Rivega returns
Ruwini Jayawardana
His passion for dancing took him to great heights. Knowledge coupled
with experience helped him choreograph breath taking dance items and set
the stage ablaze.
Talented choreographer Rangika Jeewantha Vidanage enthralled dance
enthusiasts by staging a dance concert early this year. The event
highlighted not only the
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Dance promotes unity |
traditional dance but also highlighting the country’s folk dance.
Students of the duo’s dance academy, Rivega Dance Studio, will perform
the items along with Rangika.
Rangika is well known in the field. Together with his twin brother
Rangana he had excelled in the field and staged four dance productions.
The two were not only the first twin brothers in the country to
establish an institute for professional dancing but they were the first
twins to attain the level of Ves, the highest standards of Kandyan
dancing. A student of Piyasara Shilpadipathi, Y Gunasena and Channa
Wijewardena, Rangika had taken the country’s rich dance tradition to the
global arena.
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Enthralling performance |
He had taken part in a number of international competitions such as
the Ninth Asia Pacific Dance Competition in Singapore in 2007 and went
to win 14 awards at the annual ‘Dance Drama’ contest organized by the
Cultural Affairs Ministry.
Rangika’s vision is to explore new streams of dance techniques.
“This needs to be undertaken with skill as I do not believe in
changing the identity of our traditional dance forms. In this regard I
appreciate Chitrasena and Ravi Bandhu for their contribution to local
dance,” he noted adding that folk dance should be highlighted more in
dance items.
Rangika’s latest dance production which was also staged early this
year will go on boards the Lionel Wendt Theatre on October 24 at 7 pm.
The show is in association with Nelung Arts Centre (NAC), Nadika
Weligodapole, Nipuni Wijeysinghe and Sachinthe de Silva. Five folk dance
items will be presented at the concert.
The evening will comprise of the following dance items:
* Dalu Mura - The Bulath Padaya, a section from the Hath Padaya
belongs to the upcountry Kohomba Kankari Shanthi Karmaya
* Thaname - A crescendo of musical sounds brought together to perform
an upcountry traditional dance. Rangika and Rangana will perform this
item
* Yathura - A harvest dance showing rice cultivation
* Senpathiyo - Boys dance combining ancient fighting and upcountry
styles
* Riddi bisav - A section from a low country ritual
* Pol katu - A dance showing one of the country’s chief exports, the
coconut, which the dancers use as a prop. It is also used to decorate
the costumes.
* Semera - A dance showing the fanning of our kings by female
courtiers
* Eluwan Kaema - A dance which is performed by children during
Sinhala New Year
* Thalaya - Instruments brought together for a drum orchestra
* Raksha - The Raksha is a traditional low country dance form which
uses face masks
* Pathuru - A dance with clappers which is used as the main
attraction for the village folk dance
* Sankalana - An experimental dance combining regional dance styles
of low country, up country, Bharatha Natyam and western dance. |
