Chalaka Athalage, an experienced choreographer in Melbourne, Australia always desired to unfold artistic expressions on stage with a traditional twist. Interestingly, despite being thousands of miles away from his motherland his creations were based on his core Sri Lankan values. A group of Sri Lankan- Australians boarded on this journey with Athalage, bringing a unique artistic demonstration on stage in Melbourne, a few weeks ago.
After years of research Athalage created a stunning stage play named Kadawara Yagaya based around a person who sacrificed his life for Kala wewa, the famous reservoir built by King Dhathusena in the 5th century.
Founder of Thaala Asapuwa, director and the principal choreographer of Kadawara Yaagaya, Athalage shared his experience of the ballet performed in Australia, based on Sri Lankan traditions.
“This is my fourth production and our theme was based on the story of building Kala wewa, the myth and the traditional story about how king Dhathusena built Kala wewa” Athalage explained.
There had been a person named ‘Kala Sitano’ during the period of King Dathusena, Athalage says. Kala Sitano and his young son both sacrificed their lives for Kala wewa and now the people living in the area believe that Kala Sitano was reborn as lord Kadawara.
“We visited Kala wewa a number of times including the Kadawara temple on the banks of Kala wewa” he said.
There, Athalage and his crew learnt many historical facts about Kala wewa. After a lengthy research on the irrigation wonder, they formed a story and later musically crafted it into a ballet by Darshana Ruwan Dissanayake.
“Darshana is one of the best musicians in Sri Lanka. It was then transformed into a ballet by Dr.Lihru Saranga with his lyrics. I did the choreography. So it was a combination of the three of us. The Prasanna Ru Dance academy also sent us five authentic traditional dancers from Sri Lanka,” Athalage said.
“It was a sold out performance” he said, adding, “about 800 tickets were sold. The Victorian State Government and Local Council entirely funded us. They want to promote Melbourne as a cultural hub in Australia”.
He also humbly acknowledged the support given by the parents of the students. “They worked tirelessly behind the stage providing a great strength, continuously” Athalage said.
The name ‘Asapuwa’ itself resembles thoughts towards serenity. Indeed Athalage is engaged in a journey towards tranquil Sri Lankan traditions through his academy, Thaala Asapuwa.
He first started his offshore dancing academy in the neighbouring country of Australia, the Sri Lankan dancing academy of New Zealand. Later the Athalage family migrated to Australia, and since then he is busy with Thaala Asapuwa.
It was begun in 2009 with 11 students. However, the academy now boasts of being the largest Sri Lankan traditional dancing academy in Australia with more than 130 students, between the ages 4 to 60 years.
The play tried to couple Sri Lankan core values into the story, making it a learning experience for Lankan children in Australia.
In contrast, Athalage is a firm believer that the Sinhalese are descendants of the Yakkha tribal people in ancient Ceylon. With that belief he crafted a beautiful story bringing in a new aspect about the history. “I think all the amazing things we see today, such as, irrigation systems, stone carvings and temples were built by the Yakkha people. We also know that King Kashyapa is King Dhathusena’s son from a Yakkha tribal princess. That also I could bring on stage” he says proudly.
While the Sri Lankans who live in their motherland are more fond of Bollywood and other foreign dancing forms, Thaala Asapuwa located outside the country wishes to swim against the tide.
“The uniqueness of our academy is where we teach only traditional Sri Lankan dancing. Predominantly we teach Kandyan dancing, but with a little bit of low-country and folk dancing as well” Athalage said.
How Athalage succeeded in directing a young cast, born and bred in Australia was an interesting question during the conversation. “It was not difficult to direct the students in their act. But when I narrated the story they kept on questioning” Athalage smiled.
As he recalls behind the scenes of the act, answering tons of questions thrown by kids was the only challenge he came across. “when we were small we would believe everything our parents said.
We even believed ‘Jathaka katha’. But children born in Australia are not like that. They question you about everything” he said smiling.
Sri Lankan kids in Australia had an issue about how an ordinary person becomes a god after sacrificing his life for a reservoir. They wanted proof from their director.
“I told them it is not the belief that is important to us, but the values that come with it. For instance, the villagers believe there is a God Kadawara and that he helps them with their harvest. Therefore, our very connection to land and water is what we wished to bring out in the play” Athalage explained.