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| Sunday, 3 November 2002 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Little Nithyawani wins award Nithyawani Kandasamy who acted in Punchi Suranganavi (Little Angel) won the Golden Butterfly Award for the best actress at the 17th Ispahan International Film Festival held in Iran.
Both child artistes Nithyawani and Pramudi Karunaratne who acted in Saroja also won the best actress award at the same international film festival in 2000. -A. G. ################## A place for us
The junior cast of the Merry An Singers are rehearsing intensely to present A place for us a musical concert that will go on the boards from Friday November 8 to Sunday November 10 at the Lionel Wendt Theatre. The show is in aid of SUROL the Society for the Uplift and Rehabilitation of Leprosy Patients - who are sponsoring the three day performance to generate funds for the care, support and rehabilitation of patients afflicted by leprosy. Surol's assistance is extended to the entire family as well especially the children. A place for us is superlative entertainment with Merry An Singers Junior cast performing a fascinating program of songs which will include selections in the finest tradition of the classics, a take off from the world of Fred Astaire and Judy Garland, cherished Irish melodies and songs from Broadway with attractive choreography. In addition there will be guest appearances by popular Santush (of Bathiya and Santhush fame) and Ashanthi from the same group, Antonette de Alwis and Jerome Speldewinde. The show covers a variety of styles from the Good Ship Lollipop to a whole New World. The singers will be backed by Mary Anne David piano, Neranjan de Silva and Christopher Prins. Andre David will handle the choreography. All proceeds are for a laudable cause. The box plan is open at the Lionel Wendt. ################## European Chamber Orchestra to perform three concerts by CHAMIKARA WEERASINGHE European Union Chamber Orchestra will perform again in Sri Lanka on the invitation of the Delegation of the European Commission to Sri Lanka and Thailand, to give three classical music concerts. This is the third time that the orchestra will perform in Sri Lanka after their successful tours to the country in 1999 and 2000. The orchestra will stage three concerts, two of which will be held in Colombo, on November 15 and 16, at the Bishops College Auditorium, and the third will take place in Kandy on November 18 at the Trinity College Hall. The European Union Chamber Orchestra (EUCO) will play works by Bach, Buxtehude, Handel, Dvorak, Respighi, Vivaldi, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Tchaikovsky and Bartok. Wouter Wilton, head of the mission in Sri Lanka for European Union, announcing the program last Wednesday at a press briefing at Hotel Lanka Oberoi said, the feature of this year's concert by the EUCO is that it will have a Sri Lankan component with the international class soprano Preshanthi Navaratnam, now residing in UK, who will perform three arias by Handel. Knut Zimmerman, the Leader of German Chamber Orchestra and the Leader of the second violins of the Berlin Staatskapelle, will be the guest director of the EUCO's tour to Sri Lanka. EUCO musicians have performed in most of the prestigious festivals and concert halls worldwide, including Vienna Musikverein, Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Palais des Beaux Arts in Brussels, and National Auditorium in Madrid to name a few. They have also performed at the Elphinstone Theatre in Colombo. Wilton said that EUCO tours were being organised by the European Union for the purpose of promoting Europe's rich cultural attributes to the world, and the union plans to give away some 250 tickets for the concert to school children free of charge. Of these 150 tickets will be issued to children of schools in Colombo, and the rest one hundred to students in Kandy. Prestige Automobile (Pvt) Ltd., of Sri Lanka is the main sponsor of the tour. The co-sponsors are The Lanka Oberoi, Jetwing Travels, TNL radio and Dynavision. ################## Little theatre a reality soon by Anjana Gamage
Sri Lankan stage play lovers missed them for a long time as both husband and wife were abroad for more than 30 years. But now they are back in Sri Lanka to fulfil one of their long term dreams - to establish a little theatre. Namel and Malini Weeramuni who are committed to theatre are busy looking for sponsors to make their dream a reality. "This is a 42 years dream of mine to set up a small theatre in Colombo. Namel and Malini Arts Circle was founded in 1976 with the intention of functioning actively here and abroad in theatrical productions and related activities.
With the changes in attitudes, of values and demands of present day society, we as a group feel that it is the articulated type of Little Theatre that will have the following of an appreciative audience who will keep alive theatre. Therefore, we decided to set up Namel and Malini Punchi Theatre, at 37, Dr. N.M. Perera Mawatha (Cotta Road) and the foundation laying ceremony was held on October 23 at 9.00 am, Namel said proudly. The project is estimated to cost four million rupees. The little theatre will have 100 seats with all modern facilities, stage lighting and other relevant fittings. Architect Muditha Jayakody has designed the little theatre on the Shakespearean theatre style in England. "It is well-known among theatre producers that they suffer and are discouraged because they do not have proper and readily available venues to conduct rehearsals. Most theatre artistes rehearse their plays under trees and unhealthy garages like shanties, benefactors' house verandas for lack of proper venues. The little theatre will be a boon to dramatists as the charges would be minimal" Namel said. ################## The Global Family series launched here The Sri Lanka Environmental Television Project, last week launched a highly acclaimed international series of television documentaries on natural environment and man's place in nature.
