The songs my father sang

Paulius Rutenis (Rutkauskas)

19 March 1919 – 28 August 1983

Singer, soloist, actor, director, journalist.

A man who was seen on and off stage in Adelaide, Melbourne and later Sydney.

He was born in Liepaja, Latvia, to Lithuanian parents who travelled there to work.  When he was around three years old, the family returned to Lithuania.  His father loved to sing and would encourage the whole family to sing together.  They would open the windows and hear the applause from their neighbours.  His father was tenor, his brother was a strong bass, his mother an alto and sister soprano, in a word, a full choir.  Friends, all singers would gather and sing, Lithuanian folk songs in their home.

 Paulius finished Kaunas Aušros boys school and then studied at Vytautas Didžiojo University.  He became a soloist with the Kaunas National theatre.  In 1943 he moved to Vienna where he studied at the Theatre Wissenshaft, then the following year moved to Austria where he joined the Innsbruck Opera. He then moved to Stuttgart where he sang on radio and would perform for Lithuanians in Displaced Persons Camps.  He was able to sing in five languages.

 Migrating to Australia, he arrived in Adelaide having traveled on the General Black on 3 June 1948.  He was sent to work on the railways at Peterborough, South Australia.  While in Peterborough he gave a concert at the Peterborough Town Hall with two other Baltic artists, a classical ballet dancer from the Berlin Wintergarten, Borys Schinkow, and Stasys Liaksas, piano  accordionist formerly of the American Army Officers' Club band.

 He actively involved himself in the Adelaide Lithuanian community and local music scene.  He could often be heard singing on the radio.  He organised the Lithuanian theatre group, where he acted and directed numerous plays.  He studied at the University of Adelaide for two years, leaving to move to Melbourne.  From 1966 he joined the Australian Opera where he had minor roles and sang in the Opera Choir. He retired in 1981.

In 1977 he moved to Sydney and joined the Sydney theatre group, Atžala where he acted and directed plays.  Shortly before his death, he formed the Sydney Lithuanian women’s ensemble Sutartinė. He commenced teaching them the songs he had learnt as a child from his father, long forgotten folk songs.

References

Australijos Lietuvis December 6^th 1948 Nr.7

The Argus Thu 17 Jun 1948, page 3,  Three Baltic artists to give concert

Adelaide Festival of Arts and the Lithuanian State Theatre

 

The biannual Adelaide Festival of Arts features international performance from around the world.  In 1992 the State Theatre of Lithuania performed two plays as part of the festival, Uncle Vanya and the Square. 

Uncle Vanya written by Anton Chekhov and Directed by Eimuntas Nekrosius, had a cast of 12 actors.  The Square written and directed by Eimuntas Nekrosius, with four actors, two of whom also performed in Uncle Vanya.

The performances received rave reviews, ‘nothing short of superb’ Nick Griffith Advertiser, ‘one of the great theatre events of the 1992 Adelaide Festival’, Peter Ward of the Australian.  Peter Goers, controversial Adelaide theatre critic referred to it as a ‘turkey’ and not worth checking out.  The following day in the letters to the press, Goers was attacked for his ‘ill considered, egotistical, ignorant piece of work’. 

Both plays were performed in Lithuanian with the audience wearing headphones with simultaneous translations.  Performed in the Scott Theatre and Union Hall of Adelaide University, the troop gave eight performance of Uncle Vanya, a play of 3 hours and 15 minutes, and four of the Square, a much shorter performance of 1 hour and 40 minutes. 

The actors
Jurate Aniulyte
Vladas Bagdonas
Saulius Bareikis
Dalia Storyk
Calia Overaite
Elvyra Zebertaviciute
Vidas Petkevicius
Kostas Smorginas
Juozas Pocius
Irena Tamosiunaite
Rimgaudas Karvelis
Vytautas Taukinaitis
Janina Matekonyte
Remigijus Vilkaitis

A new Lithuanian play in Adelaide

Another submitted news article.

The Lithuanian Theatre Studio in Adelaide directed by Mr J. Guscius will give on the 2nd and 3rd of December, the performance of a Lithuanian play “High castle” (Aukštadvaris) by the Lithuanian writer V. Alantas at the Studio Theatre, Wellington Square, North Adelaide.

Mr J. Guscius was well known in Lithuanian as a full time producer for radio plays in Lithuanian Broadcasting Service.  After the war in Germany he produced several internationally famous plays in Displaced Persons camps.  When he arrived in Adelaide, five years ago, he gathered a few former Lithuanian artist and amateurs and started his Theatre Studio. Every year he produces a few plays, which are very popular amongst the Lithuanians.  A few months ago his Studio tried a play in English which was a considerable success.  But his main purpose is to show the works of famous Lithuanians writers to Lithuanians in Adelaide.

Advertiser 1 Dec 1955

The Lithuanian Theatre Studio 1953

The Lithuanian Theatre Studio 1953 (Adelaide)

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From left front row: P Kanas, ….A Rukstele (artist), S. Kaniene, B. Rainys, A. Gutis,

G. Matuleviciene, J. Gucius

Second row: L or Z Kucinskas, A. Trinka, ….. Pukelis, V. Uzubalis, B. Baksinskas,

J. Naujalis

Third row: V. Ratkevicius, N. Skidzevicius, L. Kamazinas

First row between B. Rainy and A. Gucius, A. Petrikas

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Derek Van Abbe wrote a letter of thanks to Mr Gucius for the opportunity to see the play “School for wives”. He writes “ I am always impressed with the faithfulness with which European dramatic groups keep on the traditions of the “grand style”, this is something which Australians have lost.