Children plan to raise awareness on cancer
Over 50 children of the Theatre Circle of the Sri Lankan School Doha (SLSD), will visit their motherland next month to stage their musical — Sophie’s Story — which has wowed the Doha audience.
The play, adopted from the hit Mamma Mia, the story of a bride-to-be trying to find her real father narrated with hit songs by the popular 70s group ABBA, was a instant sensation when it was staged at the Qatar National Convention Centre on September 13 last year.
Now this production will be taken to Sri Lanka and performed at the world class, state-of-the-art theatre, Nelum Pokuna, on February 16.
The mission of this project is twofold: To transform the production into a ‘reputation development project’ for the school and create awareness about cancer among the young.
Teacher-in-Charge of the Theatre Circle of the SLSD said the storyline of the play may be altered to highlight the benefits of early detection of cancer. “If the story is not altered, the kids will perform a 10-minute playlet on this theme,” she said.
This will be the first time a Sri Lankan School in the Middle East will perform in its motherland.
With the assistance of Dr. Mario, who heads a privately owned organisation dedicated to cancer patients in Sri Lanka, the children plan to organise a walk immediately after the performance.
After the play, they will go in a candle-lit procession to the Viharamahadevi Park in Colombo in honour of those battling Cancer.
The audience will be encouraged to join the kids in this procession.
The audience can buy a candle which will be sold prior to the event and will be available outside the theatre on the day of the event.
“The endeavour will also lay emphasis on the SLSD students who deserve to be part of the education plan adopted by the Sri Lankan government,” says Chairman of the school, Kumudu Fonseka. “Plans could be enforced to secure a tertiary education programme for students in Doha if and when they return to the island. While this is a long-term plan, every great journey begins with a single step,” he said.The Peninsula
