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Chitrasena
Deshamanya Chitrasena (born Amaratunga Arachige Maurice Dias) (26 January 1921 – 18 July 2005) was a dancer from Sri Lanka, internationally known for his work in establishing a modern Sri Lankan tradition of dance and popularising traditional Sri Lankan dance forms worldwide. He was awarded the Deshamanya award by the Sri Lankan government in 1998. Early life Amaratunga Arachige Maurice Dias alias Chitrasena was born on 26 January 1921 at Waragoda, Kelaniya in Sri Lanka.Upeka"Profile: Chitrasena" in ''Narthaki Retrieved 4 September 2009 His father was late Seebert Dias, well known actor/ producer of the 20s and 30s, founder and instructor for the Colombo Dramatic Club, producer of John de Silva plays, luminary in the theatrical circles of the day, and was a pioneer actor/director of Shakespearean dramas in Sinhala and English.Samara, Daleen"Leading the way for dancing damsels" in ''The Sunday Times'' 30 March 2008. Retrieved 1 October 2015 Chitrasena was encouraged by his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vajira Chitrasena
Deshamanya Vajira Chitrasena (born 15 March 1932) is a veteran Sri Lankan traditional dancer, choreographer and teacher. Vajira is regarded as Sri Lanka's first prima ballerina. She is the first Sri Lankan woman to practice the traditional Kandyan dance which was traditionally performed only by men. Vajira is credited for creating brand for female style of Kandyan dancing and set the tone for women to become ritual dancers. She was married to Chitrasena who was a well known legendary dancer and dance guru. On 26 January 2020, she along with late professor Indra Dassanayake was conferred with the Padma Shri award which is one of the highest Indian civilian awards coinciding with the 71st Republic Day of India. Biography Vajira was born on 15 March 1932 and was introduced to the arts at her very young age by her parents. She completed her primary and secondary education at the Methodist College, Colombo. She married her fellow dance partner late Chitrasena in 1951 at the age of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amaradeva
Sri Lankabhimanya Wannakuwattawaduge Don Albert Perera ( si, වන්නකුවත්තවඩුගේ දොන් ඇල්බට් පෙරේරා; ta, டபிள்யூ. டி. அமரதேவா; 5 December 1927 – 3 November 2016), better known by his adopted name Amaradeva, was a prominent Sri Lankan Sinhalese vocalist, violinist and composer. Primarily using traditional instruments like sitars, tablas and harmoniums, he incorporated Sinhala folk music with Indian ragas in his work. Many consider his contribution to the development of Sinhala music as unmatched; hence, he is occasionally cited as the "Maestro of Sri Lankan Music" ( si, හෙළයේ මහා ගාන්ධර්වයා, translit=Helayay Maha Gandarvaya).Amaradeva felicitated Daily News – 8 July 2011 [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ernest Peter Arnold Fernando
Sir Ernest Peter Arnold Fernando, (7 February 1904 - 3 December 1956) was a Ceylonese businessman and mine owner. He was the owner of the Bogala Graphite Mine, one of the largest graphite mines in Ceylon. A patron of the arts, he gifted the building to establish the first school of national dance, the ''Kalayathanaya'' by Chitrasena. Ernest Peter Arnold Fernando was born on 7 February 1904, the second son of Merenyagé Arnolis Fernando, a graphite mine owner. He founded the Carlton Club Moratuwa, a tennis and social club, on 23 September 1923. In 1927 he married Gymara Wickramasooriya (?-2004), daughter of Jandoris Wickramasooriya and Celestina de Silva. They had a daughter, Sirane (?-2009), who married T. Gamini Perera. Fernando was appointed a Commanders of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1954 Birthday Honours and was knighted as a Knight Bachelor in the 1955 Birthday Honours for public services. Sir Ernest Fernando Trophy is annually awarded by the Royal Colom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kandyan Dance
