Public Humiliation at Rehearsal? New Complaint Against the Dailes Theatre 0 10

For his part, Kairišs sees no grounds for the accusations, as the quality of the work was unacceptable, and he took "surgical" measures to rectify the situation and allow another lighting artist to continue working. The Ministry of Culture has received a complaint from Bondarenko, but further progress is currently unclear as information from the theatre is awaited.

Lighting artist Julia Bondarenko was invited by director Jānis Znotiņš to participate in the production of the Christmas concert. Julia states that until the dress rehearsal, which was filmed by Latvian television, no one had complained about her work - neither the director nor the theatre. On the day of the dress rehearsal, everything changed. The changes were noticeable even before the rehearsal began, but clarity was brought by the artistic director of the theatre, Kairišs, in the presence of the entire production team.

"He started with a comment, no, rather a compliment on the work of Jānis Znotiņš, and then immediately quite quickly moved on to publicly humiliating my work in principle. He said that it did not meet the theatre's standards, that it was impossible to fix, that it was created in a 'cringy' aesthetic. Although, I must say, no one had acquainted me with the standards of the Dailes theatre. I have over 16 years of experience in this profession, and this is the first time I have encountered such a situation," says Julia Bondarenko.

This is not the only case where stories about the communication culture of the Dailes theatre have gone beyond the walls of this institution. Last week, actress Lelde Dreimane made a statement. She criticized director Juris Žagars for how she was dismissed, stating that it was done unprofessionally and disrespectfully.