Rimas Tuminas: biography, personal life, performances

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Rimas Tuminas is a talented director of famous theatrical performances and productions. Behind him are dozens of complex dramatic paintings, fraught with bright deep meaning and intense colorful plot.

What is the creative biography of Rimas Tuminas? What is remarkable about his contribution to the development of the national theater? What are his future directorial plans and projects? You can briefly learn about this from our article on the work, biography, personal life of Rimas Tuminas.

The beginning of life's journey

It happened in the winter of 1952, in Kelme, a small town in the Siauliai district of the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic. The future director Rimas Tuminas was born into a family of ordinary workers from the Old Believers.

In numerous interviews, he repeatedly described his childhood - a farm lost among the fields, poverty and backwater. They lived without electricity and other usual communications. True, then electricity appeared - a neighbor's generator worked for two hours a day.

However, the memories of a talented playwright about his childhood are quite pleasant - fresh air, expanse, carelessness …

Among other joyful moments RimasTuminas mentions religious holidays, which were accompanied not only by noisy fun and delicious dinners, but also by carnival disguises, incendiary performances and humorous practical jokes. Perhaps already then, as a little boy, watching folk amateur performances, Rimas wanted to link his fate with theatrical activities.

According to the memoirs of a talented director, from the age of seven he began to arrange short recitations, teaching neighbor girls eloquent and expressive performances. These were the first performances of Rimas Tuminas, which he, a barefoot boy, staged in the cold hallway of his small house.

Initial acquaintance with the theater

At the age of fourteen, the teenager first visited a real theater. The whole class of their rural school went to the capital to see the theatrical performance of Puss in Boots.

As Rimas Tuminas himself once admitted, he did not like the performance. Firstly, the play was too childish for a boy living an independent life. By the way, by that time, young Rimas had already worked as a projectionist and lived separately from his parents.

Secondly, this play was staged disgustingly. The actors were out of tune, the scenery was suffering, what was happening on the stage seemed simulated and … pathetic. Another thing is cinema. This is real art, this is a true breakthrough into the future!

However, despite such a prejudice towards the theater, at the age of eighteen, Rimas Tuminas entered the Lithuanianconservatory, and then graduated from GITIS. Why was there such a change in the young man's thinking?

True vocation

And it was all the fault of the first love.

Once a family settled on the farm, consisting of four educated and intelligent women - a mother and three daughters. Our Lithuanian hero fell in love with the youngest. She was the prettiest, the most gentle, the most aristocratic.

However, a year later, the beloved of the future director, together with her family, left for the capital and did not return, leaving an indelible mark on the heart of the young guy. Unrequited love awakened creativity in his soul - young Rimas began to compose poetry, sing romances and dream of fame.

However, the path to fame was thorny and difficult. At first, the guy worked as a welder and studied at night school. Then he flew to the capital to study as a director.

Already in Vilnius, this noisy and crowded city, the young man met his love. He came to her with his soul wide open and a rose in his hands, and her heart was already taken. Then Rimas Tuminas decided to become a famous theater director so that the girl would regret who she refused.

Years of study at the academy

Of course, studying at the academy was difficult and required effort and effort. At first, the young man treated her frivolously and lightly. Of course, he wanted to become famous, and creative aspirations woke up in his soul.

From early childhood, a young Lithuanian got involved in art - he drew, sculpted figurines,sang and recited poetry. Most likely, such artistry manifested itself in a child from a mother - a creative and extraordinary nature, making a living by designing clothes and drawing.

Rimas Tuminas stayed at the academy only because he did not want to return to his native village with nothing, to hear other people's ridicule and gossip behind his back. And he did the right thing by staying.

Only in the process of learning did he discover all the depth and monumentality of true dramaturgy. At the academy, the young man discovered Chekhov and his serious, soulful dramaturgy. It was at the university that Rimas Tuminas began composing small, but bright and psychological studies.

And then there was admission to GITIS. The young Lithuanian was accepted, even turning a blind eye to the deuce in the history of the USSR. Everyone was struck by his extraordinary talent and the depth of his inner world.

First performances by the novice master

After graduating from Moscow, Rimas Tuminas returned to his homeland - to dear Lithuania, where he became a talented director. The first dramatic work of the GITIS graduate was "January" - a play based on the play by J. Radichkov.

Starting from 1979, Rimas Tuminas worked for more than twenty years in the capital's drama theater, first as a simple director, and then as artistic director.

