VMT Premiere

Based on the novel "Faces" by Tove Ditlevsen

THE HINDRANCE

Translated from Danish by Aurelija Bivainytė

Two-act play (N-16)

Approximate duration – 1 hr 50 min (with intermission)

Premiere – March 19, 2026

Director – Justinas Vinciūnas

Dramaturg – Gabrielė Česevičiūtė

Set Designer – Erminas Mikšys

Costume Designer – Leo Domas Sanz Čekuolis

Composer – Natas Kunas

Lighting Designer – Julius Kuršys

Assistant Director – Simona Ševčenkaitė

Cast:

LISĖ MUNDUS – Dovilė Šilkaitytė

GERT / DOCTOR – Tomas Stirna

GITĖ – Indrė Patkauskaitė

DWARF – Daumantas Ciunis

NADIA / KNITTING WOMAN – Jūratė Brogaitė

TECHNICIANS – Tomas Kliukas, Mindaugas Činčys

"The Hindrance" – what happens when a person begins to follow their own sensitivity and intuition in a world where everything has its own rules, clear expectations, and principles of existence?

This question is raised by one of the most prominent and interesting theater directors of the young generation, Justinas Vinciūnas, who was awarded the "Golden Stage Cross" in 2025 as the best emerging artist. His creative biography includes two plays based on the works of Nobel Prize in Literature laureates, a play based on African drama, and work based on a journalistic chronicle.

The creative process of the play involved researching one of the most prominent voices in Danish literature – the biography of Tove Ditlevsen and the motifs of her novel "Faces" (1968). These elements became the creative starting point, dictating the dramaturgical axis of the play through their themes.

At the center of the action is Lisė Mundus, a creator exhausted by the reality surrounding her. Feeling that the world around her is beginning to wobble and, in its concreteness, approaching the edge of the absurd, Lisė begins to look for a crack – a space where the tension of "being someone" is replaced by the longed-for peace of being enough without constant judgment or the pressure of someone else's consciousness. However, every step toward freedom has a price. And most often, that price is the person standing next to you.