Beatričė’s House

A. Vienuolio St. 12-1, Vilnius

II–V 15–19 val.
VI–VII 11–19 val.

Beatričė’s House tells a story for the ears, the eyes and the heart. This three-room flat used to be the home of the singer Beatričė Grincevičiūtė, one of Lithuania’s most prominent chamber musicians, from 1971 to 1988. Having lost her sight in her youth, she managed to establish her reputation on the stage and earn the affection of the public.

The aim of Beatričė’s House is to introduce sighted people to the reality of blindness, and the challenges that come with it. This branch of the Vilnius City Museum also reflects the cultural life of Soviet Vilnius, housing policies of the time, the block of buildings on A. Vienuolio Street, and its residents.

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Arrival

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Beatričė’s House is in the city centre at A. Vienuolio St 12. The museum is easy to reach on foot, or by bicycle, car or public transport. There are bicycle racks beside the museum. The nearest public transport stops are ‘Operos ir baleto teatras’, and a little further away ‘Vinco Kudirkos aikštė’.

If you are coming by car, you can park in the car park by the Opera and Ballet Theatre. Parking spaces here are in the blue parking zone, where the cost of parking for one hour is 2.50 euros.

When you arrive at A. Vienuolio St 12, you will see a plaque on the street commemorating Beatričė Grincevičiūtė. This means you have come to the right place. The entrance to the museum is at the back of the building, so you will have to go through one of the archways (to the left or right).

Press 1 at the stairwell door, and you will be welcomed by a member of the museum staff. The museum is on the ground floor. You will have to cross several not very big steps and thresholds to get in, about 15 centimetres and six centimetres high.

Important details

There are bicycle stands in the yard, just by the museum entrance. If you come by scooter you can take it inside with you, but there is not much room inside the museum, so if possible, please leave your scooter outside.

Beatričė’s House is a memorial museum in a flat. Visitors move through the preserved living spaces of the flat’s former occupant. There are no display stands or glass showcases: the articles are displayed as they would normally have been used in day-to-day life.

Upon arriving, visitors pass through the hallway.

From the hallway you can access the following rooms:

The bedroom (to the left)
The living room (straight on)
The exhibition room/gallery (to the right)

Beside the gallery is the former kitchen, now used by museum staff as an office; this space is not open to visitors.

Visitors can move through the rooms in any order.

When you arrive at the museum you will step into a hallway, where you can hang your coat and leave your belongings.

The WC is in the hallway, by the former kitchen. Unfortunately, it is not wheelchair-accessible.

Because the memorial house-museum is in Beatričė’s flat, most of the exhibition is permanent. Temporary exhibitions are held in the separate exhibition room. Entry to exhibition openings is free of charge.

Groups are accompanied by an educator or a member of staff on pre-booked guided tours and during educational activities.

If you have not booked a guide or activity but still want someone to show you around, ask our educator or another member of staff, and at weekends you can ask a museum volunteer.

There are no bright or flashing lights at the museum. The environment is quiet and calm. There are not usually many visitors. The spaces are small and restricted, so groups of more than 15 people may find it rather tight.

If you wish to visit at an especially quiet time, or you have questions about the space, please contact us. We will gladly help you plan your visit for the most suitable time.

Most events hosted at the museum (children’s concerts, exhibition openings, book presentations, lectures, discussions, etc) are free of charge. Information about events that require the payment of an entry fee is posted separately.

Visitors can visit the museum free of charge on the last Sunday of the month. The museum’s working hours on this day, as on regular Sundays, are from 11am to 7pm.

Visitors can touch most of the exhibits on display, and sit on Beatričė’s bed, chairs and the soft furnishings in the living room. Some exhibits are fragile: a member of staff or a volunteer will point these out.

Share your impressions with us in the guest book, or fill in a questionnaire, which you can access by scanning the QR code in the entrance hall. We also look forward to receiving your email messages at renata@vilniausmuziejus.lt.

Prams
The museum is in a former flat, so moving around the space is possible, but not exactly convenient. We recommend leaving prams in the stairwell, or folded up in the entrance hall.

Feeding infants
Visitors can feed their babies anywhere in the museum. If you need a quiet space, contact a member of staff or a volunteer, and they will arrange for you to have some time in the bedroom or in the living room behind a closed door.

Changing station
There is no changing table at present in the museum; we apologise for this inconvenience.

More about Beatričė's House

This home is a living story that invites visitors to immerse themselves in the cultural, aesthetic and emotional world of the previous century. The life of Beatričė Grincevičiūtė (1911–1988) reflects a dramatic period in Lithuania’s history: from her childhood on a country estate, to the emigration and exile of members of her family, and a successful cultural career in Soviet Vilnius. It is a home that inspires us: despite her blindness, Beatričė strove to fulfil her dream of becoming a singer. Her story is one of tenacity, creative power, and strength. Throughout her life, the singer performed about 1,000 pieces by various composers.

Time is frozen in 1988 in two of Beatričė’s three rooms. The original interiors transport the visitor back to the reality of Soviet Vilnius. Every detail, from the furniture and the record player to the Braille writing tools and the works of art, is as Beatričė left it.

The third room is used as a small exhibition room, theatre or concert hall, or a space for gatherings and educational events.

Beatričė’s House offers immersive tours, during which visitors get to listen to Beatričė’s life story, hear her records played on her own record player, sit on her sofa, or have a cup of coffee made according to her own recipe. The crackling sound of the record player will serve as a special soundtrack to visitors’ memories of their time here. Beatričė’s House also gives an impression of what daily life was like for the visually impaired in Soviet times.

The apartment caters for visitors of different ages: from curious kindergarteners to senior citizens. Educational activities provide visitors with new information and experiences. Every visit is a personal encounter with history, music, and an inspirational personality that never gave in to the limitations of her disability.

Beatričė’s House is the only ‘musical’ memorial museum in Vilnius. It opened in 1993, and is located beside the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre. The same building (now A. Vienuolio St 12, formerly Dujų St 6) was also home to other famous artists in Soviet Lithuania, including the composers Stasys Vainiūnas (1909–1982) and Benjaminas Gorbulskis (1925–1986), the singer Valentinas Adamkevičius (1925–1976), the ballet dancer Vytautas Grivickas (1925–1990), and the actor Romualdas Juknevičius (1906–1963).

Beatričė lived on the ground floor of the six-storey building. It was built in 1960, based on a design by architects invited to postwar Soviet Vilnius from Leningrad (now St Petersburg), and adapted and modernised by a team of local architects.