When Danu Innasithamby was asked to play Santa Claus in the upcoming St. Peter’s College play, ‘A Christmas Wish’ his first reaction was that it was sure to be easy. Santa only had to be jolly and ho-ho-ho at regular intervals after all. But Danu has since learned what Jehan Bastions and Neidra Williams had in store for him and it promises to be an unforgettable experience – not least because of Mrs. Claus.

A scene from the play - Peter with his mother

“Mrs. Claus has the biggest say,” says Danu, explaining that his wife runs the workshop. “She has a more dominating personality than Santa. The other reason Danu knows he’ll remember this play is because of the cast of 60 plus boys from St. Peter’s College – he says it’s the first time he has worked with so many kids. From Danu’s reaction, you can tell that ‘A Christmas Wish’ will turn the usual Christmas story on its head. Multiple sub-plots intertwine when Peter makes a wish for his mother Natalie, when the Snow Queen decides she wants to cancel Christmas and when everyone in Santa’s workshop faces their own crisis, whether it’s Rudolph being bullied out in the stables or the elves being frozen in the workshop itself.

Dylan Walker is one of the evil snowflakes doing the freezing. At 13 he’s among the youngest in the play, but he says he’s loving his first experience of acting in a musical. He believes the story is at heart, a romance. If you accept that premise, 17-year old Kavinda Hettiarachchi’s character becomes one of the key roles. He plays the young boy named Peter whose Christmas wish is to see his family become whole again. “Peter has lost the meaning of Christmas and he doesn’t believe in Christmas anymore,” says Kavinda. “He wants to be strong for his mom but he can’t hide his feelings as well.” It’s a good thing then that Santa is on his side. Playing matchmaker, Santa throws Mike, his head elf and right hand man into the company of Peter’s mother.

Iranga Mendis Wickramasinghe (22) plays Mike. He describes his character as “unmarried and devoted to the work of Santa, though he has a wish to find his own family and move ahead in life.” Iranga has returned to his old school to star in the show. As an ex-Peterite, he’s devoted to the drama team and has performed often while studying for his A/Ls. He continued to act even after graduation. Other young actors in the show look to old students like Iranga for inspiration. Both Eshan Denipitiya and Shayen Yatagama are elves, they’re also 18 years old and about to leave school next year. Eshan is choir leader and indispensable to the team, while Shayen is head prefect and they are both hooked on theatre not just for the chance to get up there and act but also to meet youngsters of every age from across the school. “It’s almost like a family now,” says Shayen.

Shayen who remembers being terrified last year when he had to give a speech, identifies drama and theatre as having bolstered his confidence. Being on stage has freed him from nerves and it’s a gift he’ll take with him when he leaves. Eshan says it’s all hard won. For instance, they began rehearsing for this production in April and he’s seen kids who never sang a day in their lives learn how to sing in harmony and dance while they’re doing it. “We’ve seen ourselves get so much better,” he says and the others nod in agreement. It’s an opinion Dmitri Gunatilake, their choral director shares as well. “When we started, from a cast of 60, only 5 were from the choir. All the others were new to theatre and new to singing,” says Dmitri. “They’ve come a long way.” Far enough anyway to tackle the happy mix of Christmas music and the intricate choreography that has been planned.

‘A Christmas Wish’ is directed by Neidra Williams and JehanBastians, assisted by Javin Thomas. Choral direction is by Dmitri Gunatilake, assisted by Eshan Denipitiya, while the choreography is by Roshni Gunaratne.

Santa and his helpers.Pix by Indika Handuwala

The cast of 60 includes: Peterites from the age of 9 to 19 and several old boys. All female roles are played by guest artists including Neidra Williams, Dmitri Gunatilake, AmayaaWijesinghe, SashiniWakwella, TrinushkaPerera, Lauren Williams-Bastians and Bridgette Kennedy. Danu Innasithamby will play Santa Claus.

‘A Christmas Wish’ goes on the boards of the Lionel Wendt from December 6-8 at 7.30p.m. Box plan is at St. Peter’s College and at the Lionel Wendt. The tickets are priced at Rs. 2,000, Rs. 1.500, Rs. 1,000, Rs. 800 and Rs. 500 (balcony).