{"id":515,"date":"2020-05-11T15:52:24","date_gmt":"2020-05-11T15:52:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/?p=515"},"modified":"2022-02-05T13:00:58","modified_gmt":"2022-02-05T13:00:58","slug":"latvia-all-the-worlds-a-screen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/latvia-all-the-worlds-a-screen\/","title":{"rendered":"LATVIA: All the World\u2019s a Screen"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Lauma Mell\u0113na-Bartkevi\u010da<\/strong><a href=\"#end\" name=\"back\">*<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The year 2020 is probably the strangest year in the world of the performing arts in our (young) century. The Covid-19 pandemic and the related social distancing requirements closed all theatres and forced everyone to move to digital platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Unlike many other countries in Europe, Latvia did not go for a complete lockdown. However, the notorious Friday the 13th in March marked the start of its national emergency and a series of restrictions related to public gatherings. Before Easter, the state of emergency was prolonged to mid-May. In Latvia, theatre is an important part of cultural and social life; therefore, actors looked for virtual alternatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ideas float in the air and sometimes land simultaneously in different minds, as in the case of separate online readings of Giovanni Boccaccio\u2019s <em>Decameron<\/em> offered by New Riga Theatre actor Gundars \u0100boli\u0146\u0161 and KVADRIFRONS, a group of young Latvian theatre performers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"video-1\">Video 1<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-vimeo wp-block-embed-vimeo wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"38. lasi\u0304jums\/ Dz\u030c. Bokac\u030co &amp;quot;DEKAMERONS&amp;quot;. Lasa: Gundars A\u0304bolin\u0327s\u030c\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/409189174?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><figcaption>Gundars \u0100boli\u0146\u0161, reading No 38<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While \u0100boli\u0146\u0161 has undertaken the mission to record all of the stories in the book himself, KVADRIFRONS has emphasised the dimension of cooperation by inviting their co-workers, friends, partners and teachers to perform one story each<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"video-2\">Video 2<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"KVADRIFRONA DEKAMERONS Nr.11\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Lrza_7VMxf8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><figcaption>The reading produced by KVADRIFRONS and performed by the actress Anta Aizupe accompanied by her twin daughters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Other actors with the New Riga Theatre followed the example set by \u0100boli\u0146\u0161 by doing readings of fairy tales, documentary fiction and classic literature, depending on their own individual preferences. Meanwhile, Alvis Hermanis\u2019 students came up with invented, futuristic visions of the \u201cafterlife\u201d of the quarantine period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The social media accounts of theatres gradually filled up with videos of artists urging people to stay at home and showing what they were doing during the quarantine. There were also podcasts discussing the future of the performing arts, and so on. Some stage directors moved to Zoom or Skype for remote rehearsals. Theatre audiences, in turn, shocked by the abundant offer of online streaming by the world\u2019s top theatres and opera houses, immersed themselves enthusiastically in their screens and feverishly shared their must-see lists, mostly free of charge. The gates of a paradise of theatre seemed to welcome anybody and everybody able to connect through the internet. Only a few sceptics ironically sneered, remembering Pushkin\u2019s <em>A Feast in Time of Plague<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A few weeks after March 13, the first live online performances were announced. People bought tickets online and joined live online performances at 7 p.m., the usual hour for theatregoers. The bonus with these on-screen performances was only having to pay the price of one ticket for all people sharing the same dwelling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The first successful attempt at online theatre in Latvia was <em>Ice Fishing<\/em>, a small-scale performance by two actors, produced by the Goda Te\u0101tris independent theatre in Liep\u0101ja and performed on March 26 in an empty club-caf\u00e9 Wiktorija. On April 4, another independent theatre, \u0122ertr\u016bdes Street Theatre (one of the most visible independent players on Latvia\u2019s theatre scene) followed suit in more advanced form, adapting its production of <em>Tanya\u2019s Birthday<\/em> to a web version performed live on Zoom. In the original theatre production, the show imitates a birthday gathering around a big table, with the audience and actors sharing the birthday meal, singing songs and joining in conversations and the party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the web version, the production resembles the causal relationship between Mohammed and the mountain, meaning, \u201cif the audience does not come to the theatre, the theatre goes to the audience,\u201d inviting everybody to dress up, prepare a meal and join in virtually to celebrate Tanya\u2019s birthday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/image2-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-517\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/image2-2.