Arangadal - 14th Festival of Theatre and Dance

Organised by Manaveli Performing Arts Group
Date: July 8, 2007(Sunday) ; 13.00 Hrs AND 18.0O Hrs.
Venue: Markham Theatre for Performing Arts, Ontario, Canada












Five acts in the 14th festival

Is now and for ever (Ippozuthum Eppozuthum)

Harold Pinter

This is a play of dramatic symbols. the strength as well as the weakness of the symbols is that people with different experiences and learning interpret them differently. A play in English by Harold Pinter, adapted into Tamil and directed by Dushy Gnanapiragasam.


True colours (Nirankalin Nijangkal)

Ananthi Sasitharan



A dance formation created to project the true and underlying characteristics of different colours enhanced by various musical patterns. Composed and presented on stage by Ananthi Sasitharan.


Recurring History (Sakatha Sarithirangkal)

Poet S. Sivasegaram


This name is taken from a poem by renowned poet S. Sivasegaram. It serves as a topic poem for a verse recital in which another three of his poems with similar themes are presented. They highlight oppression, atrocities, murder and other unjust acts prevalent today around the world. Why are they recurring? asks the poet. His thought provoking lines are dramatized in this verse recital under the direction of another Poet V. Kanthavanam.


In between (Irandukkum Naduve)

Children caught between the divorced parents. According to the law, everything seems to be fine. But the kids dispute the arrangement. Grandma is on their side. Kid asks an important question - "If you both don't agree on some issues, you both decide to go on your own way without considering our views. If we don't agree with you, what we should do ?". A script very much related to the current situation in our community and others as well is written by Sivamani. Directed by Ilaya Bharathi.


Hari Aum Nama


Eugene Ionesco





A story of a mentally unbalanced professor, his new dumb student and his pessimistic maid. The English play "Lesson" written by Eugene Ionesco, adapted into Tamil by Pennesvaran. Directed by veteran Dramatist Puranthakan.

For photos of 14th Arangadal Click here

* Observation on 14th Arangadal by Thevakanthan - Pathivukal
* Observation by K.S. Balachandran - Orupaper / Keetru/ Vadakku Vaasal
* Observation by Guru Aravinthan - Pathivukal

Arangadal - 13th Festival of Theatre and Dance

Organised by Manaveli Performing Arts Group
Date: March 26, 2006 (Sunday) ; 13.00 Hrs AND 18.0O Hrs.
Venue: Armenian Youth Centre, Ontario, Canada












Five acts in the 13th festival

The Strut starts Again (Meendum Thodangum Midukku)


Ivan Turgenev


Reality is nothing. Appearence is everything. The characters Ivan Turgenev created based on Russia of 1800's, come alive on stage in Colombo of 1960's. And we, living in 21st century Canada, are able to identify with them.Time change, Places change. Human nature and human experiences seldom do. Play by Ivan Turgenev adapted into Tamil through English and also directed by Dushy Gnanapiragasam


Creator Protector (Akkuvai Kappai)

Sahapthan


The calculations based on life's learnings and the value we place on them may change. A complex page out of this unending book of calculations,unfolds on the stage as Akkuvai Kapai. This play written by Sahapthan and directed by Nagamuthu Santhinathan.


Come Oh Light (Oliye Varuga..)

This performance combines most of the different forms of Koothu performed in various part of Srilanka into a single performance and is performed by a single performer, M. Sam Pratheepan of Thirumarai Kalamanram.


A Brush soaked in Sorrow (Thuraul Thoyum Thurihai)


Sunthara Ramasamy


Bristles soaked in sorrow, a brush rises, on a canvas unseen, the brush scribbles the life of an artist. Adapted from a short story written by Sunthara Ramasamy. scripted and directed by Puranthakan.


Shy Lenses (Vetka Villaikal)

A pattern drawn by the ashen remains of the many famiies that have perished without living, under the cloak of the life that was donned on the pretext of living - without ever experiencing life. Scripted and directed by Ilaya Bharathi.


