Through Colombo’s Theatre and Film Hub

Join Prof. Asoka de Zoysa for an immersive heritage walk that retraces the vibrant entertainment landscape of early 20th-century Colombo. Beginning at the Elphinstone Theatre, participants will journey through Tower Hall once the epicentre of popular Nurthi performances and continue to the historic Maradana Railway Station, a symbolic gateway to the city’s cultural crossroads. At the railway station, visitors will encounter a site-specific installation featuring puppets dressed in costumes inspired by John de Silva’s Nurthi-musical “Sri Wickrama Rajasinha” (first staged at Tower Hall in 1906). The installation will showcase period puppets Arachchila, Bahuboothaya, Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe, and Ravana each evoking layered reflections on power, class, caste, gender, and the social hierarchies that shaped the era. Prof. Asoka de Zoysa will then guide the audience through the musical soundscape of the Tower Hall Era, revealing how its melodies bridged traditional theatre and emerging cinematic forms. Participants will also enjoy a typical “tiffin” served…