Entitled The Global Family, the series was produced jointly by NHK of Japan and TV Ontario of Canada in the early 1990s. It has been filmed on all five continents and in numerous locations all over the world, and the series explores the diversity and wonders of nature on planet Earth, looks on how humans are part of the Global Family of Life and assesses their impact on other members of the Global Family. Over 50 such programs are available with sinhala and Tamil commentaries and over 400 titles in English. The series could be viewed on loan basis through the SLETP's video library in Nawala. You can also check their website www.slep.org ################## Amitha launches Anothaththa Vila Veteran female vocalist Amitha Vedisinghe recently launched her latest
audio cassette and CD Anothaththa Vila. The music is directed Anothaththa Vila contains some of the most popular solos sung by Amitha Vedisinghe. They include songs such as Anothaththa Vila, Senkadagalapura, Tharaka Valin, Hiru Kumari, Kanda Udin, Ambiliyo, Randorin Enna, Onna Babo Ethinniya, Poyadata Payana Sanda, Vilaka Nelum, and Adara Charika. The duets are sung by Amitha and Pandith Amaradeva, Nimal Gunasekara, Tudor Jayashantha and A.L.B. Kandepola. The lyrics are by Sunil Sarath Perera, Arisen Ahubudu, Karunaratne Abeysekera, Mahagamasekara, Dayananda Gunawardane, Wilson Gunaratne, Hema Sri de Alwis, Deltota Chandrapala and Dharmasiri Gamage. - (R.S.) ################## A passion to draw by Prasad Abu Bakr
Dutch artist Noella Roos who exhibited her work recently at "Paradise Road Galleries", Colombo can be singled out as special since the 23 catalogued prices were all drawings of the naked human form which aptly matched her title for this exhibition "Nakedness". Based on both male and female forms, her strong sense of feeling towards her subject is evident to the viewer, which makes her work more interesting in return. The artist's total involvement takes one through an exhilarating experience which I am sure is the same feeling that the artist went through when she produced these pictures. Her improvisation on lines by attempting to perfect her figures are showing as she maintained her stand and left all her lines intact in the process which makes her work more interesting and different.
Another fascinating aspect of the drawings were the faces. A closer look showed them to be devoid of sensuality. Meditative and sometimes pensive are the terms that they can be described as. The poses of the models together with the facial expressions drives Noella Roos' pictures away from eroticism and bases her work purely on her talent to draw. Established as an artist in Netherlands, Noella Roos is accomplished in other fields connected to the arts as theatre design, while concentrating on portrait painting and sculpture. Roos has exhibited in many parts of Europe besides India and Sri Lanka, the latter for the second time. While at her exhibition I remembered the words of my own art teacher late Cora Abraham who advised her students to keep on drawing many lines until one identified the perfect one, since we worked with charcoal in the process of trying to wipe out excess lines the smudged effects left behind in fact enhanced the finished product. We were also taught that inability to perfect one's drawing can weaken one's work. Roos has steered way ahead of perfection which has brought her to this present glory. ################## Lankan dancers on New Zealand stage The Sri Lankan Cultural Group of New Zealand organised a Classical Dance concert in Auckland, recently.
The focus of the concert was to promote Sri Lankan Kandyan and low country dance styles among Sri Lankan youngsters in NZ as well as the other nationalities among them. The concert was titled Saptha Mudra as there were seven dance styles performed on stage including Kandian, low country, Bharatha Natyam, Spanish, Japanese, Rock and Roll and Ballet. All of these performers were by Sri Lankan children. The concert attracted a large crowd, with requests for more performances in other parts of NZ, including an invitation from Melbourne, Australia for an encore performance. The training of the performers was done by Miss Thesara Jayawardane, a student of the Vajira- Chithrasena dance gurus. She completed Kandyan dance styles and Kandyan drumming exams under them. Recently she held her Arangethram or the classical Indian dance graduation in Auckland. This was the first time a Sri Lankan had an Arangethram in Auckland. She managed to impress the NZ Prime Minister Helen Clark who was the chief guest at the event. The chief guest of Saptha Mudra minister David Fern who was stunned by the performance of the young dancers agreed to arrange a grant for the young dance teacher to teach and involve youth among all communities. ################## Books Lanks's foreign policy in perspective Alien Winds Across Paradise:(A new look at Sri Lanka's Foreign Relation through the ages) by Tyronne Fernando by N. Manoharan, (Research Officer, Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, New Delhi) History is not "a confused heap of facts," but a logbook of lessons. With this idea in mind, the author has attempted, as Michae J. Beloff in his foreword to the book observes, to look into "the theme of continuity in the fabric of Sri Lankan society amidst change catalyzed by a series of uniquely diverse foreign influences through ages." Through recorded history Sri Lanka has been witnessing foreign contacts, 'alien winds,' from around the world from the North, India and China; from the West, Palestinians, Greeks, Persians, Romans, Aksumites, Byzantines, Arabs, Portuguese, Dutch, French, English and Russains; and from the East, Burmese, Malays, Siamese, Koreans and Japanese. But the purpose and the ferocity of these 'Alien Winds' varied. Some made positive contributions to the culture and development of the