* For photos of 13th Arangadal (Click here)

* Observation about 13th Arangadal by Thirumavalavan
* An observation by Mathi Kanthasamy
* Link to Video clip of "Olieye Varuga"

Arangadal - 12th Festival of Theatre and Dance

Organised by Manaveli Performing Arts Group
Date: March 13, 2005 (Sunday) ; 12.30 Hrs AND 18.3O Hrs.Venue: Markham Theatre, Ontario, Canada






Four acts in the 12th festival








"Hellish Heaven" (Narakodu Sorkkam)

Kuzhanthai M. Shanmugalingam


The first act is a play by acclaimed Sri Lankan playwright Kuzhanthai M. Shanmugalingam. His Play Hellish Heaven deals with the pain of being separated from ones home and native place - an experience shared by many new Canadians. The play explores the destroyed souls of people, houses, and towns, brought on by the chronic experience of people emigrating to the west to avoid political persecution, and by the acute experience of the 1995 mass exodus out of Jaffna city to escape the invading army. V. Thiviyarajah, an acclaimed dramatist in the community, returns to the festival to direct the highly anticipated first ever production of this play. The theme of this play is of special significance at a time when many people in Asia have lost not just their homes but their villages towns to the devastating Tsunami


"Speaking of Miracles" ( Ariyathu Kedkin)


Sahapthan

The second act Speaking of Miracles, written by Sahapthan, pokes gentle fun at man 's constant ambition to conquer nature. This satirical comedy, poses the question what are the limitations of scientific achievement ? Sathyakumar Jeyapal makes his directorial debut at the festival with noted poet Sahapthan 's first ever play. Both Jeyapal and Sahapthan have been part of past festivals as actors.


"Masked" (Marumugam - Dance Drama)

Masked is a modern dance composition that takes a critical look at social stigma and the society 's inexplicable tendency to blame the victim. Through the portrayal of the experiences of a victim of childhood sexual abuse, and a victim of rape this powerful dance recital points an accusing finger at the society for its treatment of victims of abuse. Tharshini Varapragasam, Prashanthy Pathmanadan, and Saumiya Thayalan, the trio behind the success of last year 's dance-drama Parallels, return to the festival to create and choreograph this dance.

"Torture" (Vathai)

Mario Fratti
The final act,Torture, is a play set in 1973 Chile by renowned Italian playwright Mario Fratti. Originally titled The Satraps, the play documents a chapter in the persecution of Chilean Nobel laureate Pablo Neruda at the hands of Augusto Pinochet 's ruthless military machine. The experience of Neruda is painfully similar to that of many Tamil Canadian poets, artistes, and writers who fled Sri Lanka to escape political persecution for their writings and thoughts. This is a dream project for director Dushy Gnanapragasam, who directs his boyhood idol and legendary Tamil dramatist K. S. Balachandran in a play about one of his favourite poets.

* For photos of 12th Arangadal (Click here)

*An observation on 12th Arangadal by Tanya - Pathivukal

Arangadal - 11th Festival of Theatre and Dance

Organised by Manaveli Performing Arts Group
Date: July 18, 2004; 12.30 Hrs AND 18.OO Hrs.Venue: Markham Theatre, Ontario, Canada

Since its inception in 1996, Manaveli has staged 31 plays, many of which have been hailed as path breaking. Through it's Festivals, Manaveli has also introduced acclaimed playwrights, such as Eugene Ionesco, Anton Checkov, Samuel Beckett, Jean Janet and Vaclav Havel, to the Tamil audiences. The Eleventh Festival continued in this tradition and staged a play by Samuel Beckett, and another by his Irish compatriot Brian Friel.

Six acts at the 11th festival

Act Without Words I


Samuel Beckett




This is the second time Manaveli has presented a play by Beckett to the Tamil audiences. The first was the widely acclaimed classic Waiting for Godot. Sathya Thillainathan makes her directorial debut with this play. Sathya, a high school student, has been a part of many Manaveli productions before as an actress. In this, the first of his two mimes, aptly titled Act Without Words I &II, Beckett presents in very simple, stylized form pictures of certain aspects of the human condition. It emphasizes the problem of man/woman's relationship with an external world that is beyond his/her control and that frustrates all his/her efforts to make it habitable. Act Without Words I was first performed in 1957. It carries its protagonist to a point at which he/she finally learns the futility of all the hopes the world holds out to him/her and is able to face this and to resist all temptations to return to them.




