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| Sunday, 25 July 2004 |
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An evening of... Fun, fantasy and humour by Vimukthi Fernando
They are all young, 30 artistes in all. Some with long years of experience, some simply new entrants. However, they will all come together on stage for an evening of song and dance of fresh talent and skill mingled with expertise, at the Bishop's College Auditorium from July 27 to 30, 2004. "It is going to be an evening of fun, fantasy and humour," smiles their director and choreographer, Shannon Raymond, dressed in blue jeans and a white t-shirt, busy directing the cast, instructing, adjusting the poses, sometimes doing the poses himself - the smile never leaving his face.. "People should not take things seriously, then you will lose the beauty of life." That is what they hope to bring on stage - the beauty of life. With music and dance, contemporary tap and street jazz mixed with ABBA, Queen, John Miles and many more.
It is not very often that the Sri Lankan theatre buffs get an opportunity to enjoy a show that promises to bring in timeless music and dance, from the 1930s to 1980s, for the young as well as the old. "The dance is designed for the students, bringing out their enthusiasm and expression," says Shannon. While the first part of the show presents light entertainment the second half is "A humble tribute to Bob Fosse, the dancer, choreographer who developed a style. Controlled, sometimes tongue in cheek," he adds. Bob Fosse the world famous jazz artiste has many awards, shows and films to his credit including Chicago (1975), Cabaret (1973) and All that Jazz (1979), This tribute is not only for Fosse, but extended to all his mentors, "Steve, Jerome, Richard, Michelle, Nilufer, Jit, Rohan and the rest." Extreme Entertainers the maiden production of Extreme Dance Studio, is the culmination of 25 years of dance and English theatre for Shannon, who stepped on stage as Oliver, in 'Oliver Twist' when he was just eight years old. Grateful for the opportunity 25 years ago, "It was a surprise and a great honour to be picked up to play the lead. I am grateful for them for recognizing my talent early," he adds. From then on, there was no turning back. Dancing, acting, directing and choreographing on Sri Lankan stage, Shannon went on to secure a performing arts degree from Tony Bartticcio Center, Melbourn, Australia and experience performing arts in both Australia and the United Kingdom. Victoria State Opera and London Studio Centre, where he had the opportunity to perform were, "Different from Sri Lanka," says Shannon. "We were not only educated in dance, but enhanced our skills on the gamut of performing arts - acting, vocals and so on enabling us to become all-round entertainers. Further, it developed his talent and skill introducing many different styles and approaches, widening the horizons.
Speaking of the status of dance in Sri Lanka, he laments that though Sri Lanka has much potential and a lot of talent, social reservations such as limiting dance to females and issues among teachers belonging to different schools of dance, hinder the progress. These factors "stop greater exposure and greater enjoyment," says Shannon. Therefore, in an attempt to develop his students into fully fledged professionals he encourages them to "do their own choreography and designing and expose to other aspects of performing arts, so that they can be developed into full fledged professionals." Evaluation of these performances are given through free discussion. Learning a performing art must not involve rigorous training rituals, according to Shannon. "You must be able to do things you enjoy." Fifteen of the students will go on the boards with their mentor at the "Extreme Entertainers, "leaving others something to aspire for, next year," opines Shannon. The show is expected to expose the students to "a more professional experience, performing on stage." The ensemble of singers include Eshantha De Andrado, Manoj Singanayagam, Alan Outschoorn along with Shannon Raymond. Extreme Entertainers is produced by Dinesha Raymond, while sounds and light are by Jerry Jayasinghe. The show is sponsored by Sifani Jewellers and Alfa Orient Lanka. |
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| Produced by Lake House |
Enthusiasm. Exuberance. Ecstasy. That's what it is all about. A simple
celebration of life delighting the soul. Faces beam though the workouts
they have been going is tiring. Dressed in an array of colours, that is
how the Sunday Observer met the Extreme Entertainers rehearsing at the
Extreme Dance Studio.
The song and dance is not only selected for its attractive rhythm and
beat, but for the significant lyrics as well. "Meaningful, putting a
lot of things in perspective," says Shannon.
That's what propelled him to establish his own studio 'in 2002. "I
wanted to give out of my own learning. It is pointless keeping all that
within oneself," says Shannon. The studio with 30 students, offers
Tap and Street Jazz. A class limits to a maximum of 10 students, for
"when you work with children, you have to be very particular in how
you work them. You have to give individual attention to everyone and have
an understanding of their other studies, food, problems and so on,"
he goes on.