island; some impacted in a negative way which is felt even today; and others just came and went. Despite diverse foreign influences over 4000 years, Sri Lanka has been maintaining continuity of culture of respect, love and compassion. At the same time the island was flexible enough to absorb what it thought was best from the 'winds'. It acquired the concepts of 'democracy' and 'enterprise'; 'gratitude' came with the Pipal tree from India. This seems to be the crux of the author's theme glocalisation - which he borrows from Thomas Friedman, who in his Lexus and the Olive Tree, says "foreign influences are inevitable as represented by Lexus, but the society continue to maintain certain cultural roots like its Olive Trees." As one reaches the last page a basic doubt arises: whom does the author call the 'aliens', and who were the 'locals'? Historically speaking except for the indigenous tribes like Nagas and Yakshas, all were alien as on the island. The Sinhalese were from the eastern part of India; Tamils were from southern India; Muslims migrated from areas extending form Egypt to Malaya; and Burghers were left behind by the Portuguese and the Dutch. In that case what are the benchmarks for 'continuity' and 'change'? the author fails to clearly spell this out. The influences during the modern period are not given adequate attention, which may be highlighted here. The English gave the island a new strategic importance only to safeguard their vast empire. They introduced cash crops like tea, coffee and rubber but at the cost of rice production resulting in severe food shortages at a later date. With plantations a new community from India - the Plantation Tamils - settled in the island whose contribution to the Sri Lankan economy was immense. The dual economy of plantation and peasant agriculture established by the colonial masters brought about not only economic but also longstanding social changes. The economy and society witnessed further changes with the liberalization in 1977. Reverse influence, though meagre, is worth mentioning. Ravana made several expeditions in his 'pushpaka vimana' to India. During one of his expeditions he became Siva's devotee (Thevaram, 6th Thirumarai). Bhikkus from Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia came to Lanka to be ordained and established religious orders in their countries. Presently Sri Lankan tea is brewed all over the world and its garments are known for its quality. The island's migrants constitute a major workforce in the Middle East. Its diaspora across the world is strong if not influential. Contemporary Sri Lankan foreign policy (the author being the foreign minister himself) needs to take note of these reverse linkages. ################## Ballet : A kiddies' show par excellence "Ragtime Capers" was no ordinary kiddies' show. It provided a fine evening of entertainment by the little ones of "Young Minds" pre-school in Colombo at their term end concert. A bouquet to all those teachers, parents and kids who obviously had put in a great deal of hard work to make the concert a success. Most notable was the spontaneity and uninhibited performance of the "first time" kids on stage. The three stories selected "Dawn in the Woodlands" "Billy no Buzz" and "The Three Little Pigs" conveyed a moral as well. The opening scene of "Dawn in the Woodlands" brought out the two and a half to three and a half year olds into their first performance. The opening scene was breathtakingly colourful as the stage sets depicted the beauty of nature. A picturesque freshness emerged as the trees, bees, flowers, butterflies, rabbits, ladybirds, moving green caterpillars filled the stage. The kids were spared of long dialogue. Movement and colour expressed the message accompanied by soft piano music. The moral of the story in "The Bee with no Buzz" was a tender theme that taught the kiddie bees to be kind and understanding towards the odd bee that was rejected as it had no buzz. Hearing his sad tale the grasshoppers decided to help him by accepting Billy Bee to their group. The moral of the story was to accept and befriend everyone despite being different from another. A touch of professionalism was displayed by the little actors of the "The Three Little Pigs". The story of "The Three Little Pigs" who were at the mercy of the Big Bad Wolf developed dramatically with a well narrated script by the small actors. Clearly pronounced dialogue with effective intonation won the adult-parent audience. Little Jessica Gnanayuthum reached excellence in her role as the big bad wolf. To bring on stage over 187 such tiny tots assigned specific roles was a masterly achievement. The stage props for the Fair were tastefully done and most colourful and real looking. A tribute to the young singers who sang beautifully and untiringly throughout. The secret behind the success of this show was clearly apparent. The dedication and team spirit of the teachers deserve praiseworthy comment and is an example to all teachers of tiny tots. Mrs. Shermila Rajaratnam the principal Mrs. Nelun Ratwatte and all teachers should be truly proud of this production. I am personally convinced as a spectator that exposure of teachers to new foreign and local creations to enrich the children's environment is a must. Creativity motivation and love of children have truly paid dividends. Indrani Iriyagolle (Spectator) |
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| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
Punchi Suranganavi was directed by Somaratne Dissanayake and produced
by Renuka Balasooriya. The film is also screened at the Cairo
International Film Festival in Egypt. This is the second time that
Nithyawani grabbed the international award for best acting after she
starred in Saroja two years ago.
by Susil
Amarasinghe and the cassette and CD are distributed by Vijitha Trade
Centre, Colombo 11.