Time Machines (Kala Iyanthiram)

Dr. Indira Parthasarathy



Time Machines is a play by well-known Indian writer Dr. Indira Parthasarathy. It deals with the urban reality of 'rat race' and the effect it has on human relationships and human souls. Dushy Gnanapragasam returns to the festival as director after his critically acclaimed directorial debut with Pushcart Peddlers (by Academy Award nominee Murray Schisgal) at last year's festival. Time Machines' protagonist is a man consumed by his self-perceived duties and priorities. He functions like a machine as if his only goal in life is to get everything done 'on time'. In the process, he ignores his psychological needs for the benefit of satisfying his physical and fiscal needs. Eventually, time runs out, and unable to keep up, the machine breaks down.



Sprouts Again

V. Sornalingam's Sprouts Again deals with the despair and depression that sets in with two seniors who are forced by circumstances to be dependant on their children whom they still love but feel like they are strangers to. It raises critical question about traditional Tamil family values, as it explores the realities recent immigrant seniors face in a country that is alien to them. The two protagonists in this play can be found in any neighbourhood in Toronto, which houses seniors who are new immigrants. With little or no income and often with a lack of language skills, they feel themselves a burden on their children. And when a careless harsh word or two is thrown at them in haste, their pride and dignity is shattered, and their sense of self-worth challenged. Sornalingam is a popular Tamil Canadian play write and director. His plays are known for their bold treatment if social issues that are very real and present in the fast growing Tamil Canadian community. In this his first collaboration with Manaveli, he is directing his own script.

Parallels (Dance)

Parallels is a modern dance composition that looks at the eternal bond between a mother and a daughter. It brings to life the issues that put a strain on this bond and the events than strengthen it. Tharshini Varapragasam and Prashanthy Pathmanathan, both of whom are accomplished classical dancers, will be choreographing and dancing. The dance traces the lives of two women, a mother and a daughter, through various stages in their life. Both Tharshini and Prashanthy have been associated with Manaveli since the 9th festival.


Adopted Child (Thaththu Pillai)

Brian Friel (1929- )

Legendary Tamil Canadian actor, play-write, and director K. S. Balachandran is directing his Tamil adaptation of Brian Friel's American Welcome. The adaptation is titled Adopted Child and is a satire about the treatment a lesser-known writer's work gets from a popular director. Balachandran has been involved with the past festivals in various capacities as actor, play-write, and supervising director, and has been an inspiration for many young Tamil Candaian directors and actors. He continues his collaboration with Manaveli in the eleventh festival.

In the original play by Friel, an American director tries to distort the script of an overwhelmed European writer, to the point where the writer does not recognize his own script. The director's excuse is that he is trying to make the script more appealing to Americans. In Balachandran's adaptation, the director is Indian and the writer Sri Lankan. It pokes gentle fun at the 'big brother - little brother' relationship adjacent countries like Canada-US, and Sri Lanka-India have. It also makes light of the very real situation of 'watering down of literature for mass consumption'.

Capital (Mulathanam)

The final act is a play by popular Indian play write and screenwriter Thopil Bhasi. Capital is a play set in late 1940s, in the South Indian state of Kerala. It was a time when socialist activists in the state were being brutally hunted down by the government. This play deals with the sacrifices people make to protect their loved ones and to defend the choices their loved ones make. The play is directed by M. Suthan, who's previous directorial venture International Slaves earned him both fame and critical acclaim. Bhasi (1924-1992), one of the most popular modern Malayalam play writer, played an important role in the Indian freedom movement against British colonialism. After Indian independence, he left the Congress and identified himself with the socialists. His first play You Made Me A Communist is said to have been staged for over 600 times. His play Capital is believed to draw from his own experience as an activist absconding from government forces.

