25 Mar 2026 | BY Buddhika Samaraweera
Sri Lanka’s theatre community is preparing for a new cultural gathering as the Kolamba Kamatha Festival, a trilingual celebration of local theatre, returns for its second edition from 27 to 29 March at the Kolamba Kamatha premises at the BMICH in Colombo. The Festival will show 21 plays across three days as well as a range of workshops and panel discussions centred around modern theatre.
The brainchild of BMICH Chairperson and Kolamba Kamatha Founder, former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, the Festival is part of a move to create opportunities that would allow more people to participate in theatre, both as spectators and creators.
Born from a lifelong connection to the arts
Speaking to The Daily Morning Brunch, Kumaratunga recalled that her earliest memories of artistic engagement were tied to reading, a habit encouraged by her father, the slain Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike. “My interest in the arts began very early in life, mainly through reading. My father was an avid reader and the three of us children were given a little pocket money every week to buy books. Because of that, I developed the habit of reading from around the age of six.”
Kumaratunga’s involvement with the arts expanded further when she was introduced to Kandyan dance. She said her father enrolled her in dance classes at around the age of 10 or 11, an experience that she said brought her immense joy. “At first I attended once a week and later became more involved. I was fortunate to take part in some of the earliest Kandyan dance ballets during the late 1950s, a time when the form was still developing. So my childhood was filled with reading, acting, dancing and music. I credit my parents for nurturing that environment,” Kumaratunga said, adding that her mother, the late Premier Sirimavo Bandaranaike also played the piano and sang, ensuring that the arts remained present in their home.
School productions frequently placed her in leading roles, including male roles, partly due to her height and a rather deep voice, and in her youth, Kumaratunga went on to take part in productions created by Chitrasena, including Karadiya, and also performed in Spirit of the Mahaweli and several other productions. Alongside dance, she learned to play the piano and sat for music examinations. “The only artistic pursuit I never managed was singing. I simply could not sing in tune.”
Kumaratunga’s connection to the arts remained strong as her interests expanded into politics and political science. She began to see the arts from a broader perspective and reading about political and social movements in Latin America during her teenage years and early adulthood helped her understand the influence artists could have in shaping societies.
She also recalled her college years in Paris as deeply influential. Living in a city known for its cultural life strengthened her appreciation for theatre, ballet, and cinema. “As students, we would sometimes even skip a meal so that we could use that money to buy tickets for a performance. Cinema later became a strong interest, and life eventually led me to marry a film actor."
Her engagement with theatre audiences continued after returning to Sri Lanka. She said that during her working years, she frequently attended stage productions and was particularly drawn to venues such as the Lumbini Theatre, which at that time served as one of the main locations for Sinhala drama. “There were very few theatres in Colombo then for Sinhala drama,” she said, noting that Lionel Wendt existed but was relatively expensive for many, and this was when she first began to think about building opportunities in theatre.
One early attempt came during her time at the Land Reforms Commission. She recalled organising a theatre festival among cooperative youth farms across the country. “At that time we had around 250 cooperative youth farms. Young people were encouraged to write their own short plays of about 20 minutes. Performances were staged in coconut estates and other open spaces without elaborate costumes. Three stages operated simultaneously, allowing multiple plays and poetry readings to take place. Experienced dramatists served as judges and selected the best productions."
From that point onward, she carried the idea of establishing a formal Drama Academy. She said that as Chief Minister of the Western Province, she proposed constructing such an institution, and later, during her presidency, funds from the President’s Fund were allocated toward the project.
A group of 38 leading Sri Lankan dramatists even developed a curriculum. However, she said the plan was eventually abandoned after a change in government, with facilities originally intended for artists converted into commercial ventures. Similar discussions surrounding the Nelum Pokuna theatre complex also did not materialise as planned.
Kumaratunga said that the Kolamba Kamatha initiative grew from those earlier efforts. “Even though it is not a full academy, it provides a space where theatre practitioners can rehearse, conduct workshops and interact,” she said.
Kolamba Kamatha consists of six performance spaces and was opened at the BMICH in November 2022 to provide both professional and student theatre and dance practitioners, regardless of their financial means, with accessible spaces to rehearse and perform. The venue was created to support the development of work that reflects Sri Lanka’s historical and contemporary traditions in theatre and dance, including productions that have gained recognition locally and internationally.
The Kolamaba Kamatha Festival, now entering its second edition was conceptualised on completion of the overall Kolamba Kamatha to highlight the spaces’ shared purpose of supporting theatre across Sinhala, Tamil, and English.
Kumatanga expressed that Sri Lanka possesses the potential to develop something comparable to theatre villages seen internationally, citing examples such as the Edinburgh Fringe. Some of the smaller projects undertaken in earlier years, she said, showed that interest and talent already exist, and that sustained collective effort could strengthen the field further.
She also spoke about the importance of cultural inclusivity, noting that theatre has played a role in many initiatives aimed at strengthening understanding among Sri Lanka’s communities. “Cultural platforms like this can create spaces where people from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds come together and appreciate each other’s work,” she said, adding that workshops and discussions could help deepen understanding of shared cultural experiences.
The 2026 edition of Kolamba Kamatha Festival
Kolamba Kamatha Festival Curator Bimsara Premaratna spoke to Brunch about the process of assembling this year’s programme as both challenging and rewarding. “When I was invited to take on the role of curator for the Kolamba Kamatha Festival, I immediately began thinking about what kind of programme would best represent the diversity of Sri Lankan theatre,” she said.
Premaratna explained that Sri Lanka’s theatrical tradition is extensive, making it necessary to create a programme that reflects multiple styles and forms. The selection includes full-length productions, short plays, contemporary works, classical material, original scripts, and adaptations. “The aim was to present performances in all three languages and give space both to established theatre makers and emerging voices,” she said.
The 2026 programme features more than 20 plays spanning various traditions and languages. The 2026 Festival also hopes to introduce younger audiences, particularly those from Gen-Z, to the Apey Kattiya movement of the 1960s and 1970s, a period that played a role in shaping politically and socially engaged theatre in Sri Lanka.
Beyond stage productions, the festival space itself has been designed to create a lively environment. Activities such as face painting, sketch art, and food stalls will be available, allowing visitors to spend extended time at the venue. “We wanted the festival to feel welcoming and lively, so that visitors of all ages can enjoy spending time there,” she said.
Festival director Chanchala Gunewardena shared that Sri Lanka already has several respected theatre festivals, and that the Kolamba Kamatha Festival builds on lessons learned from those experiences while introducing its own format. “Our schedule runs across full days with multiple performances, panel discussions and workshops taking place, sometimes even overlapping,” she said.
Although this format may require audiences to choose between events, she said it contributes to an energetic atmosphere. “Even if someone misses a performance, we hope it encourages them to seek it out later or follow the work of that theatre group in the future,” she said.
Gunawardena also described the layout of Kolamba Kamatha as a theatre village designed to encourage interaction and community, adding, “We want people to come not just to watch a single play and leave, but to spend time there. Visitors are encouraged to bring picnic blankets, enjoy food and drinks available at the venue, and spend the day immersed in the festival environment. The idea is to experience theatre as part of a broader cultural atmosphere.”
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