Constant Tug of War
Independence Day is marked with military parades and empty rhetoric on peace. The Sri Lankan State continues to exercise power, profiting from political instability, disenfranchisement and control over Tamil bodies and land…
Arts and Theatre
Floating Space Theatre Co. presents ‘rite | now’ at Global Voices Summit
How much do we remember of the time before the internet? How much of ourselves will we leave behind because of the internet, and how much of this do we imagine we…
In conversation with Tharanga Goonetilleke
Tharanga Goonetilleke is a Juilliard-trained Sri Lankan opera singer who has sung internationally, including with the New York City Opera, at Carnegie Hall and the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka while providing…
Exploring “Contempt” – An upcoming reading by Floating Space
Manoeuvring power relations and negotiating the language of legal discourse – these are central themes of “Contempt” a reading presented by Floating Space, to be held this Saturday (July 15th, 2017) at…
Awards, Recognitions and Sri Lankan Creative Writing in English
. About Concerns of Judges When speaking of the concerns we have as judges with regard to our experiences in judging the entries for the 2016 Gratiaen Prize, I am speaking on…
The Art of Connection: Two organisations take on reconciliation
As a 16 year old, Nushelle de Silva was entirely unprepared for the experience of seeing Jaffna in its ‘raw state’ during the ceasefire in 2004. Traveling there on a field trip with…
Laughing in the Dark
LONDON – As a former Soviet citizen, I can tell you: it’s never a good sign for a political system when artists start speaking out against it. And when their statements visibly…
Writing to Reconcile: A personal journey
Image from Write to Reconcile Last fall, in Toronto, I went to see a play that was written by one of the writers in this anthology, Sindhuri Nandakumar. The play was called…
The Story of One: On some lives erased and others that give hope
I first met Father Harry Miller in 2013. We sat and talked in his office on the top floor of St. Michael’s College, Batticaloa. Noisy crows had gathered outside his window, threatening…
Lessons Learnt on Reconciliation
After opening night of on the 26th of November 2009, a small group remained behind long after the show finished. They sat dotted around the small amphitheatre, not speaking a word. Theatre…
‘Corridors of Power’ exhibition in Jaffna
Auditorium of the Jaffna Public Library 22 – 24 November 2016 Open 10am to 6pm Entrance free for all. What is a constitution? What place and relevance, if any, does it have…
Guided Tour: ‘Corridors of Power’ at the WINGS Festival of Arts
Led by the input of Asanga Welikala and in collaboration with Channa Daswatta, ‘Corridors of Power’ through architectural drawings and models, interrogates key moments in Sri Lanka’s constitutional evolution since 1972. The…
Pushpe’s Lanka
He can see through the threatening spikes of barbed wire. He is anguished recalling the nightmarish experiences of violent outbreaks. But he was hardly hopeless eyewitness. He allows his works to narrate…
Can art transform conflict?
Does art have a role in reconciliation? Does it help in healing trauma? Can the creative power of arts be used as a catalyst for action – especially among those who have…
Some thoughts on ‘Close to the Bone’
‘Close to the Bone’, billed as a theatrical collaboration between Arun Welandawe-Prematilleke and Isuru Kumarasinghe, was part of Colomboscope 2016 and held at the Presidential Suite, Cinnamon Lakeside. Almost exactly three years…