*Photos of 11th Arangadal (Click here)

* 11வது அரங்காடல் பற்றிய பார்வை - சுமதி ரூபன் -

Arangadal - 10th Festival of Theatre and Dance

Organised by Manaveli Performing Arts Group
Date: March 09, 2003; 12.30 Hrs and 18.00 Hrs.
Venue: Markham Theatre, Ontario, Canada
Date: March 29, 2003; 18.00 Hrs.
Venue: Humanities Theatre, University of Waterloo

Since its inception in 1996, Manaveli has staged thirty one plays, which have been hailed by the Tamil literary world as path breaking. Manaveli has also introduced well-known English and other language playwrights, such as Eugene Ionesco, Anton Checkov, Samuel Beckett, Jean Janet and Vaclav Havel, to the Tamil audience.

The Five Plays at 2003 Festival

"Lone Tree" (Thani Maram ) Dance


Malini Pararajasingam


The first performance is Thani Maram (Lone Tree), in which the classical Tamil dance Bharathanatyam takes a new meaning and mode. A solitary three hundred year old Cedar tree symbolizes the spirit of nature. The grand tree bears silent witness to a cruel humanity's gregarious consumption of earthy resources. The dance is directed and performed by Malini Pararajasingham, a well known classical dancer.


"The Pushcart Peddlers" (Thallu Vandikkaararkal)



Murray Schisgal

Thallu Vandikkaararkal is a Tamil adaptation, by K.S. Balachandran, of the English play 'The Pushcart Peddlers' by New York playwright Murray Schisgal. First produced in 1979, 'The Pushcart Peddlers' is a comical look at learning to survive in a new land. In his Tamil adaptation, K.S. Balachandran has taken the liberty to adapt the language, names, and references in the play, so that it centres on Tamil immigrants from Sri Lanka to Canada. This play is directed by Dushy Gnanapragasam. Dushy has acted in many dramas, both in Canada and Sri Lanka, but this is his debut as a director.

"My Grandpa's horse" (En Thaththaavukku Oru Kuthirai Irunthathu)


Chelian


The third play En Thaththaavukku Oru Kuthirai Irunthathu (My Grandpa's Horse) is directorial debut for Suganthan, who has acted in many plays produced by Manaveli. This play is a satirical treatment of colonial mentalities that still rule many minds of our society. While carefully dissecting the internalization of colonialism and its manifestations, the play also exposes our (Tamil) own racist attitudes towards fellow communities. The play has been scripted by Cheliyan, a poet, writer and playwright, whose scripts have been staged in both Canada and UK.

"Going Home" (Oor Poukku)

'Oor Poukku' (Going Home) is scripted by Cheran, a well-known face in Tamil literary circles, and directed by K Navam, who has directed a number of plays. This play is a parody on the lives and nostalgic fantasies of the Canadian Tamil diaspora. It questions the choices of dispersed people when peace returns in their homeland. Would they leave everything in the adopted land, say "Adieu!" and leave for their original homeland? Or, would they become "homeland tourists" by spicing up their nostalgia with recent tours and visits?

" Arbitration" (Paakha Pirivinai)

N. Muththusamy
N. Muththusamy, a distinguished writer from India, has scripted Paakha Pirivinai (Arbitration), which is a satirical play about the influence exerted by certain powerful nations over developing countries. The play is directed by R. Sivaratnam, who coordinated the theatre group, Kaalam.

Arangadal - 9th Festival of Theatre and Dance

Organised by Manaveli Performing Arts Group
Date: March 16 & 17, 2002; 13.00 HRS AND 17.OO Hrs.
Venue: Markham Theatre, Ontario, Canada.

Info on the Festival

"The House that Mayan built" (Puthiyathor Veedu}


Makakavi





Selvan, a veteran actor with experience in directing Tamil plays, directed the play under the directorial guidance of K S Balachandran, one of Tamil world’s eminent directors with a number of plays and a film to his directorial credit.
Considered as one of the pioneers of modern Tamil poetry and theatre, the late Mahakavi was known for his work on introducing the rhymes of ordinary speech into his poetry. He authored five epics, three stage plays in verse and ten radio plays.


