Ways of testing man’s character

MANY of my friends and acquaintances are regular, if not passionate golfers. A few go there for socialising and others for blatant self-promotion. Fortunately, most go for the game. I have waited in vain for the so-called ‘golf bug’ to bite. The lure of the well-appointed golf club and its facilities have not helped. The bug has not bitten and a set of golf-clubs continues to gather dust in the store. Someone who seems to live on the manicured greens and seems to go home only to sleep, once said, ‘You can test a man’s character on the golf course.’ As best as one can tell, this is because you have to keep the scores yourself. If you cheat, you also cheat yourself.

This may well be true of golf, which remains something I know nothing about. But one would hold that ‘character’ and some of what the word means, can be tested in many ways – the stage being one. Having been involved with theatre for several decades, much of Shakespeare’s ‘all the world’s a stage’ has unfolded backstage. That is where some of the nastier and many of the better aspects of human nature have shown up for inspection. One has been short-tempered where one should have been patient and one has been lenient where one should have been firm. Away from the audience’s gaze, dramas within dramas have unfolded. Unscripted characters have rushed to take over entire plays. There is the scene-stealer who will do anything for the limelight; there is the timid first-timer; there is someone who will throw a tantrum, or walk out at the last moment – and there will always be the prompter who wishes to spend more on makeup and hairdo than the leading lady.

Of late, one has watched several plays staged by schools with children as the players. A performance that stood out was by Lawrence School, Sanawar, that staged ‘With a Li’l Bit of Luck’ based on Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion at the Manekshaw Centre in Delhi, recently. The cast and crew of almost a hundred proved, yet again, that management and creativity go hand in hand. And directing young men and ladies, from the age of 10 to late teens, also requires a special kind of talent. It is only the talent and hard work of the managers and director that can draw out the talent and capability of the cast.

Both golf and theatre are not the exclusive domain of a specific age group. Yet, one has an older lot and the other draws younger people. One draws on the experience of a lifetime and the other creates experiences that become memories for a lifetime.