Kukutis in the Dark is a new audio drama by Amanda Dalton, adapted from The Ballads of Kukutis by Marcelijus Martinaitis, translated by Laima Vince, and starring Paterson Joseph, Guy Rhys and Kristina Buikaite.

There will be a live audio playout of the drama in the Poetry Library, followed by a Q&A with Amanda Dalton and Tony Ward of Arc Publications, hosted by Anjum Malik.

The Ballads of Kukutis is an iconic poem sequence by Lithuania’s leading poet, Marcelijus Martinaitis, written in the last days of Soviet rule in Lithuania. Its hero is the joker Kukutis, acting and commenting on the world around him in the manner of a Shakespearian fool. Kukutis is a folk hero in Lithuania, symbolising the little people rising up against the elite. When Lithuania broke away from Soviet rule in 1988, in what became known as the Singing Revolution, thousands of people gathered on the streets singing and shouting the name Kukutis as a symbol of a free, independent Lithuania.

The event will run 6pm – 8pm with an interval and drinks provided.

Produced by Polly Thomas, for Arc Publications. Funded by the Lithuanian Culture Institute.