"The Chairs" (Natkalikal)

Eugene Ionesco


The Chairs of the Romanian-French playwright Eugene Ionesco, also known as the Father of the Absurd, portrays the story of an elderly couple’s adventures on passing on their life experience to the world symbolised by a proliferation of chairs that were however not filled by the expected guests.

P Vigneswaran, a former director of the Tamil service of the Sri Lankan state Television Corporation (Rupavahini), has ‘tamilised’ and directed the play, written in 1952 and that for some symbolises Ionesco’s own frustrations in gaining recognition for his lifetime work as a dramatist. Mr. Vigneswaran has scripted and directed many plays, including Imaginations Are Not Disturbed, the first tele-drama in the Tamil-speaking world.

(Thanks - Thinnai.com) * 9வது அரங்காடல் பற்றிய விமர்சனம்

Arangadal - 8th Festival of Theatre and Dance

Organised by Manaveli Performing Arts Group
Date: March 17, 2001; 13.00 HRS AND 17.OO Hrs.Venue: Markham Theatre, Ontario, Canada.

Info on the Festival:
The Eighth Festival had five plays, all scripted and directed by Tamil artists known throughout the Tamil-speaking world.

Yet Another Future

P Vigneswaren has scripted and directed the first play, Yet Another Future, which portrays the life and tribulations of a young woman emigrating to Canada. A former employee of the Sri Lankan state Television Corporation (Rupavahini), Vigneswaran has scripted and directed many plays, including A Dawn In Dusk, the first Tele-drama in the Tamil-speaking world.

The Perpetual Cycle

Premil (Tharmu Sivaramu)


The second play will be The Perpetual Cycle by the well-known poet Premil. Directed by Sivaratnam, the play takes a shot at the evolution of human race. Premil is a well-known poet known in South India.




HedotShe

< Cheran has scripted the HedotShe, which revolves around the dynamics of a relationship. Cheran is a well-known face in Tamil literary circles and he was among the organizers of the Tamil-Ini2000 that was held in Tamil Nadu recently. The play is directed by K Navam, who was the co-ordinator for the Special Canadian Issue of Kanaiyazhi magazine.

Forever Rains


Chelian


The next play, Forever Rains, is a take on the issue of cultural imperialism and how we have fallen victims to the media organisations that want to protect the status-quo. It is scripted by Cheliyan and directed by the well-known Tamil Canadian director Puranthagan. Cheliyan is also a well known face in Sri Lanka, India and Canada. The author of Memoirs of a Freedom Fighter was, Cheliyan has authored several short stories and poems as well.

Sincerely, Yours

N Santhinathan, a popular and well-respected figure within the Tamil Canadian literary circle has scripted and directed Sincerely, Yours. It is a take on the innocence of children and the adopted values of their parents.

( Thanks: chennaitheatre.8m.com)

Arangadal - 7th Festival of Theatre and Dance

Organised by Manaveli Performing Arts Group
Date: July 23, 2000(Sunday); 18.30 Hrs.
Venue: Markham Theatre, Ontario, Canada

Arangadal - 6th Festival of Theatre and Dance

Organised by Manaveli Performing Arts Group
Date: July 31st and August 1st 1999 18.00 Hrs.
Venue: Yorkwoods Theatre, North York, Ontario, Canada


4 Acts in the 6th Festival

குழந்தை என்,சண்முகலிங்கம்

"Annai Idda thee"
Script: Kulanthai M. Shanmugalingam
Script re-written and Directed: Gnana Ananthan









"Yarlpanam -84"

Script and Direction: S. Sabesan


"Innonru veli"

