Malalasekara Hall
theatre hall of Nalanda College in Sri Lanka
Malalasekara Hall (Sinhala: මලලසේකර රඟහල) (also called Malalasekara Memorial Hall Nalanda College, Malalasekara Theatre or Malalasekara Theatre Hall), is the performance theatre at Nalanda College, located in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is named in honour of professor Gunapala Malalasekera, the school's first registered principal (1925-1927) following its establishment.
History
It was during the tenure of Sugunadasa Athukorala, the school principal (1962-1982), that he initiated the plan for building a performance theatre at the school.
The theatre was opened on 23 June 1990 by the Minister of Education, Lalith Athulathmudali. Prominent Sinhalese vocalist, violinist and composer, W. D. Amaradeva, was the guest of honour at the opening. The first performance was Vindana, which comprised three stage dramas, Agni Jala, by Mahesh Kotuwella, Kadatura by Niroshan Illeperuma, and Ekasiya Panaha by Sanka Amarajith.
On 6 April 2006, Malalasekara Hall was gutted by fire due to an electricity shortage and completely destroyed leaving only the building's concrete shell. The Department of Civil Engineering of University of Moratuwa undertook structural investigations (rebound hammer testing and visual inspection) of the fire damaged building. The school's principal, Hemantha Prematilake, initiated a fundraiser to gather donations to re-build the theatre. Former student and architect, Royle Senaratne, volunteered to redesign the theatre.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Malalasekara Hall” as theatre hall of Nalanda College in Sri Lanka. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as theatre hall of Nalanda College in Sri Lanka. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 23, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q134836662. Authority coordinates are 6.922, 79.875. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1925, 1927, 1962 and 1982.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Malalasekara Hall”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Malalasekara Hall primary sources, Malalasekara Hall archive and Malalasekara research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Malalasekara Hall”?
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- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Malalasekara Hall” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.