Kandyan dance ( Sinhala: උඩරට නැටුම්) encompasses various dance forms popular and native to the area called Kandy of the Central Hills region known as Udarata in Sri Lanka, which have today spread to other parts of the country. It is an example of Sinhalese culture in Sri Lanka. History Ves Dance According to the legend, the origins of the dance lies in a dance ritual known as the '' Kohomba kankariya'' (named for the deity Kohomba), which is also known as ''Kohomba yak kankariya'' or simply ''kankariya''. Traditional dance masters believe that originally the king of a place referred to as "Malaya Rata", and his two brothers performed the first ''Kohomba kankariya''. Some believe that this "Malaya Rata" was located in India. According to legend, King Malaya came to the island as a result of a trick of the god Śakra in order to cure the king, Panduwasdev, who was suffering from a mysterious illness. The king was said to be suffering from a recurring drea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Deshamanya
Deshamanya ( si, දේශමාන්ය, translit=Dēshamāṉya; ta, தேசமான்ய, translit=Tēcamāṉya; Pride of the Nation) is the second-highest national honour of Sri Lanka awarded by the Government of Sri Lanka as a civil honour. It is awarded for "''highly meritorious service''", and is conventionally used as a title or prefix to the recipient's name. Recipients ;1986 * P. R. Anthonis – surgeon and academic * Gamani Corea – economist, civil servant and diplomat * M. C. M. Kaleel * Malage George Victor Perera Wijewickrama Samarasinghe * Miliani Sansoni – Chief Justice of Ceylon * Victor Tennekoon – Chief Justice of Ceylon ;1987 * Edwin Felix Dias Abeysinghe * Neville Kanakeratne – diplomat * V. Manicavasagar – Supreme Court Justice, Chancellor University of Jaffna * Wijetunga Mudiyansela Tillekeratne ;1988 * Hector Wilfred Jayewardene – lawyer, member United Nations Commission on Human Rights * Thambiah Sivagnanam ;1989 * S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lionel Algama
Algama Koralalage Lionel Kumaradasa Perera (24 March 1935 – 18 May 2008 si, ලයනල් අල්ගම), popularly known as Lionel Algama was a Sri Lankan singer, composer and a musician. Considered one of the most respected musicians in Sinhala song, Algama is most notable for the invention of a musical instrument known as ‘Sri Veena’. Personal life Somapala was born on 24 March 1935 in Brandiamulla, Gampaha, Sri Lanka. His father Jinadasa Perera, was a rich landowner in Kurunegala who ran a trading business. He first went to school at Brandiamulla Church in Gampaha and then studied at Veyangoda Central College. Lionel's grandfather worked as the manager of the Kahatagaha mine owned by Sir John Kotelawala. From then on they chose Banduragoda, Kurunegala for their residence. Near the time of his grandfather's death, they returned to their home in Gampaha. During this time, Lionel's father and uncle started a drama company called Theater Club and set out to stage ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shesha Palihakkara
David Sydney Loku Palihakkara (June 5, 1928 – July 12, 2009), popularly as Shesha Palihakkara, was a Sri Lankan dancer, film actor, and producer. He achieved critical recognition with a starring role in Lester James Peries' masterpiece ''Rekava'' and as producer of ''Getawarayo'', ''Saravita'' and ''Ranmuthu Duwa''. Personal life Palihakkara was born in the village of Ruppagoda, in Kadawatha of the Gampaha district. He attended the St. Benedict's College, Colombo in Kotahena and St. Joseph's College in Colombo. At the age of 14, Palihakkara witnessed the Sinhala dancer Chitrasena perform in the Vidura ballet and was inspired to be a dancer. Palihakkara left school without getting his Senior School Certificate in his late teens, and went to India to train at Shanthi Nikethan. He stayed at the school for two years focusing on dance along with painting and sculpting. Palihakkara then enrolled at the Institute of Kala Kshethra in South India majoring in dance. After finishing his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust
The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust is a theatre and performing arts company that was founded in September 1954, with the aim of establishing drama, opera and ballet companies nationally. Founding In 1954 the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust was established under the guidance of H.C. Coombs, Governor of the Commonwealth Bank, sir Charles Moses GM of the Australian Broadcasting Commission and John Douglas Pringle of the Sydney Morning Herald" to provide a theatre of Australians by Australians for Australians". Named to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II's visit to Australia, the Trust raised £100,000 by a public appeal. The Trust had an agreement with the Commonwealth government to match public donations 'in the ratio of 1:3 and to provide ongoing funding'.Roger Wettenhall, 'Kaleidoscope, or 'Now We See Them, Now We Don't!', ''Canberra Bulletin of Public Administration'', No. 110, 2003, p. 32. With substantial contributions from both the public and the Commonwealth Governm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sunil Santha
