Arts
Well, it’s fun, it’s challenging
Amphitheatre Productions’ remake of H.C.N. de Lanerolle and E. M. W. Joseph’s hit comedy “Well, Mudaliyar!” will be staged at 7.30 p.m. on March 23, 24 and 25 at the Lionel Wendt Theatre.
L-r: Yasal Ruhunage as Alwis, Jaliya Wijewardene as Abraham and Kavinda Gunasekera as the Mudliyar. Seen on our cover are Shiwanthi Kahandaliyanage and Barana Waidyatilake
“Well, Mudaliyar!” being a well-known play, the team at Amphitheatre is aware that they have big shoes to fill, says director Jaliya Wijewardene, who also plays the character of ‘Abraham the notary’.
Acting and directing has been quite a task, but an enjoyable challenge, he adds. “We are very fortunate that Kavinda Gunasekera and Yasal Ruhunage are there to help. Directing is a challenge when you play a big role so they always step in and support,” says Jaliya adding that with cast members also giving their feedback, directing becomes a collective effort.
For Yasal and Jaliya, founding members of Amphitheatre Productions, the theatre company has been a dream. They always wanted to perform again at the Lionel Wendt which they consider their second home. One of the biggest challenges they faced when forming the theatre group in 2016 was finding actors, said Yasal, who plays ‘Alwis’. “We wanted new actors with whom we could do new work whilst giving them the opportunity to take part in theatre,” he added. Following “Fifty-Fifty” and “The Senator”, “Well, Mudaliyar!” is their third production.
Rehearsals began three months ahead and in the first phase, it was all about getting everyone comfortable with their lines before working on their movements on stage. This reading phase which is rather fun is where most of the research happens, Yasal says. The cast add their characteristics to the characters and decide what they want to change and what they want to stick with. Then the acting phase begins.
Never extremely comfortable on stage, Yasal says he finds this sense of nervousness necessary. “It’s like an adrenaline rush!”
Kavinda playing the Mudaliyar, was a part of the Amphitheatre cast from the beginning and has acted in both “Fifty-Fifty” and “The Senator”. Theatre has always been a source of enjoyment to Kavinda and he is comfortable within this space. “As long as the director is happy with what I’m doing I always enjoy it,” he says.
Barana Waidyatilake plays Freddie, the Mudaliyar’s son. A research fellow at the Lakshman Kadiragamar Institute, this is his second production with Amphitheatre.
Young love: Anaz Badurdeen as Abraham’s son and Shiwanthi Kahandaliyanage as Phyllis, the Mudliyar’s daughter
Rehearsals have been fun and since it is a comedy, it is a lot more entertaining, says Barana.“It’s always great to have fun and that has been my biggest take away from acting. It’s about the rush and what leads up to the final performance, not just the performance itself,” he adds.
Sahan Wijewardene who plays ‘Bandara the suitor’ has been a part of Amphitheatre from the very beginning. Having graduated recently and currently looking for a job, he has more free time than the rest which leaves him with most of the heavy-duty work. When life gets monotonous, getting to play someone else is a release, he says. “When I was small I had a bit of stage fright, but over time I got used to it.”
For Sahan this production is almost a family affair with his brother directing and the family pitching in wherever needed. “We call up friends and see if they can come help backstage and then try to keep them excited about the productions so that they would continue to work with us,” said Sahan. They hope to train their backstage crew to act in future productions, he added.
‘Chandra’, Abraham’s son, is played by Anaz Badurdeen, an IT Engineer at Virtusa who’s in his second production with Amphitheatre. “Amphitheatre started small but now we have grown to have good production values and I’m happy about that,” said Anaz.
For Shiwanthi Kahandaliyanage, who plays the Mudliyar’s daughter Phyllis, this is the first paly with Amphitheatre but she has taken part in productions like “Pusswedilla” before. Shiwanthi is a radio host of an evening show during the week so she only gets to come for practices in the weekend. “As an actor being on stage is nerve wracking but also incredibly fulfilling because entertaining people is not something everyone can do,” she says.
Shenilka Perera as the Mudliyar’s wife with Kavinda Gunasekera as the Mudliyar. Pix by M.A. Pushpa Kumara
Shenilka Perera plays the Mudaliyar’s wife. She joined Amphitheatre in 2016 and was a part of their two previous productions. “As a small company not a lot of people are aware of the many talents that Amphitheatre holds, “said Shenilka adding that acting is a stress reliever.
Minoli Peiris who plays ‘Emily’, the notary’s very shy daughter says this production has been a learning experience. “Being shy does not come very naturally to me so I had to work on that and the fellow cast members were supportive,” she says.
Tickets priced at Rs. 3000, -Rs. 2000, Rs. 1000 (Downstairs – reserved) and Rs. 800 (Balcony) are available at the Lionel Wendt and on the Lionel Wendt website.