Colombo Theatre Festival:

Platform for young theatre directors

by Anuradha KODAGODA

Lanka Children's and Youth Theatre Foundation (LCYTF) or better known as Play House-Kotte is going to present Colombo Theatre Festival for Young Audiences 2009 for the consecutive fourth time on December 5 and 6 at the Lionel Wendt theatre at 3.30 p.m. and 7 p.m. under the theme of Theatre for Education and Reconciliation.

Vikurthi

The LCYTF was established in 1981 by a pioneering personality in Sri Lankan theatre Somalatha Subasinghe, as a voluntary organisation specialised for Children's and Youth Theatre creations.

"The main objective of the Colombo Theatre Festival for Young Audiences is to provide a platform in particular for young theatre directors to showcase their productions to the public. On the other hand it will also be a valuable opportunity for the public to experience theatre with meaningful entertainment both in the categories of original creations and adaptations from the international theatre," said Chandana Aluthge play-wright and theatre director, who is continuing the work started by the Veteran dramatist Somalatha Subasinghe.

"When selecting the plays for the festival the only pre-requisite that is considered is the merit of creativity of the production. The underlying idea of this selection process is to promote high quality theatre productions. As we observed during the past few years most of the theatre productions were created targeting the State Drama Festival. It restricted the free thinking of the dramatists, since dramatists has to undergo self-censorship for their productions according to the conditions of the drama festivals, which is completely harmful for the creation," Chandana said.

According to Chandana still our country has not acknowledged the children's or youth theatre concepts correctly. Children's theatre identified as 'immature' attempts which are trying to make spectators laugh through clumsy actions or dialogues.

Childhood is the most important period in human life. The experiences which the child goes through is directly affecting the philosophical development in their adult lives. The main reason for the weakening popularity of the children's theatre in the country is the lack of systematic study or knowledge about the subject.

"There are plenty of youth dramas produced during past few years.

For example Priyantha Kaluarachchi's 'Me Heeneta Namak Denna', Chamika Hathlahawatta's 'Hari Apuru Dawasak', Indika Ferdinand's 'Colombo Colombo' can be mentioned. However, the main issue faced by these young dramatists is the unavailability of the space to bring their creations in to the public.

Vikurthi (Distortion) is a play by Somalatha Subasinghe, a satirical exposure of a hapless generation of youth whose lives were dominated by an incessant struggle between the parents' aspirations and the youth's abilities and preferences.

"In the 1980s, when I was engaged in theatre workshops for young students, I realized that they were in deep trouble to balance their education and the personal interests of their lives. The drama was conceived, through the true experiences of those children," Somalatha Subasinghe said.

"The widespread social tendency was that aspiring parents were trying to achieve the missed opportunities of their own lives through their children.

Consequently, the children were forced to study for competitive government examinations such as G.C.E. (O/L) and G.C.E. (A/L), specifically in the Science Stream disregarding their aptitudes and available resources at respective schools and the universities," she said.

The play discusses in depth how this anti-social process denied youth of their own life, which in turn deeply affects them in many ways. The production is a semi-musical which is a familiar theatrical experience to the local audiences.

Hari Apuru Dawasak

"Today I feel 'Vikurthi' is too light for the present complicated society. I should add more complex incidents which can reflect the current scenario of society. Our primary education system is too complicated compared with that of other countries in the world. Isn't the elementary education enough for our students, is my question for the educationists in our country. We cannot compare our education system with that of developed European countries, because our infrastructure facilities are very much below compared with them. Therefore, it is essential to create an education system considering the socio-economic conditions in our country," she emphasized.

'Hari Apuru dawasak', which has been influenced by "A Wonderful Sunday" a film by Akira Kurasawa, is written and directed by Chamika Hathlahawatta.

"The story of the play rotates around a girl and a boy, who are in love, are trying to spend a Sunday with Rs. 175.50. The play discusses major social issues and the tragedy of contemporary Sri Lankan youths such as lack of economic freedom and poverty," said Chamika Hathlahawatta.

The two lovers wander around various places and face different types of challenges. Finally, they decide to live in a fantasy world created by themselves avoiding the outside society. At the end of the play they realize eventhough they spend only a long day together, the outside society has changed and the couples they saw previously are no more intimating each other but maintaining individual lives. It's a mix of a fantasy and the reality of our own lives.

'Vikurthi' and 'Hari Apuru Dawasak' are plays that won national awards as they had deep-insights into the socio-cultural issues.

Vikurthi cast include Kaushalya Fernando, Namal Jayasinghe, Prasannajith Abeysuriya, Geetha Alahakoon, Mayura Kanchana, Suresh Fernando, Sharmaine Gunaratne, Pujitha de Mel, Sanjaya Hettiarachchi, Nimmi Priyadharshini, Wickrama Seneviratne and a number of new comers to the national theatre groomed at Play House-Kotte. The play was written and directed by Somalatha Subasighe.

Hari Apuru Dawasak cast include Dharmapriya Dias, Anuradha Perera, Oshadi Hewamadduma, Sanjeewa Disanayake, Madhushan Hathlahawatta, Ruwan Malith Peiris, Kaushalya Mendis, Indika Donald. Pradeep Chandrasiri has created costumes and stage sets while Ranga Samarakoon has designed stage lights.

Music is by Theja Buddhika Rodrigo.