Production Overview
- Play Title: DIARY – Tribute to Yiannis Ritsos (ΗΜΕΡΟΛΟΓΙΟ – Αφιέρωμα στον Γιάννη Ρίτσο)
- Original Texts & Poetry: Yiannis Ritsos
- Selection & Direction: Emmanuel G. Mavros
- Performing Group: Medea Theatre Group (Θεατρική Ομάδα ΜΗΔΕΙΑ)
- Production Company: Medea Pictures
- Set & Costume Design: Rena Santamouris
- Music Selection: Featuring compositions by Mikis Theodorakis, Thanos Mikroutsikos, Platon Andritsakis, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Allen Grey
- Venue: Dromos Theatre (Kypseli, Athens)
Rotational Cast / Key Performances:
- Giota Tsiotska (Ismene)
- Marianthi Sontaki (Phaedra)
- Marianna Lagourou (The Woman in Black / Moonlight Sonata)
- Leonidas Kalfagiannis (Gregory Auxentiou / Farewell)
- Lazaros Anastasiadis (Hippolytus)
- Giorgos Liakos (The Traveler)
Plot & Concept Summary
DIARY is a timeless, multidimensional theatrical tribute that combines verbatim monologues from Yiannis Ritsos’ celebrated collection “Fourth Dimension” (Τέταρτη Διάσταση) alongside selected poems and set-to-music verses.
The piece follows a young traveler in his thirties who moves through time as a stranger, experiencing living memories of the past while carrying hopes for the future. The theatrical narrative weaves together iconic mythical and historical figures: Ismene reflecting on injustice, Phaedra passionately confessing her raw romantic desire, the elderly Woman in Black (The Moonlight Sonata) confronting her past on a spring night, and Gregory Auxentiou (Farewell) delivering a heroic monologue on sacrifice and freedom.
Key Themes
- Timeless Human Struggle: Bridging Greece’s bitter past with the present to reflect ongoing anxieties, human rights, and the fight for personal dignity.
- Time & Memory: Exploring how memory and history function as a mathematical social model connecting past, present, and future.
- Resistance & Freedom: Transmitting universal messages about self-sacrifice, humanity, and liberation from societal and political bonds.
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