The 26th, 27th and 28th of November 2021 saw the second iteration of the Lakshman Kadirgamar Memorial Debating Championship organised by the Debating Society of Trinity College. You can read last year’s review from the link below. This year’s tournament also marked the 1st time the tournament was open as an all-island tournament with 36 teams taking part. The tournament which was endorsed by the Debaters’ Council of Sri Lanka was held online this year as well as so did all the tournaments in the circuit. Ladies’ College Colombo (LC A) emerged as the champions this year after defeating Colombo International School, Colombo (CIS A) with a decisive 4:1 split in the finals. LC A also won against Hillwood College Kandy A (Hillwood A) while CIS A won against Ladies College B ( LC B) in the semi-finals. While this was the second time the tournament was organised, and the organising committee had experience from last year, tension and spirits were high as this was the first time the tournament was open for schools from all over the island. Planning started in late August, invitations were sent and dates were booked on the Debaters’ Council calendar in September, and we started contacting judges soon after. By late October most of the preparations were complete, groups were made, documents were sent, Tabby cat was prepared ( A software used to input teams, institutions, motions, adjudicators and overall rankings of the tournament) and judges were confirmed. Finally, the day of the tournament arrived. On the 26th, before the zoom call opened, the organising committee gathered at the CLC to start the tournament. Day 1 saw the 1st 2 of 5 preliminary rounds and was quite a good start for the tournament. Day 2 turned up the heat with the remaining 3 preliminary rounds and the knock out octo- finals. Day 3 was tenser than the previous 2 days as these were the knockout rounds. At last, two teams were left standing. Colombo International School, Colombo (CIS A) as proposition and Ladies College Colombo ( LC A) as opposition debating the motion, “On balance, this house believes that trade unions have done more harm than good in Sri Lanka” with the win going to opposition LC A. Apart from the finals given below are a few favourites from the tournament. Teams that broke into the knockout rounds; CIS A Ladies’ College A Ananda College A Royal College A Ladies’ College B St. Bridget’s Convent A Wesley College S. Thomas’ College A Royal College B Holy Family Convent A Hillwood College A Wesley College A Visakha Vidyalaya A Ananda College B S. Thomas’ College B Devi Balika Vidyalaya A With that, the tournament came to an end and was filled with plenty of anxiety attacks, surprises, and many more. The organising committee didn’t forget to play a bit of casual music in between rounds, to ease the pressure and provide a laid back environment. As smoothly as the tournament went it wasn’t without some setbacks and a few unforeseen circumstances, like a presentation slide mishap, Covid scares to name a few. The organising committee also had a master plan up their sleeve; to present a Gag motion as comedic relief to the teams (safe to say, the joke was a hit). After the tournament, we were very pleased to hear positive comments from the teams and even adjudicators. It was a happy sight to see that the participants enjoyed the tournament, and it was safe to say that the tournament ended on a very “positive” note (pun intended). A special thanks goes out to our Principal and Vice-Principal for supporting us in this venture, to the Debaters Council for endorsing the tournament and for helping with the motions. To the Library and IT staff for facilitating us and helping us out in the technical areas, to our two Teachers-in-Charge Mrs Premeela Vijeyakumar and Mrs Fathima Majeed for their unconditional assistance, for staying up late with the debaters disregarding their own timetables, and for tolerating our unpredictable ideas in organising. And finally to our coach, Mr Lithmal Jayawardena, without whom the very idea of holding an All-Island Tournament, wouldn’t have been possible. His wisdom in organising tournaments, paired up with his immense help in preparations, proved to be the catalyst in the tournament’s success. The Lakshman Kadirgamar Debating Championship’s 2nd year had it all; pandemics, heart attacks, and pleasant surprises. It managed to live up to its name in the hill country and will carry on a legacy for years to come. Review by Pavara Rambukwella View this post on Instagram A post shared by Trinity College Kandy (@trinitycollege.lk)
The Trinity College Literary Association recently participated in the 45th Annual All-Island Shakespeare Drama Competition organized by the YMCA of Sri Lanka. Trinity College performed an extract from William Shakespeare’s comedy ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ at the semi-finals held on the 19th of September at the Lionel Wendt in Colombo. This was on the 3rd day of the competition, and was judged alongside other boys’ schools such as Royal College, St. Peter’s College, as well as St. Anthony’s College from Kandy. Trinity College did not make it to the finals however, from which D. S. Senanayake College emerged as the winners. The cast and crew of 23 ranging from ages 12 to 18 spent weeks prior to the competition, practising and perfecting their entry. Each costume and prop was individually considered and designed, and then brought on stage to complement the students’ performance. The team will be performing their drama for a school audience soon, and the cast and crew of ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ warmly invite all members of the Trinity family to watch! Full Cast List (in order of appearance) Kavan Ranaraja – Sly Abidh Jameel – Hostess/ Clown Sachika Boyagoda – Bianca Parinda Ratnayake – Clown Dinil Jayasuriya – Biondello/ Clown Jeremy Kottage – Manservant/ Clown Pavara Rambukwella – Clown Gyan Dissanaike – Gremio Dhanuja Boyagoda – Tranio Sasmitha Waidyatilake – Baptista Rahul Jayasinghe – Katherina Ashok Mohan – Petruchio Lolonyo Soosaipillai – Grumio Nikila Amarasena – Lucentio Crew Avindra Dissanaike Sandeepthya Ariyaratne Gesith Epa Mohammed Zaffrullah Mark Seneviratne Dyan Perera Kevin Tennnekoon View the full picture gallery on our Flickr site! Review by Trinity College Literary Association
