Ikaras | PREMJERA

It is strange to think that just a century and a half ago, there were no airplanes, no cinema, and no electronic music in the world. Flying in an iron bird was... simply impossible. The story of Icarus, known in our culture since ancient times, tells of man's attempt to fly, or in other words, to achieve the impossible. Contemporary circus artist Džiugas Kunsmanas takes a particularly creative look at this story.

Using physical comedy, contemporary circus, and everyday objects, the artist transforms into a dreamer who actively pursues his desires, though not always successfully. The hero's adventures on stage are complemented by early cinema footage and a soundtrack created from a collection of unique-sounding early electronic musical instruments.

Džiugas Kunsmanas is a contemporary circus artist, known to many Kaunas residents for his work in performances by Gildas Aleksa, Indrė Puišytė, Marius Pinigis, and Adrian Carlo Bibiano. After studying acting at Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas, Džiugas studied circus arts at the Flic Scuola di Circo school in Turin (Italy). Among other world-class circus masters, Flic Scuola di Circo taught Claudio Stellato and Roberto Magro, who are well known to the festival audience and with whom he later established close creative collaboration.

In 2024, Ikaras won the sketch competition at the Išeities taškas festival. This is Džiugas Kunsmanas' first independent original performance.