Agni to be staged by popular demand

Chamikara Weerasinghe

COLOMBO: Agni, the opera arranged and written by composer Premasiri Kemadasa will be staged for the second time tomorrow (June 9) from 7.00 p.m. at Lionel Wendt Theatre, Colombo.

The composer said that he decided to have a second show of the opera following numerous requests he had received from the public and other interested parties who had missed the early presentation at the theatre’s gate as the house was full.

“It was very unfortunate that they had to go home with their wishes unfilled,” Kemadasa said.

Agni is Kemadasa’s fourth opera after Manasawila in 1992, Doramadala in 1994 and Sonduru Warnadasi in 2002.

The opera, Agni (The Fire) is based on Greek mythological character Prometheus, a titan who stole fire from Zeus and gave it to the primitive mortals at a time the Olympian gods took no interest in the mankind on the bountiful earth.

This was the age which men lived in dark caves and Zeus delighted in depriving the mortal race of various comforts enjoyed by the gods, such as the fire.

The opera libretto is conveyed predominantly through singing associated with Western classical music and Eastern classical music arranged by the composer.

The operatic troupes at Folk Art Centre (Jana Kala Kendraya) of Palawatta will perform. The opera incorporates singing and dancing by them.

Prometheus, a god compassionate to mankind sends fire to the mortals below through his sister against the will of other gods.

The drama is taken from Greek mythology with a few twists in the tale.

The script is by Eric Illayapparachchi.

A highlight in the opera Sahal Mangalyaya (rice festival) is a time of joy for mortals after receiving fire from Prometheus.

The opera is predominantly arranged for the voice, like most of the other operas. Its structure is built on the Western tradition, said Kemadasa.

“I have freely incorporated our indigenous music into its body. The voice is the key element,” he added.

Operatic troupe include Indika Upamali, Subuduni Lakmali, Chamari Sewwandika, Umali Thilakaratna, Upeshika Wickrema, Wageesha Sandamali, Bhagya Sanjeewani, Sudarshika Anusha, Kamal Addaraarachchi, Krishan Wickremasinghe, Sumudu Pathiraja, Gamini Sarathchandra, Chandimal Hemantha and Marcial Janatha.