Inspired by two medieval sacred works—the Messe de Nostre Dame by Guillaume de Machaut and Kecharitomene Chaire (“Hail, Full of Grace”) by Ioannis Koukouzelis—composers Nava Hemyari and Apostolis Kousogiannis create new music for the Oros Ensemble, opening pathways between past and present, individual expression and collective devotional experience. At the same time, dancer Sotiria Koutsopetrou traces the organic thread connecting body and sound, contributing to the performance’s central question: in an age of material individualism, what form might a new humanism take?
The Polis Ensemble presents the music-and-visual performance “Charis Koini…” – A Ritual of Coexistence, an artistic exploration of the threads that connect people across places, languages, and eras. Through music, voice, and image, the performance illuminates forms of collective memory and shared experience that endure through time and are passed down from generation to generation. Drawing on musical traditions from the Mediterranean, the Balkans, the Caucasus, and North Africa, the Polis Ensemble approaches these diverse cultural expressions as manifestations of a common anthropological landscape. Birth, Community, Separation, and Return form the dramaturgical journey of the performance, unfolding through lullabies, prayers, laments, and wedding songs that are creatively transformed through improvisation and collective musical practice.
With the participation of Anna Linardou as vocalist and Dimitris Sylvestros as director and visual artist, live music and video installation are woven together into a unified poetic environment. Within this immersive setting, personal experience meets the collective, and human presence itself becomes a place of encounter, dialogue, and coexistence.
The performance Her Veils weaves its dramaturgy through poetic voices and narratives of women from the Middle East, intertwining them with myths, rituals, and folk traditions of the West. At the core of the composition lies female corporeality, not as a representation, but as a living field upon which historical and social inscriptions are imprinted.
The veil emerges as a symbol open to multiple interpretations: at times it protects, at times it conceals; at times it separates, and at others it reveals. Upon its delicate surface collide desire and prohibition, visibility and disappearance, the allure of revelation and the violence of concealment.
The voice and musical compositions of Savina Yannatou and Primavera en Salonico meet the visually driven directorial approach of Maria Lappa in a performance where the female voice becomes supplication, whisper, prayer, and cry. Through this encounter, worlds are illuminated in which the body is transformed into a monument, a site of resistance, and a space of transformation.
The fascinating life of the Greek composer of three continents and five seas unfolds through music and visual fragments, reflecting the essence of the era that shaped him. For composer Leo Rapitis, a child of a strange and liberated time—before the Nazi shadow covered Europe—found himself in the England of sensitive troubadours, Noël Coward, Ivor Novello, and musicals. He brought back to Greece (perhaps the first and only one to do so) something of the charm of interwar Britain.
An enigmatic figure of the Greek music scene during both the pre-war and post-war periods, Leo Rapitis wrote songs performed by Sofia Vembo, the Kalouta sisters, Nikos Gounaris, and Panos Visvardis. His music continues to boldly resonate today, with echoes of a hidden past. Did his audience at the time recognize their own passions behind his notes? His melodies, intertwined with historical moments and the emotional sensitivity of an entire era, remain alive—reinterpreted by contemporary artists and infused with new meaning in today’s musical landscape. Rapitis’s work proves that music, when in dialogue with history, becomes timeless.
Michalis Papapetrou—conductor, pianist, and director of the ERT Choir—undertakes to reintroduce the music of Leo Rapitis, shedding light on the composer’s personal journey through his songs: from Athens to Manchester, Palestine, New York, and finally to the Belgian Congo, where he ended his life under the mistaken belief that he had killed his lover.
The orchestration draws on the familiar timbres of the era, while adding a polyphonic ensemble that brings out the jazz elements of his music. Leo Rapitis’s story is deeply moving: a man initially forced by his family to follow a path that wasn’t his, but ultimately won over by music. The “Deconstructed Loom” becomes a symbol of this journey. This traditional weaving tool transforms into a space of liberation—the fabric unravels, the strings are revealed, and music finds its way again.
Nikos Engonopoulos has left his mark on the palimpsest of modern Greece’s identity with a work that has stood the test of time. Sharp poetic language, visual insightfulness, glorification of colours, freedom, bravery, and a “madness” for life and love. He passionately and obstinately defended the Surrealist movement, knowledgeably and boldly engaging in dialogue with tradition while always striving for continuous transcendence.