Sunil Santha was a Sri Lankan composer, singer and lyricist. He was pivotal in the development of Sinhala music and folk songs in the mid to late 1940s and early 1950s. He composed the beloved soundtracks to Lester James Peries' films ''Rekava'' and ''Sandesaya'' in 1956 and 1960. In a later comeback, he produced several experimental works. Personal life Sunil Santha was born on 14 April 1915 on the Sinhalese New Year's Day in Dehiyagatha, Ja-Ela, Sri Lanka. Both his parents died before he was two years old, and Santha was raised by his grandmother. At an early age he came to the limelight when he played King Dutugamunu in a village play. One villager adorned him with a battery-powered lighted necklace.SunilSamara, A collection of articles (CD) – Central Archives Colombo. Sri lanka He had his education at Dehiyagatha Vidyalaya, St. Benedict's College, Colombo, Thudella school and St. Aloysius' College, Galle. At St. Benedict's College, Santha passed the school leaving cert ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kelaniya
Kelaniya ( si, කැලණිය ta, களனி) is a suburb of Colombo in the Western Province, Sri Lanka. It is known for the Buddhist temple built on the banks of the Kelani River, which divides the suburb from Colombo District. The temple is also a religious centre for veneration of the figures Vibhishana and Avalokiteshvara. Historical and cultural significance Kelaniya (''Kalyanam'') is mentioned in Ramayana and in the Buddhist chronicle, the Mahawansa which states that the Buddha visited the place in the 5th century BC, after which the dagoba of the temple was built.Wilhelm Geiger (Tr), ''The Mahavansa, or The Great Chronicle of Ceylon'', Oxford, OUP, 1920. Sri Lankan Buddhists believe that the Buddha visited Kelaniya in order to quell a quarrel between the Nāga leaders of two warring factions: Chulodara (literally "the small-bellied one") and Mahodara (literally "the big-bellied one"). They were quarrelling over a jewel-encrusted throne. After the Buddha showed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Regional Arts Australia
Regional Arts Australia is the national peak body for regional arts organisations throughout Australia."Writing's on the wall", The Canberra Times, 1 March 2006, p 8 via factiva.com Retrieved 30 September 2011.Cathy Pryor, "A force for the regions", The Australian 4 December 2003 p 15 (Features section); via Australia/New Zealand Reference Centre, EBSCO (database online) Retrieved 19 August 2011. Formed in 1966 as the Arts Council of Australia, it is a federation of the peak non-metropolitan community arts organisations in each of the Australian states and territories."Arts Council of Australia" in William H. Wilde, Joy Hooton, and Barry Andrews (eds), ''The Oxford Companion to Australian Literature'', Oxford University Press, 1994, via Oxford Reference Online Retrieved 29 September 2011. It advocates better recognition and support for the regional, rural and remote arts sector in Australia. It initiates and manages projects to support regional artists, artsworkers and communit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ananda Samarakoon
Egodahage George Wilfred Alwis Samarakoon (13 January 1911 – 2 April 1962) known as Ananda Samarakoon was a Sri Lankan (Sinhalese) composer and musician. He composed the Sri Lankan national anthem " Namo Namo Matha" and is considered the father of artistic Sinhala music and founder of the modern Sri Lankan Sinhala ''Geeta Sahitya'' (Song Literature). He committed suicide in 1962, possibly driven by unauthorized changes to lyrics in a composition. Early life and education Born on 13 January 1911 as Egodahage George Wilfred Alwis Samarakoon, to Samuel Samarakoon, Chief Clerk to British-owned Maturata Plantations and Dominga Peries in Watareka, Padukka. He was the second of four sons in a Christian family. Samarakoon received his primary education at Wewala School and thereafter attended CMS Sri Jayawardenepura College (Christian College, Kotte). His Sinhala Guru was Pandit D.C.P. Gamalathge. Later he served his Alma mater as a teacher of Music and Art. Samarakoon left for th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