The world’s greatest detective leaves his humble abode in 221B Baker Street to travel to the misty highland capital of Kandy, with the cast and crew of Trinity College, Kandy. Before “the Study in Scarlet” and “the Hound of the Baskervilles”, the detective goes through his origin in a comedy which leads him to match his wits with an American president, axe murderers and blood-sucking vampires through a journey through time and space itself, portraying a different side of the detective seldom seen. Buoyed by their victory of the 2017 Ashley Halpe Memorial Drama Trophy, the Trinity College Literary Association, which is the oldest Literary Society of its kind in Sri Lanka, is led by veteran Shalitha Senevirathne as Sherlock Holmes, Thishan Kularathne as Dr.Watson, Kavan Ranaraja as Inspector Lestrade and includes Ayeshan Abeywardana, Manula Dissanayake, Ashok Mohan and others in supporting roles with Sachith Keragala as Stage Manager. At the helm is one of Sri Lanka’s best theatre directors, Mr. Aslam Marikar, having conquered the Lankan theatres with “21st century Monk” and “Anarchy” providing guidance and direction to the production. “The Curious Case of Sherlock Holmes” is to be staged on the 24th of February, 2018 at 6.00 pm at the Trinity College Main Hall. The production is co-produced with permission of rights with Pioneer Drama Service Inc, Englewood, Colorado. Tickets are priced at Rs.500, Rs.300, Rs.200, and Rs.100, available at the entrance prior to the event.
The dramatists of the Trinity College Literary Association (TCLA) participated in the Central Province Schools’ Shakespeare Drama Festival which was held on the 2nd of October 2017 at the Hindu Cultural Association. It was an eventful evening where a variety of Shakespearean plays were performed. Trinity College won the Ashley Halpe Memorial Trophy for the ‘Best Play’ in the boys’ category with their mesmerising production of the Shakespearean comedy ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. Also Master Thishan Kularathne was awarded the ‘Best Supporting Actor’ for his hilarious role of Peter Quince. A synopsis of the entire play would be that it is a series of chaotic yet comical events between the world of the fairies and the world of the humans, where the dispute between the King and Queen of the fairies clash with other events that occur simultaneously in which a group of six craftsmen rehearse for a play to be performed at the wedding night of the Duke in the city of Athens. The extract performed by the Trinitians included scenes from both the above scenarios and were linked together by a ballet performance. Felix Mendelssohn’s overture ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ was used as the theme music for this play. The production of this play was carried out two weeks prior to the date of the festival. The casting and training were undertaken by the passionate and committed seniors. Actors from the Middle School also played a vital role in the production, especially in the ballet scenes. There were many individuals who helped to perfect this production. A special thank you goes to an individual who is an eminent old boy of College, a current student of the Peradeniya Faculty of Arts, and a skilled director of drama Mr. Dhisal Kapuge who supported the cast and crew and enhanced their dramatic skills and also the production as a whole. Also Mr. Aslam Marikar, the Master in charge of Drama at the College, provided the required fine tuning for the play to be the well rounded production it was. Mrs Sumedha Weerawardene, the teacher in charge of the TCLA, was an immense strength to the boys and was a constant source of support in many aspects during the production. The support given to the boys by the Principal, along with the rest of the administrative staff, also helped towards the successful production of the play. This achievement can be considered a perfect example of the deep roots of drama that is still a part of the Trinity culture and legacy. The members of the TCLA will further aspire to develop the standards of the dramatic arts and inspire many other young Trinitians to embrace this wonderful art form. The Cast Thishan Kularathne as Quince Shalitha Senevirathne as Pyramus Manula Dissanayake as Thisbe Ayeshan Abeywardene as Snout Thinura Wijerathne as Puck Sandeepthya Ariyarathne as Oberon Kavindya Abeysinghe as Theseus Ashok Mohan as Demetrius Kavan Ranaraja as Hippolyta Harshith Karunatathne as Titiania Piviru Wijewardene as Lysander Isuru Ranathunga as Snug Yadesh Mohandas as Starveling Achira Samarasinghe as Philostrate Dineth Keragala as Hermia Pavara Rambukwella as Helena Rahul Jayasinghe as Peaseblossom Pamuditha Weerawardene as Moth Sachika Boyagoda as Cobweb Thevindu Yatawara as Changeling Boy Nadhil Abeyrathne as Mustardseed The Stage Crew Malaka Samarasinghe Heshan Wickramasinghe Bilaal Marikar Nivin Illangaratne Reuben Rajaratnam Dinil Jayasooriya Gesith Epa