We borrow his verse “It’s not a time for poetry…” for a performance filled with music and poetry at the accessible monument of the Holy Monastery of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary in Torniki, near Deskati in Grevena. Sokratis Sinopoulos stamps his mark on the original music score and adds to the performance with his quartet. The primeval sound of the lyra blends with jazz and modern music.
Renowned actress Reni Pittaki and Kostas Vasardanis perform and converse with the musicians along the banks of the Aliakmonas River, bathed in a magical light against a backdrop of wildflowers, chirping birds, and water reflections.
Uprooting is a traumatic experience from the past that continues to affect us today, influencing entire generations and shaping the identities and stories of both individuals and societies. The musical and audiovisual performance Passages of Memory explores the timeless bond between Hellenism and expatriation. Through a combination of songs, storytelling, and digital audiovisual art, the historical memories and the pain of uprooting are evoked, transforming the songs into living documents of collective memory.
The music theatre performance Uncrafted Song: Alexandros Papadiamantis Among Us aims to highlight the timelessness of Papadiamantis’ work through a combination of both the phlegmatic and scholarly qualities of his language, showcasing its lasting relevance across different generations of Greeks—past, present, and future. The performance features orchestral and set poems by Alexandros Papadiamantis, Ilias Katsoulis, and Thomas Korovinis, texts by Alexandros Papadiamantis and Andreas Embiricos, as well as excerpts from Thomas Korovinis’ novel To angelokrousma –The last night of Mr Alexandros, accompanied by original musical compositions by Andreas Katsigiannis.
Flowers have been silent witnesses to acts of sacrifice since the dawn of time. In mournful songs, medieval ballads, and folk beliefs, eternal roses are born from tales of love and blood. From Narcissus and the roses of the Middle Ages to poppies (which symbolize remembrance for World War I, among other things), flowers shape, inspire, and lead us to new stories of our own through the stories they witness. From folk songs to medieval legends, flowers appear where sacrifice leaves an indelible mark on memory.
The Alcedo Folk Band guides us through a sound and narrative journey, where folk tradition meets contemporary musical creation. The Greek and European civilizations are bridged with precious elements from folk poetry, mythology, and medieval tradition.
In an era when time accelerates, the collective spirit is shattered, and lived experiences are replaced by information, the performance Io: On the Mountain of the Great Gods draws inspiration from and begins with the mystery of the island of Samothraki, exploring faith as a realm of ideas, conflicts, and connections. A contemporary rite of passage about the fire of our civilization, humankind’s inhumanity, and solidarity, inspired by Aeschylus’ Prometheus Bound. Starting from traditional wedding customs, we encounter a deserted Prometheus. The sacred wedding intended for the bride Io cannot be realized. None of the attendees knows the ritual anymore.
The Chorus leader sings about the failure of human societies and the pain of the Titan who is punished for the gifts he gave humanity. The musical compositions by People of the Wind provide the Chorus members with an opportunity to explore new interpretations of the myth and the story. Are there other ways of making connections beyond the ones we reproduce?
Within the walls of Its Kale, near Ali Pasha’s grave, five women tell the story of Lady Frosyni and the seventeen women who were murdered in the Lake of Ioannina. Four women, using only their voices, sing songs from Epirus while a performer portrays Frosyni, recounting the life she never lived, her dreams, and her experiences.
This dialogue unravels the thread of the story, leading to tomorrow, where the five women hope to live the life they were deprived of. In the end, Frosyni herself monologues about the beauty of life, asking for understanding for the mistakes she made while she was alive. Following the Epirus tradition, we witness a dialogue between music and storytelling, aimed at reminding us of events that could serve as inspiration and lessons today, while also bringing younger generations closer to the history of our land.
* The performance features the following pieces: “As soon as the wave falls asleep” (Traditional song from North Epirus), “I started to come one night” (Traditional song from Polytsani, Pogoni), “White cotton wool” (Traditional song from Polytsani, Pogoni), and “Come out, mother, see the sun” (Traditional song from Konitsa).