Tower Hall marks milestone

By Amal Hewavissenti

The Tower Hall, Maradana, Sri Lanka's best known early theatre house celebrates its 102nd anniversary this December. It is obvious that for almost a century, the Tower Hall and Sri Lankan theatre have sustained a close symbiosis within the domain of Sri Lankan entertainment.

When the theatre hall celebrated its hundredth anniversary in 2011, the audience had the opportunity to see a more modernised, renovated theatre house. In fact the Tower Hall is a turning point in Sri Lankan mass media because the theatre house accounts for the origin of Sri Lanka's cinema, songs, radio and television. It has thus witnessed dramatic events and produced a number of excellent artistes for the country.

Tower Hall's hundred years of service reflects that fact that there has been a stable and splendid theatrical art in Sri Lanka. At the same time, the theatre hall has been instrumental in key events in the country's struggle for independence.

National leaders, who shouldered the struggle for independence for Sri Lanka were assured of safety within this hall when they began to be harassed and imprisoned.

As records state, the foundation to the Tower Hall was laid by landmark figures of Sri Lanka's freedom struggle such as F.R. Senanayaka, Anagarika Dharmapala, Ponnambalam Ramanathan, John de Silva and Sir D.B. Jayathilake.

The theatre hall served as a safe haven for national leaders who had mounted large scale protest against imperialism during pre-independence era. Thus, Tower Hall masks cultural and political significance.

Symbol

The Tower Hall which rises majestically over Maradana town nourished Sri Lankan culture and produced best artistes who entertained a nation throughout a century. It is one of Asia's oldest theatre houses and is the national symbol of Sinhala drama.

Tower Hall is Sri Lanka's first permanent and well established theatre house where around 1,500 spectators could conveniently enjoy drama. After the emergence of Nurthi there came more than thirty theatre houses within the city of Colombo but they were ill-equipped to a large degree. Yet Tower Hall was a perfect theatre with a balcony and curtains which had been exclusively imported from India.

The theatre hall was ceremonially declared open on December 6, 1911. The occasion appeared to be something of a national festival celebrated by a large mass of people including artistes, invited guests and drama lovers. The stage drama Pandukabhaya was the first performance which premièred at the Tower Hall amidst a massive acclaim.

The first Tower Hall dramas deviated noticeably from traditional Nurthi folk dramas and were founded on a style unique to it. This drama style derived much from foreign cinematic works and it assumed the form of social drama.

The conspicuous feature in these dramas is bitter satire on weaknesses of contemporary society and the use of spoken language rather than dramatic language.

Thus, Tower Hall merits the credit of preserving the art of Sinhala drama against the rapid invasion by cinema during 1930s.

It is interesting to read the records of how the stage drama Pandukabhaya premièred at the Tower Hall as the first live performance the first experience of its kind in Sri Lanka, Wilfred Perera states: "The name of Tower Hall as a centre of art in the history of Sinhala stage drama was marked on the sixteenth of December 1911.

The proprietors of Tower Hall arranged a grand pirith chanting and alms-giving in order to invoke blessings for the new theatre hall. F.R. Senanayake, Piyadasa Sirisena, Anagarika Dharmapala, Mayor Macloyd, John de Silva, Charles Dias were among the dignitaries who graced the occasion...

"The British governor for Sri Lanka, drama lovers, invited dignitaries and critics assembled at Tower Hall while royal band was playing music... Printed leaflets announcing the premier of the drama were distributed throughout the city.

Many people comprising Sinhalese, Muslims, Tamils, Hindus and English waited eagerly for the show of Pandukabhaya ..."

Symbol

"As the clock struck 8.45 pm, the major curtain of the stage opened and a charming pond with lotuses appeared among a thunderous clapping and shouts of joy...... The presenter in the guise of a sage sang a melodious introduction which immediately tempted the audience to throw gold and other valuables on to the stage......"

"Tower Hall enhance the significance of Maradana as a city because the theatre hall was the place to hold cultural, social, political and religious assemblies......"

As the Tower Hall celebrates its 102nd anniversary, it appears before the audience as an extensively renovated and modernised theatre house. A grand entrance and an exclusive compartment for invited guests have been added to the original building.

A specially arranged room for the physically handicapped spectators and an audience lobby have been designed to be added to the theatre. The audience' lobby has been designed to facilitate stage rehearsals, drama script writing and initial practising of a new drama prior to staging.

The second floor of the theatre hall has been meant for a place to conserve valuable data and articles related to the performances that had been presented at the Tower Hall since its inception. Here, profiles and photographs of Tower Hall artistes are kept on display and a collection of valuable data on the dramas and films so far staged and screened here is open for the audience.

In a way it is a "Tower Hall Museum" which transports "a golden age of art" to the future and which offers a classic glimpse of the history of Sinhala drama for future generations.