Marius Ivaškevičius: Expulsion

◊ 2011 Golden Stage Cross. Best Director – Oskaras Koršunovas ◊ 2011 Golden Stage Cross. Best Supporting Actor – Marius Repšys ◊ 2011 Golden Stage Cross. Best Supporting Actress – Elzė Gudavičiūtė ◊ 2011 Golden Stage Cross. Best Scenographer – Gintaras Makarevičius ◊ 2011 Golden Stage Cross. Best Young Artist – Ainis Storpirštis ◊ 2011 Golden Stage Cross. Best Production of National Drama – “Expulsion”

Oskaras Koršunovas: “Expulsion” touches on a highly relevant subject—emigration. We probably do not even grasp its scale statistically: people can only speculate about how many have left and emigrated, but this situation is not analysed in the political sphere—let alone in the cultural and artistic spheres. In art, we have almost no serious analysis or considered perspective on what is happening now to Lithuania and its people. Behind this lie not only the interests of the nation and the state, but also people’s shattered lives and entire odysseys—whether they will return or not… They leave their country, their homes, their families. Emigration takes many forms. Today it is different, but there was a time when people went abroad with a one-way ticket, unable to speak the language, with nothing, often having been deceived… This is the situation we see in “Expulsion.” What is emigration? What lies behind this word? Many things lie behind it, one of the most important being the loss of identity. Or perhaps its discovery in another country? After all, the question of an individual’s identity is one of the most relevant today. “Expulsion” reveals many possible answers and solutions to this question. Essentially, emigration is a horizontal spiritual journey ‘toward happiness’, often turning into a vertical journey downward, toward misery.”