HUNGER by Charalambos Giannou in Athens
WEEK OF CYPRIOT THEATRE IN ATHENS
October 4 – 8, 2016 │ Michalis Cacoyannis Foundation
The Cyprus Centre of the International Theatre Institute (CCOITI), in collaboration with the Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus in Athens – House of Cyprus, and the Michalis Cacoyannis Foundation, with the support of the Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education and Culture, is organizing the “Week of Cypriot Theatre in Athens” from October 4 to 8, 2016, at the Michalis Cacoyannis Foundation.
In this year’s fourth “Week of Cypriot Theatre in Athens,” three productions of Cypriot theatrical works, performed on Cypriot stages during the 2015-2016 theatre season, will be presented.
The “Week of Cypriot Theatre in Athens,” which showcases Cypriot theatrical productions from Cypriot theatre companies, represents perhaps the most significant activity for promoting and highlighting Cypriot dramaturgy and creativity in Greece.
Three Cypriot Plays in Athens
The cycle of performances for this year’s event will open on Tuesday, October 4, with the play Boom! by award-winning playwright Giorgos Neophytou, a production of Paraplevros Productions. The play is directed and has lighting design by Evripidis Dikajos, with original music by Giorgos Kolias, set and costume design by Melita Kouta, and second director Michalis Asiikkas. The actors on stage are Kostas Kazakas, Marios Stylianou, and Evripidis Dikajos.
Somewhere in the buffer zone, an explosion is heard. Two men emerge from the smoke, who happened to be there. Due to the explosion, they have (temporarily) lost their hearing. One is Greek Cypriot, and the other is Turkish Cypriot, but neither knows the other’s identity. They realize they are in a minefield, and every move could be fatal. However, their communication through gestures and shared words from both languages leads to a comical back-and-forth filled with misunderstandings. A man who speaks only Spanish happens to pass by and tries to help them. When they regain their hearing and realize their true identities, the comic-tragic situation reaches its climax.
On Thursday, October 6, the Mitos Centre for Performing Arts will present the play I Was Lysistrata by award-winning playwright Antonis Georgiou, directed by Loukas Valevski, with dramaturgy by Konstantina Peter, music by Konstantinos Tsiolis and Loukas Valevski, movement by Ariana Markoulidou, visual design by Michalis Papamichael, and costumes by Myrto Sarma. The actors are Marina Mandri, Andria Zeniou, Elena Kalinikou, and Marina Makri.
Lysistrata is transported to the present, powerless and having lost her weapons, experiencing futility. She returns, realizing her failure to stop the killings, death, and pain of war. She becomes critical, harsh on herself, her loved ones, love, and life itself. Ugliness, violence, and death—these are the headlines, and history repeats itself.
The text, with references to ancient comedy and modern works, presents the drama of the heroine through fragmented and intense images of contemporary reality. The four actresses alternate in the roles of Lysistrata and Myrrhine, with speech and movement constantly struggling to distance themselves from the imagery of the text.
The “Week of Cypriot Theatre in Athens” will conclude on Saturday, October 8, with the performance of the award-winning play Hunger by Charalambos Giannou, produced by the Limassol Theatre Development Company (ETHAL), directed by Marina Vronti, with sets and costumes by George Giannou, lighting design by Vassilis Peteinaris, and actors Georgina Tatsi, Panagiota Papageorgiou, Stelios Andronikou, and Vassilis Charalambous.
The parents are worried about their child. They want it to be like before. Their excessive zeal leads them to try every possible and improbable method except the simplest one—that of care and love. A series of comic-tragic situations describes how an ordinary family crisis takes on unexpected dimensions.
The play Hunger won the State Prize for Playwriting from the Ministry of Culture, Education, and Religious Affairs of Greece for 2014.
The selection committee for the “Week of Cypriot Theatre in Athens” included Leandros Taliotis, Secretary of the Board of CCOITI, Director, and Lea Maleni, Board Member of CCOITI, Director.
The “Week of Cypriot Theatre in Athens” is funded under the CULTURE Program of the Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Cyprus.
Information and Ticket Presale:
- Michalis Cacoyannis Foundation (Piraeus 206, Tavros)
Michalis Cacoyannis Foundation Ticket Office
Phone: 210 3418579
Mon – Fri: 11:00 – 14:00, and evenings one hour before the performance
By credit card: Call 210 3418579 (Mon – Fri: 11:00 – 14:00)
Online: www.mcf.gr - Ticket Services Ticket Office (Panepistimiou 39, Pesmazoglou Arcade)
Mon & Wed: 09:00 – 17:00, Tue, Thu & Fri: 09:00 – 20:00, Sat: 10:00 – 14:00 - Forthnet-shops of Forth-crs during their business hours
- Seretis Travel Store (Panepistimiou 61, Athens) Phone: 210 3251295
Ticket Prices:
€10 (General Admission)
€5 (Discounted)
Discounted ticket categories include:
Students, Unemployed (OAED Card), Large Families (ASPE), European Youth Card, Culture Cardholders, Club IFA Cardholders (French Institute), ITI Cardholders (ECDITH, CCOITI), Athens Dental Association Cardholders, OTOE & OIELE Cardholders, Disabled Persons, and Seniors over 65.
Performances start at 9:00 p.m.
For general information:
- House of Cyprus in Athens, Cultural Office of the Embassy of Cyprus: 210 3734934 / spititiskyprou.gr
- Cyprus Centre of the International Theatre Institute: www.ccoiti.com
