Marius von Mayenburg „KANKINYS“ (Rež. Agnius Jankevičius)

Marius von Mayenburg

Martyr

Running time: 3 h 30 min

Premiered on: 10 May 2024

Performed in Russian, with Lithuanian captions

Creative team:

Directed by: Agnius Jankevičius

Set and Costume Design by: Laura Luišaitytė

Lighting Design by: Pijus Vasiliauskas

Video Design by: Arvydas Gudas

Stage Manager: Eglė Kuzienė

Translated from German by Agnius Jankevičius

Cast:

Valentinas Krulikovskis, Jevgenija Gladij, Viačeslav Lukjanov, Valentin Novopolskij, Igoris Abramovičius, Anastasiya Shpakouskaya, Artur Svorobovič, Edita Gončarova, Students of the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater (Gabrielė Baubaitė, Karolina Kildaitė, Mila Ivanova, Ignas Antanas Giniotis, Elina Kuprijaškinaitė, Gabija Minkevičiūtė, Simonas Goptaitis, Ainis Kazlauskas, Žygimantas Vainauskas, Gustas Vičkačka)

Marius von Mayenburg’s Martyr has been staged in many theatres throughout Europe. The play tells the story of Benjamin, a teenager raised by a single mother. When she learns that her son is having problems at school, she immediately thinks of drugs. But the boy ‘gets hooked’ on something else entirely – the Bible. The student finds all the answers in the Holy Scripture, turning it into a tool for tormenting and terrorising others. Benjamin thinks he’s the only one who can tell right from wrong. This leads to conflicts, confrontation and psychological warfare. At school, Benjamin declares war on lewdness. He refuses to go to the swimming pool because girls in bikinis offend his religious feelings. And this is just the beginning.

Von Mayenburg wrote this play in 2012 and staged it personally at Berlin’s Schaubühne theatre the same year. The work, consisting of 27 short and specific scenes, resembles a screenplay and explores a broad range of topical issues: the struggle of ideas, the role of extremism and religion in society, the contradictions in Western culture, polarisation, the threat of bigotry, and how it all relates to religion. The play depicts a total disruption of the adult world and society in general in the face of Christian radicalism. Theatre critics compare the play’s impact to the explosion of a hand grenade – the text deconstructs neoliberalism, political correctness and tolerance, while openly criticising the superstitions that tempt young minds. Martyr equates the passionate frenzy of sexual and social maturation with religious fervour for a reason.

Kūrybinė grupė
Režisierius – Agnius Jankevičius
Scenografė ir kostiumų dailininkė – Laura Luišaitytė
Šviesų dailininkas –  Pijus Vasiliauskas
Videomenininkas – Arvydas Gudas
Režisieriaus padėjėja – Eglė Kuzienė

Spektaklyje vaidina
Vilis Bacleris (direktorius) – Valentinas Krulikovskis
Erika Rot (biologija, chemija, geografija) – Jevgenija Gladij
Markus Diorflingeris (istorija, kūno kultūra) – Viačeslav Lukjanov
Kunigas Dyteris Menratas (religija) – Valentin Novopolskij
Benjaminas Ziūdelis (mokinys) – Igoris Abramovičius
Ingė Ziūdel (jo motina) – Anastasija Špakovskaja
Georgas Hanzenas (mokinys) – Artur Svorobovič
Lidija Vėber (mokinė) – Edita Gončarova
Kristianas – Ainis Kazlauskas