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St. Joseph's - act of a high standard

Sunday, 22nd June 2003 will certainly not be forgotten by Josephians and many others for a long time to come - at least for another years.

From bits and pieces, from rumours and facts whispered into my ears during the previous week, there lingered in the air a premonition of St. Joseph's winning the "All Island Inter School Shakespeare Drama Competition" (Boys' Schools) this year.

So as I climbed the steps of the prevailing monsoon rains, even the weather was kind and graceful on this particular Sunday afternoon.

I had watched Nalanda's performance of scenes from "Julius Caeser" followed by Royals enacting scenes from "Othelo" before the interval and when the bell was rung after the break and the announcement made for the third performance of the evening - St. Joseph's scene from "Julius Caesar" - there was such a thunderous applause that it took quite some time for the curtain to be drawn open. And eventually the first scene commenced.

What a performance it was! The production - the music, the setting, and the costumes - created the Roman atmosphere in the elizabethan era with the street scenes matching the columns of Roman architecture.

And the acting itself was of a very high standard - the young Josephians really lived up to their reputation endorsed by the audience through the applause even before their play began.

All the actors played their individual roles quite effectively, special mention, however should be made of the brilliant performance of Rajiv Ponweera (Brutus) and Leon Arendtsz (Cassius) who were a class by themselves, keeping the audience spell bound by their high standard of rendition.

Their internal conflict, guilt and trauma after the murder of Julius Caesar was very strikingly depicted on stage by these young Josephians, culminating in frustration and final suicide.

These two naturally won the all island "Best Actor" and "Best Supporting Actor" awards respectively. A brilliant performance indeed.

Special reference should be made to the talented young man behind all this success the demure, pleasant Jehan Aloysius, an Old Josephian himself and an actor of no mean repute, a director who insists in perfection, naturally resulting in success.

In spite of all his many successes in the field of drama, he still remains as per Josephian tradition paradigm of simplicity "Thank You, Jehan".

At this time of jubilation, let us not forget the quiet, unobtrusive lady behind the scenes Mrs. Vyjayanthi Anthick - the teacher-in-charge of English, who is always with the students in their long hours of practice, encouraging them in her own supporting manner, Thank you, Vyjayanthi!

Last, but certainly not the least, much gratitude and appreciation are due to our endearing loveable personality - Rev. Fr. Victor Silva, our dear Rector, who is at all times in the forefront of all activities of the College. He has a special concern and interest in promoting literary arts, especially English, in the young Josephians.

All in all, well done, St. Joseph's!

- Gerry Perera

Shocking but realistic

When the Mind Adventures theatre company produced Seneka Abeyratne's Virgo Intacta in 1999, a critic had this to say: "not only raw theatre, intimate theatre; but inviting theatre The play itself amazed me. It was near perfect direction".

Known for taking their productions into alternate spaces such as gardens (Virgo, Ubu Rex, A Merry Regiment of Women) and nightclubs (Slag), Mind Adventures is tackling Seneka's latest play, the beguilingly titled '3 Star K' at the Lionel Wendt on the 4th and 5th of July.

Most of Abeyratne's plays deal with the less explored side of human behaviour, and 3 Star K is no different. A murder story on the surface, this play exposes uncommon views on the institutions of family, religion, sex and politics.

The four characters on stage wash their dirty laundry, and pull skeletons out of closets with the energy and brutality and wicked humour which will leave you wondering just how much lies beneath the mundane realities of ordinary people and their everyday lives.

How much do you really know about the people around you? You might catch yourself laughing when you least expect it and guiltily at that! You might feel that youre eavesdropping on arguing neighbours, or looking into someone elses life.

The play also looks at relationships between husband and wife, mother and son, and the bond between friends. Sometimes the very ones we are supposed to love the most are the ones we hate the most. Bonds in a family, which should be strongest, are more brittle than they appear. When does love turn to hate? How? Why? What drives men and women to murder?

Under the direction of Tracy Holsinger, Ryan Holsinger (Mevan), Piyumi Samaraweera (Shani), Jennifer Tickle (Mother) and Deshan Devasagayam (Ruwan) will take the stage for 75 minutes in a mixture of murder, madness and mirth that will leave you reeling.

