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Lionel Wendt Art Centre
The Lionel Wendt Art Centre is a major art centre and theatre in Colombo, Sri Lanka, dedicated to the memory of Sri Lankan photographic artist Lionel Wendt. It combines live theatre and art exhibition, with two exhibition galleries and a theatre with over 600 seats. It is managed by a trust established by an Act of Parliament. History Early art exhibitions were held at Wendt's home, with the second and third taking place after Lionel Wendt's death in 1944. After his death, his brother Harry decided to open a centre in his brother's memory, but he died just a year after his brother. The construction of the centre was finished by their mutual friend, Harold Peiris, for whom one of the Centre's second galleries is named. The theatre portion of the centre opened on 12 December 1953, with the production of Maxim Gorky's "The Lower Depths", starring Iranganie Serasinghe and produced by E. F. C. Ludowyk. Performances in subsequent years included Ediriweera Sarachchandra's "Maname" ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Colombo
Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo metropolitan area has a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 in the Municipality. It is the financial centre of the island and a tourist destination. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to the Greater Colombo area which includes Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, the legislative capital of Sri Lanka, and Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia. Colombo is often referred to as the capital since Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is itself within the urban/suburban area of Colombo. It is also the administrative capital of the Western Province and the district capital of Colombo District. Colombo is a busy and vibrant city with a mixture of modern life, colonial buildings and monuments. Due to its large harbour and its strategic position along th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ediriweera Sarachchandra
Dr. Veditantirige Eustace Reginold de Silva (later became Veditantirige Ediriweera Ranjitha Sarachchandra) (3 June 1914 – 16 August 1996; Sinhala: මහාචාර්ය එදිරිවීර සරච්චන්ද්ර), popularly as Ediriweera Sarachchandra, was a Sri Lankan playwright, novelist, poet, literary critic, essayist and social commentator. Considered as the premier playwright in Sri Lanka, Sarachchandra produced several critically acclaimed theater plays in a career spanned for more than four decades. He also served as a senior lecturer at the University of Peradeniya for many years and as Sri Lankan Ambassador to France from 1974 to 1977. Personal life Sarachchandra was born on 3 June 1914 in Dodanduwa, Rathgama, Galle, Sri Lanka. He completed his early education at Richmond College in Galle, , St. John's College Panadura, S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia and St. Aloysius' College in Galle. In 1939 Sarachchandra married Aileen Beleth. Then h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theatres In Colombo District
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music, and dance. Elements of art, such as painted scenery and stagecraft such as lighting are used to enhance the physicality, presence and immediacy of the experience. The specific place of the performance is also named by the word "theatre" as derived from the Ancient Greek θέατρον (théatron, "a place for viewing"), itself from θεάομαι (theáomai, "to see", "to watch", "to observe"). Modern Western theatre comes, in large measure, from the theatre of ancient Greece, from which it borrows technical terminology, classification into genres, and many of its theme (arts), themes, stock characters, and plot elements. Theatre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Art Gallery, Sri Lanka
The National Art Gallery in Colombo, Sri Lanka was the first state-sponsored art gallery built in the country. The gallery is located in Cinnamon Gardens near the Nelum Pokuna Mahinda Rajapaksa Theatre, Viharamahadevi Park, the National Museum of Colombo, the Town Hall, Colombo and Colombo Public Library. The building consists of a three wing gallery space: the main gallery has a permanent collection of portraits and landscapes and the two adjoining wings display temporary exhibitions by Sri Lankan artists. The eastern hall is approximately and the western hall is approximately about . Both galleries have a ceiling height. In 1911 the need for a national art gallery was first identified by the Ceylon Society of Arts and the Arts Council of Ceylon however its construction was delayed until after World War 1. The central gallery was completed and opened in March 1932. The building was designed by Gate Mudliyar A. C. G. S. Amarasekara Gate Mudaliyar Abraham Christopher Gregor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nelum Pokuna Performing Arts Theatre
The Nelum Pokuna Mahinda Rajapaksa Theatre ( si, නෙළුම් පොකුණ මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ රඟහල, ''nelum pokuna Mahinda Rajapaksa rangahala''; often known as Nelum Pokuna; previously the National Performing Arts Theatre, prior to naming at the opening ceremony after which the President Mahinda Rajapaksa named it after himself) is a performing arts centre in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The theatre opened on 15 December 2011. Design and features The architecture of the building is inspired by the 12th-century ''Nelum Pokuna'' (lotus pond) in Polonnaruwa. Built by King Parakramabahu the Great, Polonnaruwa's Nelum Pokuna is shaped as a stylised eight-petalled lotus flower. The total estimated cost of the project is LKR 3,080 million. Government of the People's Republic of China provided LKR 2430 million out of the total cost of the building. The building spreads over of floor area. The theatre is equipped with an auditorium with 1,288 seats, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theatre Of Sri Lanka
