On the occasion of the Theater Day, LNDT awarded the best actors of its troupe | Culture

LNDT actors Jolanta Dapkūnaitė, Vytautas Rumšas, Dalia Michelevičiūtė and Martynas Nedzinskas have won prizes in previous years. The awards are named in honor of personalities important to the theater – the theater’s founder director Romuald Juknevičius (1906–1963) and the first Lithuanian professional director Kazimiera Kymantaitė (1909–1999).

This year, by the decision of the commission, actress Aistė Zabotkaitė won the award for her roles in the performances “Metamorfozė”, “Ruletė” and “Teiresijo’s breast”. Kęstutis Cicėnas was awarded as the best actor of the year at LNDT for his roles in the plays “Metamorfosis” and “Ruletė”. He was away on tour, so he recorded his thanks in a video message.

The LNDT event was hosted by Marius Repšys, performances were also prepared by other LNDT troupe actors: Jurga Kalvaitytė, Neringa Bulotaitė, Diana Anevičiūtė and Arūnas Vozbutas.

Nominees were selected from performances that premiered from 2023. March to 2024 March. At the Lithuanian National Drama Theater, as many as eight performances took place during this time: “Fossilia”, “Metamorfosis”, “Ruletė”, “Contemplating the Lobster”, “Siberian Haiku”, “Teiresia’s Breasts”, “Things I didn’t dare to say and now it’s too late ” and “A play for those living in times of extinction”.

The laureates were chosen by a new commission formed last year – actors Jurga Kalvaitytė, Dalia Michelevičiūtė, Vytautas Rumšas, Arūnas Vozbutas and theater expert Daiva Šabasevičienė.

“It was important to establish a prize that would be not only honorable, but also nice to the person himself: small and not put in a drawer. This is a small brooch suitable for various occasions and with various clothing styles. These are white and tinted silver buttons created by the artist Saulius Vaitiekūnas with the symbol of Lithuanian statehood, the wick, and the initials of Kymantaitė and Juknevičius on the other side,” says Daiva Šabasevičienė, chairwoman of the commission and designer of the prizes.

Employees of other LNDT departments also gave awards to deserving colleagues during the year.

How important are directors Romualdas Juknevičius and Kazimiera Kymantaitė, whose monograms mark the new prizes?

Director in the history of the Lithuanian National Drama Theater Romualdas Juknevičius (1906-1963) occupies a special place – he is the first artistic director of the theater, the director of the first performance of this theater – the drama “Hope” by Herman Hejermans. The symbol of this performance – the boat – still adorns the curtain of the theater.

Great Lithuania 20th century in the words of playwright, writer, playwright and critic Balis Sruoga, Juknevičius was a director “from Mr. Dievo’s lock”. Romualdas Juknevičius came to Vilnius as the leader of the first professional theater troupe, and continues his activities at LNDT.

Many memorable plays of Romuald Juknevičius have been recorded in the history of our country’s theater and LNDT, including Gerhard Hauptmann’s “Before Sunset”, Henrik Ibsen’s “Nora”, Marcel Pagnol’s “Topaz”, Richard Billinger’s “Gigant”, Balis Sruoga’s “Part of the Dawn” and others .

The pioneer and founder of the theater, who did not agree with the Soviet authorities due to the political withdrawal signed during the war, which talks regarding the staged elections to the Supreme Council and was exiled to Telšias, later worked in Klaipėda and Kaunas, Juknevičius in 1953. returned to the theater he founded in Vilnius and worked there until his death in 1963. suffered a heart attack following the censorship banned the play “Green Gloves”.

“Romualdas Juknevičius emerged in the Lithuanian theater as a great realist of stage art, an unparalleled master of the most subtle and spiritual psychology, particularly sensitive to the dramatist, extremely attentive to the artist, and a keen theater pedagogue. He felt his era like no one else, so his best performances were born at the right time”, in 1998. theaterologist Irena Aleksaitė wrote regarding Juknevičius in her published monograph.

Kazimiera Kymantaitė (1909–1999) – director, actress, one of the most famous female artists in Lithuania. She was a student of the director Andrias Olekas-Žilinskas, a companion of Romualds Juknevičius and Algirdas Juškevičius. Together with them, she created Lithuanian professional theater. Kazimiera Kymantaitė not only left a bright mark on Lithuanian theater culture – her strength of character, courage, humor, love for people and life remain in the hearts of those who knew her to this day. She impressed everyone with her dedication to the theater. When she came to the stage from the “Youth Theater”, she always classified herself as the “young generation” – restless, disobedient, rebellious.

Her great love is Lithuanian literature, which she knew well and highly valued. Kymantaitė’s most famous performances were created based on the works of Lithuanian writers: Žemaitė’s “Marti”, Antanas Vienuoli’s “Paskenduolė”, Justin Marcinkevičius’s “Blood and Ashes”, Balis Sruoga’s “The Giant’s Paunksmė”, Šatrija Ragana’s “Sename dvare” and others. In 1948, Boris Dauguvietis’ “Zhaldokynė” directed by her was performed with minor breaks for sixty-two years.

Pranas Treinys, who served as director of the Lithuanian State Academic (now National) Drama Theater for thirty-three years, remembers Kazimieras Kymantaitė very vividly. Among his most interesting memories: “Kazimir was difficult to talk to. Whenever I tried to do this, to protest or discipline her, and for good reason, she always fired back: “Don’t try, it won’t work!” I’m a stubborn Zemaite: if I can’t talk myself out of it, you won’t be able to do it all the more.”