The numbers didn’t add up but sketches did
Barbara Sansoni was 11 years old when she met Maria Montessori. Having fled to India after being exiled by Mussolini during WWII, Maria’s school in the Olcott Garden Bungalow already had a small complement of students. Now, here was this child in need of her guidance. Barbara, enrolled close by in a boarding school in [...]
Hideaway on stilts in the hills
The owner has beautiful taste in art. Wherever one looks in this bright, airy house there’s a watercolour waiting to catch the eye. This is self-explanatory, for the owner is also the architect here, and Ranjan Aluwihare is a man who likes to give his clients remarkably fluid watercolour plans-“there’s something beautiful and tactile about [...]
Bandits at prime time… but not only on telly!
Boys will be boys. We see it everywhere, virtually every day. Last week – and over most of the past two months – we have seen it ad nauseam, ad infinitum, on the football field. If I had a Brazilian dollar for every time a foul was perpetrated or a player took a fanciful dive, [...]
Leaves and bark on black canvas
The cosy white washed studio is strewn with paint brushes and other trinkets, but the bold black canvases- literally taking up most of the walls and floor stand out as elegant, daring and different; a sneak peak into Dila Weerasinghe’s creations for the exhibition “Golden Dawn”; which is on today at the Lionel Wendt Gallery [...]
From applause in the parks of Riga to cheers on stage
The Old Joes Choir, made up of former choristers from St. Joseph’s College, Colombo returned triumphant on Monday after winning on the international stage at the 8th World Choir Games in Riga, Latvia. The only South Asian choir to participate in the WCG, they competed in two categories namely the Barbershop Choirs and the Musica [...]
Familiar musicals and those rocking 60s,70s, and 80s
A cast and crew of more than 70 musicians and dancers from the UK will bring Broadway and more to Colombo. Toccata Musical Productions UK will visit Sri Lankat this August as a part of their Asia Tour 2014. They will stage two shows on different days. The first, a two-hour performance entitled The Best [...]
Letters
Cattle destroy our forest reserves, disturb the eco system Much of Sri Lanka’s rain forest was cleared 150 years ago for coffee and tea plantation by the British. About 30 years ago, during the implementation of the accelerated Mahaweli development project, large forest areas were cleared without assessing the environmental impact. As a result, the [...]
Musicmatters goes one notch higher with exciting line up
Dr. Sumudi Suraweera is in between rehearsals and a meeting with the OIC at Vihara Mahadevi Park when he stops by for a quick interview. In the run-up to the third edition of the Musicmatters Festival, things are likely to get busier still for its festival director. The process began in January with reaching out [...]
Arcade then and now: Far from the madding crowd
The beauty and tranquility my wife and I experienced during a morning stroll around the newly completed Independence Square complex reminded me of the beautiful descriptions of great asylums including that in Colombo which this very building was in the 19th century. Landscaped areas with manicured lawns, flowerbeds, trees, fountains, open spaces around the new [...]
A toast to France
French nationals, diplomats and friends of France gathered to celebrate the French National Day at the waterside of the Cinnamon Lakeside. The reception was hosted by France’s ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Jean Paul Monchau. Pix by M.A. Pushpa Kumara
CFW Fund offers helping hand to up- and-coming designers
In just over a decade, Colombo Fashion Week (CFW) has established itself as the backbone of the local fashion design industry. In the run-up to the Resort Wear show to be held in October, comes the launch of CFW ‘Fashion Design Fund’ to develop and support up-and-coming fashion designers. The fund is to be awarded [...]
Happy b’day ‘Bubble Baby’
Gifts, balloons and a large cake in the shape of train with a smiley face chugging forward and releasing a plume of smoke with the words, ‘Happy 4th birthday Sanjana’. As was customary, this year too, the Human Genetics Unit of the Colombo Medical Faculty hosted a birthday party for ‘Bubble Baby’ Sanjana Praveen Shivanka [...]
Dialogue between two brothers on two pianos
Eshantha and Johann Peiris, brothers and well-known musicians, will perform their first ‘two pianos’ concert at the Lionel Wendt Theatre this Tuesday, July 22. Are they excited to be playing together? “Yes!” jumps Johann, the exuberant one. “We will be,” says Eshantha, more measured. They have been preparing individually for months, but only began rehearsing [...]