'3 Star K' contains explicit language and some scenes that are for mature audiences only. Tickets are available at the Lionel Wendt theatre.

Folk dance recital by the Indian Cultural Centre

The junior and the senior dance students of the Indian Cultural Centre presented a folk dance at the centre's auditorium recently.

The dances were rendered with strict adherence to the folk tradition.

The dances selected were deeply moving and captivating. The various dances depicted, various activities normally carried on in the South Indian villages. Some of the dances depicted the women walking miles and miles to fetch water, young brides extolling nature and beauties of their ancestral homes, another dance depicted a lullaby, sung to put children to sleep. Some dances depicted various agricultural activities in the villages.

Two gypsy dances were also performed. Gypsies, who are the fortunetellers, wielded a deep influence among the village masses.

Some dances were executed in Kavadi Sinthu, a traditional folk melody. The crowning pieces were some songs composed by Subramaniya Bharathiar and Anna Mali Reddiar set to beautiful folk music. All the dancers were executed with verve. This folk dance recital was a wonderful experience for the audience.

The dancers were trained by Ms. Subashini Pathmanathan.

- Madhubashini Ganeshan

Vienna Boys Choir breathtaking performance

Paul Mueller, Promoter and President of Classic Live (Unlimited) should be congratulated for a very successful performance by the Vienna Boys once more. The show at St. Theresa's Church on 27th June will be remembered by many. This year's profits were donated for a worthy cause to Alzheimers Foundation.

The conductor Martin Schemes was born in Austria in 1964, and the pianist Mr. Jung is Austrian too. Vienna has a special place in my heart as my daughter Esha lives in Austria - she left S.L. in 1981 and is happily living in Vienna with her husband and two children. Also I'm proud to say that I have seen the Vienna Boys choir perform live in Austria several years ago. judging from the packed audience in the church you will know that the show was stupendous - both conductor and pianist deserve a special applause for a splendid performance.

The show started with the choir of Theresa's giving of their best. Part I of the main show was rather solemn but part II pepped up the tempo specially with Ain't She Sweet. Then came the famous Blue Danube which was Wow!! breathtaking and its performance was shown by a thundering en-core after which they sang Siripade Samanala and Indunil the words of which were pronounced so well.

All who were responsible for this wonderful show deserve lots of bouquets.

- Yvonne F. Keerthisingha

Gregory Peck and Sri Lanka

One of the last great stars of Hollywood's golden era, Gregory Peck who died at the age of 87, on June 13 in California, was no stranger to Sri Lanka, then Ceylon.

In the early 1950s he was here to shoot a film, the Purple Plains, in which he played the lead role. It was a story set in Burma during or immediately after World War II. The female lead opposite him was played by a Burmese beauty named Win Min Than. A mock up of a Burmese village was erected in a tract of paddy fields at Kadugannawa just by the Colombo-Kandy highway. Most of the action took place there, and also at the Sigiriya airstrip.

Peck was a strikingly handsome man with a dignified look, and a six-footer to boot. The hottest topic in the morning and evening dailies during his stay was himself, in the Evening Observer in particular. Most English speaking females - the young and not so young - went bananas over him. His daily mail reportedly arrived by the bagful. The adulating female fans found him irresistible. The expressions on their faces caught by the news cameramen, said in all, especially when he once appeared in the Colombo Regal cinema. The entire vicinity was a sea of heads.

In Kandy he stayed at the Queen's Hotel and the entire hotel was taken up by the actors and film crew, probably they overflowed into the Suisse Hotel across the lake as well.

The well-known Observer Editor Tarzie Vittachi and cartoonist Collette had a field day with their spicy wit aimed at the emoting females.

His wife of 48 years Veronique was a journalist who came to interview him here during the shooting and that probably was the last celebrity interview she did before signing on the dotted line as Mrs. Peck.

Roman Holiday was the film in which he made the Vespa scooter famous. Audrey Hepburn and he got about on one in the film which was shown in a Colombo Cinema, probably the old Majestic.

The World War II film, the Guns of Navarone was also one of his successes. A couple of years back a local TV station ran this film. It too was shown here, probably in the '60s.

It is said that Peck had to often slip into the Queen's through the side entrance in the evenings when returning from shooting because of crowds at the entrance waiting to mob him.

The Purple Plains was shown in Colombo after its release.

