Culture Night (5-6th July)
2013 06 28
Music jingling all night long from the abandoned backyard in Vilnius old town, never-ending movie show in the meadow at the Baltasis Bridge, concerts, performances, exhibitions, creative workshops, and installations taking place on the streets, squares, and the most unexpected spaces, untiring dancers, trampling the pavements… The entire city is filled with music, colors, lights, and smiles. And this is not a dream or a motive from a motion-picture. All this is the Culture Night.
One night festival of culture and art – Culture Night – has been arranged in Vilnius since 2007 and this summer it will take place during the night from the 5th to the 6th of July. It will become the main cultural opening event of Lithuanian Presidency of Council of the EU. 165 projects, over 700 artists from Lithuania and foreign countries, and all this will happen in the city just over one night.
The program of the festival this year will be enriched with the projects of foreign artists: in the courtyard of the Presidential Palace of the Republic of Lithuania you will be able to see the Georgian choreographic drama “Karmen”, in Vilnius City Hall – listen to the Armenian concert performed by Khachaturian Trio, steady urban pulse will be perturbed by the street clownade from Spain - Su Seso Taladro, the British Council is going to invite the British artist Kathy Hinde with “Piano Migrations” project, which will include the audiovisual installation, workshop for children, and music show, the French artists will present “Purple Rain” project, recommended by La Nuit Blanche – the international all-night art festival network. Joint project is also elaborated by the Lithuanian and Scandinavian artists: Nordic Stage together with Avaspo Poetry will implement the music-audiovisual performance “Recycling Rituals”, moreover, the performers from Norway Johan Mahtte Skum and Sanna Andersson will give the concert of the archaic songs from the northern part of Scandinavia.
The festival will also include the traditional events: concerts for the youth, cinema on the grass program with “Cinema Spring”, piano music concert, performed by Petras Geniušas at Lukiškės Square, concert, performed by Domantas Razauskas at rotunda, which will come to life for one night. The city dwellers and guests will be able to take part in various creative workshops, check the photo exhibitions, visit cafes and bars, which are working on special programs. Special family space will settle in Šventaragis Valley.
Even more embassies and cultural institutes of foreign countries joined the Culture Night this year: British Council, Embassy of Spain, Embassy of Italy and Italian Cultural Institute, Goethe Institute, French Institute in Lithuania, Nordic Council of Ministers Office in Lithuania, Embassy of Armenia, Embassy of Ireland, European Humanities University, Embassy of the Republic of Estonia, Embassy of Hungary, Embassy of the Kingdom of Norway, Embassy of the Kingdom of Sweden, Polish Cultural Institute, Russian Cultural Institute, Embassy of Romania, and Embassy of Finland.
The festival will be attended by the Lithuanian artists from Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, Panevėžys, and other towns. Many educational institutions (Vilnius Academy of Arts, Vilnius University, Vilnius College of Design, etc.) got involved in the project as well: students are actively working on exhibitions, installations of light, and other projects. Many museums and galleries will be open in Vilnius during the night and for the first time this year the program was joined by the Museum of Genocide Victims. A spectacular program for the guests of the festival will be prepared by the Arts Printing House – “Hourglasses” – a joint project of the Lithuanian and foreign artists, which has already been appreciated in other countries, will be performed even twice.
Main sponsors of the Culture Night festival this year: Vilnius City Municipality, Culture Support Foundation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania.
More about the festival: www.kulturosnaktis.lt and www.facebook.com/kulturosnaktis.