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HISTORY OF KAUNAS DRAMA THEATRE

by Elvyra Markevičiūtė

The Kaunas State Drama Theatre has every right to be proud that it has originated the tradition of professional theatre in Lithuania. Its beginnings date back to the Drama and Opera playhouses established in the 1920-ies by the Lithuanian Artists' Association. The birth of the Kaunas Drama Theatre was marked by the production of Hermann Sudermann's "St. John's Day", which was directed by Juozas Vaičkus and opened on December 19, 1920 in the former Russian City Theatre (now the Kaunas State Music Theatre). It was the first and only professional theatre in the country before its Šiauliai branch was set up in 1931.

The Drama playhouse was located in the same building as the Opera. In 1925, the two were joined by a ballet company, and it was then that this triple-act outfit was named the State Theatre. At first, the Kaunas Drama relied on the key actors of the J. Vaičkus's Flying Theatre (founded in 1918 in St. Petersburg): V. Dineika, T. Dragūnaitė-Vaičiūnienė, P. Kubertavičius, O. Kurmytė, J. Staniulis, A. Vainiūnaitė. A capable company was formed, when their ranks were filled by the actors A. Kupstas, J. Laucius, A. Mackevičius, O. Rymantaitė, S. Pilka, V. Siparis, I. Tvirbutas, N. Vosyliūtė and E. Žalinkevičaitė. Under the leadership of its director K. Glinskis and its manager L. Gira, the team was able to overcome the difficulties of forming a theatre. When Konstantinas Glinskis staged A. Asnykas's tragedy "Kęstutis", in which he also played the leading role, he immediately won admiration as both actor and director. This hastened the retirement of J. Vaičkus. The noteworthy productions directed by K. Glinskis were: "The Ruler's Son" by V. Mykolaitis-Putinas, "The Devil's Disciple" by B. Shaw (1921), "The Sons of Dawn" by S. Kymantaitė-Čiurlionienė (1923), "Fuhrmann Henschel" by G. Hauptmann (1924). He also staged numerous comedies and vaudevilles for mere entertainment. The established trend of romanticism and eclectic repertoire remained unchanged even under the leadership of director Borisas Dauguvietis, who joined the theatre in 1924, and who - like J. Vaičkus and K. Glinskis - had been trained in the tradition of pre-revolutionary Russian theatre. Creative and energetic B. Dauguvietis ingeniously exploited K. Glinskis's acting talent. As a result, K. Glinskis played the lead in W. Shakespeare's "Othello" (1924), Krūšna in V. Mykolaitis-Putinas's "The Ruler" (1929), Marquise of Posa in F. Schiller's "Don Carlos" (1931), Stockmann in H. Ibsen's "An Enemy of the People" (1937) - all directed by B. Dauguvietis, who himself created some memorable roles in his own productions: Baron in A. Pushkin's "The Avaricious Knight"(1924), Keleris in V. Kėvė's "Skirgaila" (1924). B. Dauguvietis's great achievement was his preoccupation with Lithuanian drama. He staged plays by K. Binkis, V. Krėvė, J. Mačiulis-Maironis, S. Santvaras, P. Vaičiūnas.

In 1926, Antanas Sutkus became the new manager. His unsuccessful attempt at reforming the theatre forced K. Glinskis, O. Rymaitė and others to quit. They were replaced by E. Bindokaitė, K. Juršys, H. Kačinskas, J. Oškinaitė, P. Pinkauskaitė, and J. Siparis -  actors from the defunct Tautos and Vilkolakis theatres. A. Sutkus had been the founder of the Tautos Theatre and had belonged to the leadership of the Vilkolakis (he also had directed all of the Vilkolakis productions). In 1928, A. Sutkus was replaced by Jurgis Savickis, a writer and a diplomat who, in 1929, invited director Andrius Oleka-Žilinskas from the Moscow Art Theatre (II). In 1929, A. Oleka-Žilinskas became also the theatre's new manager. Having assumed total leadership of the theatre, he tried to implement the experience of K. Stanislavsky and V. Nemirovich-Danchenko's theatrical reforms in its activities. For speeding up this process, A. Oleka- Žilinskas brought to Kaunas the former actor, director and teacher of  the Art Theatre (II), a theatrical genius Mikhail Chekhov. Together they trained new actors and founded the Theatre of the Young. Their work was clearly ahead of its time and out of touch with the prevalent understanding of theatre. The two were especially admired by the theatre critic B. Sruoga. A. Oleka- Žilinskas staged V. Krėvė‘s "Šarūnas" (1929), Ch. Dickens's "The Chimes" (1930), "Oliver Twist" (1934), and J. Zulawski's "Sabbatai Cevi" (1931), while M. Chekhov directed W. Shakespeare's "Hamlet" (1932), "Twelfth Night" (1935), and N. Gogol's "The Government Inspector" (1933). Their creative endeavours in Kaunas amounted to a whole era, which brought about a worthy repertoire, new ways of expression, conceptual directing, team acting, as well as new actors, uplifted by the art of the directors. With the help of such talented artists as M. Dobužinskis, A. Galdikas, S. Ušinskas, L. Truikys, and composers B. Dvarionas, J. Gruodis, J. Karnavičius, the duo achieved a natural harmony of sets and musical scores. Alas, their priceless discoveries, which were especially evident in the production of V. Krėvė's "Šarūnas", were neither adequately understood, nor appreciated. A. Oleka-Žilinskas quit the theatre after being blamed for instilling "pro-Russian" tendencies and for many other sins.