Not long after (or was in a few years before?) another film was shot in Kandy mostly at the Queen's Pavilion - now President's House. Vivien Leigh and William Holden, popular stars of the era, played the main female and male roles in this film, the Elephant Walk - a story about the destruction of a building erected across an elephant corridor.

This film however was dogged by ill luck. Vivien Leigh fell ill, said to have been caused by some sweetmeats she had eaten during a Thovil ceremony in the South. The truth of this was not confirmed, but the fact of the matter was the film had to be re-shot in Hollywood with artificial sets and a new actress, Elizabeth Taylor doing the close up scenes again.

The Planter's Wife and Beachcomber were two other films shot in Ceylon, and in the '80s the blockbuster movie Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom topped the list.

- L. K. de Alwis

Desmond - chases the blues away

by Ilika Karunaratne

Desmond de Silva, certainly gave his fans in Colombo a magical evening. From start to finish, the show went off with a bang. Every seat was full, the audience sat transfixed, at times humming, clapping, singing, taking Desmond's lead, as his rich, melodic voice enthralled one and all. A true showbiz personality, who like Mignonne, is incomparable on stage. His swift movements, gliding or tripping lightly onto the stage, as the mood took him, were a joy to behold. The entire show was a feast for both eyes and ears. His voice thrilled one and all, whether in old favourites like 'Danny Boy', 'The Green Green Grass of Home', 'As Time Goes by' or in the Baila. One can liken Desmond's singing to the music of our spirits, as they were songs that we have known, loved and been familiar with for years.

He was a most magnanimous star too, drawing others with him on the stage like Sunil of the Gypsies and Antoinette, and those in the audience like Mignonne, Sohan and Dalreen, into the forefront, to share the spotlight with him in his moment of triumph. It is rarely that a star of a show does this, which speaks volumes for his qualities of caring, sharing and reaching out to others.

It is not every singing sensation even with charisma and personality, who draws people of all ages, and all walks of life to a show. It was a fun affair; all protocol, regarding age or status, being summarily discarded from the moment it began. One and all joined wholeheartedly, with spontaneous enthusiasm, in the atmosphere of gaiety, inspired by Desmond, with his easy charm and wit.

Congratulations to the Gypsies who were as usual fantastic. Cumar Peiris for his superb music direction, Sunil maintaining his unique style and Vijaya Corea at his best as compere.

The choreography and dancing were par excellence, the costumes colourful and eye catching. I noted that Desmond too, had about four changes of attire.

His imitations of Louis Amstrong, Elvis Presley and Dean Martin were perfect, and if ones eye were closed, one would think that they had come back to life. Last year, at his concert, Desmond paid a tribute to his mother-in-law, and sang a special song for her, saying she was the best mother-in-law in the world.

This time he paid the same tribute to his father-in-law, and the eternally youthful Donald Wijayaratna, shouted back with equal gusto from the audience.

As a parent and a mother-in-law myself, it certainly warmed the cockles of my heart to hear such warm appreciation.

He expressed his appreciation to his wife, Lilamani too, not only as the woman behind him, but as the woman behind the concert too.

Lala, from what I know of her, is a perfectionist. She would have left no stone unturned, to ensure the success of the show, by overseeing every minute detail, that goes into a production such as this. She is a truly amazing person; with multi faceted talents. A doctor, who loves music and singing and designs clothes too, she has nurtured herself into a professional in all these spheres.

To Shehan Wijayaratne, whose company was responsible for the entire production, hearty congratulations on every aspect of the show.

From the smiles on all faces after the show, it was obvious that Desmond had managed to chase the blues away, and make the sun shine brightly for all present.

Like good wine, which mellows with age, it seems that the timbre and quality of Desmond's voice has grown richer with the years.

I would also like to pay a tribute to Minister Ravi Karunanayake, who came in quietly through the public entrance, devoid of fanfare, trumpets or security. In these days, when Ministers are criticized at the drop of a hat, for the strong arm tactics of their security, which have caused inconvenience and annoyance to the public, and embarrassment to The Prime Minister, it was good to see a Minister who caused no inconvenience and didn't throw his weight around.

This too, undoubtedly added to the lustre of a most enchanting evening. We hope to see Desmond on stage again in Colombo, in the not too distant future.

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