Liepāja Cultural Figures Distribute Awards: Everyone Wins, No One from Riga

Yesterday in Liepāja, the annual cultural awards ceremony took place, where traditionally everyone who did anything in the cultural field last year was honored. The main award for the concert performance "Personal Code: Liepāja" was received by seven organizations and three people, who together formed a team larger than the Latvian government.

"I initially thought we'd have to split this award into pieces, but it turned out we could all just stand on stage together," commented one of the winners, Jānis Strazds, while the other nine participants tried to squeeze into the edge of the frame.

Particularly pleased were representatives of Liepāja's Education Department, who received the "Liepāja Citizens' Choice Award" for the initiative "400 Works for Liepāja." "We initially wanted 4,000 works, but then remembered we live in Liepāja, not Riga, where everything is exaggeratedly big," explained the department head, while another downpour outside convinced everyone they had chosen the right place to live.

Meanwhile, tram passengers riding past the cultural center in the evening could observe cultural figures emerging from the building with diplomas in hand and very satisfied faces. "Well, finally someone appreciates us," said a local artist, "In Riga they just complain there's no money for culture, but here we simply do our work and enjoy ourselves."