The sirens are singing beautifully, writes Homer. They sit on an island, lure men onto land, and then kill them. Except for Orpheus, who sings louder, and Odysseus, whose companions stuff wax in their ears and have him tied to the mast so that he can listen to the sirens without dying.
European mythology is dominated by violence: between people, gods, mythical creatures, and the sexes. Inequality and power imbalances produce fears and defence strategies instead of relationships. What makes us hold on to these structures?
Working with her collaborators, director Laura Kutkaitė puts a contemporary story right in the middle of the mine field of myth: four years after the highpoint of the #MeToo movement in Lithuania, she puts the issue of abuse of power in the arts world on the stage. Posing on a rock, four female actors open their island theatre and tell true stories from their working life, while waiting for “the great Odysseus”. They leave no dark detail out – not even the competition between them – and at the same time perform theatre: in costume and makeup, with sound and light, with bitter humour, passion, vulnerability, and plenty of reasons. In this way, they strike the structures exactly where they could change.
THE SILENCE OF THE SIRENS
Lithuanian National Drama Theatre
Grand Hall
Duration 1.45 (without intermission)
Premiere 2022
Playwrights: Teklė Kavtaradze, Laura Kutkaitė, Gerda Čiuraitė, Rimantė Valiukaitė, Toma Vaškevičiūtė, Aistė Zabotkaitė, Jūratė Vilūnaitė
Director, choreographer Laura Kutkaitė
Scenographer, costume designer Paulina Turauskaitė
Lighting designer Vilius Vilutis
Composer Agnė Matulevičiūtė
Playwrights’ assistants: Simona Jurkuvėnaitė, Eglė Poškevičiūtė
Choreography consultant Agnietė Lisičkinaitė
Assistant directors: Urtė Sėjūnaitė, Augustas Gornatkevičius
Producer Rugilė Pukštytė
Cast:
Gerda Čiuraitė, Rimantė Valiukaitė, Toma Vaškevičiūtė, Aistė Zabotkaitė, Jūratė Vilūnaitė
Laura Kutkaitė received her choreographic education in Kaunas, later studied philosophy at Vilnius University, and in 2021 graduated from the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre, where she studied directing at Oskaras Koršunovas course. She has had internships in France, Poland, Italy, Denmark, and Slovenia. During her studies, she worked with directors such as Anna Smolar, Tomi Janezic, and Koršunovas. She made her debut at the Oskaras Koršunovas Theatre with the play Phaedra’s Love (2021), based on a play by Sarah Kane. In mid-June 2022, he made his debut at the Lithuanian National Drama Theatre with the play The Silence of the Sirens.
Premiere 2022
Playwrights: Teklė Kavtaradze, Laura Kutkaitė, Gerda Čiuraitė, Rimantė Valiukaitė, Toma Vaškevičiūtė, Aistė Zabotkaitė, Jūratė Vilūnaitė
Director, choreographer Laura Kutkaitė
Scenographer, costume designer Paulina Turauskaitė
Lighting designer Vilius Vilutis
Composer Agnė Matulevičiūtė
Playwrights’ assistants: Simona Jurkuvėnaitė, Eglė Poškevičiūtė
Choreography consultant Agnietė Lisičkinaitė
Assistant directors: Urtė Sėjūnaitė, Augustas Gornatkevičius
Producer Rugilė Pukštytė
Cast:
Gerda Čiuraitė, Rimantė Valiukaitė, Toma Vaškevičiūtė, Aistė Zabotkaitė, Jūratė Vilūnaitė
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