The curtain comes down
View(s):Let’s take a tour of the arts through 2012 with Smriti Daniel
What will you remember about 2012? A year in Sri Lankan arts affords its own surprises: an iconic atheist and a profoundly religious man make the same plea for compassion, a short film about mechanics and taxi drivers in Jaffna is showcased at an international film festival, a pianist realises her dream on the grandest of stages, a Sri Lankan dance company stretches and flexes, assuring you they’re still learning. Then there are the people we’ve come to rely on, prolific artists who make each New Year cause to push themselves harder, to deliver one more time.
Two musicals that took Colombo by storm:A scene from Rag (above) and from Evita (below right). Pic by Shehal Joseph
2012 was the year of the triumphant musical (or two), a year when ambitious, multi-day festivals drew in local audiences, providing performances that sometimes stirred us, sometimes disappointed us but seemed also to open a door on more to come.
There are a number of exhibitions, lectures, performances, shows and book launches we would have liked to have featured here but could not – it is because of such constraints this makes no pretensions to being a definitive list. These are merely some of the things 2012 brought with it and as the year turns, we invite you to pause and look back with us:
January 8: Dhamma, Gamini and H. A: A tribute to three theatre greats is staged
Janakaraliya organises a tribute at the Lionel Wendt to Dhamma Jagoda, Gamini Haththottuwegama and H. A. Perera, men considered stalwarts of the theatre scene in Sri Lanka. Gamini is best known as the ‘Father of Street Drama’ noted Sunday Times’ columnist Dee Cee in Kala Korner, adding that H.A was best known for his acting, while Dhamma not only presented well received Sinhala plays but was also an accomplished teacher.
Delivering the keynote address at the event, Ariyawansa Ranaweera said of them: “Theirs was a selfless service. They forgot about their private lives and devoted their entire lives to the wellbeing of Sinhala theatre.”
January 18 – 22: The 2012 Galle Literary Festival is a hit
The Hall de Galle proved a tight fit for the crowds at the Galle Literary Festival this year. Playwright Tom Stoppard dazzled with his wit, atheist and evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins made the case for evolution, Shashi Tharoor defended his nostalgia for the days when young Indian women wore sarees and the ‘Gaza doctor’ Izzeldin Abuelaish made a moving plea for peace and compassion. It was curator Shyam Selvadurai’s second (and his final) stint with the festival and a new curator is yet to be announced. The organisers may not be in any hurry though – cancelled this year, GLF will only return in 2014.
January 22: Boodee Keerthisena’s Tamil film Matha is released
At the heart of the Matha narrative is a passionate affair between a man and woman divided by war. Parvathi (Yasodha Radhakrishnan) and Yoga (Dharshan Dharmaraj) are forcibly conscripted by the LTTE but end up breaking the rules when they fall in love. The Tamil film was released with English and Sinhala subtitles.
January 29: More than 300 artists make their mark at 17th Kala Pola
The George Keyt Foundation (GKF) held its 17th annual Kala Pola (Art Mart). British High Commissioner John Rankin was the Chief Guest. For the 300 odd artists who showed up to display their work, brisk sales were only part of the appeal, here was a chance to show their work to a largely appreciative public.
January 29: Repeat ‘Peece Sumitt’ draws a full house
Written and directed by Feroze Kamardeen, the play brought his Excellency Chaminda Pusswedilla back on stage to attend the World ‘Peese’ Summit. While local audiences raved about the production, some calling it Pusswedilla’s most successful outing so far, much of the humour was lost on anyone unable to follow Pusswedilla’s distinctive lingo.
February 15 – 19: Colombo Art Biennale kicks off
The theme for the 2012 Colombo Art Biennale was Becoming. Preceding the event, the organisers had double-page centrefold prints of the artists’ work published in three newspapers (one of which was the Sunday Times). Roman Berka and Suresh Jayaram served as festival curators, bringing together 24 local and 17 international artists from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Germany, Austria, Sweden, Netherlands, Norway, Australia and the US across 3 main venues.
February 16: Lakshman Joseph de Saram gets top billing for writing the music for Bel Ami
The world premiere of Bel Ami in Berlin was accompanied by much hype, the film having been dubbed one of the ‘most eagerly anticipated movies for 2012.’ Centred in 19th century Paris, it starred Robert Pattinson of Twilight fame. The movie marked the second time that de Saram found himself collaborating with the Italian director Uberto Pasolini (the first being ‘Machang’).
February 24 – 26: Colombo Fashion Week takes to the ramp
New faces at the Colombo Fashion Week this year included Pepa Pombo from Latin America and Italian designer Gaetano Navarra. Supermodel Perine Fernando took to the ramp as an ambassador for the event and promised to continue to remain engaged with and support local designers. Day 2 saw the focus shift to ‘Ethical Fashion’ as Bibi Russell from Bangladesh displayed her collection.
