Eclipses Group Theater New York (EGTNY) presents The Greek Play Project New York, a weekend of staged readings of contemporary Greek plays at New York University. This is an important initiative for the promotion of modern Greek dramaturgy, in collaboration with The Greek Play Project (www.greek-theatre.gr). Four plays by contemporary Greek playwrights will be presented in the United States for the first time, in English, featuring American and Greek-American actors.
The plays being presented:
In Chorus by Dimitris Dimitriadis, translation by Theodora Papachristofilou-Loukas, directed by Ioanna Katsarou; Andromache by Akis Dimou, translation by Demetri Bonaros, directed by Ioanna Katsarou; Seaweeds by Penny Fylaktaki, translation by Penny Fylaktaki, directed by Demetri Bonaros; and Blind Spot by Yiannis Mavritsakis, translation by Christina Polychroniou, directed by Katerina Alexaki.
The Greek Play Project New York is a production of Eclipses Group Theater New York (EGTNY), a New York-based nonprofit organization that serves as a cultural bridge between Greece and the United States, in artistic collaboration with Dr. Irene Mountraki, Head of Dramaturgy and International Relations at the National Theater of Greece and creator of The Greek Play Project, an important platform cataloguing modern Greek plays and promoting Greek playwrights.
Production Team:
Katerina Alexaki, Ioanna Katsarou, Demetri Bonaros, Alexandra Skendrou
The Greek Play Project New York – Program
Dr. Mountraki will provide introductory remarks about the plays and playwrights.
May 5, 6:00pm
Seaweeds by Penny Fylaktaki
Translation by Penny Fylaktaki
Directed by Demetri Bonaros
May 5, 8:15pm
Blind Spot by Yiannis Mavritsakis
Translation by Christina Polychroniou
Directed by Katerina Alexaki
May 6, 3:15pm
In Chorus by Dimitris Dimitriadis
Translation by Theodora Papachristofilou-Loukas
Directed by Ioanna Katsarou
May 6, 5.30pm
Andromache or Landscape of a Woman in the Dead of Night by Akis Dimou
Translation by Demetri Bonaros
Directed by Ioanna Katsarou
Original music for In Chorus & Andromache is composed by Phytos Stratis.
On Sunday, May 6 at 2pm, there will be a brief reception in the lobby of the KJCC Auditorium.
- Location: KJCC Auditorium, NYU: 53 Washington Square South, Ground Floor, Room 113, New York, NY 10012
- Tickets and information: www.egtny.com; 917-648-8343, 718-581-6285
- Tickets: $18, or $30 for two plays
About the plays:
In Chorus by Dimitris Dimitriadis: fifteen men and women are gathered outside the palace. Someone has called them, but they don’t know why. Time passes but no one is coming out from the palace. The palace is empty. What now? Why have the leaders left? Where are the Gods? Who is going to take action? This play transforms the stage of an Ancient Greek theater into the political landscape of our times. The citizens of the chorus must find a name and a fate for themselves. Theater once again can play a role in this process.
Andromache or Landscape of a Woman in the Dead of Night by Akis Dimou: The Princess of Troy, wife of the legendary Hector, uprooted and enslaved by the victors of the Trojan War, comes to Greece. A woman’s monologue about the fate of a refugee and the agony of assuming a new identity.
Seaweeds by Penny Fylaktaki: A father’s will leaves the entire inheritance to the child who will invest it best within 24 hours. Returning for the first time in years to the beach house where they grew up, two estranged siblings vie fiercely for the inheritance. As old wounds are reopened and secrets exposed, the old house becomes the setting for a taut family drama.
Blind Spot by Yiannis Mavritsakis: The play tells the story of a young woman named Nicki (Greek for “victory”) who, after the death of her husband, stands wavering between a paralyzing depression and the need to go on living. Looking for a way out of her suffocating, narrow world, she leaves her job at the bank and finds comfort in the noisy apathy of the city’s avenues. Her encounter with a woman at the traffic light reveals another reality and activates forces inside her, which until then she had ignored.
A production of Eclipses Group Theater NY (EGTNY) in artistic collaboration with Dr. Irene Mountraki, professor in the Theater Studies Department of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, creator of The Greek Play Project, and Head of Dramaturgy and International Relations at the National Theater of Greece.
Under the Auspices and Sponsorship of the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports.
Under the Auspices of the Consulate General of Greece in New York, the A.S. Onassis Program in Hellenic Studies at NYU, and The National Theater of Greece.