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/image2-2-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/image2-2-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Social distancing has also given a new voice to dramatists. A few young Latvian playwrights and scriptwriters, such as Linda Rudene and J\u0101nis Balodis at the <a href=\"https:\/\/failiem.lv\/DirtyDealTeatro#zradxapp&amp;layout=grid\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Dirty Deal Teatro<\/a>, have produced several performances-cum-instructions for \u201chow to survive the Covid-time\u201d to be enjoyed individually at home; audiences members use earphones and complete the tasks or follow instructions given by the authors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A time of isolation is definitely not the time for big scenes and complicated large-scale productions, unless they are pre-recorded. It is a time of contemplation regarding one\u2019s relationship with theatre and the performing arts in general.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/image3.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-518\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/image3.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/image3-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/image3-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">April 17 opened a new page in Latvian theatre history with the premiere of the first purposefully produced online performance. The Daile Theatre is one of the largest state theatres in Latvia. It will, eventually, celebrate its centenary in 2020. Despite facing an unexpected intermission in his pre-anniversary season, Viesturs Kairi\u0161s, the theatre\u2019s new artistic director, took upon himself the challenge of staging the first \u201conline theatre series.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The premiere work in this series was the play <em>The Enthusiasts<\/em> (<em>Die Schw\u00e4rmer<\/em>, translated into Latvian as <em>J\u016bsmot\u0101ji<\/em>), by Austrian playwright Robert Musil. It was staged remotely with seven actors using Skype. The resulting production was filmed and, later, divided into 15 to 20-minute segments. The actors look into their web cameras and read their dialogues aloud, as if they were on stage and interacting with each other. The illusion of a shared stage is achieved by the \u201cshared\u201d screen, while the audience is behind the traditional \u201cfourth wall.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Daile Theatre\u2019s series is available on social networks and on the company\u2019s YouTube channel. This is the first 100 percent digital performance in Latvian theatre history and the last production of the 2019\/2020 season at the Daile Theatre. Subtitled <em>The Psychoanalysis of Feelings on the Border of Metaphysics<\/em>, the play tells of five intelligent and successful people in their thirties, isolated in a countryside cottage while trying to escape an apocalypse, which resonates with the current policy of social distancing and self-isolation practised worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u039fn May 8 a new page in Latvian theatre history opened with \u201cIran&nbsp;conference\u201d by Russian writer Ivan Vyrypaev, staged in Zoom application by Elm\u0101rs Se\u0146kovs in cooperation with eleven actors from different Latvian theatres. The play imitates a scientific conference organized in Denmark discussing such issues as human rights, religion and values in Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"video-3\">Video 3<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Ivans Viripajevs &quot;Ir\u0101nas konference&quot; - no 8. maija\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_u4Gj7v43q8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This production inspired theatre critics to respond with a first Zoom review-discussion establishing a new experimental platform \u201cKuK\u016b club of critics\u201d in theatre review website <a href=\"http:\/\/www.kroders.lv\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">www.kroders.lv<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"video-4\">Video 4<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Ir\u0101nas konference. KuK\u016b kriti\u0137u klubi\u0146\u0101.\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/38taeBvwWUM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Today, the whole world of theatre, live or recorded, has become a screen, literally. One might be surprised by feeling a longing for hundreds of strangers sitting side by side in the dark, all enchanted by a live, non-mediated performance.<a name=\"end\">&nbsp;<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-thumbnail is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/image4-10-150x150.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-519\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a name=\"end\" href=\"#back\">*<\/a><strong>Lauma Mell\u0113na-Bartkevi\u010da <\/strong>is a PhD scholar and theatre critic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\">Copyright <strong>\u00a9<\/strong> 2020 Lauma Mell\u0113na-Bartkevi\u010da<br><em>Critical Stages\/Sc\u00e8nes critiques<\/em> e-ISSN: 2409-7411<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/4.0\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/88x31.png\" alt=\"Creative Commons Attribution International License\"\/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-small-font-size wp-block-paragraph\">This work is licensed under the<br>Creative Commons Attribution International License CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":516,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-515","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-covid"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/flag-lat-400.