Sri Lanka’s fashion elite were also honoured at the event: Designer Deneth Piuma (whose collection was inspired by the sophistication and playfulness of Parisian women) walked away with the Pantene Gen Next Award, while beloved designer Yolande Aluwihare-Holm’s many accomplishments were acknowledged with a Lifetime Achievement Award.
In September, Colombo Fashion Week returned with their first Resort Wear show at Jetwing Lagoon in Negombo. The work of designers like Yolande Aluvihare-Holm, Sonali Dharmawardhane, Upeksha and Gihan Ediriweera were among those featured.
March 10: Dolahak is staged by director Athula Pathirana
Actor cum director Athula Pathirana challenged both his cast and his audience with the staging of Dolahak at the Lionel Wendt, an adaptation of American writer Reginald Rose’s Twelve Angry Men.
March 3 – 4: The Galle Music Festival returns
The Samanala Grounds in Galle were transformed by the advent of the Galle Music Festival as audiences poured in to listen to an exciting line up of artists from Bangladesh, India, Norway, Palestine and Sri Lanka itself. Funded by the Royal Norwegian Embassy and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the festival’s stated aim was not only to showcase the diverse traditions and performers from the different regions of Sri Lanka but also to introduce these traditional artists to school children and young people.
April 4 – 5: Olivia Newton John performs in Colombo
Olivia Newton John brought back a host of great memories for local fans of the musical Grease when she arrived in Colombo as part of her 2012 Asia Tour. Fans thrilled to old favourites like I Honestly Love You, Hopelessly Devoted to You, covers of Send in the Clowns and If Not For You and of course, her big hit Let’s Get Physical. Having delivered a high octane show, the 63-year-old star told the Sunday Times that she was far from ready to step down: “I like to sing, it’s who I am. I’ll do it until I don’t enjoy it or people don’t show up,” she said.
April 19 – 22: Kannan Arunasalam’s film screened at Al Jazeera International Documentary Festival 2012
Among the films screened at the 8th Aljazeera International Documentary Film Festival, held in Doha was Arunasalam’s film ‘Kerosene.’ The short film celebrated the wonderful determination and inventiveness of the mechanics of Jaffna who managed to keep their cars running even through fuel shortages. Later in 2012, Kerosene was also shown at the South Asian Film Festival 2012 (Canada) and The MIX International Short Film Festival 2012 (Richmond, Virginia).
May 12 and 13: Samhara: the Braid dances into the spotlight
In a critically acclaimed performance, the Chitrasena Dance Company returned to the stage in the company of the Nrityagram Dance Ensemble – marking the former’s first international collaboration. Kandyan dancers Mithilani Munasinghe and Thajithangani Dias danced alongside Odissi dancers Surupa Sen, Pavithra Reddy and Bijayini Satpathy to choreography created by Surupa and Heshma Wignaraja of the Chitrasena Kalayatanaya. The three-day run at the Lionel Wendt had been preceded by a premiere in Bangalore and was followed by a successful tour of Mexico and the United States.
May 26: Madhubashini Dissanayake-Ratnayaka and Malinda Seneviratne take top literary prizes
Madhubashini Dissanayake-Ratnayaka was awarded the 2011 Gratiaen Prize for her unpublished novel There’s Something I Have to Tell You. The prize, instituted by Michael Ondaatje with his winnings from the Booker Prize in honour of his mother Doris Gratiaen, is awarded annually to a Sri Lankan writing in English who is a resident of the country.
Malinda Seneviratne, who was also shortlisted for the Gratiaen, walked away with the H.A.I Goonetileke Prize for his translation of Sansaaraaranyaye Dadayakkaraya (The Hunter in the Wilderness of Sansara) by Simon Navagaththegama.
May 31: Tanya Ekanayaka performs at the Kennedy Centre
Invited to perform at The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC, classically trained pianist, composer, musicologist and linguist Tanya Ekanayaka did Sri Lanka proud. As part of her solo recital, she performed the original compositions ‘Labyrinth; Vannam Lent’ and ‘Dhaivaya.’
June 8: Shehan Karunatilaka wins the Commonwealth Prize
Shehan does Sri Lanka proud
After being declared the regional winner of the Commonwealth Prize on May 21, Karunatilaka’s Chinaman: The Legend of Pradeep Mathew took the top prize in June. (The novel had previously won the 2012 DSC Prize for South Asian Literature.)
Margaret Busby, Chair, Commonwealth Book Prize described Chinaman as a “fabulously enjoyable read [which] will keep you entertained and rooting for the protagonist until the very end, while delivering startling truths about cricket and about Sri Lanka.”
