On the social network “Facebook,” R. Survilaitė published a painfully candid post in which she spoke about what is happening behind the scenes in theaters. Although recently the Panevėžys Juozas Miltinis Drama Theater has been in the spotlight, according to the poet, unpleasant things are happening in other theaters across the country as well.
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She agreed to share the post with the readers of the portal Žmonės.lt as well.
“TODAY MY THEATER HURTS
Some asked me not to write this text, others asked me to write it, but my texts, which I cannot not write, appear regardless of requests, and I keep finding myself in theater corridors. Sometimes through close people, sometimes through my passionate nature, sometimes because I have quietly lived with theater since school days, sometimes because I always look in my life for ladders and steps to climb above everyday life, primitiveness, and routine, just as I always seek different, sharper emotional angles and edges. Theater has always been beside me in my life, like a taciturn partner, quietly and thoughtfully puffing a pipe in another room of my apartment.
And today my theater hurts. It hurts a little more than for those who only know as much as news portals write or as much as fits into publicly broadcast messages on social networks, because I also sometimes puff my pipe behind the scenes. No, I definitely will not tell you what I was asked not to tell, people respect me and trust me not for a loose tongue, but having listened to both related sides, I can say the picture is sad.
The sad picture is not only in Miltinis. The sad picture is not only in another Panevėžys theater. The picture is sad in some other Lithuanian theaters as well, some of which I no longer want to attend because the performances are overshadowed by what you know but cannot speak about publicly.
There, in the art collectives and workshops, which should elevate with their light to the heavens, swords of disputes clang, intrigues are woven, betrayals occur, gossip thrives, secret romances are plotted, very earthly money is counted, and personal ambitions are prioritized. I could go on endlessly, but I will modestly add only complete communicative illiteracy to the list. That will suffice.
What should be resolved among themselves is irresponsibly communicated to the public. What cannot be silenced remains there, behind the scenes. Is the information revealed by Tadas Gryn worthy of criticism? I think so. Is the communication of the Miltinis management worthy of criticism? Absolutely yes. Today, when I listened to the LRT Classic conversation, in which the head of Miltinis also spoke, I heard his communication as an old answering machine stuck long ago in time, which keeps spinning around its axis but not about the essence, meaning, not about cultural value, not about theater lovers and enthusiasts, not about the theater’s image and reputation, not about respect for the audience. It was an emotionless, gray, concrete response, spoken as if out of obligation.
And in this whole context, I want to ask you: has anyone heard a sincere apology from either side? A heartfelt apology to the audience?
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No. Because when a person’s ego and personal ambitions and pursuit of benefit are at the epicenter, the victim is only the audience. That little person longing for the golden age of theater, whom those who should care about completely different values have drawn into their whirlpool of intrigues and snake pit.
Tadas Gryn writes: “I still have information about possible nepotism, disrespectful behavior, and psychological violence. If necessary, I will make it public.”
And I cannot stop asking again: When will the need arise to make public what should not be behind the theater scenes if it is true? If such a need has not yet arisen, what should the audience do with this information? Where should I put this information?
How many more failed parties in the game of personal interests will be played, gambling with the repertoire and the audience? Panevėžys has already lost in this game. What will we play with next?
I want to cry. Because I have seen many actors with a capital A. One of them, having learned about the death of a close person, went on stage after a few minutes. I saw that performance. And then I cried. And he laughed on stage.
The last story is a story about theater with a capital T.
Today’s fuss is about theater with a lowercase t. Unfortunately.
Is it no longer worth stepping onto the stage from some financial benefit calculation point today? How much more art for art’s sake do we have left?,” wrote R. Survilaitė.
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