As the festival taking place from July 23–26 approaches, we spoke with A. Latakas about the events the Port Authority is gifting to the city, the Saturday concert, the grand parade, the Dragon Boat races, and respect for people involved in maritime activities.
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– The Sea Festival attracts hundreds of thousands of people every year. What do you think makes it remain one of the most important summer events in Lithuania?
– The Sea Festival, which takes place in Klaipėda, is like an Olympics of celebrations. We have everything here – we have song, we have dance, we have acknowledgments, we have various competitions. Hundreds of events are organized in Klaipėda during the festival. Mariners and port companies get involved. We have the spirit of the sea, everything is infused with deep tradition. In 2024, we marked one hundred years since the first Sea Festival. It is truly a very important celebration.
And I really believe that this festival will go very beautifully, as it does every year. And the weather will be favorable, because that is also very important. We considered how the same parade would look if the weather were as rainy as it has been recently. Probably many plans would fall apart. Everyone is really preparing extraordinarily, sewing costumes, thinking about how to organize their performance, what means to use. And, of course, such weather would change a lot. Let’s hope it doesn’t happen and that all our requests, prayers, or spells will fulfill that.
– One of the most anticipated highlights of the Sea Festival is the Saturday evening concert at the Cruise Ship Terminal. What musical program is the Port Authority offering to the festival guests this year?
– Usually, the concert gifted by the Port Authority took place on Fridays, but this year there was a change – we are giving the main Saturday concert. There will be three very serious performers – both Lithuanian and foreign. There is Evgenya Redko – a performer who very rarely appears publicly, fills halls and arenas, and has won several awards. She will start the concert with her distinctive hits.
Later, British singer Emeli Sandé will perform, also having won several awards, including the Brit Awards, with her hits, among which is “Next to Me.”
The evening will end with Adrina. She is a young generation performer who will surely cause great ovations and energy.
The Lithuanian part is attractive, I think, to a diverse audience – both very young, like Adrina, and those who prefer pop music, like Evgenya. And the English performer Sandé – probably for the whole circle. There are hits that people definitely know, so I think there will be a large audience.
– The Port Authority annually enriches the Sea Festival program with maritime traditions and symbolic events. What highlights will start your program this year?
– The Port Authority will start its contribution on Thursday, July 23. This is a usual, traditional event, held for a long time at the Albatross monument – honoring mariners. The event is primarily dedicated to honoring those who went to sea and did not return. We have both sunken ships and people who never came back from the sea…
And another direction has become a tradition – to honor those who have made a significant contribution to the common port and maritime activities over the past year. These are awards – from medals to letters of commendation from the Prime Minister, thanks and commendations from the Minister of Transport, Port Authority awards, and similar.
The main organizer of this event is the Maritime Museum, but we participate as a partner and contribute together.
– The Sea Festival parade every year becomes one of the brightest highlights of the festive weekend. What will distinguish this year’s cinema-themed parade?
– We are the patrons of the parade and are very happy about it; this tradition has been going on for many years. Many port companies participate in the parade, as well as people dressed in maritime attire.
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The theme of the parade, like this year’s festival, is “Like in the movies.” There will definitely be a lot of variety, sound, images – from simple imitations of movie characters and actors to magicians, animation, and so on. There will be various props, long movie trains, and pirate ships. In short, it will be fun.
It is also nice that this parade is growing, and the question always arises where and how it should fit so that people, seeing the beginning, can also see the end. As far as I know, about 75 groups have already registered. Last year there were 60. There will be many participants – more than 6,000.
There is a legend that the big Friday parade brings the Sea Festival to the city. Let’s believe that this is really the case.
– How is the Port Authority team preparing for the parade?
– Actually, the team is preparing very intensively, deciding how to dress, what theme to choose. Other teams hire directors who help. Companies allocate funds themselves because it costs – both costumes and attributes.
Our team always participates very willingly in this festival. They bring family members. I don’t know how many of us there will be, but probably about a hundred will participate in the parade.
– Can it be said that this year’s parade will become a kind of multi-episode film?
– I think this parade will really be like a multi-episode film. Of course, the parade also consists of a serious part, with mariners, orchestras, who probably do not allow themselves to jazz too much, dressed in that beautiful uniform, which also gives a certain significance to the parade. And then another part unfolds. If we took each company and it was like a separate episode, we could create how it happens – from preparation for this parade to the very end. We would have a beautiful film, really.
– On Saturday, Dragon Boat teams will compete again in the Danė River. What will distinguish these already traditional races this year?
– This year they will take place for the 16th time. Already in December, there were the first who wanted to register for the races, although registration had not yet started. We started it in mid-March, and by the end of the month, all 44 teams had registered. This is the maximum. It depends on the number of boats and the fact that only two boats can compete according to the width of the Danė channel. There would be more who want to participate, but then the location where the races could take place would have to be changed.
In the sky, there is a very good opportunity for spectators to watch the races from both banks. The race management itself takes place in Danė Square, where a stage is set up and awards are given. This year they will also be linked to the Port Authority’s 35th anniversary. We will have a special prize for the winners, a special prize for image, for preparation, and so on.
These races are very popular and last all day. Many people can come, watch, leave, and cheer for their teams. It is pleasing that last year the Western Shipyard won, which prepares very responsibly every year.
– This year the Port Authority is celebrating its 35th anniversary. How is the jubilee reflected in the Sea Festival program and the Authority’s contribution to the event? You mentioned that you increased the budget by a third.
– It is quite difficult to invite performers now, and their prices are rising tremendously because there are many events, and they need to be hired well in advance. Prices are rising, so the costs of participating in this festival are also increasing.
There are always two ways – either to reduce the scope or to increase the budget. We are happy to contribute to the city festival. We never hide this and emphasize that our social contribution as the Port of Klaipėda must be significant.
Overall, the entire port’s contribution to the festival is indeed large. Port companies also, if we take those working in the port separately, practically all of them participate in the parade. And not only do they participate in the parade, but they also significantly contribute to some events taking place. For example, one of the port companies donates the fireworks.
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