‘The ship that sailed to save souls’ wows audience in Goa

As the curtains came down on the musical operetta, The Ship That Sailed To Save Souls, presented by Perpetual Succour Convent High School, Navelim, little would the cast of 1,440 student actors have thought that they could possibly have created a world record, worthy of the Guinness Book of World Records for the largest cast.

Instead, the air was filled with awe as the packed auditorium had just witnessed a theatrical miracle, directed by the school’s art professor, George Gonsalves, and produced by headmistress Libia Fernandes.

The Ship That Sailed To Save Souls, in a way, showed, that school art is not yet lost and when effort is put into collective thought, wonders manifest, and age or creed is irrelevant in theatre.

The musical operetta, definitely the best production by any school, and one that theatre-lovers all over India would love to witness, is the story of St Francis Xavier – whose Exposition of Sacred Relics is being held this year in Goa – is told through music, song, dance and screen play.

St Francis Xavier was a great man, and his humanity flowed through the acts brought together by the efforts of children from the age of seven to fifteen. From beginning to end, there was coordination, emotion and utilisation of space that makes theatre bliss.

“Right from our headmistress to the teachers, every one contributed through discussion, debate and execution, and we are happy everyone enjoyed,” said Gonsalves, whose repertoire in music, acting and teaching art is well known.

During the two-hour show, children aesthetically dressed in costumes that reflected the culture of the various countries visited by St Francis Xavier, and danced to the rhythms of the countries in which his spirit lingers, through recorded song, music and dialogue.

“Teachers of different classes were assigned to create their own dances and costumes and mime practice was done in the school’s audio-visual room,” admitted Gonsalves.

When Francis was in Spain, his story there was depicted through flamenco and tap dancing; when in Goa, the audience was treated to the Goan cultural ethos of those times, and when he was leaving Cochin for his trip to Asia, they were given a taste of Cochin through the customs and heritage of that land.

The musical operetta pinned together cultural vignettes of places St Francis lived, his impact on the lives of people he interacted with and most importantly, the message of faith.

'Whatever be your religion, be good' is what St Francis meant, and that meaning was gently rubbed on the audience by students of Perpetual Succor Convent High School, Navelim.

“We were a group of four who were entrusted to train children from the primary standard for the opening act. We were thrilled with the opportunity, but also intimidated. And, it was the hard work, put in by the little ones, that left us with the belief that with God, anything can happen,” stated a happy teacher, Crisferia Diniz.

The little over two-hour long musical ended with the children portraying the death of the saint through a dance of angels and devils – white, red and black – with grimace, pain and triumph, expressed by the actor saint.

“I am not happy with the way they are moving their hands”, “Their lips are not properly synchronising with the audio”, “Please give the boat a better finish or we are having no operetta.” These were some comments overheard from the headmistress, Libia Fernandes, as the practice sessions began.

As the curtain came down, her face portrayed a holistic smile for her trust in her teachers, her students and God had paid off.

“I am so happy for what she has produced and the hard work of the teachers and students. God’s presence can be felt in different ways, and I felt it throughout the play,” summed up Sister Celine Coutinho of the Congregation of Sisters of Holy Family of Nazareth, Sancoale, as she left Ravindra Bhavan after the show.