News

Lithuania's second city officially launched itself as the European Capital of Culture 2022 on Saturday with an opening event showcasing its contemporaneity and cultural potential.

Kaunas ECC programme kicked off on January 22 with Uprising, a show of music, light, video and dance, directed by Chris Baldwin.

“Tonight, I invite everyone to celebrate Kaunas,” said President Gitanas Nausėda at the opening event. “Today, Kaunas is the city of unique modern architecture, business and sports, free and creative people.”

Read more: Marina Abramović, Yoko Ono among highlights of Kaunas 2022 programme

Several dozen spectators were also greeted by UNESCO Secretary General Audrey Azolou and Kaunas Mayor Visvaldas Matijošaitis. European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen sent video greetings.

Kaunas is one of the three cities to hold the European Capital of Culture title in 2022. The programme includes over 1,000 events and internationally-known artists.

The key highlight is the Contemporary Myth of Kaunas Trilogy, a series of events that will take place on three weekends.

Read more: ‘A bit of an explosion, a bit of a revolution’ – Kaunas braced for European capital of culture launch

Source: Kaunas kicks off European Capital of Culture programme - LRT