Mirror Magazine

Mirror Magazine

Move to that groove
By Smriti Daniel
Ruwani Seimon makes one want to stand up and applaud. This renowned choir director and voice trainer is also a woman of tremendous personal courage – and whether it’s battling with cancer or helping an unsure student shine, Ruwani gives it her all.

On March 25 and 26, the students of Wycherley will be putting a concert titled a movin’ and a groovin’. Ruwani who has been hard at work with them since January will now have to step back for the last few weeks before the show – a cancer she thought eradicated is once again spreading. This news means Ruwani will have to go in for treatment and her students will have to take their last few steps without her.

For Ruwani, it is a matter of pride that her senior students are going to be taking over concert. “My students will be pitching in and doing it for me,” she says. Entirely understandable, as some of her senior students have been with her for approximately ten years now – a decade she has spent haranguing and praising them by turns, until they have reached the standards she has set for them, and for herself.

Ruwani asks only one thing of her students – commitment. “As far as I’m concerned, they don’t need to be talented, as much as they need to be dedicated,” she says. For instance, during choir try-outs, Ruwani’s main concern (after ensuring they can pitch) is that the student is really, really keen on signing up. “‘Are you yearning to be in this choir?’ I ask them,” says Ruwani, “‘is your blood boiling, is your heart yearning?’ If they hesitate even a moment over the answer… that’s it.”

She says, “I believe in them and I challenge them… I don’t allow them to settle for less.” All the effort always pays off, says Ruwani, as is evidenced by the flood of tears that marks the end of every show. “I say to them, ‘I know you can do it!’ and I really believe they can,” she says. The whole process – teaching, striving, singing, and succeeding – is one of the great joys of her life.

“This may have to be my last show,” she says, explaining that while she intends to continue teaching a few handpicked students, her days of directing shows with hundreds of children performing seem to be over. “I’m considered a perfectionist,” she says, “I drive myself and everyone else crazy as well, trying to get everything just right.” For Ruwani, “everything is black and white,” quite probably ensuring that life around her is as intense as it is exhausting.

The discovery that she is once again vulnerable to the disease came as quite a shock, but nothing seems to get her down for long. “Now that I won’t be shouting myself hoarse rehearsing for shows, perhaps I’ll get my voice back,” she says laughing, adding that it has always been a dream of hers to actually make her own CD. It’s one that’s been on the back burner for sometime now as she says, “I always wanted to teach… (and when forced to choose) I decided I’d rather be a good teacher than a good performer. For as long as she can remember, music has been one of the great passions of her life. She explains how her father taught her to play the piano, when she was only six years old. Soon she could play by ear – a talent which made her a favourite at parties. “On Sundays, my father would put on this two-hour reel…” she reminisces, adding that they listened to everything from ABBA to classical music.

Today, Ruwani looks back with gladness at all the lives she’s touched. She believes that her students have profited from her demanding training sessions, and that together teacher and pupils have formed what amounts to “one big happy family.” For the Wycherley show, she intends to remain as involved as she can, exclaiming that she’s going to play “puppet – master” for her students, and ensure the whole thing runs smoothly.

a movin’ and a groovin’ featuring nearly 90 students from seven to 18 years of age, promises to be great fun. Amongst the highlights are four medleys taken from Jesus Christ Superstar, The Phantom Of The Opera, Grease and the music of Boney M, reveals Ruwani. All are to be accompanied by vibrant costumes and beautiful backdrops. The accompanying tracks have been arranged by Mahesh Denipitiya.

The show is to be staged at the Lionel Wendt from 7.15 p.m. onwards on March 25 and 26. Tickets are priced at Rs. 1000, 600, 500 and 300, and are on sale at the Wycherley International School at No. 232, Baudhaloka Mawatha. The radio sponsor for the event is Sun FM.

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