Play House invites young audience to the theatre

Colombo Theatre Festival for Young Audience-2007 organised by the Lanka Children's and Youth Theatre Organisation or Play House-Kotte led by veteran actresses and playwrights will be held from August 9 to 12 at Lionel Wendt. The festival titled ‘Theatre for Education and Reconciliation’ comprises Somalatha Subasinghe's ' Vikurthi', Priyantha Kaluaaracchchi's Me Heeneta namak Denna (Name This Dream), Pujitha de Mel's ‘Asinamali (Nothing to Lose) and Kaushalya Fernando's 'Sanda Langa Maranaya' (Blood Wedding). With the idea of promoting high quality theatre productions by young directors, the selection of productions are national award winning plays with deep-insights into the socio-cultural issues.

The objective of the festival is to provide a platform, in particular for young theatre directors, to showcase their productions to the public. Its also a valuable opportunity for the public to experience theatre with meaningful entertainment both in the categories of original creations and adaptations from the international theatre.

Vikurthi (Distortion) is a play written and directed by Somalatha Subasinghe. It's a satirical exposure of hapless generation of youth whose lives were dominated by incessant struggle between the parents' aspirations and the youth's abilities and preferences. In the 1980's, at the time the drama was conceived, the wide spread social tendency was for parents trying to achieve the missed opportunities of their own lives through their children. Consequently, O/L children were forced to study for competitive government examinations such as GCE (OIL) and GCE (A/L).

Vikurthi cast includes Chamila Peiris, Namal Jayasinghe, Nadee Kammallaweera, Wishvajith Gunesekara, Mayura Kanchana, Suresh Fernando, Nayomi Gunasiri, Sharmaine Gunaratne, Sanjaya Hettiarachchi, Ishara Wickramasinghe, Hiran Abeysekera, Prasannajith Abeysuriya and a number of newcomers to the national theatre groomed at Play House in Kotte. M. R. Chulasinghe composed music for the play. Choreography is by Somalatha Subasinghe and Chandana Aluthge. Stage lighting is by Chandana Aluthge and make-up by Sumedha Hewawitharana.

Priyantha Kaluaarachchi's Me Heeneta Namak Denna (Name This Dream) has the theme of the youth's realization of the reality of modern day life. Dhamma is a young television producer who loves his profession very much. He perceives his work as his life. This creative youth's sudden and unexpected transfer to a bottle manufacturing plant by the holding company which also owns the Television channel turns his world upside down. Me Heeneta Namak Denna cast consists of Nama Jayasinghe, Dayadeva Edirisinghe, Sampath Jayaweera , Athula Pathirana and Samanali Fonseka.

Music composed by Kapila Poogalaaarachchi, stage decor and costumes are by Pradeep Chandrasiri, make-up is by Bhanu Prasanna, lighting is by Chandana Aluthge and stage management by Hewage Bandula and the drama is written and directed by Priyantha Kaluaarchchi.

Pujitha de Mel's "Asinamali" is the Sinhala production of the South African playwright Mbongeni Ngema's Asinamali. It has a greater relevance to the contemporary post-colonial world. The term 'Asinamali' could be literary translated as a political slogan 'Nothing to Lose' which has a history associated with the South African struggle against Apartheid.

The story of the play revolves around a union of five prisoners from diverse parts of South Africa in a cell at Leeuwkop Prison zealously guarded by Afrikaana-speaking police. Within the confines of the prison, the audience is taken to far flung hamlets of South Africa when the incarcerated prisoners relate their experiences, their former lives, political ideology, mentors and their crimes.

Asinamali was adjudged the best play of the year at the National Drama Festival in 2001. The cast comprises Wishvajith Gunasekera, Dharmapriya Dias, Sanjaya Hettiarachchi, Namal Jayasinghe and Nissanka Madulaarachchi.

Music for the drama composed by Theja Buddhika Rodrigo, stage decor by Namal Jayasinghe, make-up by Sumedha Hewavitharana, lighting by Kapila Aluthge and stage management is by Nissanka Madulaarachchi . Kaushalya Fernando's "Sanda Langa Maranaya", is the Sinhala version of 'Blood Wedding', one of the famous trilogy based on Spanish society, written by Federico Garcia Lorca in response to a newspaper article concerning a local murder in rural Spain. The story of the play is a triangle of passionate love among a bridegroom's married man, and a young bride. The play basically is a tragedy of missed love, focusing certain universal themes such as extremism, intolerance, and inflexibility in society which makes it relevant for all times.
'Sanda Langa Maranaya' was adjudged the best play of the year at the National Drama Festival in 2005.

Its cast includes Somalatha Subasinghe, Lucian Bulathsinghala, Chamila Peries, Wishvajith Gunasekera, Prasanna Mahagamage,Mayura Kanchana, Nadee Kammallaweera, Suresh Fernando, Nayomi Gunasiri, Lakmini Seneviratne, Sharmaine Gunaratne, Sanjaya Hettiarachchi, Champika Kannangara, Ishara Wickramasinghe, Hiran Abeysekera and a number of newcorners.
Nadeeka Guruge composed music for the play.