Who We Are? 

Considering the success of the weekly meetings by DRAMSOC, the society ventured to stage a play in public. The chosen script of Captain Brassbound’s Conversion by Bernard Shaw was seen as both fashionable and convenient as there was only one woman in the cast. Preliminary rehearsals were held although nothing was to come of these rehearsals. Undeterred, between the periods of 1928-1932, DRAMSOC continued its' play-reading and went on to successfully stage its' first public performance at the College House. A. A. Milne’s The Princess and the Woodcutter was the selected play for the society’s inaugural play and was met with much acclaim.

It was clear that DRAMSOC took itself seriously by the importance given to the choice of plays staged by the society and the attention given to quality. It continued to present a series of plays by Euripides, Sheridan, Shaw and Shakespeare. Although DRAMSOC never burdened themselves with the issuing of manifestos, the pattern of individuals that emerged from the society was a youth group seeking to learn the theatrical essentials and avoiding the complexities of meaning and method to do so.

When Professor Leigh Smith retired from University College, The activities of the group were handed over to his successor, Professor E. F. C. Ludowyk. Writing at that time, Professor Ludowyk observes, “There was a group of highly intelligent, keen students, themselves aware of the functions of a University, ready to launch out into the public, but conscious that the roots of the society were in its' University membership.” 

The heyday of DRAMSOC was from 1942-1951. In 1942, following the University College being raised to full university status, Professor Ludowyk staged Marco Millions by O’ Neill which was an ambitious venture requiring a large cast, a chorus and various special effects.

This play was a giant success and managed to secure the society as one of the only producers of English drama in the country at the time. Certain cultural factors were also known to have influenced the popularity of English drama during this period. It was a time that Sri Lankans prided themselves in their Proficiency in English and DramSoc managed to offer its patrons with a European experience they so desired. 

The society took root in Peradeniya closely following the University’s inception back in 1942. Being a Shakespearean scholar, author, playwright and critic who was the first professor of English in the University of Peradeniya, erstwhile the University of Ceylon, Professor E.F.C Ludowyk was instrumental in making DramSoc what it is today. Though suddenly deprived of many important resources, the DramSoc did not lose its creative impetus with its shift of location. The society began to strike roots in its new home with such happenings as Jubal’s production of “Weda Satana”, an adaptation “Le Malade Imaginaire”. The inauguration of the annual one-act play competition among the three women’s halls of residence was a decisive step in the development of student talent and initiative that was to help build a unique tradition of drama and theatre at Peradeniya. 

Professor Ludowyk’s productions were what laid the basis for a sophisticated English-language theatre in Sri Lanka; his collaborations with the celebrated dramatist Ediriweera Sarathchandra (who, incidentally, was also a product of DramSoc) led to the famed production ‘Maname’. According to Professor Sarachchandra, the development of the modern Sinhala drama began with the production of an adaptation from “Kapuwa Kapothi” or “Gogol’s Marriage” by the Sinhala Ranga Sabha of the University of Peradeniya directed by Professor E. F. C. Ludowyk. The society has produced many great dramatists and experts of the performing arts throughout its rich history in addition to Ediriweera Sarathchandra, such as Gamini Haththotuwegama, Ashley Halpe, 16 Jayalath Manorathne and K. B. Herath, to name a few. 

The nationalist revival of the mid-fifties saw the redefining of DramSoc’s nature and existence in terms of the new society that was emerging in the country. Within the university, 1960 saw the inauguration of the Sinhala and Tamil mediums and the consequent depletion of the English medium. DramSoc’s survival was in the balance, however, the society managed to respond adequately to the vast social and educational changes happening around it at the time. 

In the early 60’s, DramSoc had participated in the Annual University Drama Festival held at the Ediriweera Sarachchandra Open Air Theatre. This association with the festival was renewed in the 70’s as well, although it was essentially a Sinhala drama festival. It was also during this period that the DramSoc first sponsored the production of Tamil plays. The aim of DramSoc has always been to foster a living tradition of English theatre in the university, creating among the members of the community an abiding in the art and a firsthand awareness of its unique nature and demands, encouraging originality and creativity in the practice of the art and defining relevance as well as the best standards for it. 

DramSoc has only sought to continue to discharge the role that Professor E. F. C. Ludowyk implicitly defined for it through his work, work that had a profound and enduring impact not only on local English drama, but also on the whole emerging modern dramatic movement in the country. In the words of Professor Ludowyk, “drama always does have some snobbery, some arrogance and some narcissism involved, but what Dramsoc has always stood for is the endeavor of creative activities with a group of inspiring young people and having that sense of fulfillment knowing that it is all worth doing.”

Reference: DRAMSOC Journal 2018, by Nushara Amarasekara and Mithma De Silva

We are English drama enthusiast undergraduates of University of Peradeniya and DRAMSOC committee for the year 2021.

Anyone from University of Peradeniya interested in English Drama and Theatre can join the club.