Thank you Aunty Oosha
Theatre and dance personalities and students shared heartfelt tributes to the legend that was Oosha. Here are extracts:
Jerome de Silva:
To say that I owe my theatre career spanning 50 years to her is to say the least. She together with Wendy Whatmore, Fr. Claver Perera and Ena Heynecker nurtured me to be what I am. It was Aunty Oosha who taught me most about the discipline one requires to be an artist. The immense knowledge I gathered from her and the knack to teach were inculcated in me by her. Her generosity to share her knowledge and resources is unmatchable. I personally hope I can continue to share the legacy she left in me and that it would be continued even after me till we all meet on that beautiful shore.
Upeka Chitrasena:
From the time I was a little girl, I always knew her as Aunty Oosha and as I grew up and got more immersed in dance, I tried never to miss any of the productions she presented on stage with her pupils. She was an icon in the Sri Lankan dance world of Western Ballet and my parents and she had a fondness and mutual respect for each other, understanding and appreciating the valuable contributions they had made to the theatre tradition in Sri Lanka.
Later, as my friendship extended to her children, Sara and Kumudini, I was a regular guest at the family’s annual Christmas party, with carol singing and a sumptuous Christmas dinner being regular features. She was always a cheerful and gracious hostess and in the latter years, in spite of her debilitating illness, she would never fail to attend, even though she couldn’t partake in most of the activities and conversations.
She will be sorely missed by her many friends and the myriad students, some of them going on to be professional dancers, who passed through her classes, and it will take some time before we will get used to her absence at those memorable Christmas celebrations.
Naomi Rajaratnam:
At a time when Ballet was not given much prominence in this country, Oosha Saravanamuttu persevered with great courage to keep this dance form alive in Sri Lanka and will always be considered one amongst a very few who was a pioneer of ballet in our island.
I recall Chattanooga Choo Choo being one of her favourite items and I recall her dancing to it.
Sureka Gunawardena:
Aunty Oosha as we all fondly called her, was an extremely gracious lady, an outstanding teacher, choreographer, a role model and an inspiration who shaped the foundation in my 27 plus years of dance training under her guidance. Aunty Oosha not only taught us how to dance but also instilled in us the importance of discipline, attention to detail and taught us that hard work, dedication and sacrifices will ultimately result in amazing creativity and noteworthy dancers in us. She was the teacher who believed in you, pushed you and led you on to the next plateau and most often poked you with a sharp stick called the truth.
Aunty Oosha, you are a gift from God and I am eternally grateful to you for shaping my life that has led me to be where I am today. Your imprint lives in my heart forever. May you rest in eternal peace.
Menaka De Fonseka Sahabandu:
Aunt Oosha is a legend. She taught me ballet when I was in primary school. Everything I learned from her, be it appreciation of classical music, dance, poise, confidence on stage became useful to me later as a musician and as a teacher. She was the Shirley Temple of Sri Lanka. I was also lucky to have worked with her later in life in several productions and concerts.
Christopher Prins:
Aunty Oosha - a truly amazing human being – to me, she was more than my dance teacher. She was a mother, friend and mentor.
My first experience with Aunty Oosha was in the production of Joseph for the Wendy Whatmore Academy where Aunty Oosha was the choreographer, Mary Anne David was the choral director and Jerome de Silva was the director. I had never done ballet prior to that. At the end of the production Aunty Oosha encouraged many of the cast to attend her ballet classes and so I too was blessed to learn ballet under Aunty Oosha.
Aunty Oosha was able to bring out in each of us much more than we ourselves believed possible. She made dancers of all of us who attended classes.
I thoroughly enjoyed my five and a half years of being a student of the Oosha Garten. Aunty Oosha, thank you.
Romina Gyi and Tara Cooke:
Ever since the start of the Oosha Garten of Ballet more than 50 years ago, lessons at Aunty Oosha’s have played a significant role in many of our lives. It’s not just us, the generations upon generations of lives she touched during her career is countless. We learnt the importance of discipline, hardwork and perseverance amongst many other attributes.
Her legacy lives on through us at The Ballet School of Colombo as we are forever grateful for all that she taught us and strive to pass her passion and dedication to the future generations.
The memories etched in our hearts are far greater then those captured in pictures.
Kapila Palihawadana:
For me Oosha Garten Ballet was very very special and unique among all the ballet schools in Sri Lanka. Aunty Oosha was very particular about her students developing the right technique, and learning under her meant that one has to dance properly as she would not settle for anything else. I always appreciated and will appreciate the fact that she demanded the best from her dancers and she always made her choice not to present a dance performance until it was perfect.
She was the proof of the existence of grace in our lives. Aunty Oosha made me the person I am today. I learned a lot and there are not enough words to explain how influential she was to me. Today I am running Sri Lanka’s first ever contemporary professional dance company nATANDA dance theatre, and I believe her blessing is always there for me.
Otara Gunewardene:
I was a dancer with the Oosha Garten of Ballet for almost nine years. It truly was one of the most memorable and best experiences of my life. Not only did she train me to be one of her lead dancers, she taught me dedication, discipline, commitment and to also have fun. What I learnt from her and have used the most throughout my life was her great passion and love for what she did. Thank you Aunty Oosha.