Ten years of stories and one very special celebration: the “Laisvės TV” birthday

Ten years of shows, conversations, laughter, debates, unexpected moments and people who were by our side all along. An anniversary like this deserves more than just cake and candles. On the evening of September 18, “Laisvės TV” turned its 10th birthday into a real celebration – with memories, music, surprises and, of course, dancing until dawn.

This time, the birthday guests were welcomed at Dūmų fabrikas in Vilnius. Industrial walls, high ceilings, lights and a space slowly filling up – even before the programme began, it was clear that a quiet anniversary gathering was not on the cards here.

Birthdays have one special quality – they make you look back, at least for a moment. And when you have a whole decade behind you, there is certainly plenty to remember. Archival footage came to life on the screens: the first episodes of “Laikykitės ten”, the shows, their heroes and the moments that have become part of “Laisvės TV” history over ten years. Some images brought nostalgia, others laughter, and some reminded us how much can change in ten years.

Well-known “Laisvės TV” faces also returned to celebrate together – Rima Urbonaitė, Rita Miliūtė, Timūras Augucevičius and Aidas Puklevičius. Different people, different shows and stories, but that evening they were all united by one occasion – “Laisvės TV” is ten!

But the 10th birthday was not just a look back at the past. The programme was full of surprises, unexpected performances and moments prepared especially for the occasion. The audience was treated to “Laisvės TV” politicians' roasts, familiar faces, laughter and surprises, and memories and conversations were soon complemented by live music.

When “Antikvariniai Kašpirovskio Dantys” took the stage, they gave Dūmų fabrikas a completely different rhythm. The music grew louder, the audience rose from their seats, and after the concert no one intended to stop. After “Vienos nakties Nidoje” swept through in August, the disco moved to Vilnius for one night only – with Andrius Tapinas at the DJ booth, the space filled with familiar songs, lights and a dancing crowd. One song followed another, and the anniversary celebration carried on until dawn – checking the clock became less and less appealing.

Behind everything the birthday guests saw was a great deal of work that turned the evening's ideas into reality. “The event went perfectly. The technical team did a wonderful job and showcased a stage design never seen before. The clients are very happy and delighted with the smooth communication, the pleasant interaction with the whole team, and are already looking forward to future editions,” the OWEXX event organisation team shared their impressions after the event.

And a birthday of this scale came with its share of challenges. One of the biggest – getting almost a thousand people smoothly into the venue in just 30 minutes. A large flow of guests, a short window and a programme about to start demanded precise teamwork, but this task was handled smoothly too.

In just a few hours, Dūmų fabrikas held it all: archival footage and the present day, serious conversations and laughter, familiar faces and unexpected performances, live music and a disco until dawn. But the most important thing was the people – those who created “Laisvės TV”, appeared on its shows, watched, supported and grew together with it. And those who gathered in one place on September 18 to say – HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Ten years of history cannot be squeezed into one evening, but on September 18 at Dūmų fabrikas we managed to live it once more – to remember the beginning, laugh at the past and celebrate together what was created over a whole decade.

As the last songs faded and the lights of Dūmų fabrikas went out, what remained was what matters most after a good birthday – emotions, memories and one more story that will be good to remember a few years from now.

Photos by Elžbieta Ju Photography.