Arts Square: LMTA Invites to Celebrate its Anniversary
The year of 2023 is special for the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre – the major and largest higher school of music, theatre, dance, and film in Lithuania and the Baltic states has turned 90 years old! On this occasion, on 3 June in Lukiškių Square, the Academy is organising a celebration open to the public. One of Vilnius’ main public spaces located just in front of the LMTA Central building will transform into Arts Square: here, from 4 pm, everyone is welcome to enjoy music, theatre, and dance performances and film screenings by the Academy’s talented students, charismatic teachers, and renowned graduates. Now way you can ignore this event. Follow the motto of the LMTA celebration – Come, Hear, See!
Lukiškių Square and its neighbouring areas will turn into several venues for various performances: in the square, two stages for music and theatre performances, and a space for a dance performance will be installed; electronic music will be played from the balcony of the LMTA Central building, while short films to be shown in the adjacent Aukų Street, and the part of Gediminas Avenue closer to the Academy’s building will invite to multiple audio and video installations. The Arts Square will bring together LMTA students and graduates of different generations! The graduates will remember the enjoyable times of their studies, while the guests of the celebration will be able to become part of the special community of people united by art and so feel their zestful creativity.
Arts Square invites you to exclusive performances organised by all the three LMTA faculties – the Faculty of Music, the Faculty of Theatre and Cinema, and the Klaipėda Faculty. The celebration will open on the big stage by the performance of the LMTA Wind and Percussion Orchestra and the LMTA Brass Ensemble Brass LT (directed by Prof. Robertas Beinaris, Assoc. Prof. Egidijus Ališauskas, Assoc. Prof. Rimvydas Savickas, Remigijus Vilys, and Linas Rupšlaukis). Distinguished tenor, LMTA graduate Rafailas Karpis will appear on the stage. The listeners will also admire charismatic opera soloist Ieva Prudnikovaitė with the LMTA Accordion Orchestra (directed by Prof. Raimondas Sviackevičius and Tadas Motiečius), the LMTA Accordion Trio UnSeen, and the performance will be accompanied by tango dancers Assoc. Prof. Dr. Brigita Rodriguez and Carlos Rodriguez. The LMTA Folk Instrument Orchestra (directed by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Aistė Bružaitė and Assoc. Prof. Egidijus Ališauskas) will accompany soprano Asta Krikščiūnaitė, a winner of the Lithuanian National Prize for Culture and Art, and an LMTA professor. The Cello Orchestra of the LMTA Department of String Instruments (directed by Prof. Rimantas Armonas) has prepared a special surprise for the audience: more than 30 cellists will appear on the stage!
Arts Square will also feature soloists of the Opera Studio of the LMTA Department of Vocal Performance (conductor – Assoc. Prof. Martynas Staškus, stage director – Assoc. Prof. Jūratė Sodytė-Bradauskienė); students of the Department of Acting and Directing (directed by Prof. Viktorija Kuodytė and Prof. Darius Meškauskas); graduating students of the Theatre Department of the Klaipėda Faculty (supervisors – Prof. Valentinas Masalskis, Assoc. Prof. Nijolė Sinkevičiūtė-Kriūnienė). LMTA graduates, actors Gediminas Storpirštis, Darius Miniotas and Jonas Krivickas will be oozing the charming vibes of poetry. LMTA professor Aidas Giniotis will perform with his colleagues from the Keistuoliai Theatre, actors Ilona Balsytė and Darius Auželis.
A dance venue, specially equipped for the celebration, will show a performance Wreck – List of Extinct Species (choreographer Pietro Marullo, composer Jean Noël Boissé, producer Be kompanijos) by the LMTA Department of Dance and Movement. Towards the evening, the guests can enjoy a real party to be thrown on the big stage by jazz bands Quark Effect and SynthEtika.
In addition to performances by bigger bands, the smaller stage will feature DJ Iggy Shaolin, percussionist Lukas Budzinauskas, while Migluma & Vecera, Robotic Folk, El Chico Fuendre, and Maria Paskevic will be playing their electronic music from the balcony of the LMTA Central Building. From 4 p.m. to 11 p.m., the LMTA Department of Film and Television, which this year celebrates the 30th anniversary of its establishment, will show short films in the cinema space (Aukų Street, next to the LMTA Central building the), and Gediminas Avenue (in between J. Tumo-Vaižganto Street and Vasario 16-osios Street) will feature audio and video installations by LMTA graduates.
The history of the LMTA starts in 1933, when the Kaunas Conservatory was established in the then capital of Lithuania. The theatre studies were launched in 1952 in Vilnius, the cinema study programmes – in 1993, and dance studies– since 1998. Today, studies take place not only in the capital, but also in the port city of Lithuania: the faculties in Klaipėda, that operated in 1975–1997, re-joined the LMTA in 2018 as the Klaipėda Faculty. The celebration events dedicated to the LMTA 90th anniversary will be held throughout the year.
Arts Square, the celebration of the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre’s anniversary takes place on 3 June (Saturday) 4 pm-11 pm in Lukiškių Square, Vilnius.
LMTA information
16 May 2023