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.
In this play, the novel's characters gain sovereignty – they become independent of the framework of the "Faces" plot, finding themselves in various situations or sharing thoughts that are seemingly left unsaid in the novel. Therefore, the creation of the play is based on a game in which the character transcends the boundaries of their own words. Also, the autobiographical nature of the novel erases the line between the author and the character they create. This element became pivotal in this play as well, where the line between the character and the performer becomes clearly undefined. These laws invite the creation of a strange theatrical language, modeled almost from everyday situations, which seems to invite us to see through the longing for freedom hiding beneath obvious reality.
"The Hindrance" invites the audience to a discussion: what is the price of fidelity to the laws of personal truth? Is trusting one's sensitivity a creative or a destructive force? And finally – is what we perceive as a hindrance within us not an opportunity to reignite a passion for living lost somewhere along the way?
In 2025, the play became the winner of the "DramaTest Residency," a platform for modern drama and new stage form searches at the State Small Theatre of Vilnius.
In Denmark, Tove Ditlevsen's novel "Faces" was published by the publishing house "Gyldendahl," with rights represented by "Gyldendal Group Agency."