From 1935 to 1940, the reforms were carried on by his students - R. Juknevičius and A. Jakševičius. They were supported by the actors of The Young Theatre: M. Chadaravičius, O. Juodytė, A. Kernagis, K. Kymantaitė. Their team was reinforced by M. Mironaitė, who came from the Experimental Theatre Acting Studio. Even though B. Dauguvietis, who was still the main director in the theatre, did not lack his usual energy and inventiveness, his creative style appeared already dated, and it no longer satisfied the gradually growing demands of the society. He encountered especially merciless criticism for his W. Shakespeare's "Macbeth", which was staged in 1939. Juozas Miltinis, who later became the famous founder and leader of the Panevėžys Drama Theatre and who at the time had just returned from his studies in Paris and London, was an ardent opponent of this production. Two of the theatre's actors, K. Juršys and especially R. Juknevičius, then took up directing and gained considerable prominence along B. Dauguvietis. In 1936, R. Juknevičius returned from an internship in Moscow and staged his first production in the Klaipėda Drama Theatre - "The Good Hope" by Herman Heijermans. It became a milestone in the life of Lithuanian theatre - in 1940 it marked the opening of the Vilnius Drama Theatre. In 1939, when the Nazis occupied Klaipėda, R. Juknevičius, together with some other actors, returned to Kaunas, and there, in the State Theatre, directed two more significant productions - G. Hauptmann's "Before Sunset" (1939) and M. Pagnoli's "Topaze" (1940). E. O'Neil's "Marco Millions", staged by A. Jakševičius, was a successful match for these productions, and it became yet another landmark of theatrical art.

 The changes, which came in 1940 with the annexation of Lithuania by the Soviets, had a painful effect on the theatre. The socialist understanding of art was driven like a wedge into the souls and minds of Lithuanian artists. The productions of plays extolling the new regime clogged the repertoire, but for understandable reasons did not become artistic victories. On top of that, the company suffered a huge loss - a large group of actors left it for the newly established Vilnius State Theatre. Similar talent-drain occurred again when the Šiauliai Theatre, the Youth Theatre, and the Young Viewers' Theatre were set up - the Kaunas Drama at that time was the smithy of talents for whole Lithuania. With the start of German occupation the theatre encountered yet new demands and attempts manipulate it. However, regardless of all the losses and difficulties, the theatre managed to survive and to save both its productions and its people - thanks to the successfully directing actors V. Dineika, P. Kubertavičius and A. Kupstas.

During the first post-war years, the enforcement of socialist realism resumed, along with the primitive orientation toward the Moscow Art Theatre, thus obliterating valuable memories of the lessons already learned. All kinds of manoeuvring began in order to form a desirable artistic program. Alas, conjuncture-based repertoire prevailed, and there were too many directors, not ideas, and too few original Lithuanian plays. The theatre had once again to recreate itself. In 1947, a group of young actors went to Moscow to study in the GITIS (now the Russian Theatre Academy), and their return in 1952 after graduation is considered to have been a new rebirth of the theatre. These actors were: A. Gabrėnas, K. Genys, V. Eidukaitis, A. Mackevičiūtė, S. Motiejūnas, B. Raubaitė, G. Tolkutė, R. Varnaitė, L. Zelčius. Their graduation productions, staged by their teachers V. and M. Orlov and G. Konsky, appeared in the theatre's repertoire: A. Gricius's "The Eve," P. Beaumarchais's "The Marriage of Figaro," M. Gorky's "Barbarians." After Stalin's death in 1953, the social situation for arts improved. The subsequent visage of the Kaunas Drama Theatre was most notably shaped by the work of its directors Henrikas Vancevičius, Jonas Jurašas and Jonas Vaitkus.

