Kathmandu’s theatre scene has been on the upswing of late. The five prominent theatres in the Capital have been staging plays one after the other and drawing sell-out crowds and rave reviews. Veteran and new-age theatre artists have been busy bringing to stage productions ranging from Nepali adaptations of Ibsen and Shakespeare to cutting edge new productions that cut to the core of the problems plaguing the Nepali society. Now a new website and phone app, Theatre Hub, is helping theatre artists and enthusiasts connect online and making information about the various plays beings staged in Kathmandu’s theatres readily available at the click of a button. 

Although the beta version of www.theatrehub.org and its corresponding phone app, Theatre Hub, have been online for nearly a year, it is only of late that the portal has been gaining traction among theatre lovers. Dev Neupane, who designed the concept for the portal and a theatre actor himself, said he and his team are overjoyed by the barge of positive response they have received for the concept. “This is the first time in Nepal that the information regarding the various plays on show have been brought together into a central database,” says Neupane, “though our original goal was to merely list the different shows in town, the website and the app have quickly and organically grown into something larger—now it is more akin to a theatre resource centre.” 

Neupane, who came up with the concept nearly two years ago, confided that it took his team (Developer, Bhopal Sapkota, and Supporting Developer, Jibesh Rayamajhi) nearly a year to come-up with the beta version. That same version is still online and has features like Current Plays, Upcoming Plays, Theatre Reviews and Archive. In addition to the listing of the current and upcoming plays, the portal also carries information about the actors, cast, directors, venue and ticket prices, along with a space for the director’s note and a gallery of the production. Users can not only easily navigate this information—via a simple and responsive website and app—but can also leave user comments and reviews for other theatre goers looking to attend the play.

With the surge in popularity, the team is currently working on updating the website and the app, and according to Neupane, plan to get the 2.0 version off the ground by mid-April. The updated app will come with additional features such as online ticket bookings and purchases. Until then, the android version of the mobile app is available for download at Play Store and other download portals.