During his tenure in these positions, the talented playwright staged several dozen theatrical plays, the most popular of which are “The Snow Queen”, “The Cat on the Hotroof”, “Oedipus Rex” and many others.

Personal brainchild

In 1990, the Lithuanian director organized and headed his own theater, called the Maly Drama Theater. Such talented and memorable performances by Rimas Tuminas as "Three Sisters", "The Cherry Orchard", "Masquerade", "Inspector General" and others from the eternal theatrical classics were shown on its stage. As you can see, the Lithuanian director's love for Russian writers is truly boundless. Conveying all the power and great meaning of these works in his productions, the playwright not only raises serious humane questions, but also exposes the depth of human emotions, actions and relationships.

Tuminas' personal plays were also successful on the stage of the Maly Theatre. For example, his performance “Here there will be no death”, written in collaboration with the famous poet V. Kukulas, made a great impression on the audience and was duly noted by theater critics and the media.

Foreign projects

During this period, Rimas Tuminas also actively worked abroad. In Finland in the early 1990s, he staged Molière's Don Giovanni and Chekhov's Uncle Vanya. Then there was an experience in Iceland - "Don Juan" and "Richard III" (based on the great Shakespeare).

Of the contemporary works of the Lithuanian director abroad, we should mention “Romeo and Juliet” and “Servant of Two Masters” (2001, Poland), as well as “The Idiot” and “The Cherry Orchard” (2004 and 2006, respectively, Sweden).

As you can see, the director is often invited to serious classical productions, since he, like no otherthe other, can correctly and correctly, in the light of modern conditions, convey the spirit and atmosphere of that time, as well as vividly and figuratively depict true human feelings and aspirations.

Working in the Russian Federation

Since 2007, Rimas Tuminas has been working in Moscow, at the Theater. E. B. Vakhtangov. Here, at the invitation of the Russian Federal Agency for Culture and Cinematography, he holds the responsible position of artistic director.

Under the careful supervision of a Lithuanian director, such memorable, serious performances as “Troilus and Cressida” (Shakespeare, 2008), “Uncle Vanya” (Chekhov, 2009), “Masquerade” (Lermontov, 2010), “The Wind in the Poplars” (Siblereys, 2011), “Smile to Us, Lord” (Kanovich, 2014), “Minetti” (Bernahard, 2015), “Oedipus Rex” (Sophocles, 2016).

Among all kinds of talented productions, the play “Eugene Onegin” should definitely be mentioned. Rimas Tuminas put his whole soul into this production, for which he was awarded the Golden Mask award as the best director of 2014.

It is also worth mentioning that the Lithuanian artistic director has two works of a completely different genre. These are the operas “Katerina Izmailova” (Shostakovich) and “The Queen of Spades” (Tchaikovsky). Both works were staged at the Bolshoi Theater and received many positive reviews and reviews.

Teaching work

Since 1979, Rimas Tuminas has been teaching. In the Vilnius Conservatory he is listed asprofessor of theater disciplines. The director also teaches at GITIS, and since 2012 he has been accepting students from various theater educational institutions at his First Studio (at the Vakhtangov Theatre).

A little personal

Regarding the personal life of Rimas Tuminas (wife, family, hobbies and hobbies), quite a lot is known. The talented director was married twice. His first wife was Jurate Anyulite. In this short marriage, a daughter, Monica, was born.

Then the Lithuanian director got married a second time. This happy event happened in 1982. The chosen one of Rimas Tuminas was the actress Inga Burneikaite. The couple also had a daughter, who is now actively involved in acting and directing.

What else can you say about the personal life of Rimas Tuminas? He is a very open and sociable person, he loves jokes and good humor. Therefore, in many of the director's productions, subtle comedy and grotesque jokes are often found.

Artistic Director He alth

The whole theatrical country has been worrying about the state of he alth of the talented artistic director for several years now. The fact that Rimas Tuminas has cancer became known in 2014. After that, the director was examined and treated at an oncological clinic in Israel, from where he was discharged in a satisfactory condition, full of fresh strength and energy.

In 2017, there were alarming reports of cardiovascular disease for Rimas Tuminas. After undergoing serious treatment, he returned to his active creative work.

Artistic Director Awards

For their labors and efforts onin the theatrical field, the director was repeatedly awarded prizes and awards. For example, the State Prize of the Russian Federation (1999), the Orders of Honor (2017) and Friendship (2010), the Golden Mask and Live Theater awards.

This, of course, is not a complete or definitive list of awards for a talented theatrical artistic director. He has a lot of hard work ahead of him. And we will expect bright and unforgettable performances.