Elmo Nüganen directs Marius Ivaškevičius’ play Gods at Südalinna Theatre.
The production will be presented with two separate casts – one in Russian and one in Estonian.
The world premiere of Ivaškevičius’ play took place on May 30, 2025, in the Great Hall of the Russian Theatre, performed in Russian.
Premiered at the end of the previous theatre season in Tallinn, Elmo Nüganen’s production has received high praise from critics. Even before its world premiere, the play Gods, which tells a story of love and the fate of women against the backdrop of war, was recognized at the EURODRAM International Playwriting Competition as one of Europe’s best plays and the best play of 2024 translated into German.
It is a moving and powerful story about the possibility of love during wartime.
When the full-scale war in Ukraine began, Lithuanian director Mantas Kvedaravičius was in East Africa, in Uganda. He was filming his new feature film there, which included his Ukrainian partner Hanna in the cast. Mantas was ready to turn a new page in his life—leave behind his career as a documentary filmmaker in global war zones and start living an ordinary life: marry Hanna and have children. It was supposed to be their new beginning.
But war intervened.
When Russian forces reached Mariupol, Mantas suddenly felt that he couldn’t yet live the life of an ordinary man. He knew the people in Mariupol; he had filmed them. And when the city was surrounded, he went there to finish his film. Hanna went with him.
Mantas managed to film for a couple of weeks before being captured and executed by Russian troops. Hanna didn’t know this and searched for her missing partner in the war-torn city, crossing both sides of the frontline under whizzing bullets and falling bombs, until she finally recovered his body.
With the newly filmed material and Mantas’ body, she managed to escape the besieged city and reach Lithuania. The film was edited in Paris and titled Mariupol 2. It went on to win the European Film Academy Award for Best Documentary.
NB! Performances are in either Russian or Estonian.
Recommended age: 15+ (The performance includes strong language.)
The production is made in collaboration with Delfi Meedia.
Russian-language cast – November 12, 2025, at Südalinna Theatre’s Great Hall
Estonian-language cast – November 9, 2025, at Vanemuine's Small Stage, and November 11 at Südalinna Theatre’s Great Hall
Director: Elmo Nüganen
Author: Marius Ivaškevičius
Set Designer: Kristjan Suits
Costume Designer: Reet Aus
Cast in Estonian: Märt Avandi, Elss Raidmets, Külliki Saldre, Saara Nüganen, Maria Avdjuško, Eva Koldits, Katariina Unt
Cast in Russian: Tatjana Jegoruškina ,Tatjana Manevskaja,Anna Sergejeva,Tatjana Kosmõnina, Darja Gavriltšenko,Erika Babjak,Artjom Garejev / Stanislav Kolodub.
