Region 2 – Retreat Play 2024
I was asked to write a play for the SSE Groups 1-3 back in July of 2023 by Brother Chetan Bhatt, Region 2 SSE Coordinator, while on his flight to the West Coast. Brother Chetan also mentioned that he wanted the storyline to be about a main character who was unhappy with their life and wanted to change it.
As I always do, I consulted with Swami through my daily meditations and the script was written in 3 days. It was not going to be just a play; it was to be a Musical Play, [like] musicals you would see on a Broadway stage. Those were Swami’s words to me. An American art form that the children could relate to. His final words to me were, “Do.”
The play was presented and approved. The title of the Retreat Play was “Swami, Astra, and His Superheroes.” The leading character is Astra, who is a teenager not practicing the 5 Human Values, and is not living a very happy life. In the play she has a dream in which she visits Swami who is in Prashanti Etherlands. with His mother, Easwaramma. There are four Superheroes that live with Swami, and they set out to help put Astra’s life back on track by practicing Swami’s 5 Human Values. Astra has a flashback in time, where she is able to change her past actions. She is escorted all along the way by Swami’s Superheroes.
Astra’s test of character comes in Scene 5 when a local bully challenges her and her Sai friends. Not only did Astra stand up to the bully, but she convinces him and his brother to come to her Sai Center and learn the same 5 Human Values that she has learned at her SSE Classes. The play ended with a Human Values Rap.
All in all, Astra transforms and makes a complete turnaround in her life. The auditions were held online in October 2023 for Region 2 SSE children, and the Cast was chosen. By January 2024 the work began. There was audio, visual, music, choreography/dancing, acting, and singing classes both online and in person. Costumes, props, backdrops, were created and rehearsals went until mid-May. The Retreat Play was an awesome gift for Swami on May 26, 2024, and an amazing Musical Play.
My gratitude to Brother Chetan Bhatt, Retreat Play Team, Costumes/Props Team, Choreographer/Dancers, Make-up Team, Visual, Sound Team, Editors, Backstage Crew, SSE teachers who gave many hours of their week to help in Swami’s Play to come to fruition. Hats off to the Cherry Hill Center N.J., Madhavi Kanekal, Service Coordinator, for hosting two in-person rehearsals, and to Fairfax Virginia, Raghu Butna for hosting the only in-person rehearsal. Cast included SSE students from Richmond, Pittsburg, Flushing, South Ozone, Cherry Hill, Scotch Plains, and Fairfax Centers.
~Marie Captain, Cherry Hill Center, NJ
