By Chunky Monkey
This week , the case against the eviction of the Arts Centre Club continues at the District Courts in Hulfstdorp. It has become something of a cause celebre, with various figures in the worlds of theatre, fashion, media, the arts and culture in general throwing their weight behind the club, as it struggles to remain in it’s historical premises. Too much bad blood exists between the trustees of the Lionel Wendt and the Club for a peaceful, out of court settlement to take place but if it did it would only be a win-win situation.
The Chunk understands that the trustees plan to either convert the space to a permanant exhibition of the photographs of Lionel Wendt or use it as hanging space for a gallery. Aesthetically admirable solutions, but not very financially rewarding . With prime property like that, in the heart of Colombo 7, there is so much more potential to create something that manages to satisfy the dual needs of providing a meeting place for people in the arts, as well as making substantial amounts of money for the Lionel Wendt. Imagine if you will a cafe, with professional catering, nice design, good ambience. A place to go to for lunch, for a snack, for a cup of coffee and good conversation. Music playing on the sound system, prints and photographs on the walls, a relaxed casual atmosphere. In the evenings, the rooftop garden space is ideal to sit and have dinner.
On weekends, on a small stage, one can hear the cream of Colombo’s bands play, from rock to jazz to hip hop to classical music. Sunday evenings the film club meets, playing arthouse and foreign movies, not available anywhere else in the city. Poetry slam sessions, open mike nights, improvisational theatre, cross-cultural, multimedia experiments .....the money would roll in, and Colombo would have a vibrant, exciting venue in which to explore and display it’s alternative cultures. The spirit of the club would remain.....and the spirit of what Lionel Wendt himself would have wanted. .......................To Hip Hop Hooray, the rap music night at NCC a couple of weeks ago.
Colombo’s hip hop fraternity turned out for a mixture of music from the DJ’s, that ranged from Method Man, Freestyle Fellowship, 2Pac et crew right across the board to the commercial stuff from White Town and Puff Daddy . DJ Tim was in great form, his Denons and 1210’s spinning a funky jam of hits - take the Chunk’s word, that man is probably the single best mixer in Colombo, if he gets down to it. Also making a special guest appearance were Brown Boogie Nation, who unveiled some new material: “You Get Around,” in an updated 1997 New Jack Swing type mix, plus a Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince style lazy tribute to the virtues of the city of Colombo , called “Colombo and It’s All Good,” before closing with their first song “Grammys and Oscars.” The long weekend, bad weather and other events around town kept the crowd to a modest size, but the Chunk is willing to go out on a limb and predict that if promoted and marketed properly, this event has the potential to become even bigger than Rock Saturday.................
Looking forward to the Workshop players production of “The Royal Hunt of the Sun,” from the 25th of October to the 2nd of November. A play by Peter Shaeffer the twisted genuius behind “Amadeus,” it is set in the early 16th century and deals with the Spanish invasion of Peru; specifically about the life of one particular Conquistadore, Francisco Pizarro who sees mountains of gold while plundering and ravaging the land and decides to pick up a little side cash for himself on the way.
Sources also tell the Chunk that the Players are tentatively planning to attend the Theatre and Dance Festival in Pakistan, part of the country’s fiftieth anniversary of independence celebrations, where they plan to perform Ruwanthi De Chickera’s award winning play “The Crutch”....................After the Jazz Unlimited jam session this afternoon at the 80 Club, you might want to stick around for some acid jazz provided by the Zone - for those of you who didn’t get enough funky bass for one day. The Chunk’s going to go practise his Jamiroquai dance steps right now......
Continue to Mirror Magazine page 2 * The gift of a smile * Tinkling Bells
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