Stages Theatre Group mourns the loss of Prof. Harshana Rambukwella — a dear friend, patron, and visionary whose commitment to the arts, academia, and community will remain irreplaceable.

As we stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine, we bring two powerful plays to the stage; Patterns of Our Genocides and The Children of the Little Olive Park.

Join us at the Kolamba Kamatha Theatre Festival on 30th March at 6pm as we use theatre to echo voices that demand to be heard.

On 15th January 2025, we had the privilege of performing DCS 7 Decades of Sri Lanka (Dear Children, Sincerely - 7 Decades of Sri Lanka) at S. Thomas’ College, Mt. Lavinia, as part of their current affairs programme during school hours. This marked our first-ever school performance and an important milestone in the DCS project, which is committed to educating Sri Lanka’s next generation about the country’s complex and often controversial history- a history not always present in their textbooks.

We extend our sincere congratulations to our Artistic Director, Ruwanthie de Chickera, on her appointment to the Sri Lanka Arts Council.

Ruwanthie de Chickera joins a board of 5 esteemed individuals led by Chairman Mr. Keerithu Welisarage. Her fellow committee members are Dr. Sasanka Perera, Dr. Sunil Wijesiriwardena and Professor S. Maunaguru. The committee was appointed by the Minister of Buddhasasana and Religious and Cultural Affairs, Dr. Sunil Seneviratne.

Appointment letters were presented to the appointees at a ceremony held at the Ministry premises in Sethsiripaya, Battaramulla, this week.

Featuring 13 plays in three locations, the 3rd Bell Children and Youth Theatre Festival returns for the second time promising a series of thought-provoking performances that question the norms in society and address challenges children face.

The 3rd Bell Festival is a showcasing of plays devised and performed by children and youth engaged in the weekly Community Theatre Workshops run free of charge by Stages Theatre Group since 2021, supported by Kindernothilfe. These workshops encourage self-expression and critical thinking in children through theatre, creating a postive impact in their lives and education beyond the stage.

We are bringing back one of our most beloved shows to stage this September 2024.

DCS - 7 Decades of Sri Lanka is a gripping ensemble performance that takes the audience through 70 years of Sri Lankan history in 1½ hours.

❇ 19th Sept - Lionel Wendt @ 7pm

Other DCS shows with limited seating:

❇ 14th Sept - Harmony Center, Boralesgamuwa (open air theatre) @ 6.30 pm, organized by the Harmony Center

For the 10th year anniversary of the Ubumuntu Arts Festival in Kigali, Rwanda, Stages, in its sixth year of participation, had the honor of presenting its latest production, ‘Patterns of Our Genocides’. First performed at the World Conference on Statelessness in February 2024, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, this play is a devastating love letter from a young Rohingyan refugee to a friend trapped in Gaza.

Developed under the guidance of playwright and Stages artistic director Ruwanthie de Chickera, POOG showcases the deep connections between personal tragedy and historical violence.

Our quarterly residency took place from July 6th to 8th, shifting from broad guidelines to a focused, goal-oriented program aimed at driving change through the next generation. Led by Ruwanthie, our community artists immersed themselves in the second residency of the year, embarking on a transformative journey through dynamic theatre workshops, balanced by rejuvenating yoga sessions.

Samuel, Company Artist and Co-leader of the Stages Youth Ensemble, represented Stages at the 'Uniting Asia' - Asian Youth Theatre Festival Artists’ Residency Programme - in Bali, Indonesia. The week was filled with workshops, networking, and performances, offering a truly transformative experience.

The Stages Youth Ensemble first participated in the AYTF last year, 2023, in the Philippines and is now preparing to take a new show this year to the festival in November, to be held in Thailand!

On Mullivaikkal Remembrance Day, May 18th, we remember the struggle of Sri Lankan Tamils. The injustices and pain of the past and the injustices that continue even today.

We also pay tribute to Nagalingam Ethirveerasingam, renowned Sri Lankan athlete and an activist who worked for the rights of Tamil civilians.

The video below tells his powerful and poignant coming-of-age story—how a star athlete won Sri Lanka's first-ever gold medal in any sport and became aware of the racism against his people.

At an event reflecting on the first Nakba on 14 May 1948, themed ‘All Out for Palestine’, Stages Artistic Director Ruwanthie De Chickera launched her children's book 'The Children of the Little Olive Park’. The book presents the Palestinian/Israeli conflict in simple language in a way that is easy for children to understand.

The book was freely distributed and dramatized by actors from Mind Adventures Theatre Co. and Stages.

