RIBOŽENKLIAI. KAUNAS I Dance performance – excursion

Kaunas – a city that raced against Europe during the interwar period and won. A city once called the little Paris. A city whose modernist architecture is recognized globally today – in 2023, Kaunas Modernism was granted UNESCO World Heritage status as one of the most prominent examples of early regionalism in architectural history.

This excursion-performance invites you not only to see, but also to hear, feel, and experience.

It is the revival of a project created in 2017 – a synthesis of sound, movement, and architecture that allows you to immerse yourself in interwar Kaunas through the stories of buildings and the people who lived in them. Here, politics, diplomatic intrigues, cultural breakthroughs, and the city's daily pulse meet.

Narratives playing in your headphones transport you to an era where personalities such as Antanas Smetona, Augustinas Voldemaras, Chiune Sugihara, Magdalena Avietėnaitė, and many others were active. Their fates, decisions, and the spirit of the times intertwine with the biographies of the buildings – because every modernist structure here has its own character, ambition, and history.

The trajectory of movement becomes a living map of the city: Vytautas the Great War Museum garden – Vienybės Square – S. Daukanto Street – Laisvės Avenue. During a journey lasting just over an hour, the city reveals itself as an ambitious, optimistic, and creative center of Europe.

This project is unique in that the viewer is not a passive observer. The voices in the headphones (voiced by R. Zemkauskas, G. Padegimas, B. Letukaitė, J. Kančienė, and others) merge with original music and the live movement of ULNA dancers. Professional dancers from the ULNA troupe and students from the Kaunas Mikas Petrauskas School of Performing Arts turn architectural forms into a physical experience – giving meaning to the purity, rhythm, and vigor of modernism through movement.

This is not just an excursion. It is an opportunity to spend an hour in a city that was recreating itself – boldly, modernly, and Europeanly. –– Creative team: Director – Agnija Šeiko Composer – Kristijonas Lučinskas Text author – Sondra Simana Choreographer – Indrė Puišytė-Šidlauskienė Historical consultant – Jolita Kančienė Dancers – ULNA dance troupe and students of the Kaunas Mikas Petrauskas School of Performing Arts

Premiere – 2017. Updated version – 2024. –– The event will be filmed and photographed, and the material may be used for publicity purposes. –– The activities of the ULNA troupe are partially funded by the Lithuanian Council for Culture. Partners: KKC / Kaunas Cultural Centre, Contemporary Dance Association. Thanks to Kaunas Mikas Petrauskas School of Performing Arts - KSMM.