Sri Lankan dragon goes to Delhi

by Bhagya Senaratne As I walked in to the Trikone Cultural Centre, I was greeted by a smiling Dharmasiri Bandaranayake who is shouldering a lot of responsibility at the moment in getting his cast to Delhi for the 13th Bharat Rang Mahostav (Indian Drama Festival). This will be the first time a play directed by Dharmasiri Bandaranayake will be staged in a foreign country! Therefore the excitement was obvious while he spoke to me. The reason he stated was “my casts are too large.” Due to this simple reason, not many people approach him to take his plays out of the country. Dharmasiri Bandaranayake I watched this play for the first time last July, as it was recommended to me by a friend. I noticed it has a simple story line, which addresses complex issues. The story is woven around Elisa, an ordinary girl who is soon to be taken away as a bride by the city’s guardian, The Dragon. She is the ‘chosen one’ for the year, The Dragon’s choice, merely because of her beauty. She reluctantly accepts her plight and tries to prepare herself mentally for the unforgettable day. It’s a public secret that, once chosen, a girl will never return. A handsome young worrier, Lancelot, without the shining armour, walks in to this city. He sees the depression amongst a certain section in society. He wants to help change the plight of young Elisa. The story then moves on to depict the means deployed by Lancelot in his efforts. Letting me in on a few changes that will be made to the play, Bandaranayake said the play will be shortened as the time given to them at the festival is approximately two hours, while the original play is around three hours. Therefore “we will be consulting and receiving advice from the cast as well as those from outside, when editing the play,” said Bandaranayake. For example, there will be changes from the very beginning, from Lancelot’s monologue as well some of the cast will be changed. He further stated that they will try their best to retain the contents of the play and restage it, that is its relevance to the present times. Besides depicting the plight of a young girl, this play also draws on a number of other important issues. One such issue is the corruption in governance. The Dragon, be it from China, Sri Lanka or Russia, is merely a symbol that showcases this. Corruption is an issue that is seen in many countries around the world, and an issue that is been pressed to remedy, calling for transparency in governance. Another, is simply power. How this tool is utilized by the one who has access to it, to get their work done and mostly to achieve their selfish goals. Bandaranayake stated that “we all have a dragon in ourselves” and it is due to this fault in humans that tyrannies come across. Therefore, it can be seen that this play concentrates on a universal theme which concentrates on corruption around the world. “Makarakshaya is different to other dramas as it has the characteristics of an epic drama” says Bandaranayake, who went on to state that the dramas staged now a days are very realistic. In this drama he says one will travel to “a different world.” He stated that there will be many changes to this restaging from the time when this same drama was performed in 1985. Bandaranayake stated that it will be a challenge, but he will give his best to increase the production standards before taking it to Delhi. “Theatre must be an exaggeration of real life,” stated Bandaranayake. However, for this to be done properly, the actors must be trained well to exaggerate on stage. “Unfortunately, majority of the actors nowadays are not trained properly, therefore they can’t reap the maximum benefits from theatre stated Bandarayake melancholically. He went on to state that if the theatre is developed further, the actors themselves will benefit from it. Bandaranayake further highlighted that the theatre or culture in Sri Lanka does not get support, unlike sports in this country. He stated it is depressing to see this downfall in our country, where culture is not promoted. Bandaranayake further stated that this is not only an opportunity for himself and his team, but an opportunity the entire country received. Therefore, he stated that he will work towards promoting the drama to bring glory to the country as this is the only drama from Sri Lanka to be performed at this esteemed festival. I am glad to see this play representing Sri Lanka at this festival as I feel the issues addressed in this are relevant not only to a certain era but, are over time, relevant to another place and time in history. The issues discussed in this play and the portrayals of character, I feel, are universal. Therefore, the restaging of Makarakshaya in Delhi is appropriate. The team comprises both the cast and crew who will be going to Delhi for the 13th Bharat Rang Mahotsav, which will be held from the January 7 to 22. Makarakshaya or The Dragon will be staged on January 14. Directed by Dharmasiri Bandaranayake, Makaraakshaya known as The Dragon in English is a play written by Soviet playwright Yevgeny Shvarts.

http://www.dailynews.lk/2011/01/05/art28.asp