Solo Theatre is implementing a project in 2026, presenting a cycle of new performances in Vilnius under the motto “Theatre as Living History.” Residents of Vilnius and visitors to the capital will have the opportunity to see new and highly relevant contemporary theatre productions created on the basis of documentary material. The performances introduce important cultural figures from Lithuanian history, while also exploring themes of genocide and historical trauma, resonating with current global events, the threat of war, and the states of uncertainty and anxiety experienced by the modern individual.
The project will present five productions, including “The Unwritten Letter”, inspired by the life and creative work of Šatrija Ragana. Excerpts from her letters, written a century ago, prompt reflection and resonate strongly with the present day: “What kind of nation are we, if for wounded pride we go to the enemy and smear our own people with mud? How can culture rise when party struggle dominates everywhere: what some build, others destroy! People quarrel not for the greater good of Lithuania, but for wounded egoism!”
“The Thinking Barracks Heart” – stories of three genocides (Buča, the fate of Ukrainian Natalija Skrinnik, who spent a month in captivity; Lithuanian Joana Ulinauskaitė-Mureikienė, imprisoned in Siberian labour camps; and the life of Jewish writer Etty Hillesum, who perished in Auschwitz); “Mother’s Milk” based on the novel by the well-known Latvian writer N. Ikstena, who passed away this year; and “Ice Children” – already a classic of Lithuanian theatre, based on the memories of the author’s parents and other Lithuanian deportees about the first deportations on 14 June 1941, and the survival stories of Lithuanian exiles in the far north near the Laptev Sea (also incorporating D. Grinkevičiūtė’s now-classic memoir “Lithuanians by the Laptev Sea”).
The cycle also includes the much-loved family performance “Princess Island,” popular among younger audiences. The production fosters children’s empathy, imagination, and musicality, inviting both adults and children to spend meaningful time together on weekends and share their impressions of the performance.
An innovation of the cycle is that the performances “Ice Children” and “Mother’s Milk” are presented with English subtitles, in order to attract visitors to Vilnius as well as international residents living and working in the capital, whose numbers are steadily growing and for whom it is equally important to become acquainted with contemporary Lithuanian theatre culture and the history of Lithuania.
In order to ensure the highest artistic quality, professionalism, and broader audience engagement, the 2026 performances will be staged in prestigious venues: the Small Hall of the Lithuanian National Drama Theatre, Arts Printing House, and, for the children’s performance, the newly established theatre space “Smala” (formerly the Chamber Theatre) located on Konstitucijos Avenue.
According to director and project initiator Birutė Mar, history brought to life on stage through the language of theatre is especially relevant today – offering powerful lessons of history to audiences: “I have often heard audience responses and gratitude after performances such as Ice Children and The Thinking Barracks Heart – people say that during the performances they felt as if they themselves had travelled in deportation wagons, experienced hunger, cold, and the hope of returning home, which gave strength and the ability to endure to our parents and ancestors. I am glad that, thanks to Solo Theatre productions, audiences can reflect on the most important human values, and on the significance of the homeland as one of the most essential of these values. I also believe that in Vilnius it is becoming increasingly important that theatre is accessible not only to local residents, but also to English-speaking visitors and international residents, whose number in the capital continues to grow.”
It is encouraging that the audience of the “Theatre as Living History” cycle for Vilnius residents includes the international student community of Lithuanian universities, visitors to the city, and employees of foreign embassies working in Lithuania. The performances are also attended by the youngest audience members – pupils from Vilnius gymnasiums and higher education institutions, as well as students, who have the opportunity to see the productions through the Cultural Passport programme.
…
The project is partially funded by the Vilnius City Municipality, and its dissemination is carried out in cooperation with foreign embassies in Lithuania and the Lithuanian Culture Institute.