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Kala Korner - by Dee Cee

Khemadasa in Concert tonight
Maestro Premasiri Khemadasa is back in action. He brings back his 'Sinhala Avurudda' symphony tonight at Bishop’s College auditorium along with other items in a programme titled 'Khemadasa in Concert'.

It's always exciting news when we hear of a Khemadasa concert. It gives us a chance of enjoying some of his creations over the years as well as new ones. His creations never get stale. It was in the mid sixties that he first performed the symphony on Sinhala New Year which was described as 'a symphonic poem'. The second symphony was 'The Sea' portraying man's dependence on the sea and the hardships he has to undergo in his struggle to live with the help of the sea.

'Mother of my time' expressing a son's feelings for his mother and his hopes for the future was dedicated to his 92-year old mother who died just a few days before the symphony was staged.

Tonight's programme will include excerpts from the highly acclaimed 'Manasavila', which Khemadasa described as "an attempt to combine voice, music and drama to create something that expresses the sum of modern human life and experience". 'Pirinivan Mangallaya' dealing with the passing away of the Buddha, and 'Sondura Varnadasi', his latest opera based on the Kanavera Jataka will also be featured, along with some of his other creations. Khemadasa's daughters studying music in Prague will also take part, one playing the cello and the other, the piano.

Wendt Theatre's golden jubilee
My good friend and one time Observer colleague Neville Weeraratne reminded all of us last week that the Lionel Wendt Theatre completes 50 years next December. The reminder came all the way from Melbourne where Neville is domiciled. Right now he is busy working on a commemorative volume to mark the big event.

Knowing Neville's capabilities from the days he was in charge of the layout of the Observer Magazine Edition -as the Sunday Observer was called in the mid --sixties and both of us used to do night duty on the day prior to its publication, he should turn out an attractive volume.

We have been fortunate to enjoy Lionel Wendt's superb photographs through several publications. Quite apart from 'Lionel Wendt's Ceylon' (first printed in 1950 and reprinted in 1995) and the Centennial Volume put out in 2000 by the Lionel Wendt Memorial Fund, his photographs have been featured in several publications. 'Through the lens brightly' was the title of a photographic feature in Serendib, the Air Lanka magazine in 1989.

Five years later, Serendib carried another feature titled 'Renaissance Man - creator of a truly Sri Lankan idiom'. 'Rediscovering Lionel Wendt' was a comprehensive life story of the man written by Manel Fonseka for the well compiled catalogue released to mark the exhibition of Wendt photographs in 1994.

The reference to the Lionel Wendt Theatre in that article states: 'Alborada', the house he built and lived in from the late '20s, was demolished in 1950 to make way for the first stage of the Memorial complex. The Memorial Theatre was opened in 1953, and the Lionel Wendt Memorial Art Gallery in May 1959.

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