Riga - European Capital of Culture 2014 candidate

then and nowStop. Look. Become acquainted.A city changes rapidly: already returningafter one month’s absence it seems asthough everything has changed. In turn,if you find yourself on the spot, it seemsthat nothing whatsoever has changed, becausethe changes have been so serenelysmooth, gradual. The aim of the photoexhibition “Then and Now” is to capturethese changes, creating photo installations– stands, where one and the samepart of the city can be observed and thechanges taken place at various times overthe centuries. Placed by the specific object– square, building or street section, theseinstallations will demonstrate how it washere then, allowing for comparison withhow it is now.postwar generationThe postwar generation is free of thetraumas that pursue previous generations.They convert the neuroses andmemories of previous generations in acreative manner, which, at the same time,is a protest for anything that is not free.Within the framework of the EuropeanCapital of Culture it is intended to organiseartistic and cultural space in locationsthat are linked with the relationships ofpower and war themes, organising concerts,exhibitions, performances, etc. Theidea of the use of these locations – culture,which doesn’t sacrifice itself to power, resistsit and doesn’t conform, being itself atwar with everything conventional. LīgatneExamples:Freedom MonumentBefore the 1 st World War the spot where theFreedom Monument, built in 1935, is currentlylocated was occupied by the Peter Ibronze statue. During the times of SovietLatvia trolley buses ran round the monument.Live traffic created serious damageto the monument and therefore, whentraffic on this part of the street was finallyclosed in 1990, with the renewal of independence,the monument was in need ofserious restoration. Restoration work wasterminated in 2001.Freedom and Elizabetes Street crossingDuring the Soviet times Lenin’s statueflaunted itself on this spot. For several yearsnow at Christmas this place is adorned bya Christmas tree but during various Rigafestivals – appropriate design formations.underground training area, Salaspils nuclearreactor site, Daugavgrīva fortress,Irbene radio locator are all planned to becomeEuropean Capital of Culture locationsfor alternative cultural processes, involvingvarious Riga sub-culture groups in theprocess, such as grafitti artists, alternativemusic festival organisers, unpublished philosophersand literati, independent theatregroups, proposing the transformation ofthese locations into multi-cultural spaceswith the name of Postwar generation.What: Art and music events.Where: Līgatne underground training area,Daugavgrīva fortress, Irbene radio locator,Salaspils nuclear reactor.When: All year.Organisers: Skaņu mežs (Sound Forest),Orbīta.Daile theatreThe Daile Theatre acquired its home –architect Marta Staņa’s designed buildingon Freedom Street, only in 1997, but whatwas here before – an old Riga construction,was taken down when building theDaile theatre.Air BridgeThe Air Bridge is the first viaduct in Riga andit was built over the railway tracks in 1906.At the foot of the bridge is the FreedomStreet tram depot, which could tell us howthe appearance of public transport haschanged over the years. Behind the depotthe former premises of the “Red Star” factorycurrently await reconstruction.What: Photo exhibiton in an urbanenvironment.Where: Freedom Street.When: May-September.Concept authors: Untitled Ltd.opera valentīna –the story of the atlantissunk in rigaIn 2014, the staging of a new Latvianoriginal opera, Valentīna, will take placeat the Latvian National Opera. It willbe the story of a legendary characterin Latvian and European cultural life– cinema and theatre expert ValentīnaFreimane, whose personal life storyis closely linked with European andLatvian historical events. She is knownas the Atlantis sunk in Riga, who,as a young girl fleeing from FascistGermany, found herself in Riga, losingall the dreams she had at the beginningof the 1930’s in Berlin. Her family perishedin the Holocaust. Having grownup in the Berlin cinema and theatre environment,in the Soviet times ValentīnaFreimane became a teacher of Westernculture and cinema for several generationsof Latvians.Already in 2007, the Latvian National Opera,in cooperation with joint-stock companyKolonna Board Chairperson Ieva Plaudeand the Cēsis Art Festival, announced aLatvian original opera competition, whoseaim was to promote the development ofthe Latvian opera genre, creating largescalecompositions for production at theLatvian National Opera. The Latvian originalopera idea competition, which waswon by the composer Arturs Maskats withhis opera Valentīna has ended, and theimplementation of the idea is planned in2014. The creative team of the new productionincludes libretto author MartsPujāts, playwright Margarita Zieda anddirector Viesturs Kairišs. Together with thepremiere of Valentīna, the National Operawould also demonstrate the documentaryfilm about Valentīna Freimane by Germancinema director Rosa von Praunheim,which he began work on in 2009.WHAT: Opera premiere.When: 2014 Latvian National Opera season- October.Where: Latvian National Opera.Concept authors: Latvian National Opera.Organiser: Latvian National Opera.58 59