Paluknys, Trakai district

11 April 2025 – 13 June 2025

Creative practitioner: contemporary dancer, actor and choreographer Petras Lisauskas

Curators: Milda Laužikaitė, Saulė Norkutė

13 students from 9th and 10th grades (aged 14-16)

Paluknys is a village with 1,268 inhabitants in Trakai district. The surrounding area and the village are populated by linguistically and culturally diverse communities compared to other areas of Lithuania.

The population of Paluknys consists of: Lithuanian – 56.33%, Polish – 30.11%, Russian – 8.28%, Belarusian – 2.37%. According to the school director, 80% of students come from linguistic minorities or mixed families. Some students come from foster care homes. The majority of students come from other parts of the area, and their participation in after-school activities depends on the schedules of the buses that take them home.

To explore how engaging in contemporary dance and circus activities and focusing on common goals can help to develop a more open and empathetic worldview?

Broaden young people’s horizons for the future by engaging with and building relationships with a creative practitioner.

Develop young people’s ability to collaborate effectively in group activities, showing respect and cooperation.

During 9 creative sessions, young people learned to listen to and get to know each other through activities that required concentration and teamwork: they threw balls and sticks and created choreography using combinations of hand and finger movements. Petras, a creative practitioner, actor, and contemporary dancer, used storytelling to create a space where no topic was off-limits: talking about oneself, accepting oneself and others, and exploring relationships between adults and friends.

Natural teenage provocations became opportunities to discuss boundaries: how society and young people’s environments function, who sets limits, and what is considered acceptable or unacceptable. During these sessions, participants reflected on their beliefs together, discovered new ways of behaving and acting, and explored new possibilities.

Together with Petras, young people discussed taking responsibility and attempted to do so, although they did not always succeed. In the moments where they did, their understanding shifted: not only does the environment affect us, but we also influence it.

Students reported the ability to collaborate effectively in group activities, showing respect and cooperation, and said the project helped them get to know their classmates better. They also reported gaining more confidence in their ability to participate, complete tasks and work in a group.

Students reported that for the first time they encountered contemporary dance and worked with an artist using contemporary dance-based practice.

Students reported that during the project they felt that their opinion was important and heard.

Students reported that during this project they learned to listen to and hear the opinions of their peers who have different views.