In March, eleven children from our Bogawanthalawa workshop traveled to Kolkatta with STG artists to present their play 'Bye Bye Bangalawa' at the Parichay Theatre Festival 2024. The play told the story of child labour within their own estate community.

This event marks a significant milestone for both the children involved and for STG as a whole!

(The framed photograph was a gift to STG from the kids)

STG organized a 3-day Community Artist Training program from March 8th to 10th, 2024, at its Artist Residency in Colombo, led by Ruwanthie.

The training focused on a comprehensive approach to conducting children's workshops, emphasizing creativity, expression, and awareness. Ruwanthie guided the artists in adopting a child-centered approach to identify and address issues affecting children.

A children's and youth theatre festival organised by Stages Theatre Group on the 20th and 21st of January, 2024 at the Sudarshi Institute of Sinhala Culture.

It showcased the stories and performances of 7 groups, featuring over 125 children from Bogawanthalawa, Galle, Kahapola and Colombo.

Six of our youth delegates from the Stages Youth Ensemble traveled to Mumbai, India for Thespo 25, where they staged two performances and conducted a reading of PING!

In solidarity with the people of Palestine 🇵🇸, Mind Adventures Theatre Co. and Stages Theatre Group commemorated the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People 🇵🇸 on Wednesday, November 29th, 2023, with a reading of The Gaza Monologues.

Held at the Embassy of the State of Palestine in Colombo, select monologues were read by artists from both companies including Stages artists Ruvin de Silva, Hidaayath Hazeer, Shala Amarasuriya, and Lihan Mendis.

#gazamonologues

Two of our youth artists, Murthaaz Barry and Kithmi Ranatunga, will be participating in the '𝗔𝘀𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗲 𝗙𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝗹' set to take place from the 22nd - 26th of November at Iloilo, Philippines. They are both representatives of Stages Theatre Group and Sri Lanka!

What's more? They are taking the #WATSS campaign with them.

Our audience at the Pakistan Theatre Festival 2023 were taken on an introspective journey of life with our play 'Ken B Eniwan's Story' and responded to it with love and a standing ovation to boot!

STG acknowledges with heartfelt gratitude the Consul General of Sri Lanka in Karachi, Sri Lankan airlines, and everyone else who supported in making this incredible chapter of Ken B’s story possible.

The Pakistan Theatre Festival 2023 kicked off at the Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi on Friday the 7th of September. The Festival takes place over an entire month with 45 shows over 30 days. 7 international theatre groups and 27 Pakistani theatre groups make-up the long line-up of performances, making it the biggest Theatre Festival In Pakistan to date.

Stages Theatre Group’s newest 10 member troupe play - Ken B Eniwan will be our contribution to the festival. The concept, design and direction are by Ruwanthie de Chickera and Hidaayath Hazeer with devising by the entire cast. We’ll be sharing more on this soon, very soon!

The Junior Ensemble of Stages Theatre Group is an exciting space for inquisitive, creative, reflective 10-15 year olds. Children are trained in areas of writing, directing, design and acting for Stage. Every term the Junior Ensemble produces a new play created by the children themselves.

Workshops are conducted by the STG senior artists under the guidance of the company artistic director - Ruwanthie de Chickera.

Workshops are FREE but regular attendance is necessary.

This 12 week course willl resume on the 10th of August at the Sudarshi Hall (opp. The BMICH)

Contact Lihan on +94 77 9012021 for more information

A review of Baby Steps: a lifetime of tiny decisions, by the NEW TIMES Kigali after its debut performance at the Ubumuntu Arts Festival in on 16th July 2023

“Another outstanding work is Stages Theatre Group’s “Baby Steps: a lifetime of tiny decisions.” This collaborative play crafted in partnership with Rwanda and Sri Lanka, was structured into chapters that poignantly capture deeply rooted fears experienced at different junctures in life.

Remarkably, the play achieves this profound exploration without relying on vocal expressions, instead delving into the interplay between real-life experiences and the performative aspects of one’s identity by skillfully experimenting with shifting tones and modes of realism. The incredibly detailed insights on family, love, work, power and friendship made “Baby Steps: a lifetime of tiny decisions,” unfold into an aching play that connects with viewers from every imaginable background.”

Eight years after our first collaboration and four years since our last visit, the Stages team, led by Ruwanthie de Chickera, has returned to Kigali, Rwanda, bringing Baby Steps with them to the Ubumuntu Arts Festival, 2023.

Baby Steps is the second collaboration between STG and Mashirika Performing Arts and Media Company, the first one being Dear Children..Sincerely in 2015 (watch the performance here).

