Vikurthi at Lionel Wendt

Somalatha Subasinghe’s Lanka Children’s and Youth Theatre Foundation or popularly known as Play-House Kotte presents ‘Vikurthi’ on May 26 at the Lionel Wendt Theatre, Colombo 7 at 3.30 pm and 7 pm.

Vikurthi (Distortion) is a play by Somalatha Subasinghe, 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 1980s, at the time the drama was conceived, the widespread social tendency was that the aspiring parents trying to achieve the missed opportunities of their own lives through their children.

Consequently, the children were forced to study for competitive government examinations such as GCE O-L and GCE A-L, specifically in the science stream disregarding their aptitudes and available resources at respective schools and the universities. The play discusses in depth how this anti-social process denied youth of their own life, which in turn deeply affects them in many ways. The production is a semi-musical which is familiar theatrical experience to the local audiences.

Vikurthi was first performed in 1982 in Colombo and since then had performed more than 1,000 performances in Sri Lanka. The play is considered a landmark theatre production in Sri Lanka and as a result Vikurthi became a trendsetter of new style of modern theatre in Sri Lanka. It is also considered as a pioneering effort of youth theatre concept in Sri Lanka. The professional theatre group of the Play-House Kotte has performed ‘Vikurthi’ in English in major cities in India and Australia in 2000. The play has received well by the foreign audiences.

Vikurthi cast includes Kaushalya Fernando, Namal Jayasinghe, Prasannajith Abeysuriya, Geetha Alahakoon, Mayura Kanchana, Pujitha de Mel, Sanjaya Hettiarachchi, Nimmi Priyadharshini, Wickrama Seneviratne, Sulochana Weerasinghe, Dilum Buddhika Perera and a number of newcomers to the national theatre groomed at Play-House Kotte.

The play is written and directed by Somalatha Subasinghe. M R Chulasinghe composed music for the play. Choreography is by Somalatha Subasinghe and Chandana Aluthge. Stage lighting is by Chandana Aluthge. Costumes and stage sets were designed by late Sarath Surasena.