MAKING BAKMAHA RANGANA 2009

Making a live show running over 3 ½ hrs is hard. Making Bak Maha Rangna (BMR), Sydney’s foremost Sri Lankan Cultural event, involving over 400 local performers, was harder. BMR 2009, Vasath Rava, the much awaited event in Sydney calendar, was launched in late 2008 by the incoming SCF(Sinhalese Cultural Forum of NSW) committee with several challenges in front of them The greatest challenge faced by the new cultural committee of the SCF was to restore the quality of BMR which has been losing its flavor in the recent years. The process commenced with a members survey seeking ideas and suggestions to improve the quality of the show. Members comments primarily stressed the need to limit the length of the show to a max of 3 1/2 hours and to encourage increased youth participation. In order to achieve SCF objectives and to address member’s comments it was required to bring in certain conditions (or so called controls and rules) along with Quality assurance, as it applies to market any product. However, when the product involved several hundreds of individuals with diverse ideas, particularly parents, it is different and often ends up in collision and/or conflict. The much criticised conditions, or rules, adhered by 2009 production team included following. 

1. Time limit for performances 

2. Application deadline 

3. SCF membership for participants 

 4. Item limit for participants 

 5. ‘Preview’ of all items by mid March Most of these already existed in BMR guidelines (except item 5), however, were not strictly enforced previously. 

1. Time limit for performances This was considered crucial in order to limit the overall show time. Considering the large number of applications received it was inevitable and maximum time limit for an item was set as 5 minutes. No major issues were noted in this regard and generally all participants followed the condition. 

2. Application deadline It has been noted in previous years that there were late entries (as late as two weeks before the show) which seemed to have affected the process. Inclusion of such late entries throughout the process has not only allowed low quality items in but also made it difficult for the producers to curtail the length of the show. One major issue that cropped up in relation to this was refusal to forward a formal application by at least two regular participants due to personal reasons 

3. SCF membership for participants It was considered fair by everyone taking part to acknowledge SCF’s commitment towards the show. The establishment of BMR as the major event over the years has been due to continuous voluntary efforts of its committee members and without a strong membership base it is hard for an organisation to sustain such programs. It is reported that there had been a favorable response in this regard in 2009. 

4. Item limit for participants This was considered fair and reasonable to allow equal opportunity to as many members as possible. A request was made by several parents and teachers to exempt children who had to take part in a Sinhala language school items. Consequently, the request was granted and the condition was relaxed to allow up to 3 items for those who took part in Sinhala school items. 

5. ‘Preview’ or audition It was required by all performers to attend a preview of items by mid March to make sure that all items met the expected BMR quality/standard. The term ‘preview’ was a substitution to commonly used ‘audition’ as there were opposition from some of the participants to appear for an ‘audition’ due to a misconception of the term as a process only meant for novices. Later, it was clarified that the intention of the producers is to gain an understanding of each performance in view of final BMR outcome and program line up etc. rather than to assess individual performers. Hence it was renamed a preview however, few still had concerns and ignored the requirement. This particular condition introduced this year encouraged most performers with keen interest to prepare well ahead and to receive advice provided by judges. The outcome of this effort was evident in the continuous improvement of many items as noted during the weeks that followed leading up to the final show. This process also raised confidence of many performers who participated thereby contributing to the quality of the final outcome. Apart from the above it is also considered appropriate to discuss few other issues that we had to deal with during this production. 

Guest Artist 

Choosing a guest artist wasn’t an easy task. Having tossed around few names and not receiving favorable responses from some of them Kamal Addararchchi’s name was proposed. Regardless of his extreme talents in many facets of performing art the actor had earned a reputation still not accepted in some sections of our society. When Kamal as an artist as well as Sri Lanka as a country has left his past behind and moved forward, unfortunately, it was not the same here in Sydney as noted in several unpleasant reactions to our final choice. 

Visiting Artist 

The preview (Auditioning ) was followed by a visit from two guest artists from Melbourne, Yasodara Sarathchandra and Kusumsiri Liyanarachchi during the weekend 27-29th March, conducting a series of workshops at several locations such as Uniting Church Hall, Cherrybrook, North Parramatta Sinhala School and Blacktown Sinhala School. This program was another first introduced to assist interested performers to discuss their items with the visiting experts in the field of drama, dance and music in Sri Lanka. It was a useful exercise to both the young and the old who participated to fine tune their performances. Similarly, a mini workshop on compeering was conducted by Kamal Addararachchi to improve skills of youth who had interest and particularly those who took part in compeering. One notable setback of the former program was that it failed to deliver the level of contribution originally intended to the youth group performances due to initial communication and coordination issues. Nevertheless, as a whole the program not only contributed to improve the quality of BMR 2009 but initiated a process that will be helpful to ensure higher quality and standard of events in years to come. 

First Item 

Discussions on an appropriate item for the opening performance aimed to introduce a novelty while making a statement. The agreement was to bring in a classical item with a blend of western and eastern music. Resources being available locally, discussion were held with artists who showed great enthusiasm initially bringing in incredible ideas. It was unfortunate that this didn’t progress as anticipated urging us to find a replacement in a short notice. 

BMR standard or quality 

Finally, a note on BMR standard, or quality; in the absence of an accepted measure or one to relate to, except previous productions, our intention was to identify what the audience wanted and hence the member consultation referred earlier. The question of what is acceptable to the community has never been explored in terms of art but has been caught up in the delusion of protecting our 'culture' and 'values'. This makes it even harder when we seem to cling on to the culture and values that we left behind many years ago where it has taken its own course over the years. Making reference to poor public acceptance of his early novel, Martin Wickramasinghe has said, “After I published ‘Miringuwa’ I realised that Sinhala reader appreciated stories highlighting good & bad, virtue & evil and values but not rules of art” (Upan Da Sita). I am sure this still applies to our migrant society. Notwithstanding, it was interesting to note that there were commendable attempts by few to depart from the convention. Further, technical direction and stage settings were innovative, utilising the facilities to its best. As it is not the intention to discuss at length about things that went well, I may conclude this with the following note. It is our great pleasure as a team to have delivered an enjoyable Bak Maha Rangana in 2009.

BMR Pruduction 2009