Designer
Originally from Estonia, Lilja's award winning designs have been realised throughout Europe and recently in the United Kingdom.
Through 25 years of work as a professional scenographer, Lilja has worked extensively in many different theatres and has designed more than 40 productions covering a variety of genres. She has won several domestic and international awards for her artwork and her award winning designs for Shakespeare include The Winter’s Tale (2000, Best Design of the Year) and Hamlet (Drama 2005 Festival Award). Amongst her most recent work in the UK is Yerma, designed for the Arcola Theatre, directed by Helena Kaut Howson with Kathryn Hunter in the title role.
Designs include: Yerma, Arcola Theatre, London; Hamlet Festival Drama 2005; Hamlet Theatrum in Gdansk Festival; Cricket on a Hearth ‘Endla’ Theatre, Pärnu; Hamlet Theatrum; Ay, Carmela!, Tallinn Town Theatre; Liliom, Estonian Drama Theatre, Tallinn; Cinderella, ‘Endla’ Theatre, Pärnu; Don’t Play with Love Estonian Drama Theatre, Tallinn; The Winter’s Tale ‘Endla’ Theatre, Pärnu; Force of Habit Estonian Drama Theatre, Tallinn; Pelleas et Melisande Theatrum’, Tallinn; Paris in Spring ‘Vanemuine’ Theatre, Tartu; Antigone ‘Theatrum’, Tallinn; Ride Down the Mount Morgan, ‘Vanemuine’, Tartu; Little Tragedies, ‘Theatrum’, Tallinn; Moomin’ Christmas ‘Endla’ Theatre, Pärnu; Gaudeamus Baltic Students Song Festival, Tartu; Private Lives, ‘Vanemuine’ Theatre, Tartu; The Dresser Town Theatre, Tallinn.
Productions designed at Endla Theatre, Parnu: Moomin Winter, Swindler, Winnie the Pooh, Jonsen, the Lost One, Arthur and Anna, Emil, The Collector, Wild Adventures, A Man Holding the Trumps, Pilli-Tiidu, Night Songs.
Prizes
and awards include: 2005,
Drama 2005, Festival Prize, Hamlet; 2001, Designer of the Year, The Winter’s Tale;
1989, Vilnius Triennial Prize,
J.G.
Borkman; 1989, Theatre
Designer of the Year, J. G. Borkman;
1988, Designer of the Year,
Shocks of the
Vahelik, The Howling
Miller.
Lilja has completed the MA Scenography course at Central Saint
Martins College of Art and Design, London (UAL). Between 1999-2005
she was Head of Scenography at the Estonian Academy of Arts,
Tallinn and her own designs and her students‘ work have been
exhibited at the Prague Quadrennial; at the World
Stage Design 2005 exhibition in Toronto Lilja was invited to
present her scenography for Hamlet in the main
gallery.
view Lilja's gallery