For his part Karunatilaka said he was surprised more than anything else considering the calibre of the other contenders. He added “Now I just need to find a pub in Wales that serves arrack.”
August 23 – 26: Colombo Music Festival
Four days of music, 16 locations, over a 100 exceptionally gifted artistes from 17 countries were what the Soul Sounds Music Festival promised its audiences. Local artists were given prominence and many dazzling performances were staged in a number of dramatic locations. But despite its laudable ambition, poor audience turnout and logistical issues dogged much of the Festival leaving participants frustrated.
September 13 – 16: Kalumaali is staged at the Lionel Wendt
Presented by the Stages Theatre Group and performed in both Sinhala and English, ‘Kalumaali: A Fairy Tale for Grown-Ups’ was the product of a 2 year writing process. Director Ruwanthie de Chickera collaborated with 13 women of the Sinhala and English stage, who explored their experiences of motherhood through the lens of theatre.
October 5 to 14: Evita takes Colombo by storm
For any play to have a 10 day run in Colombo is all but unheard of – but the Workshop Players (WSP) dared and were rewarded by sold out shows and standing ovations. A large cast of amateur performers enthusiastically took on the task of bringing the Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd-Webber musical to the stage. While there were noteworthy individual performances, the stars of the show were really the chorus who carried the musical with their soaring voices and energetic dancing.
October 19-23: Jehan Aloysius’s Rag provides a potent appeal against campus violence.
Written, directed, designed, composed, choreographed by and starring Jehan Aloysius, the musical has been many years in the making, but our reviewer found its message was worth the wait. Wijith De Chickera wrote: ‘But it is at home that this raw, edgy, and energetic drama will have the best – and hopefully most beneficial – impact. Because when you strip away all the hype and the hoopla (and there is quite a bit of that, believe me), Rag is a rare animal indeed: a musical with a social conscience.’
October 12 – 15: Galle Children’s Festival
The Galle Children’s Festival returned for its second year to the Galle Fort, with performances, exhibitions, workshops, activities, film screenings, parades and discussions for children. A joint venture of the Galle Literary Festival and AdoptSriLanka, the festival sprawled across three packed days.
November 7 – 9: The Colombo Dance Platform
Memorable performances filled the 3 day programme of the Goethe Institute’s Colombo Dance Platform. Curated by Ong Ken Sen, an artistic director based in Singapore, the theme was ‘Dancing with the Archive’ – performers were inspired by Sri Lankan culture and music, but also drew from memories, puppetry, poetry and politics in performances that challenged local audiences and expanded our knowledge of contemporary dance.
November 14 and 21: Danielle de Niese makes her debut in Sri Lanka
Her first ever concerts in Sri Lanka marked international opera star Danielle De Niese’s triumphant debut in her parents’ native country. Her concerts in Colombo and Galle included a carefully chosen blend ranging from some of Handel’s most famous arias to beloved Cole Porter classics.
November 15 -18: The Sri Lanka Design Festival returns
Organised by the Academy of Design (AOD) in Colombo, the Sri Lanka Design Festival (SLDF) this year included a South Asian Apparel Leadership Forum and the Ethical Fashion Forum.
November 23-25: Feroze takes on Dorfman’s Widows
Director Feroze Kamardeen first staged (and starred in) Widows in 1998 but revived it in 2012 with an all new cast. Performances were uneven, but Gehan Blok’s accomplished portrayal of the lieutenant stood out.
November 23 – 27: Lionel Wendt Festival of Arts honours its founder
To mark the 111th birth anniversary of its extraordinary founder, the Lionel Wendt Theatre presented its second Festival of Arts. Choosing to focus primarily on drama in Sinhala, English and Tamil, the event boasted a full five day programme and included work presented by Thiyagaraja Sivanesan, Ranjini Obeysekera and Priyantha Sirikumara, Rajitha Dissanayake, Chamat Arambewela, Ruvin de Silva, Brandon Ingram, Sashane Perera and Parakrama Niriella.
December 1-2: Floating Space Presents Unearthed
Unearthed was the result of a collaboration between the Floating Space Theatre Company and Sally E. Dean from the U.K. Billed as a site specific theatre and dance journey through a private home, the production wove together prose and poetry with contemporary dance. Its use of the spaces in the house (a long table in the dining room, a shelf in a dusty cupboard, a bench in the garden) created a series of stages quite unlike anything Sri Lankan audiences had seen before.
Adding to the intimacy of the performance were excerpts from the writings of the feminist, essayist and poet Adrienne Riche who passed away earlier this year. Co-directed by Ruhanie Perara and Sally E. Dean, Unearthed was one of the highlights of 2012.
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