Love and fire once more at Punchi Theatre

"Come, see it and criticize it to smithereens" says Namel Weeramuni to art connoisseurs, inviting all those who missed the staging of Ginnai Adarayai last month to view it again on July 14, when it will go on the boards once again at the Namel Mailini Punchi theatre.

Through the revival of the adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's play, Gahaniyak, in 1965 as Ginnai Adarayai Namel Weeramuni brings to life once more, Ibsen's most compelling and conflicting character, Hedda Gabler. An imperious and charismatic woman who is unable to find satisfaction in her limited world and who manipulates the lives of those around her to test her sexual powers, critics have hailed Heda as the "Female Hamlet".

The new script is a changed version of the one written by Prof. Sunanda Mahendra in 1965. "The script I am using in Ginnai Adarayai is a combination of the original play by Ibsen and the script of Gahaniyak. In the original play, two scholars are doing research on civilization, but I changed this to have one scholar studying the history of cancer and AIDS while the other scholar tries to find a cure for these two diseases". says Namel Weeramuni.

To the uninitiated, talking about Hedda, who was brilliantly portrayed by Malini Weeramuni, back in 1965, he says even though Hedda is a woman who is in her early thirties the role has always been played by mature actresses, who are capable of capturing the volatile and vulnerable nature of the protagonist.

Honeymoon

Here's how the frustration of Hedda is revealed through the conversation between an Aunt and Hedda's husband. "I was in the library during the six months we were in Paris. There were so many books to read" He tells her, to which she says "You seem to have spent your honeymoon in the library.

With the exception of Malini Weeramuni who plays the role of the aunt the rest of the cast comprise new comers - "all lawyers who are quite professional as actors" says Namel Weeramuni.

Eshanthi Mendis, an actress blessed with innate grace portrays the character of Hedda, struggling to come to terms with her husband (Senaviratne Bandara), whom she finds numbingly dull, while Asela Serasinghe takes on the role of the brilliant professor. Arundathi Fernando is the friend, Manesh Wavita, the lawyer and Dilhara Subasinghe, the servant.

Making one wonder if she is an idealistic heroine, a victim of circumstances or a villain, the story of Hedda who manipulates the fates of all who enter her orbit till she eventually goes too far in Ginnai Adarayai is bound to scorch every drama addict yearning for intelligent entertainment on July 14, at the Punchi Theatre.

Aditha