola in “Bollywood Twelfth Night.”

“The idea really, it was such an interesting concept,” Sunkara said. “Ann told me about the care they’re taking to appreciate the culture – the culture I had grown up with – and wanted to see it done correctly and appreciated in a respectful way.”

Josh Kok, who plays the role of Sebastian, came to Texas State from Paris, Texas, with a number of Shakespeare credits to his name, including Ross in “Macbeth” and Lysander in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

Kok, now a senior in the Texas State Theatre Program, said, “Shakespeare has been a big part in my acting career. I was in ‘Othello‘ in my hometown. I’m ethnically ambiguous. There aren’t a lot of roles written for me, but with Shakespeare, you can mold characters however you want.”

Kok said this versatility is one of the reasons why the works of Shakespeare continue to be so popular and important today. “I can be any of his characters, because there’s no assigned ethnicity,” Kok said. “It’s kind of beautiful that we can take this old 17th century white guy and celebrate all these different cultures through his characters.”

Both Sunkara and Kok became involved with Austin’s Shakespeare through connections with the Texas State Theater Department. “I got into the show through a connection with my professor,” Kok said. “He emailed me about the part out of the blue. I just happened to show up and I got it.”

Sunkara said, “What I love about this show in particular is that there are so many Indian people in the cast. It makes it all the more special and meaningful. We as Indian people, for me… to take on that responsibility is no small thing. To appreciate and represent a culture that means so much to me, it’s stupendous really.”

Opening night for Bollywood Twelfth Night will be Friday, Nov. 5 at 7:30 p.m. Until then, Sunkara, Kok and the Austin Shakespeare crew are hard at work putting their shows together.

“Now we’re in the throes of rehearsing,” Sunkara said. “We’re doing the Shakespeare of it all and incorporating layers of Bollywood. It’s a really fun lens to look at the show through. It will totally be really colorful. India in general, we’ve always embraced that. That motif certainly lives through our interpretation of that.”

“It’s going to be really beautiful,” Kok said. “A lot of color, a lot of dance and a lot of heart. “Texas State has really heightened my ability to understand Shakespeare. I’m excited to be a Bobcat in an Austin show.”

“Bollywood Twelfth Night” will run Nov. 5 - 21, Thursday to Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and at 3 p.m. on Sundays at the Long Center’s Rollins Theater. Tickets, starting at $24, are available at thelongcenter.org.

Covid protocols at The Long Center require a negative COVID-19 test or voluntary proof of COVID-19 vaccination to attend indoor events. Masks must be worn at all times except while actively eating or drinking. For more information, visit thelongcenter.org/covidupdates/.

Bollywood Twelfth Night

Nov. 5 - 21 Long Center, Austin

Tickets: thelongcenter.org