PMT | opera-poema STRAZDAS - ŽALIAS PAUKŠTIS

Bronius Kutavičius

Opera-poem

The thrush is a green bird

When the man returned to the Bird,

The Bird went to the Man

Opera-poem created by prominent artists Broniaus Kutavičius and Sigita Geda "The Thrush - Green Bird" reveals the subtle poetic powers of the word, the refreshing power of nature and love, the beauty of music and the importance of the nation's history. The image of the peasant singer Strazdel (Antanas Strazdas-Drazdauskas), which grew out of the metaphor of wings, the bird-like surname of the poet and his unique personality, is transformed into the character of the Bird Man in the play created by the director Jonas Vaitkaus. The performance uses various elements of expression, dance, folklore, and traditional songs to talk about the rapprochement of a man and a woman, the depths of the spirit, the boundaries between nature and man, and the meaning of being.

Autumn 2023 "Thrush - green bird" was revived in the hometown of Bronius Kutavičius, in the musical theater of Panevėžys. The play, like the first time, was staged by director Jonas Vaitkus. This time, the opera-poem is performed live, without audio recordings. The music director is the talented young conductor Imantas Jonas Šimkus.

Creative group:

Director Jonas Vaitkus

Music director and conductor Imantas Jonas Šimkus

Set designer Arvydas Gudas

Costume designer Kristina Kruopienytė

Choreographer Inga Fontez-Sakurako

Second director Rokas Misikonis

Assistant music director Martynas Bražas

Lighting artist Romualda Petrikaitė

Sound director Žilvins Baronas

Production manager Renata Lokcikienė

Roles and performers:

Strazdas - Mindaugas Tomas Miškinis

Woman - Salomeja Petronytė

Priests, women and men - Panevėžys musical theater choir artists

Panevėžys musical theater orchestra

Organ part - Arsenijs Esaulkov

Folk instrument ensemble

First Sigitas Geda wrote the poem "Strazdas" (1967), then the composer Bronius Kutavičius wrote an unusual oratorio, calling it a "drama of voices", later renaming it into the opera-poem "The thrush - green bird (1980), and Jonas Vaitkus, based on these works, created an unforgettable ceremonial, sacred spectacle on the stage of the Kaunas Drama Theater in 1984. A cinematic version of the play was created in the 1990s. "Strazdas" of those years seemed to invite us to withdraw from "politics" into the realm of pure art and immerse ourselves in the flow of images of refined beauty connecting the aesthetic principles of Lithuanian folk art and traditional Eastern theater. the picture, which grew out of the metaphor of wings, the bird-like surname of the poet and his unique personality, is transformed by the director Jonas Vaitkaus to the Birdman character. By the way, Strazda's original personality and works inspired many Lithuanian artists to create great works. Music lovers are also well aware of Vytautas Kernagis' work based on the same Geda poem "Strazdas".

Bronius Kutavičius' work covers a wide cultural context, uncovering the layers of peoples' history and prehistory buried in the depths of the ages, materializing the pure archetypes of mythical and religious consciousness. His harmonious, sometimes even complicated sound systems are always filled with life, the power of feeling. Kutavičius' work overcame the barrier of mistrust and public harshness towards modern music. The composer had a wide range of modern creative tools at his disposal, but the most significant and greatest influence on the style was the unique polyphonic repeated voice-leading technique common in North-Eastern Lithuania. It was a conscious "turn" to paganism, and by the way it is spiritually close to Geda's work.

Geda modernized Lithuanian poetry, Kutavičius became a symbol of musical renewal. Their common works are canonical signs of Lithuanian modern art, which also formed a new phenomenon - pagan avant-garde.

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