Sign up for the festival which is to be held from the 14th-17th of July, 2023 by clicking here.

Follow us on our socials for more updates.

For better or for worse, the decisions we take in life directs its course. For better or for worse, these decisions are dictated by what we rationalise to ourselves. And for better or for worse, these rationalisations are driven by an inherent sense of faith or fear.

Baby Steps: A Lifetime of Tiny Decisions, our brand-new original play in the works for the Ubumuntu Arts Festival 2023, aims to explore this theme in its most primitive, emotive, and mundane manifestations at different stages of life.

Devised by humans who share life's seemingly peculiar yet relatively commonplace experiences between them, the story follows the life of everyman Pala.

Directed by Ruwanthie De Chickera, this play is a collaboration between STG and Mashirika Performing Arts and Media Co.

At the invitation of Hope Azeda, Ruwanthie and four STG artists will participate in the Ubumuntu Arts Festival 2023, in a collaborative performance with the Mashirika Performing Arts and Media Co. on the theme “Believe: Faith Over Fear”.

The festival will be held from the 14th - 17th of July, 2023.

STG artists Veenadari, Lakranga, and Thiwanka, along with guest artist Asoka Abeysekera, held a reading of the book Kaputu Kaak Kaak Kaak! at the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art on June 24, 2023. The book, created by Amal de Chickera and Deshan Tennekoon, aims to educate children about democratic processes, protests, and the current situation in Sri Lanka.

The reading took place in English, Sinhala, and Sign languages, with active participation from children. The session included music, dancing, and discussions on the importance of Sign language and the Arts.

The book is available online, at the MMCA, or through contact with Veenadari.

A two-day training session, to further develop the skills of our artists who conduct workshops for children around the country, was held during the 17th and 18th of June, 2023 at the Nuga Sevana Open Air Theatre.

The session was conducted by Ruwanthie, Lihan, Malith, Shazna, and Henry de Mel, and the areas covered were related to preparing for the upcoming regional festivals – effectively working with the children, proposal writing, budgeting, and how to produce a festival.

Ruwanthie was in Philadelphia as a guest lecturer at Pig Iron Theatre Company’s Summer Institute, from the 5th to the 12th of June, 2023.

Pig Iron Theatre Company is the oldest and most established multidisciplinary ensemble in North America.

Ruwanthie conducted workshops and shared her teachings on the process of Devising in the Context of Political Crisis and Protest.

You can learn more about Pig Iron Theatre Company here and find the schedule for the Institute here.

In collaboration with Kindernothilfe, STG conducts workshops for children around the country. The third workshop in Bogowanthalawa, led by STG artists Ajanthan and Seedevi, held their first ever showcase on the 10th of May, 2023.

The group of thirteen children, between the ages of 12 and 16, are students of Campion Tamil Maha Vidyalaya, and the showcase took place in the school premises. This was followed by a discussion and productive Q&A session with the audience – made up of the student body of the school as well as a number of teachers and parents – moderated by Ajanthan.

Despite training for only three months and having no prior experience in speaking or performing in public, these children were very confident and put on a very compelling and powerful performance.

This workshop has been extended for another three months and, together with the other two Bogawanthalawa workshops and the Welimada workshop, will be a part of the first Regional Festival that will be taking place later this year.

Our latest theatre production, PING! (Virtually everything is fine) went on the boards at the Lionel Wendt Theatre in Colombo in the last weekend of April.

The play was received positively by audiences of all ages.

The Youth Ensemble of Stages Theatre Group begins it’s latest term following the resounding success of Ping!

We welcome any performer (at any level) between the ages of 16-24 to join the group!

Our former co-artistic director Piumi Wijesundara moved to Sydney in January this year. She has recently been appointed Program Manager - Children and Young People at the National Institute of Dramatic Art.

We wish her all the best!

Held Online From 26-28 November 2021

A 3 day festival of the arts showcasing the work of 20 artists, commissioned and curated by Stages theatre Group to explore what the pandemic was like for children; giving children an equally important/valid voice as an adult artist. 6 of the 20 works of art were proposed by children. The festival had theatre, film, dance, music, puppetry, writing, readings, artist talks and panel discussions facilitated in English, Sinhala, Tamil and Sign Language.

An art exhibition was curated by two child artists and included the artwork of over 140 children from around Sri Lanka while in the Mentorship Programme 4 child artists and 1 adult artist received personal guidance from a professional artist with experience in the genre of their proposed artwork.

The festival played out in 2 sessions per day. Each session contained a selection of artworks and artists talks on a particular theme, concluding with a panel discussion that delved deep into the issues raised by the artworks.