Cue Theatre gets ambitious with The Count of Monte Cristo
As far as plays go, The Count of Monte Cristo is by no means the easiest to pull off but the Cue Theatre Co. feel they have it under control. Their director, Ranga Jayaratne who was a teacher before starting up the theatre company describes them as a “close knit clan” who are more of a family than just a cast.
Working with not only students who are qualified in theatre like Kavini Abeysinghe and people who struck her as having a flair for the stage like Jaan Fernando- both of who are playing the lead roles, she feels that nurturing young people in the arts is her designated role.
Breaking in to the theatre scene of Sri Lanka in 2012 with their version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame- A Tale of Man and Monster, Cue Theatre Co. went straight back to work for this year’s production.
Laughing that she thought the Count of Monte Cristo was a little too masculine when her husband suggested it, “you could say it grew on me” she shares. After all according to Ranga this is the kind of play that could if everything goes well put Cue Theatre on the map.
The heat of the past few weeks alone was enough of a reminder that the play is perhaps one of the toughest to bring to life. The cast, especially Jaan who will be playing the Count found it quite a strain to keep the energy up. Rarely off stage, Jaan shares that the flux of emotions is quite exhausting to channel in such a short time frame.
Kavini who plays Mercedes looked to movies and even authors like Jane Austen to influence everything from her composure to posture. In terms of morphing emotionally all she has to do was rely on what comes instinctively, being a drama student from as far as memory takes her.
Tickets priced at Rs. 2000, 1500, 750 and 500 are available at the Bishop’s College Auditorium where the performance will be held on
June 20 and 21.