For the second successful year, the traditional passion play was enacted at St. Bruno’s Church, Thambakanda recently.
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| Young actress Layani Kumarapeu, Ruwan Hettiarachchi and Sisira Jayashantha are in an act of the play.
Pic by Cecil Danicious |
The passion play which is also partly a Christian religious activity was performed by the devoted villagers. A brainchild of Rev. Fr. Stanley Peiris, the parish priest of the church introduced the culture of this traditional theatrical experience which was originally started in Oberammergau, a picturesque village in the Bavarian Alps, Germany, where the villagers faithfully perform every ten years since 1634 in fulfillment of a vow. According to tradition, a travelling villager unknowingly brought the Black Death home with him, causing a local epidemic that killed nearly 100 people of Oberammergau.
The terrified survivors begged God to spare their town from further deaths, vowing to perform a passion play, based on the life, suffering and death of Jesus Christ in their village every 10 years. The plague disappeared with no further deaths and the villagers of Oberammergau have faithfully kept their vow to the present day. Like Oberammergau, St. Bruno’s Church, Thambakanda is famous among many Christians and non-Christians as a place of healing for those who trust and believe.
The passion is directed by Sisira Jayashantha while make-up is handled by Gamini Jayakody. |
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