The period of Henrikas Vancevičius (1954 - 1966) began with L. Tolstoy's "The Living Corpse," which he directed in 1954. Other noteworthy productions staged by this director were: Justinas Marcinkevičius's "The Twentieth Spring" (1958), Kazys Binkis's "Dress Rehearsal" (1959), Anton Chekhov's "Three Sisters" (1960), Federico Garcia Lorca's "The House of Bernarda Alba" (1964). Along with the brilliant roles, played by the actors G. Balandytė, A. Jodkaitė, D. Juronytė, P. Kubertavičius, B. Kurmelytė, A. Mackevičiūtė, A. Urbonaitė, G. Tolkutė, A. Vainiūnaitė and L. Zelčius, these productions elevated the Kaunas Drama Theatre to the foreground of theatrical life in Lithuania. In 1957, H. Vancevičius staged J. Grušas's tragedy "Herkus Mantas" with A. Voščikas impressively playing the gallant Prussian lord, who was one of the most tragic personalities in Lithuanian history and way ahead of his times. Next to A. Voščikas, the talents of such actors as D. Juronytė, J. Laucius, L. Noreika, B. Raubaitė and others unfolded and were newly revealed. This production also brought to the Kaunas Drama Theatre the playwright Juozas Grušas, who then strongly influenced other dramatists of his time. Together with him the theatre discovered playwrights K. Boruta, J. Glinskis, Just. Marcinkevičius, K. Saja, R. Samulevičius and D. Urnevičiūtė. So the Kaunas Drama Theatre deserves credit for developing contemporary Lithuanian drama as well. In 1959, it was merged with the Kaunas Young Viewer's Theatre and moved to its present location at 71 Laisvės Avenue. When H. Vancevičius departed for the Vilnius Academic Drama Theatre in 1966, he left behind a fully formed theatre company, which was one of the strongest in Lithuania, had a complex repertoire, and was already accustomed to artistic victories. At this time yet another legendary performance was born - the adaptation of K. Boruta's "Baltaragis's Mill," directed by S. Motiejūnas (1966), with brilliant roles by the actors V. Eidukaitis, R. Staliliūnaitė, J. Urmonavičius, R. Varnaitė and V. Voščikas.

The next significant and noteworthy period was the five-year tenure of Jonas Jurašas (1967-1972). His productions - M. Bulgakov's "Moliere" (1968), M. Baijiev's "The Duel" (1968), K. Saja's "The Mammoth Hunt" (1968) and "Šventežeris" (1970), M. Shatrov's "Bolsheviks" (1970), J. Glinskis's "The House of Penance" (1970), Ch. Aitmatov's "Mother's Field" (1971) and J. Grušas's "Barbora Radvilaitė" (1972) with the legendary leading role by Rūta Staliliūnaitė - were innovative and revealed Jonas Jurašas as a director of conceptual theatre. In cooperation with the set designer J. Malinauskaitė, he directed eight productions, most of which had to struggle their way through to the stage. The banning of "The Mammoth Hunt", the unsuccessful fight to save the original concept of "Šventežeris," and, ultimately, the "correction" of the final scene of "Barbora Radvilaitė" caused the director's eventual departure from the theatre and from Lithuania. His latest artistic aspirations were uniquely complemented by M. Tenisons's pantomime company, which the theatre housed at the time.