Noodles: Far Eastern flavours in a stylishly Asian setting
The popular Courtyard of Cinnamon Grand will transform every night into the hotel’s newest culinary escape; Noodles. Aptly named the restaurant will tingle taste buds with the flavours of the Far East with dishes inspired by Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai and Malaysian cuisine. Headed by Vietnamese chef Tran Ba Giang, the menu offers over 70 [...]
A visionary educationist returns
Goolbai Gunasekara remembers the times when her mother would come in to her class at Buddhist Ladies College and sit in, a “very annoying habit” she was heartily tired of. “She would do this to all of us at school,” grins the educationist. “She’d walk in and say, ‘I’d love to learn something today’ and [...]
Tracking the leopard in the North
Leopard conservation in Sri Lanka has been somewhat neglected until recently, with primary conservation efforts directed towards protecting the Sri Lankan elephant. Realising the need to address this void, the WWCT commenced a full scale research project -The Leopard Project – in 2001 with the approval of the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC). The impetus [...]
Appreciations
Nihal Corea In memory of my darling thathi Beyond the sunset, the most blissful heaven Angels welcomed you, amidst the triumph The gates of heaven, opened wide for you, Where no pain exists, no sorrow , no death. You were a joy, a wonderful blessing to us For 66 years, a life so radiant [...]
Singing for a cause
They have been celebrating ten years of being among the leading female choirs in the country and now Soul Sounds will take the stage with some young talent from Norway when they perform with the group Defrost on July 28 at the Lionel Wendt. Celebrating a decade of top quality music and showmanship, Souls Sounds [...]
Sunera Foundation annual drama festival
The curtain opened on “Samanalayaya 2014” as the Sunera Foundation held their annual drama festival on July 16 at the Lionel Wendt. The participants were selected from the foundation’s workshops held across the country with the objective of showcasing their creativity and talent. Leading up to the final performance in Colombo the nine regional drama [...]
Thomians receive gift of books
S. Thomas’ College, Mount Lavinia has received a gift of over 500 books and magazines from a distinguished alumnus, Emeritus President & CEO of PATA, Lakshman Ratnapala, currently Chairman of Enelar International based in San Francisco. The collection, a part of the donor’s extensive library ,comprises rare “coffee table” publications and elite hard cover editions [...]
Naval officers commissioned at Naval & Maritime Academy in Trinco
Ten Service Entry Candidates from the Executive, Logistic, Electrical, Band Master, Administrative Officer, Health and Shipwright branches of the Navy passed out at the commissioning ceremony held at the Naval & Maritime Academy (NMA) in Trincomalee on July 14. The Director General Health Services, Rear Admiral N.E.L.W. Jayasekara VSV, USP took the salute as the [...]
Lanka Mahila Samiti AGM
The Annual General Meeting of the Lanka Mahila Samiti was held on June 28. The following members were elected to the Central Board. Ms. Prema Ilapperuma – President Ms. Thilaka Perera – Vice President Ms. Mangalika Dahanayake – Hony. Gen. Secretary Ms. Lilamani Goonewardene – Hony. Treasurer Ms. Benita de Mel, Ms. Swineetha Amarasinghe, Ms. [...]
Development of science and technology: Paradigm shift from Asia to Europe
Dr. Susantha Goonatilake, President, Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka will deliver a lecture on “Pre-colonial and Postcolonial Transfers from South Asia to Science and Technology”, on Monday, July 28 at 5 p.m.at the Gamini Dissanayake Auditorium, No. 96, Ananda Coomaraswamy Mawatha, Colombo 7. The lecture is sponsored jointly by the Sri Lanka Association for [...]
St. Anne’s College, Kurunegala-Colombo Union Executive Committee
The new executive committee for 2014/2015 of the St. Anne’s College, Kurunegala-Colombo Union was elected at the AGM held at the GOH recently. Seated from (L/R) Brian Angunawala, Lakshman Hulugalla, Jazmi Khalid (Treasurer), Bandula Weerasekara, Rev. Brother Ignesius Warnakulasooriya, Ranjan De Silva (President), Rev. Brother A.E. Tarcisius (Principal), Leslie Rupasingha, Ajith Weerasundara (Secretary), Cyril Victor, [...]
ACWBC AGM
The 65th Annual General Meeting of All Ceylon Women’s Buddhist Congress will be held on Saturday, July 26 at 9.30 a.m. at the ACWBC Headquarters, No. 400, Bauddhaloka Mawatha, Colombo 7. Prof. Sumanapala Galmangoda will be the Chief Guest. All members are kindly requested to participate.
