SIGITAS PARULSKIS AT THE 40th INTERNATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL IN ROTTERDAM
On the 13th of June, in the presence of H.M. Queen Beatrix, the opening ceremony of the 40th International Poetry Festival will take place at the Schouwburg theater in Rotterdam. During the program, presentations of various authors from all the world, among whom Gert Vlok Nel (South Africa), Kazuko Shiraishi (Japan), Sigitas Paruskis (Lithuania) and Matthew Sweeney (Ierland), will be alternating with poetry related shows of Scapinoballet Rotterdam, Slagwerkgroep The Hague, the Kift and others. During the opening ceremony, the jubilee edition CD box consisting of 700 memorable declarations of 40 years of Poetry International Festival will be presented by Bas Kwakman, the director of Poetry International, to H.M. Queen Beatrix.
Since 1970, the Poetry International festival has been promoting knowledge about and enthusiasm for international poetry. For this reason the festival is targeted not only to a national, but also to an international audience of poetry lovers.In an introduction to the 40th Poetry International festival, Jan Sleumer (Poetry International) introduces Sigitas Paruslkis, calling him one of the most popular writers in Lithuania. He adds that S.Parulskis is not only a poet, writer of prose, screenplays and drama, but also a translator, essayist and critic. S.Parulskis has been awarded the most prestigious Lithuanian prizes for his work, including an award for the best literary debut of 1991 for his poetry collection Iš ilgesio visa tai (All of This from Longing).
The content of Parulskis’ plays is often determined by symbolic situations that remind one of parables, imbued as they are with references to religion and theology. Furthermore, Parulskis is fascinated by death, as was clearly evident in his prize-winning collection of poetry, Concerning Death.
His experiences while serving in a parachute regiment of the Soviet Army in the GDR were also used as a point of departure in his best novel, Trys sekundės dangaus (Three Seconds of Heaven). Parulskis studied Lithuanian language and literature at Vilnius University. He has worked with various prominent newspapers and journals, and is at present active as a lecturer in Creative Writing at Vilnius University.
The Poetry International festival will take place in Rotterdam from the 13th until the 19th of June 2009. Information about the program of the festival can be found on www.poetry.nl