In 1975, one more revival began in the Kaunas State Drama Theatre with the production of E. Ignatavičius and J. Vaitkus's "The Pilgrim of Dreams," which was dedicated to the memory of M. K. Čiurlionis. This new period undoubtedly drew inspiration from the talent and personality of Jonas Vaitkus, who had made his directorial debut in the theatre by staging K. Sajas's "Wooden Pigeons" in 1975. Jonas Vaitkus became the Chief Director in 1977, and in the same year he staged A. Jarry's farce "Ubu Roi." This production was followed by M. Gorky's "The Last Ones" (1978), J. Grušas's "The Union" (1978), I. Radoev's "The Red and the Brown" (1979), H. Ibsen's "The Master Builder Solness" (featuring theatrical debut of the film star Juozas Budraitis), M. Unt's "The Key Rehearsal," J. Glinskis's "King," and V. Krėvė's "Šarūnas" (all three staged in 1980), M. Shatrov's "Blue Horses on Red Grass" (1982), A. Camus's "Caligula" (1983), and J. Vaitkus's adaptation of A. de Saint-Exupery's prose "Lessons of Literature" (1984). In 1984, the theatre repertoire was enriched by S. Geda and B. Kutavičius's "Thrush, the Green Bird" - one of the most original of J. Vaitkus's directorial achievements, a performance full of rites, rituals, unusual suggestiveness and beauty. It was a kind of crowning piece which had condensed all of the director's previous artistic aspirations. Also notable were his productions of  W. Shakespeare's "Richard II" (1985) and Ch. Aitmatov's "Golgotha" (1987), the latter marking the end of J. Vaitkus's period in Kaunas. Besides working as a director with extraordinary intensity, J. Vaitkus was also the leading teacher of a class of acting students at the Vilnius State Conservatoire (now the Lithuanian Music Academy). Later this class successfully reinforced the company of the Kaunas State Drama Theatre. There was not a single production directed by J. Vaitkus which did not newly reveal talents of both famous and novice actors. Theatre audiences saw in an unexpected light such actors as J. Budraitis, A. Masiulis, D. Kazragytė, V. Šinkariukas, V. Valašinas, V. Grigolis, V. Masalskis, J. Onaitytė, P. Budrys, I. Dapkūnaitė, V. Kelmytė.

This period of upswing was effectively enhanced by the work of other theatre directors as well. In 1981, G. Padegimas staged two different versions of A. Strindberg's "Creditors," with the actors D. Kazragytė, V. Šinkariukas, A. Masiulis as the senior cast, and the actors J. Onaitytė, V. Masalskis, R. Vaidotas as the junior one. T. Wilder's "Our Town," directed by G. Padegimas in 1982, became a huge success, withstood the test of time, and closed only in 1999. Another outstanding production staged by this director was N. Gogol's "Diary of a Madman" - a one-man performance starring the unforgettable V. Masalskis. During the same period, E. Nekrošius directed S. Šaltenis's "The Ballads of Duokiškis" and A. Chekhov's "Ivanov" (both in 1978). In 1988, J. Vaitkus went to work in the Vilnius Academic Drama Theatre (now the Lithuanian National Drama Theatre).

Soon after the Lithuanian independence was restored on March 11, 1990, the Kaunas State Drama Theatre saw the return of its former Chief Director J. Jurašas. In the previously unused Small Stages area he directed A. M. Sluckaitės's "The Sand Claviers" (adapted from J. Bobrowski's novel "Lithuanian Pianos") - a poetic, subtle and very successful production of ambient theatre - and in the courtyard space he staged H. Pinter's "Mountain Language" (1991). Following his reinstatement as the leader of the theatre, J. Jurašas directed A. Dorfmann's "Death and the Maiden" (1992). In 1993, after an unsuccessful attempt to reform the theatre by laying off many of its actors, he resigned and again departed from Lithuania.

