The National Theater in collaboration with the DIAZOMA Association and with the support of the Ministry of Culture is carrying out the program “Getting to know Ancient Theaters of Greece” in the summer of 2024.
From July to September, this innovative action to highlight the surviving ancient theaters of Greece includes a tour of the play “Plutos” by Aristophanes, translated by Demosthenes Papamarkos and directed by Manos Vavadakis, with a troupe of important artists of the new generation of Greek theater.
For the Program “Getting to Know Ancient Theaters of Greece”
The National Theater in close cooperation with the DIAZOMA Association, thanks to the support of the Ministry of Culture which warmly embraced the initiative and with the help of the Regional and Local self-government, goes outside its narrow geographical boundaries and meets its audience in more than 15 cultural venues in all of Greece.
With natural light and sound, the last surviving work of Aristophanes, “Plutos”, which culminates “elegantly” the poet’s experimentation with the comic genre, will be presented at the Ancient Theater of Aegira, on Wednesday, July 31 at 7:30 p.m. Entrance to the venue is free with tickets, which will be distributed one hour before the start of the show.
A happy connection of modern culture with the monuments of cultural heritage and at the same time a valuable synergy between cultural agents, which brings the dramatic art and some of its natural spaces to the center of the life of the local communities.
For Pluto
The old Chremylos goes to the oracle of Delphi to ask Apollo if he should raise his son by teaching him the value of injustice, which will ensure his future prosperity. God does not answer directly, but urges him to follow the first person he sees coming out of the oracle. Chremylos follows Apollo’s advice and takes after an old blind man. With the help of Carion’s servant, he discovers that he was following Pluto. Chremylus’ plan is to cure Pluto’s blindness with the help of Asclepius, so that he can fairly distribute his gifts to the virtuous citizens. Penia (Poverty), who defended the city until now, tries to stop them, reminding Chremylos – but also the audience – of the need and value of a measured life. In this argument, however, Penia will lose by state.
Asclepius performs his miracle and Plutus regains his sight and with it his wisdom. In the house of Chremylos, the inseparable from the visits received by Plutos. The new situation not only changed the social balances but also brought disruption to Olympus. Hermes, the messenger of the gods, has become unemployed and asks for help from Pluto, while the Priest in the temple of Zeus is starving, because the Athenians have stopped the sacrifices. Finally, prudence prevails and Plutus, accompanied by Horus, is taken to his old home, at the back of the temple of Athena in the Parthenon, where the public money was kept.
With Pluto (338 BC), the last of Aristophanes’ surviving comedies, we leave behind the structure and motifs of Old Comedy and move into New
Comedy. Aristophanes in Pluto removes the choruses, the transgression and the sting of playful humor from his verse, to turn his attention to the problems of everyday life.
Director’s note
The blind god Plutus regains his light and distributes goods equally in society. Early “socialist” or just nostalgic for a lost “golden age”?
The play, written in 388 BC, after the defeat of the Athenian republic in the Peloponnesian War, suggests another Aristophanic utopia. But is a society whose material needs are fully met a happy society? Does individual happiness come before social well-being? When is one truly free? When do the bonds of happiness break? In this post-period of the work, the presence of the dance is negligible, a simple observer of the developments. A dance that is absent, a symbol of a city that does not care. A small troupe of actors travels around Greece, inviting the audience to a new gathering in places where society once had fun, debated, made decisions. It invites us to listen together, to laugh together and ultimately to return to coexistence, abandoning technological and all kinds of loneliness.
Manos Vavadakis
Plutos from the National Theatre
1965 translated by Costas Varnalis and directed by Leonidas Trivizas at the Herodes Atticus Conservatory and the Expo Theater in Montreal, Canada.
1982 translated by Kostas Varnalis and directed by Kanellos Apostolos at the Ancient Theater of Epidaurus and the Conservatory of Herodes of Atticus.
1985 translated by Kostas Varnalis and directed by Luca Ronconi at the Ancient Theater of Epidaurus.
1994 translated by Kostas Georgousopoulos and directed by Stamatis Fasoulis at the Conservatory of Herodes of Atticus, the Archaeological Site of Elefsina and the Ancient Theater of Oeniados.
2018 text adaptation in Greek by Yannis Asteri and adaptation – directed by Nikita Milovojevic at the Ancient Theater of Epidaurus and toured in Greek cities and in Belgra de Drama Theater and NoviSad in Serbia.
Coefficients
Translation – Adaptation: Demosthenes Papamarkos
Sets – Costumes: Gina Iliopoulou – Lina Stavropoulou
Original music composition: Dimitris Tasainas
Motion: Myrto Grapsa
Music teaching: Melina Paionidou
Performance dramatist: Vivi Spathoula
Assistant director: Aris Laskos
Assistant stage designers – costume designers: Alexandra-Anastasia Ftouli
Starring: Nikos Gialelis (Plutos), Katerina Papandreou (Penia, Hermes), Katerina Patsiani (Chremylos), Elina Rizou (Blepsidimos, Choros), Vassilis Safos (Kario)
Photos: Elina Yunanli
Duration: 60 minutes
#Aegira #Aristophanes #Plutus #Wednesday #July
