Jonas Jurašas

Jonas Jurašas was born in Panevėžys, on June 19, 1936. In 1964, he graduated from Lunacharsky State Institute for Theatre Arts in Moscow. The director has staged various performances at the Lithuanian Russian Drama Theatre, Šiauliai Drama Theatre and Lithuanian Drama Theatre. In 1967-1972, Jurašas worked as a senior director at the Kaunas Drama Theatre (later removed from the position due to political issues). The majority of his performances directed in Lithuania were either banned or censored. In 1974, the artist emigrated from Lithuania and lived in Austria, Germany and, later, the USA. Jonas Jurašas has staged performances for American, Japanese, Belgian, German and Canadian theatres. Also, in 1990-1992, he was employed as a director at the Kaunas Drama Theatre. Jonas Jurašas is a visiting professor at various institutions of higher education in the USA and Canada. In 2006, the director was awarded the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas (Officer's Cross). In 2009, Jonas Jurašas was granted the Lithuanian National Culture and Art Award. His earlier works include, inter alia: Tango by Sławomir Mrożek, Hunt for Mammoths (Lith.: Mamutų medžioklė) by Kazys Saja, Moliere (Russian: Мольер) by Mikhail Bulgakov, House of Menace (Lith.: Grasos namai) by Juozas Glinskis, Macbeth by William Shakespeare (Theatre Sovremennik in Moscow and La Mama e.t.c. in New York), Barbora Radvilaitė by Juozas Grušas, The Suicide (Russian: Самоубийца) by Nikolai Erdman (Trinity Square Repertory Theatre in Providence), Three Sisters (Russian: Три сeстры) by Anton Chekhov (Tadashi Suzuki Company), Sand Claviers (Lith.: Smėlio klavyrai) by Aušra Marija Sluckaitė, Death and the Maiden by Ariel Dorfmann.

 

RECENT THEATRE WORKS:

2000 The Bear (Lith.: Lokys) by Bronius Kutavičius (Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre)

2006 The Memory Garden by Rebecca Ritchie (Sarasota, USA)

2007 Orpheus and Eurydice (Italian: Orfeo ed Euridice) by Christoph Willibald Gluck (Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre)

2009 The Lithuanians (Italian: I Lituani) by Amilcare Ponchielli (Vilnius Opera Festival)

2009 Doubt by John Patrick Shanley (Audronis Liuga Productions

2010 Antigone in Siberia (Lith.: Antigonė Sibire) by Aušra Marija Sluckaitė (Kaunas State Drama Theatre)

2011 Purge (Finnish: Puhdistus) by Sofi Oksanen (Kaunas State Drama Theatre)

2012 The White Shroud (Lith.: Balta drobulė) based on the work by Antanas Škėma (National Kaunas Drama Theatre)

2014 Barbara (Lith.: Barbora) based on the work by Juozas Grušas, Aušra Marija Sluckaitė (National Kaunas Drama Theatre)