Open the Door

National Kaunas Drama Theatre, Lithuania, presents "Open the Door"

Director: Justinas Vinciūnas

The performance is played in Lithuanian with English subtitles and is suitable for audiences age 14 and up.

Nasjonalteateret i Kaunas, Litauen presenterer "Open the Door".

Regi: Justinas Vinciūnas

Forestillingen passer for 14 år og oppover og spilles på litauisk med engelsk teksting.

Open the Door is a performance created by Justinas Vinciūnas, a director of the young generation, together with an international team of artists. 

The performance is based on the play Silmiga by Aristide Tarnagda. The Burkina Faso-born playwright tells the story of a family raising a foreign boy alongside their son. The country is in turmoil, the village is attacked by terrorists, and the boy has become a stranger in the eyes of the locals – a threat to the village community. The locals declare the boy an enemy and demand that the family betray him, or the terrorists will massacre the entire village. 

When creating this play, Tarnagda aimed for universality - reflecting on what connects us, which is why he chose the Greek tragedy format. This is a unique version of the myth of Antigone. Aristide Tarnagda’s play does not shy away from political issues. It reflects the current rampage of terrorism in African countries as well as the war and post-war context in Lithuania.

Read more about the performance here.

Artistic team/participating actors/production/other contributors: 

• Director Justinas Vinciūnas
• Playwright Aristide Tarnagda
• Set Designer Boubacar Souley Salifou
• Costume designer and co-author of set design Patricija Vytytė
• Composer Mantas Mockus
• Lighting Artist Vladimiras Šerstabojevas
• Actors: Povilas Barzdžius, Robertas Petraitis, Sigitas Šidlauskas, Kęstutis Povilaitis, Eglė Mikulionytė

The performance was awarded two Golden Stage Crosses in Lithuania: Best Emerging Artist, Justinas Vinciūnas, and Best Music, Mantas Mockus.

The performance was created during the implementation of the Creative Europe project "Deconfining"

Funders:EU, Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania, Lithuanian Culture Institute, Lithuanian Council for Culture

Collaborators in Norway August 2025: Syv mil and Cornerteateret

Link of the performance: https://dramosteatras.lt/en/shows/atidaryk-duris/

Project website: https://deconfining.eu/