Lithuania
No words
- Age 14+
- Duration – 1 val. 20 min.
- Vieta – The main Hall,Kaunas State Puppet Theatre
Director – Rokas Lazaunykas
Playwright – Sandra Bernotaite
Composer – Romuald Chaloin Galiauskas
Music assistant – Lukas Laurinavicius
Media artist – Titas Jurjonas
Author of photo collages – Vaporwave Kaunas
Creative mentors – Giedre Brazyte and Antanas Jasenka
Starring – Mindaugas Cerniauskas, Indrė Endriukaite, Vigita Rudyte, Arvydas Sauciūnas
Premiere on March 19, 2022
A performance for young people “Me -The Beast” follows a young person in today’s world discovering an “animal” of creativity within himself. What do we think when seeing “cool” looking teenagers on the streets? “They’re animals! They must not be very nice.” We’re used to being scared of what’s unknown to us. Truth is, some of them use this as something to hide behind and remain unknown, covering themselves in attributes parading courage, power and self- esteem they lack. This puppet play portrays the transition of one “street kid” into a creator. A touching drama between a mother and her son that helps open his eyes to a prospect of a different life.
The “Me – The Beast” play cleverly uses both puppets of various scales and actors to portray the characters. The action is created using an open theatre principle. This fun and grotesque, full of dance, visually and musically stimulating performance knocks on the heart of the viewer in a truly sensitive manner.
The performance is a part of the “Kaunas – European Capital of Culture 2022” program.
Kaunas State Puppet Theatre
Kaunas State Puppet Theatre was founded by two drama actors Stasys Ratkevicius (1917 – 2010) and Valerija Gruodyte – Ratkeviciene (1916 – 2004) in the middle of the last century. Having started his creative path with a lot of successful roles and directing works behind him at the Klaipeda Drama Theatre, Ratkevicius matured to establish a dream that would not let him down – theatre for children.
The yearbook of theatre history, starting with the “Magic Lantern of Aladdin” and carrying a solid list of directors, artists, actors, scenographers, composers and names of more than 200 performances, about 2,000 puppet works and over 17,000 plays have already been seen by more than 2.7 million viewers. The theatre has successfully participated in many festivals, visiting over 20 foreign countries.
Tradition nurturing Kaunas Puppet Theatre is open to new cooperation offers and opportunities in Europe. The theatre participated in the project “Young Age”, funded by the
European Commission’s Culture Program in 2006, “The modern puppet museum transcends the boundaries of different cultures” in 2010 and “Family and children of modern Europe” in 2011.
The theatre is a member of the International Association of Children’s and Youth Theatres
ASSITEJ and the International Puppetry Organisation UNIMA.
