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Pakruojs Estate is hosting Europe’s largest summer festival of flowers, historic buildings and works of visual and performing arts, offering visitors an unforgettable spectacle. Inspired by Shakespeare’s poem “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, the festival will allow people to touch and experience a phenomenon that has disappeared from the world – mechanical theatre.
A drama that takes you into a fantasy love world
Mechanical theatre is a type of puppet or object theatre in which moving figures, automata or mechanized machines perform instead of actors. On the special stage at the Borough Manor, Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be performed following the ancient principles of mechanical theatre, bringing every audience into a magical world of love.
“With the help of sculptor Dalias Dirsės, we created some mechanized objects out of wooden boards. A fairy floats on the waves, as well as other characters from Shakespeare’s poem, such as the weaver Mettmann. I call it theatrical eclecticism. Various genres will be represented in the show – comedy, drama, psychology, mask and mecha-drama”, reveals the show’s director Andrius Povilauskas.
The origins of mechanical theater can be traced back thousands of years, but the real wave of popularity of this type of theater reached Europe in the 17th century. The active development of technology led to the fact that in the 18th century – the first half of the 19th century, mechanical theater experienced a boom period. At the beginning of the 19th century, it also flourished in Lithuania. In 1819, the Italian mechanic Karl Vise made a significant contribution to this. He built the first mechanical theater in Vilnius. Italo’s work combined animation, mechanical effects, music and other sound effects. Such innovation did not go unnoticed – the mechanical theater became very popular both among Vilnius residents and guests of the city for its innovative and advanced performances. However, the euphoria throughout Europe did not last long, because the coming technological era gradually destroyed the mechanical theater as well.
The audience will become participants in the mechanical theater
In Pakruoj’s estate, history comes alive again. Anyone can become a participant in the mechanical theatre.
“The estate in Pakruoj is a living heritage, so here we will show people what the mechanical theatre looks like and let them touch it. Some audience members will be invited to the stage, where they will move the mechanical objects themselves. Also, visitors will be able to wear masks controlled by handles and become part of the performance”, says the creator of the performance, A. Povilauskas.
Actors Evaldas Stock, Guidelius Arlauskas and Donatas Karkauskas will also participate in the performance. Together with the characters in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and the audience, they will explore the theme of love and seek answers to the eternal questions: Why does a person fall in love and why does love sometimes suddenly disappear?
A magical journey through memories and dreams
The mechanical theatre will provide a great introduction to further adventures and the romantic atmosphere of Pakruojs Manor. After the show, after a stroll through the manor park, visitors will discover a real “Midsummer Night’s Dream” forest with the fairy queen Titania dancing in the sky, the elf king Oberon leading the way on Midsummer Night’s Night, and Puck, who knows the Midsummer Night’s Dream best. The ambiguous charm of emotions. Unforgettable performances and tricks of acrobats and circus artists await visitors. Impressively beautiful compositions and huge floral sculptures created by florists will not leave anyone indifferent, the magic of millions of flowers and pollen will amaze you and take you into a world of dreams and memories.
Pakruhos Manor is not only the largest manor in Lithuania, but also one of the 18 most attractive cultural tourist destinations in Europe and the Lithuanian “Tourist Object of the Year”, recreating the 19th century.
More information: www.pakruojo-dvaras.lt
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