June 16

The State Small Theatre of Vilnius (Lithuania)

Marius Ivaskevicius. "MISTRAS"

Director: Rimas Tuminas

THEATRE:

THE STATE SMALL THEATRE OF VILNIUS was founded in 1990 by the director Rimas Tuminas and by the group of like-minded actors. In 1997 the theatre was awarded the status of the State Theatre. Having had no stage for many years the theatre in 2005 got it in the very centre of the Lithuanian capital at Gediminas Prospect.

For more than a quarter of a century the State Small Theatre of Vilnius follows to the principles of creation "An Open Theatre". Its essence is to make a contact with everyone coming to the performances, theatre of freedom and creativity. Traditions, connection with the past and memories about culture and history have always been very important for the theatre. This philosophy was in the picture of the best plays – "The Cherry Orchard" and "Smile upon us, Lord", "Masquerade" and "The Inspector General", "Madagascar" and "Three sisters" directed by Rimas Tuminas have visited many countries – from Sweden to Italy, from South Korea to Mexico – and were awarded with numerous prestigious prizes. Certainly, not only the original direction skills and pedagogical talent of Rimas Tuminas but also an exceptional ensemble of actors having evolved over the course of many years, adds to this success. In 1999, after the tour in Great Britain, the troupe of the State Small Theatre of Vilnius recognized by English press as one of the best in the world.

It is the second visit of the State Small Theatre of Vilnius to Omsk: in 2008 the play "Madagascar" by Marius Ivaskevicius was successfully shown on the
I International Theatre Festival "ACADEMIA".

DIRECTOR:  

RIMAS TUMINAS studied at the Conservatory of Lithuania (television director), in 1978 he graduated from directing course of GITIS. From 1979 to 1990 he worked as a director at the State Academic Theatre of Lithuania, since 1994 till 1999 – as a chief director of the theatre. In 1990 he founded and headed the State Small Theatre of Vilnius. Nowadays he is an artistic director of the State Small Theatre of Vilnius and since 2007 of Vakhtangov State Theatre, Moscow.

He staged for more than 50 plays in Lithuania, Russia and in theatres of other countries: Finland, Iceland, Great Britain, Poland and Sweden. He has been teaching in Lithuanian Academy of music and theatre since 1981. Recipient of the National Prizes of Lithuania and Ireland Republics in the field of theatre art, owner of the State Prize of the Russian Federation, the Order of Grand Duke Gediminas of Lithuania, a laureate of the "Golden Mask" Award and many other prizes and festival’s awards.

PERFORMANCE:

"Mistras" in the play is not a leading actor – the poet Adam Mickiewicz, whose nationality became a kind of puzzle for an author, Mistras is Andrzej Towianski Adam’s guru, sectary and mystic of the XIX century. Their complicated and strange relations were specially chosen by the author Marius Ivaskevicius to think about self-identity of the Lithuanian nation. Nowadays Ivaskevicius is the main Lithuanian playwright, who worked together with Rimas Tuminas trying to find modern keys to this historical subject. Two plots moves along: one is family and melodramatic. Other – is an intellectual, and so captivating that watching it is no less interesting than the history of relations". Kristina Matvienko, "Nezavisimaya gazeta".

«"The most interesting and actual scene in "MISTRAS" is shown as betweenness relations of personality and "guru", which was developed by Ivaskevicius. It allows us to compare mentalities of "East" and "West". It seems that Tuminas refuses such possibility, because he made all characters as colorless citizens of grotesque "European Union". Using such methods he smiled at unchangeable stereotypes – that rising differences between East-European and West-European natures. The director plays with contrast between East sensitive religion and West intellectual doubts, between uncivilized and strange East and standard West, between spirituality of East and West pragmatism». Sharune Trinkynayte, "Kulturos barai".

The play is a participant and a laureate of some international festivals. In 2010 the theatre was fifthly awarded (included the prizes for the best play and for the best directing) on the festival of Baltic countries (Panevezys, Lithuania). In March, 2014 the theatre has owned the Grand Prize of the IX International Youth Theatre Forum «M.@rt Contact» (Mogilev, Belorussia).