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© L. Vancevičienė

Vilnius Theatre Lele performance “The Picture of Dorian Gray” will be performed in Baltic Visual Theatre Showcase. The performance will take place on 28 May at 16:00 and 18:00. 

Director Gintarė Radvilavičiūtė: “When looking at a picture, the viewer enters another time. Time expands. The viewer recognises himself in a portrait. Looking at a portrait is like looking in the mirror. The mirror gives a person a unique opportunity to see himself, his face, his eyes, and allows for a dialogue with himself. Looking at his appearance, a person sees his inner world. Looking in the mirror, a person can enter another world. And these two worlds may merge. When looking in the mirror, we can see what is not directly visible to our eyes. The depth of the mirror tells us that we can see much more or very differently from what we see in our reality. The mirror is our personal portrait of the present.

Today, people are surrounded by numerous mirrors, i.e. reflective surfaces, from real mirrors and windows to lakes and pools, snowflakes, pieces of coal, etc. All of them create cracks in the visible world and the material fabric; they are like windows to another world. However, excessive concentration on oneself and the physical appearance is the path to vanity, selfishness, profanity, egocentrism. Beauty and success mean nothing without love, close relationships. Life gives no joy if one constantly looks at himself. Even today, some tribes still believe that a mirror can steal the soul.”

The creative group of the performance “The Picture of Dorian Gray” consists of well-known puppet theatre artists, whose joint works are already familiar to Theatre Lėlė audiences: in 2014, the performance “The Sandman”, produced by G. Radvilavičiūtė along with stage designer Renata Valčik and composer Rita Mačiliūnaitė, won the Golden Scene Cross award; it is being successfully played in the theatre’s repertoire and constantly invited to represent Lithuania at international theatre festivals. The new performance somewhat continues the discussion of the duality of human personality and his self-transformation commenced in “The Sandman”.

Theatre Lele is settled in the Old Town of Vilnius. Vilnius Puppet Theatre, the predecessor of today’s Lele was established in 1958. Lele stages Lithuanian and worldwide known fairy tales, as well as pieces of children’s literature and puppet plays for adult viewers. 12 professional actors/puppeteers are currently employed. Their performances have been awarded at many international puppet theatre festivals. The team of Vilnius Theatre Lele does their best to keep the theatre open to not only the best traditions of children’s puppet theatre but also valuable trends of modern theatre.

Published: https://www.eestinoorsooteater.ee/