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New Year for Goans is a day of great joy and festivity. Tiatrists and tiatr lovers too have a reason to rejoice. It was on the New Year's day that the first tiatr was staged in Goa at Sokol Vaddear in Assagao. Tiatr today has a history of 123 years, but it was 121 years ago that the first tiatr was staged in Goa!
Lucasinho Ribeiro, scripted and directed the first ever tiatr Italian Bhurgo, and presented it at The New Alfred Theatre in Mumbai on April 17, 1892 under the banner of “Goa Portuguese Dramatic Company.” Joao Agostinho Fernandes, Caitaninho Fernandes, Agostinho Mascarenhas and Fransquino Fernandes (It is the research of Brazinho Soares Karapurkar that has revealed the name of the fifth artiste as Fransquino, who acted in the first show of Italian Bhurgo) were the other tiatrists who acted along with Lucasinho Ribeiro. It was only two years later that the theatre form of ‘tiatr’ or ‘theatr’ as it was spelt at that time, was staged in Goa on January 1, 1894.
Though research tells us that the first ever tiatr staged in Goa was on January 1, 1892, there is no concrete evidence to reveal the name of the tiatr that was staged. However the venue of the tiatr gives an indication that the tiatr was scripted and directed by Lucasinho Ribeiro himself. The other cast of the tiatr were Napoleao, Manuel Jose Fonseca, Zeferine Andrade, Tolentino Fonseca and L J Rapose. The Brass Band for this tiatr was led by Mestri Gabriel Franco.
For want of knowledge and wisdom, history is being distorted and Joao Agostinho Fernandes who was called as, and is still referred as ‘Pai Tiatrist’ is being called the ‘Father of Tiatr’. Even the Tiatr Academy of Goa, the official authorized custodian of Konkani Tiatr, on the occasion of the birthday celebration of Joao Agostinho Fernandes, in their brochure referred to Joao Agostinho Fernandes as the ‘Father of Tiatr’. The contribution of Joao Agostinho Fernandes to tiatr is no doubt immense. After Lucasinho Ribeiro disbanded the Goa Portuguese Dramatic Company and founded the ‘Ribeiro and Cruz Opera Company which was disbanded after a few years, it was Joao Agostinho Fernandes who carried on the baton of Konkani tiatr, preserved literature pertaining to tiatr, showed foresight in various fields of tiatr, wrote the first original tiatrs et al, the fact remains that it was Lucasinho Ribeiro who wrote and directed the first tiatr in Konkani titled ‘Italian Bhurgo’. Since Joao Agostinho was active in the tiatr arena for over five decades, and owing to the fact that he was the senior most tiatrist in age, and the only tiatrist who acted in the first ever tiatr staged, he was fondly called ‘Pai Tiatrist’ or a fatherly figure among tiatrist. Today C D’Silva, one of the seniormost living tiatrist is fondly called as ‘daddy’ by us all. It was in the same manner that Joao Agostinho Fernandes was and is referred as ‘Pai Tiatrist’.
Further in an article written by Joao Agostinho Fernandes in ‘Ave Maria’ dated November 28, 1943 he clearly states in his concluding paragraph as under: “Poili monadic suat favo dubaunam somplolea Sr. Lucasinho Ribeirac. Aum moji tocli bagoitam Sr. Ribeirachea fondar zo vortouta mozo mistir hea theatrachea caman ani tacho marog aum azunui choltam moriadic ani xicouneche theatr dacounk mojea ganv bhavanc.” (Without doubts, the first place of pride goes to Mr. Lucasinho Ribeiro. I bow my head at his grave, who was my first teacher in my tiatr work and I still walk the paths he has shown by showing good morals and educative tiatrs to my village brethren)
When Joao Agostinho Fernandes himself says that Lucasinho Ribeiro is the father of tiatr, no one has the right to distort history and call Joao Agostinho Fernandes as the Father of Konkani Tiatr. Lucasinho Ribeiro staged the first tiatr in Bombay on April 17, 1892 and staged the first tiatr in Goa on January 1, 1894. Lucasinho Ribeiro will always remain the creator of tiatr and shall always be the father of Tiatr! Efforts by vested interests to dethrone Lucasinho Ribeiro of his rightful title, should be discouraged and condemned.
