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They
all did their bit at the Wendt Hundreds of actors, singers, dancers and musicians have performed on this stage and with few exceptions, all those performances were received to the sustained applause of theatregoers in Colombo. Applause at The Wendt is a collection of reminiscences of the players, producers and directors who worked there, beginning from Neumann Jubal's production of Maxim Gorky's The Lower Depths in December 1953. These are stories of unremitting effort, of quaint achievement and of hilarious interludes; the hard work, the serious study and the fun that make up the the experience of theatre. Mingling with the laughter and joy are the tears that have been shed for those who have died, some in the fullness of time, others unnaturally and out of season. Among those who narrate the stories of their exploits on the Lionel Wendt stage are Vernon Abeysekera, Irangani Serasinghe, Shyamon Jayasinghe,Henry Jayasena, Ernest MacIntyre, Sriyantha Senaratna, Shelagh Goonewardene, Osmund Jayaratne, Lucien de Zoysa, Karl Goonesena, Lucky Wikramanayake, Kris Pullenayagam, Chris Greet, Lal Senaratne, Brian Rutnam, Tony Anghie, Carmel Raffel, Christine Tambimuttu, Michele Leembruggen and Ann Anthonis. Their memories are embellished by journalists writing of those times- Eric Ranawaka, Douglas Seneviratne, D.C. Ranatunga, Nihal Ratnaike and Neville Weeraratne who was also responsible for putting this book together. The foreword to the book is by Nihal Fernando. Weeraratne
has also traced the original story of the Lionel Wendt Art Centre
and the people behind it. The story of the Wendts, Lionel and his
brother Harry, Harold Peiris and George Keyt and their friends is
a saga that is revealed in an exhaustive Introduction often as entertaining
as the productions on the Lionel Wendt stage. The commemorative volume is a handsome coffee table book, richly illustrated with more than 300 pages. It comes with a colourful, laminated dust jacket. The pre-publication price of the book is Rs. 3,200 (post-publication Rs. 4,000) while packing and postage is extra. Order forms are available at the Lionel Wendt Art Centre, Guildford Crescent, Colombo 7. Different themes,
different colours Over the years under the eye of different artists the students have had three exhibitions. This year's exhibition titled, "Sharada Siththam", will display the works of Kosala Priyam Kumara and his students. Oil on canvas, watercolours and collage are among the many mediums used by these students. The themes are both diverse and colourful. "All the students are in their twenties or older," says Kosala, some paint as a hobby, others are teachers, graphic designers, etc. "Everyone
is different, but they come together in their common love for art,"
says Kosala who feels they have come a long way considering they
only started classes one year ago. "It is their enthusiasm
and dedication that helps them.” Strange slice
of human history It was a challenging task to 'transplant' the play from Salem to Sri Lanka, to make the 1692 witch hunts come alive in a very different milieu. Here, 'devil dances' are part of the tourist circuit, so Lankan audiences may be forgiven for asking why such a fuss over a couple of feathers tossed into a cauldron. The resonance of the play is complex, echoing as it does from 1692 to America in the 1950s when McCarthyism was at its frantic height, with Communists, considered the equivalent of the hosts of darkness, being hunted with ferocious zeal. We heard the same language in the recent war with Iraq, with Saddam being accused of every crime in the book. Recent parallels aside, one of the reasons why accusations of witchcraft were so serious in Salem was that it was (and is?) by its very nature, a closet crime, “an invisible crime”. Only a witch and her peers or her victims would know whether there had been any foul play. So the question of evidence was very tricky. An accusation was tantamount to a death sentence. The difficulty of obtaining 'confessions' was matched by the readiness of some to accuse their neighbours, as against the reluctance of others like John Proctor to wriggle out of a fatal corner by pulling death down on the innocent. This is not to suggest that the judges were 'tainted’. Coming from a background of Puritanical values and almost painful rectitude, they were anxious to scourge the devil from Salem and equally concerned that justice be done. As Judge Danforth exclaims - "We burn a hot fire here, it melts down all concealment." Disturbed by the numbers jailed and sentenced to hang by the Salem court, Rev. Hale (Joel) expresses his concern. Judge Danforth (Rehan) is shocked at the suggestion that there may have been a miscarriage of justice, and refutes it strongly. The action of the play, then, is not confined to a remote corner of Massachusetts, four centuries ago. It focuses on legalized lynchings, born of a fear of the supernatural, fuelled by anxious piety and joyless devotion, fanned by motives of private revenge and economic benefit - "This man is killing his neighbours for their land!" Thwarted passion comes into it, as does ignorance and ego. John Proctor, played by Bhanu Abhayasinghe, Elizabeth Proctor (Mariella) and Abigail Williams (Chandri) form a triangle that crackles with conflict. The girls who lead the outcry against the so-called witches, make the most of the drama in their roles, particularly in the opening scene which begins in sinister darkness in a clearing in the forest. Tituba (Niroshini) a slave from Barbados, sets the pace in what they call "the cauldron scene”. The sets are minimalistic, and evoke the forest, domestic interiors and a courtroom where the action reaches a peak of tension. Head of Creative and Performing Arts Janet Howell Jinadasa, comments that the play is based, to borrow the author's words, upon "one of the strangest and most awful chapters in human history." Director Naomi Willard, fresh from the U.K., was passionate about the choice of play and has invited some of the young actors to co-direct key scenes. The collaborative effort may have added to the liveliness of the whole production, as they hope the audience will find. -Talitha Mathew |
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Copyright © 2001 Wijeya Newspapers Ltd. All rights reserved. |
Applause
at The Wendt edited by Neville Weeraratne is the highly entertaining
story of the first 50 years of the Lionel Wendt Theatre as remembered
by those who took part in all manner of performances there.
Initiated
ten years ago 'Sharada Kala Nikethanaya', started off having classes
in dancing and music. One year later under the guidance of Upasena
Gunawardena art classes were underway.
'The
Crucible' will be staged by the students of the British School in
Colombo (Senior section) directed by Naomi Willard on November 28
and 29. A lively cast from The British School is all set to plunge
theatre audiences in Colombo into an intriguing cauldron of dramatized
history - Arthur Miller's intriguing play, 'The Crucible.'