In 1993, director Gytis Padegimas, who had headed the Šiauliai Drama Theatre for five previous years, became the new head of the Kaunas State Academic Drama Theatre (the theatre was awarded its "academic" status in 1990). He opened the new theatrical season by staging T. Wilder's "The Skin of Our Teeth," and focused his attention on forming the repertoire and uniting the scattered company. G. Padegimas directed P. Claudel's "Passage of Midday" (1994), W. Shakespeare's "Love's Labour's Lost" (1995), M. Zinger's "Around the Fountain, or the Little Paris" (1996), A. Strindberg's "The Ghost Sonata" (1998). He encouraged directors of very different styles to express themselves: V. Balsys, D. Juronytė, N. Karpuškaitė, A. Lebeliūnas, B. Marcinkevičiūtė, V. Masalskis, and V. Šinkariukas. Young directors D. Duškinas and L. Ryškus made their debut then, along the students of the famous Russian director and teacher P. Fomenko - V. Tertelis and Y. Sundvor (Norway). In 1995, an agreement of cooperation, the first of its kind in Lithuania, was signed with the Rogland Theatre (leader - Ola B. Johannessen), located in the city of Stavanger, in the Kingdom of Norway, and their sharing of experience began. Cooperation with theatre artists from other countries continued, as directors G. Valenti (Italy), T. Hinterberger (Austria), M. Kimele (Latvia), S. Yamada and J. Ohmine (Japan) staged productions in the Kaunas State Academic Drama Theatre (KSADT). In 1997, the theatre organized a seminar-workshop "Mikhail Chekhov and Russian-Lithuanian Cultural Ties in the First Half of the Twentieth Century," dedicated to M. Chekhov's acting method. It featured prominent theorists (N. Krymova, A. Bartoshevich) and practitioners (Y. Ananyev, Y. Avsharov) of Russian theatre, and included a visit to M. Chekhov's farm in Melikhovo (Russia) for acting students. The Higher School of Acting Arts at the KSADT, which functioned from 1995 to 1998 and prepared 14 young actors, was headed by G. Padegimas, and had among its teachers the famous masters of Japanese theatre Akira Matsui (Noh theatre) and Hasegawa Roku (Butoh dance), as well as the Swedish actress and director Lisa Brand (performance) and others. In 1998, a huge success was achieved by the debut of director Gintaras Varnas in The Long Hall of the KSADT, where he staged H. Ibsen's "Hedda Gabler." The production became an unsurpassable award-winner in Lithuania, and received even four St. Christophers - for Best Director, Best Leading Actress (J. Onaitytė), Best Composer (G. Puskunigis) and Best Costume Designer (J. Statkevičius) of the Year. Additionally, J. Onaitytė got the 1999 Lithuanian National Award for Culture and Arts for her role of Hedda Gabler. The production also received four Fortūna awards - for Best Director, Best Leading Actress, Best Composer, and Best Set Designer (J. Paulėkaitė). It was successfully shown in the international festivals "Baltoscandal" in Rakvere (Estonia), "Kontakt" in Torun (Poland), and the H. Ibsen festival in Oslo (Norway). In 1999, G. Varnas directed E. O'Neil's "Mourning Becomes Electra" on the main stage of the theatre. The leading actress D. Čepauskaitė was awarded a Fortūna for her role of Lavinia and composer G. Puskunigis - a St. Christopher for his musical score in this production. Besides the main stage, six more acting platforms were actively used, and numerous interesting productions were staged there, such as F. K. Waechter's "To Aschenfeld" (directed by T. Hinterberger, The Hardwood Hall, 1995) with a brilliant duo of V. Masalskis (St. Christopher and Fortūna awards) and R. Žirgulis, J. Kilty's "Dear Liar" (directed by G. Padegimas, The Hardwood Hall, 1995) with a charming Bernard Shaw created by A. Masiulis, and A. Blok's "The Stranger" (directed by D. Dushkin, The Long Hall, 1999). Since 1998, under an open sky in the courtyard of the Small Stages building, a musical production was performed - L. Ukrainka's fairytale "The Forest Song" (composer A. Yasenka, director G. Padegimas). 

From 1999 to 2003 the KSADT was headed by composer Vidmantas Bartulis. After a 12-year lapse, J. Vaitkus was again invited to the theatre and staged unique productions of A. Chekhov's "The Seagull" and J. Grušas's "Love, Jazz and the Devil" (both in 2001). However, the main attraction and the pivot of the KSADT still remained the productions directed by G. Varnas, who continued to work in the theatre. He staged J. L. Lagarce's "Le Pays lointain / The Distant Land" (2001) - a flawless, one could say perfect, piece of theatrical art, which won the laurels of the best director in Lithuania for G. Varnas, and for the actress A. Tamulytė - a Fortūna for her supporting role of Suzanne. M. Carr's "Portia Coughlan" (2002) received the Lithuanian Theatre Spring award and the Kaunas municipality prize for best production, as well as two Fortūnas - one for composer G. Puskunigis, and another for actress V. Kuodytė. The Ministry of Culture awarded V. Kuodytė as the best supporting actress of the year. F. Garcia Lorca's "Doña Rosita, or the Language of Flowers", directed by G. Varnas in 2003, earned a Fortūna for actress M. Šablauskaitė. It is also worth mentioning the role of Judas Iscariot, played by actor E. Stancikas in his one-man performance "...You Must Go On," based on Dazai Osamu's short story (director - V. Tertelis, 2003), which was named the best production at the international theatre festival in Valka (Latvia). In 2003, when V. Bartulis resigned as the head of the KSADT, he was replaced by theatre researcher Ina Pukelytė.