P. A. Jeyakaran


Actors: K.S.Balachandran, Sumathi Ruban, Dilip Kumar, S.T.Senthilnathan

Scripted and directed by P.A. Jeyaharan






"Indigo" Dance
Choreography & Direction: Sutharshan Thuraiappah


For photos of 6th Arangadal - Click here

* An observation by Kumar Moorthy - AnyIndian.com

Arangadal - 2nd Festival of Theatre and Dance

Organised by Manaveli Performing Arts Group
Date: October 4th 1996 Friday at 19.00 Hrs.
Venue: Yorkwoods Theatre, North York, Ontario, Canada


3 Acts in the 2nd Festival

'Apasuram'
A play directed by P. Wickneswaran.
Actors: Sabesan, S.T. Senthilnathan, K.S.Balachandran, S. Kandasamy, Sahapthan





'Viddu Viduthalaiyaki'
Directed by Puranthakan.








'Maraiyatha Marubathi'

Directed by Gnanam Lambert

Manaveli Performing Arts Group

Who or What is MANAVELI?
Exile is a very powerful force of creativity.
Exile is so intimately linked with a multiplicity of feelings; love, the sadness of being forced to leave that ambience where one was born and bred, the melancholic longing for things that are always good back at home, a passion for justice, and last but not the least the trials and tribulations in building up a new life in a new country -- feelings that lie so deep in heart, yet so powerful and beautiful once expressed. Thus, it is no surprise that exile literature has been brilliant and has brought the best out of human beings.

The long-drawn ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka has produced more than half a million Tamil refugees, and about 200,000 of them have sought refuge in Canada. Among those who were forced to leave their country of birth were numerous writers, poets, playwrights and artists.

A longing for serious plays and dramas that stimulate a serious cultural awareness and debate, rather than the superficial feelings that the cheap cinema-based culture creates/awakens, brought a group of exiled Tamil artists together in 1996 and the Manaveli Performing Arts Groupwas born. The artists of the group are aware that they have a significant role to play in multicultural Canada.

Tamils have a very strong sense of cultural identity, dating back to at least three thousand years in south India. The Tamils in the north and east of Sri Lanka developed their own culture based on that of the south Indian Tamil culture, and in the last century it witnessed a renaissance with new forms of drama and musicals, like the dramatized form of reciting poetry.

However, this growth had fallen victim to the brutal ethnic conflict that flared in the seventies and has only gotten worse since then.

The Manaveli Performing Group is in a unique position because it can blend the rich Tamil cultural, artistic and performing traditions to that of the Canadian. Moreover, they have undergone a plethora of experiences such as loss of one's own country, the village or urban settings that one learned to cherish, loss of loved ones to the war, the passion one feels about justice after having witnessed so much inhumanity and injustice, and the trials and tribulations in the new country of refuge.

Living, and performing, in a third country endows the artist with a unique status to observe two cultures, and this from an objective distance.
Even though it is only five years since the group was formed, the Manaveli Performing Arts Group has come a long way; it has staged more than twenty plays, including six performances, 15 dramas and two kavitha nigalvugal (dramatized form of reciting poetry).

It is true that Diasporic arts tend to concentrate overwhelmingly on (lost) life back in the home country, and the trials and tribulations of refugee life and Manaveli is no exception, but the artists have also transcended their national borders and 'tamilized' playwrights like Anton Chekov (The Bear), Samuel Beckett (Waiting for Godot), Sigfried Lenz, Jean Janet (The Death Watch) and Vaclav Havel.
The directors that are involved with Manaveli are Cheran, Cheliyan, Gnanam Lambert (Thomas Lambert), A. Puranthagan, P.Vickneswaran, N. Santhinathan, P.A. Jayakaran, Gnana A. Fernando, V. Thivyarajan, Selvan-Rajan, Seevaratnam, Sudarshan Durayappa and S. Sabesan .

Manaveli's audience comes mainly from the 200.000 strong Tamil community in Toronto. However, Manaveli is beginning to expand its activities into the larger Toronto arts and theatre scene. The performances are mainly in Tamil language. Manaveli's work has been hailed as path breaking by critics in Toronto, Europe and Sri Lanka.

(Thanks - chennaitheatre.8m.com)