For Delon Weerasinghe, going grocery shopping is not unlike setting out on a treasure hunt. Many of the ingredients he keeps in his small pantry aren’t easily available and an adventurous spirit is a prerequisite for cooking with them. What comes out of his kitchen is, as a result, rather unusual – like the lotus … Continue reading
A dark sky filled with stars hangs above the city, but down at the Bayou Mansions the women in leopard print are still awake. They are singing, their scowling white faces filled with malice and disenchantment. One of those faces belonged to Suzanne Andrade and by the time I meet her I am used to … Continue reading
Alison Skilbeck is showing me how to read her feet. “It’s where you put the weight in your body and how you place your feet,” she says. Standing up, she demonstrates, turning her toes in and hunching ever so slightly. “If I were to say to you that I’m a very confident person, would you … Continue reading
Trailing a shimmering shawl and dressed to kill, Suranga Ranawaka is a picture of glamour, something that is only emphasised by her surroundings – a newspaper office in the middle of a working week. In fact, you might be hard pressed to identify the perfectly turned out young woman as the same one who stood … Continue reading
Darth Vader’s name may have become synonymous with evil but Dr. Sean Amarasekera loves him anyway. So much so that a statue based upon the character, complete with a glowing red lightsabre and chest and belt panels which actually light up, is Sean’s most prized action figure. Sean is a collector of such memorabilia – … Continue reading
“The last time I was on stage, I ended up in the emergency room,” Delon Weerasinghe tells me. Pointing to a puckered brown spot on his palm, he says, deadpan, “this hole in my hand – it’s not the sign of the stigmata.” The scar dates back to the staging of Delon’s first play, ‘Thicker … Continue reading
A few minutes before his performance begins, Marsh Dodanwela has already begun to transform. He develops a marked limp to compensate for his missing toes; the white bandage wrapped around his four fingers does not conceal a slight tremor, beads of sweat and pain crystallise on his brow. When he speaks, his tone is self … Continue reading
Auntie Netta is trying to break free…and Nimmi Harasagama is going to let her. It is not a gradual transformation – her refined conversation slips into a screech, her chuckles take on a sinister edge as she begins to cackle and her gesticulations are so abrupt and enthusiastic you worry she will knock something over. … Continue reading
Under the lights, Ben Cross has begun to sweat. His heavy, brown uniform doesn’t help, so in the breaks between filming it’s the first thing he takes off. Now, sitting in his white undershirt, in a bright red silk air-conditioned tent, Ben is talking about his other great love. Up on youtube, you’ll find recordings … Continue reading
Trailing a shimmering shawl and dressed to kill, Suranga Ranawaka is a picture of glamour, something that is only emphasised by her surroundings – a newspaper office in the middle of a working week. In fact, you might be hard pressed to identify the perfectly turned out young woman as the same one who stood … Continue reading
Smriti Daniel 