The Theatre of Sri Lanka encompasses many different languages and traditions. Sinhalese language theatre originated from traditional rituals and folk dramas in the 19th century. Until that period, the art was confined to small villages and didn't have a national presence. Influential dramatist Ediriweera Sarachchandra attributes this to the influence of Theravada Buddhism, which he believes to have "tended more toward solitary contemplation and the attainment of insight than towards congregational practices or participation in community life" . History Early forms Dramas in Sri Lanka began first with ritualistic performances of early polytheistic religions. Originating from masked dances that took on the roles of gods and demons in ritualistic practices, the theatre tradition gradually became free of religion and crystallised into an organized form of entertainment. With the arrival of Europeans and urbanisation, the Sinhalese began to view theatre as a serious and secular ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nelung Arts Centre
The Nelung Arts Center is an art center in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Opened in 2010, it houses a dance school, a theater and an art gallery. Established by the ''Nelung Arts Foundation'' which was founded by Niloufer Pieris a former Sri Lankan ballerina, the center is managed by the ''Royal Nelung Foundation'' under the preview of the Royal College Union. Design and features Design and built as a multi-purpose building at Hyde Park Corner, it is equipped with a dance studio, open-air theatre and atrium that hosts art exhibitions as well as support facilities such as offices and car parks. It was built in an eco friendly nature with rainwater harvesting, ecobricks and natural ventilation and lighting. See also *Theatre of Sri Lanka The Theatre of Sri Lanka encompasses many different languages and traditions. Sinhalese language theatre originated from traditional rituals and folk dramas in the 19th century. Until that period, the art was confined to small villages and didn ... ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paules Edward Pieris Deraniyagala
Paulus Edward Pieris Deraniyagala (1900–1976) was a Sri Lankan paleontologist, zoologist, and artist. Early life and education He was born in Colombo, the son of Paul Edward Pieris and Lady Hilda Obeyesekere Pieris. He had two younger brothers, Justin Pieris Deraniyagala, Ralph St. Louis Pieris Deraniyagala, and a sister, Miriam Pieris Deraniyagala. He was educated at S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he gained a BA in 1922 and an Oxbridge MA in 1923. He entered Harvard University for a year, where he was awarded a Master of Arts in 1924. Career He specialised in fauna and human fossils of the Indian subcontinent. From 1939 to 1963, he was the director of the National Museum of Ceylon, and from 1961 to 1964, he was also the dean of the Faculty of Arts at the Vidyodaya University. He described several fossils and proposed scientific names for species and subspecies, with several now identified as dubious, including: *Sri Lankan rhinoceros ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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] |
Iranganie Serasinghe
Kala Keerthi Iranganie Roxanna Meedeniya, (born 9 June 1927"Irangani As Told to Kumar de Silva", Kumar de Silva, Samaranayake Publishers, 2013), popularly as Iranganie Serasinghe, is an actress in Sri Lankan cinema, theater and television. Since her debut in ''Rekava'', Serasinghe has become recognized for playing motherly figures in various films and television serials. She is the aunt of President Ranil Wickramasinghe. Early life and education She was born on 9 June 1927 in Mudungomuwa, Ruwanwella, Sri Lanka to Joseph Hercules Meedeniya, Rate Mahatmaya of Ratnapura and Violet Ellawela. Her paternal grandfather was J. H. Meedeniya, J. H. Meedeniya Adigar was elected unopposed to the Ruwanwella seat in the State Council and her uncles included D. R. Wijewardena and Sir Francis Molamure. Her mother was the sister of Nanda Ellawala's father who was a Member of Parliament for Ratnapura. She had three siblings, Indrani Meedeniya, Kamani Vitharana who married Professor Tissa Vitharana ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, and southeast of the Arabian Sea; it is separated from the Indian subcontinent by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. Sri Lanka shares a maritime border with India and Maldives. Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is its legislative capital, and Colombo is its largest city and financial centre. Sri Lanka has a population of around 22 million (2020) and is a multinational state, home to diverse cultures, languages, and ethnicities. The Sinhalese are the majority of the nation's population. The Tamils, who are a large minority group, have also played an influential role in the island's history. Other long established groups include the Moors, the Burghers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Lower Depths
''The Lower Depths'' (russian: На дне, translit=Na dne, literally: ''At the bottom'') is a play by Russian dramatist Maxim Gorky written in 1902 and produced by the Moscow Arts Theatre on December 18, 1902 under the direction of Konstantin Stanislavski. It became his first major success, and a hallmark of Russian social realism. The play depicts a group of impoverished Russians living in a shelter near the Volga. When it first appeared, ''The Lower Depths'' was criticized for its pessimism and ambiguous ethical message. The presentation of the lower classes was viewed as overly dark and unredemptive, and Gorky was clearly more interested in creating memorable characters than in advancing a formal plot. However, in this respect, the play is generally regarded as a masterwork. The theme of harsh truth versus the comforting lie pervades the play from start to finish, as most of the characters choose to deceive themselves over the bleak reality of their condition. Characters * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