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":736,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/india-pandemic-a-vulnerable-time-for-artists-in-india\/","url_meta":{"origin":515,"position":0},"title":"INDIA: Pandemic: A Vulnerable Time for Artists","author":"Lauma Mell\u0113na-Bartkevi\u010da","date":"May 12, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Deepa Punjani* Like in most places, the Covid-19 pandemic has affected all walks of life in India as well. Its theatre and artistic community are bearing the brunt too. There have been efforts to raise funds for theatre and performing artists, but State intervention remains a low priority. Public funding\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Covid&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Covid","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/category\/covid\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/06\/flag-india-400.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":478,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/taiwan\/","url_meta":{"origin":515,"position":1},"title":"TAIWAN: Crisis or Chance: Theatre in Difficult Times","author":"Lauma Mell\u0113na-Bartkevi\u010da","date":"May 2, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Hung Tzi Yu* On January 21, 2020 two days before China locked down Wuhan, a Taiwanese passenger arriving from the city tested positive for COVID-19. Later that week, Taiwan imposed entry restrictions on visitors from China\u2019s Hubei Province and subsequently expanded it to all Chinese nationals. By the end of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Covid&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Covid","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/category\/covid\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/flag-tw-400.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":501,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/south-korea-out-of-crisis-arises-opportunity\/","url_meta":{"origin":515,"position":2},"title":"SOUTH KOREA: Out of Crisis Arises Opportunity","author":"Lauma Mell\u0113na-Bartkevi\u010da","date":"May 4, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Um Hyun hee* No-one saw this coming in early February 2020. It took just two months for South Korean society and its theatre community to become what they are now. The new normal of \u201clife on pause\u201d began amid the fear and confusion caused by the pandemic. The Covid-19 crisis\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Covid&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Covid","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/category\/covid\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/flag-sk-400.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":509,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/georgia-in-search-of-new-forms-and-ideas\/","url_meta":{"origin":515,"position":3},"title":"GEORGIA: In Search of New Forms and Ideas","author":"Lauma Mell\u0113na-Bartkevi\u010da","date":"May 14, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Natalia Tvaltchrelidze* The most striking thing in the Orthodox Easter afternoon in Georgia\u2019s capital Tbilisi was the complete silence on the streets. Movement of vehicles was prohibited for four days in a desperate attempt to have fewer people go to churches and preserve the country\u2019s relative success in fighting the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Covid&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Covid","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/category\/covid\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/flag-geo-400.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":443,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/south-africa\/","url_meta":{"origin":515,"position":4},"title":"SOUTH AFRICA: Devastating Effects","author":"Lauma Mell\u0113na-Bartkevi\u010da","date":"May 5, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Gaerin Hauptfleisch* and Temple Hauptfleisch** As the first reports of what is now known as the COVID-19 international pandemic began to surface locally in February of this year, and the first confirmed South African case announced on 5 March 2020, feelings of restlessness and uncertainty soon made their presence felt\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Covid&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Covid","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/category\/covid\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/flag-s.africa-400.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":407,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/canada\/","url_meta":{"origin":515,"position":5},"title":"CANADA: Working through the Cracks","author":"Lauma Mell\u0113na-Bartkevi\u010da","date":"May 16, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Carly Maga* The effects of social distancing in the coronavirus pandemic hit Canadian theatres hard\u2014slowly, it felt, at first, then all at once. In Toronto, runs were cut short mid-March, but April productions still seemed possible. By the next week, theatres had mostly cancelled the rest of the 2019\/2020 season,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Covid&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Covid","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/category\/covid\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2020\/05\/flag-canada-400.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=515"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1117,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515\/revisions\/1117"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/516"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=515"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=515"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/21\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=515"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}