For more than a year (from February 2003 to April 2004) the KSADT was single-handedly run by its new head. The following productions were staged in 2003: A. Galin's "Sorry" (dir. V. Dapšys, 2003), J. Gricius's "Palanga" (dir. V. Valašinas, 2003), and W. Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice" (dir. J. Vaitkus, 2003). The latter production was awarded the Fortūnas for Best Production of the Season in Kaunas and for Best Set Design (J. Paulėkaitė). Actor L. Laucevičius received a Fortūna and a Golden Cross of the Stage for his role of Shylock in this production, and actor A. Jalianiauskas - a Fortūna for his musical score and the role of Portia. In 2004, director J. Vaitkus became the recipient of the Lithuanian National Award for Culture and Arts for staging "The Merchant of Venice" and J. Mekas's "The Very Beginning of Beginnings" (the National Drama Theatre). Creative maturity of director V. Tertelis was clearly demonstrated by his significant achievement - S. Kane's "4.48 Psychosis" which was staged in 2004 and which was awarded a Fortūna statuette for the set (designed by K. Daujotaitė) and two Fortūna diplomas for actresses I. Paliulytė and D. Rudokaitė. The composer G. Puskunigis received a Fortūna and a Golden Cross of the Stage for his musical scores for "4.48 Psychosis" and T. de Fombelle's "The Lighthouse." In the same year, the Austrian director T. Hinterberger staged P. Turrini's "Rat Hunt." However, one of the most interesting productions of the season again was directed by G. Varnas: his own version and adaptation of F. Dostoevsky's "Crime and Punishment," set in the creatively transformed space of the theatre's main stage. For this directorial achievement G. Varnas received the Kaunas Artists' Association Award in 2004, and in 2005 - a Fortūna (Best Director of the Season in Kaunas) and the main prize of the "Lithuanian Theatre Spring" festival, as well as a Golden Cross of the Stage for directing three productions: "Crime and Punishment," T. Dorst and U. Ehler's "The Wasted Land," and T. de Fombelle's "The Lighthouse." Actor G. Ivanauskas, who played Rodion Raskolnikov in "Crime and Punishment", was awarded a Fortūna statuette and the main prize of the "Lithuanian Theatre Spring" festival as Best Actor, and was likewise nominated for a Golden Cross of the Stage. The actor's extraordinary devotion to his role while constantly developing and improving it resulted not just in his own success, but in that of the production as a whole, and became a unique blend of unified acting and directing. T. de Fombelle's one-man performance "The Lighthouse" is yet another expression of G. Varnas and G. Ivanauskas's creative duo which deserves special attention and tuning in. This production features G. Ivanauskas not only in the role of The Boy but as its set designer as well. Some remarkable roles in G. Varnas's productions were also created by actors from Vilnius: S. Balandis, D. Kazlauskas, V. Kuodytė, A. Tamulytė, J. Vilūnaitė who worked side by side with the Kaunas actors G. Balandytė, G. Piktytė, B. Raubaitė, L. Rukšnaitytė, D. Stubraitė, M. Sabalauskaitė, R. Vaidotas, D. Svobodnas and others. 2005 was an especially successful year for actor D. Kazlauskas, who was awarded a Fortūna diploma for the role of Porfiry Petrovich in "Crime and Punishment" and a Golden Cross of the Stage for his roles in "The Wasted Land" (Merlin), "Crime and Punishment (Porfiry Petrovich) and the one-man performance "The Caveman, or Defending the Caveman" by R. Becker. The Golden Cross of the Stage for Best Debut or Best Young Artist went to M. Jampolskis for his Mordred in "The Wasted Land."

In the spring of 2004, Gintaras Varnas became the new Artistic Director of the Kaunas State Drama Theatre. It was he who initiated the referenced joint project of the KSDT and the Arts Printing House (Vilnius) -  the production of T. Dorst and U. Ehler's "The Wasted Land" - as well as "The New German Drama Action" which was organised together with the Goethe Institute. The theatre's plans include further cooperation with its foreign partners, which will greatly depend on the sponsorship agreement signed with the Ūkio Bank in 2003. As a result of this agreement, more productions were staged in the course of the last two years than was originally planned, and efforts were made to satisfy diverse tastes of the audience. For five solid years the rearing of the young generation of theatre goers has been entrusted to the "My Theatre" school, which functions under the auspices of the theatre and whose activities are accompanied by the annual "Theatre Days for School Children" held at the KSDT.

Head of the Theatre I. Pukelytė and Artistic Director G. Varnas lead the Theatre till the end of 2007. Starting from January, 2008 an actor Egidijus Stancikas became Head of the Theatre. The repertoir of the Theatre was appended with works by young directors A. Areima, V. Malinauskas, K. Glušajev and other. In 2008 Theatre troup was refreshed by group of nine young actors, just graduated from Lithuanian Music and Theatre Academy.