The "Culture Night" festival returns to Vilnius for the 18th time on the 7th of June. This year, during the night of culture not only music, but also film and dance will vibrate in the walls of the central campus of Vilnius University (VU). VU Culture Centre and three art groups – the University Chamber Orchestra, the Song and Dance Ensemble, and the Kinetic Theatre – invite you to the free cultural events on Friday evening.
Dance performance „Hommo in Maxima“ | June 7, 7 PM, VU Theatre Hall
The "Culture Night" program at the university will begin with the VU Kinetic Theatre dance performance "Hommo in Maxima" (directed by Andrius Pulkauninkas). The premiere of the performance took place on May 9th – Europe Day – and the performance itself was specially created to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Lithuania's membership in the European Union (EU). This work is an experiment that attempts to review the development of four values after Lithuania joined the EU. "What about another's understanding of love, attachment, security, and the meaning of life? Maybe what we call love is only the adventure at a fun party? Maybe attachment is just dependence on brands, and security is provided by the confrontation between one's own and strangers, so it is not worth looking for meaning, because it is buried under the tombstone of the answers provided by artificial intelligence and the feeling of personal inadequacy?" – ponders the creative team of the play (dir. A. Pulkauninikas and VU Kinetic Theatre members). The performance is a part of project CAMINO, funded by EU, activities.
The program will be continued by two events: VU Chamber Orchestra's concert "Musica Notturna" and screenings of the VU Song and Dance Ensemble's short film "METAI".
Concert „Musica Notturna“ | June 7, 9 PM, Sts. Johns Church
Friday at 9:00 p.m. the vaults of Sts. Johns Church will be filled with the colorful sounds of the string orchestra – the VU Chamber Orchestra, led by artistic director and conductor Modestas Jankūnas, presents a program specially dedicated to the "Culture Night" called "Musica Notturna". This concert will not only introduce listeners to the sound of various musical eras, but will also present a set of different moods through playful piano chords, romantic flute harmonies, and the harmony of string instruments that connect everything. "Musica Notturna" will also allow orchestral musicians to try new roles and perform solo works on stage. The VU Chamber Orchestra, which celebrated its 45th anniversary this year, returns to Sts. Johns Church with another multi-colored program full of youthful enthusiasm, which will fill every audience member with good energy.
The screening of the short film „METAI“ | June 7, from 9 PM, VU Central Palace Mikalojus Daukša Courtyard
The creative project "METAI" by the students and artistic directors of VU Song and Dance Ensemble is a short art film designed to present Lithuanian folk art, its performance, national costumes, Lithuanian folk instruments and common stage works in an unconventional concert venue – the nature in different seasons, thus introducing viewer with the seasonality and contrast of Lithuanian nature. "Although the film is about Lithuanian culture and art, at the same time, through the light prism of a documentary, it also tells a story about youth, VU students, alumni, what culture means to them and what an ensemble is," say the creators of the film, director Laura Dičiūnaitė and cameraman Jokūbas Savodnikas. The film is divided into four distinct parts, dedicated to different times of the year, to the respective works, interspersed with short excerpts from the life of the ensemble – where, what and why.
On May 8-12th at the Västerås Film Festival in Sweden, "METAI" won in the Best Short Dance Film International category, and the organizers of the festival shared their impressions of the film: "a wonderful film with its own soul, story and dance."