December 27 at 19 p.m. In Vilnius, a meeting with the audience will be waiting for a meeting with the audience at the choreographer and performer Giedrė Kirkilė's movement mono-performance "Kraitis", which is rarely shown and is highly anticipated by the audience. The work, marked by light irony and play, is an invitation to consider how we constantly create and recreate ourselves, what shapes and changes us.
G. Kirkilė's work, which has been active on the dance scene for more than two decades, is open, to a large extent autobiographical, and here it is completely universal: with movement, voice and knitting threads, she tells a recognizable story of her search for identity.
"Each time, I repeat the same thing again, I weave the same armor again. Faster, more efficient, just as uncomfortable. Because I know how to dip a beautiful napkin and constantly feel inadequate, I know how to knit and take on all the work, I know how to sew and lose myself in others", the artist presents the performance.
The themes of being sufficient, coming to terms with uncomfortable parts of oneself, accepting one's experiences, the ability to transform and change are the cornerstones of "Kračio" knitting. It is the process of breaking down the knitting that becomes the central axis of the dance performance: by pulling the brightly colored threads of a huge sweater, G. Kirkilė rethinks our own formed beliefs, complexes and expectations.
Although her long-term career as a dancer and dance teacher has brought the artist several important awards, including nominations for the Golden Cross of the Stage for her roles in the Vytis Jankauskas Dance Theater and the 2023 earned the highest Ministry of Culture the badge of honor "Carry your light and believe", G. Kirkilė saved his solo creative debut until 2023. Currently, the artist is a member of Be Kompanijos, an organization uniting independent dance creators.
In G. Kirkilė's performance, the concept of dowry, imbued with folklore and old traditions, turns into our accumulated experiences, the mental and emotional health of our loved ones, the background of the social and cultural field, leaving many scars or habits that we must learn to deal with as adults.
"We no longer create a material dowry for ourselves, we don't sew lace nightgowns for the first night, we don't weave tablecloths and bedspreads, but we consciously and unconsciously gather values, attitudes, imaginations, behavior patterns, we fit into roles and expectations with which we meet adult life.
This is a dowry that both women and men collect, and we fulfill it throughout our lives. You want to shake up, unravel your being - both beautiful and useful things, as well as difficult experiences that become harmful habits for us", says the dance artist.
"Kraitje" movement and laconic, ironic texts lead the audience through the tangle of self-awareness, which is close to almost every modern person. G. Kirkilė's interpretation of self-creation is humorous, playful, and full of serious focus.
These contrasts, the colorful dynamics of the performance and the captivating sincerity invite not only one hour, but also after the performance to try to see yourself as an endless, constantly changing work.
Movement mono-performance "Kraitis" (chor. Giedrė Kirkilė) - December 27. at 19 p.m. Art printing house (Šiltadaržio 6, Vilnius).
