Cinematorija “Cali-Gari”
Cinematorija “Cali-Gari” is an experiment combining orchestral music-making, cinema, academic and popular music, as well as acoustic and electroacoustic music. This format presents a musical soundtrack and stage action for one of the most significant classics of German Expressionist silent cinema – the film “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari”, created more than a century ago, in 1920.
Considered a masterpiece of psychological horror, the film takes viewers into the subconscious of a person with an unstable psyche and explores themes of manipulating people and blind obedience. According to film critic Siegfried Kracauer, the character of Caligari symbolised unlimited power directed against human rights and values.
These themes are reinterpreted and brought into a contemporary context through partly fixed and partly improvised music by composer and National Prize laureate Algirdas Martinaitis and electronic music creator Leonas Somovas. The concert is enriched by theatrical stage action that blurs the boundaries between the film and reality.
This concert serves as a striking introduction to the international exhibition “Become Caligari! The Virtual Cabinet”, which will open at the Lithuanian Theatre, Music and Cinema Museum on October 29, 2026, at 17:00. The exhibition marks the cooperation between the Lithuanian Theatre, Music and Cinema Museum and the Deutsche Kinemathek – Museum für Film und Fernsehen in Berlin.
The exhibition and its accompanying events will offer a unique multiplatform experience: original exhibits from the Berlin film museum will be presented, the film will be screened, and visitors will have the opportunity to experience virtual reality, attend lectures and discussions, and take part in educational programmes for young people and teachers.
Today, more than a century later, the film takes on new relevance: it has become not only a part of film history, but also a living cultural commentary on contemporary reality. Discovering it becomes a conversation about ourselves: what we see, what we believe, whom we obey, and how we can recognise when someone is trying to “hypnotise” us.
Cinematorija will take place on October 29.
PERFORMERS:
Composer – Algirdas Martinaitis
Lithuanian Symphonic Wind Orchestra
Conductor – Karolis Variakojis
Reader – Vaidotas Martinaitis
Electronics – Leonas Somovas
Saxophone – Liudas Mockūnas
Countertenor – Vaidas Bartušas
