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Mystery 11 Ma


Mystery 11 Ma

From 1 to 13 September 2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture presents Mystery 11 ΜΑ, the new work by Romeo Castellucci. Two thousand years after the Eleusinian Mysteries, the internationally renowned Italian director introduces a contemporary ritual, in the context of a site-specific performance specially designed for the Eleusis archaeological site.

Credits

Conceived & Directed by: Romeo Castellucci
Original Music: Demetrio Castellucci
Choreography: Gloria Dorliguzzo
Dramaturgy Associate: Lucia Amara
Assistant Director: Silvano Voltolina
Assistant Choreographer: Camilla Neri
Production manager: Giulia Colla
Technical Director: Eugenio Resta
Costume Designer: Chiara Venturini
Stage Sculptures: Plastikart Studio (Istvan Zimmermann & Giovanna Amoroso)
Production: SOCIETAS (IT) & TOOFAREAST (GR)

Starring Filippo Addamo

Also participating: Alexia Dimitrakoulia, Katerina Douvi, Penny Eleftheriadou, Stefania Gogou, Dafni Kafetzi, Katerina Kalochristianaki, Stella Kapetaniou, Athina Kirousi, Gabriela Kokkini, Polena Kolia Petersen, Iro Konti, Christiana Kosiari, Konstantina Koutsaftaki, Eirini Kyriakou, Laura Mamakos, Eirini Mastora, Afroditi Michailidou, Faidra Ntagioglou, Panagiotarea Erofili, Fotini Papachristopoulou, Kristie Papadopoulou, Katerina Papandreou, Maria Psarologou, Antonia Pitoulidou Maro Stavrinou, Serafina Sideri, Rafaela Tsobanoudi, Eleni Vergeti, Chryssi Vidalaki, Ioanna Chloe Voulgari, Eleni Zafiri

And the children: Theano Christinaki, Athena Makri, Maria Passa, Emilia Roussi

Musicians: Aggelos Christakis, Renato Kousis, Menelaos Moraitis, Spiros Tzekos

Collaborator of 2023 Eleusis – consultant on the work of Romeo Castellucci, Dio Kangelari.

Project Co-ordination (2023 Eleusis) : Isavella-Dimitra Karouti, Head of General Artistic Directorate Support

Information

Date: 1-13 September (except Mondays 4 & 11 September)
Meeting point: Elefsina Old Town Hall
Venue: Eleusis archaeological site
Arrival time: 18:30

Entrance will not be permitted after the performance begins.

Duration: 60 minutes

The performance involves walking. Due to the rules governing archaeological sites and for the safe movement of the spectators (the ground is rocky in places, with soil and gravel, uneven marble and wooden steps, etc.), it is recommended that spectators wear comfortable clothes and footwear that ensure smooth movement and do not cause damage to the monuments (e.g. heels).

The performance takes place using only natural light. As visibility will gradually decrease, spectators should follow the instructions of the staff closely and not deviate from the designated route.

Smoking and consumption of food and beverages.

The use of mobile phones during the performance.

Taking photographs with or without flash, recording and filming during the performance.

Throughout the route, event staff members will be there to guide the audience.

Tickets: 25€ general admission, 15€ students, 65+, unemployed, disabled persons and escorts (Ticket price includes access to the archaeological site)

Ticket presales start on 1 August: ticketservices.gr

Special performance for the residents of Elefsina: 5 September

Ticket sales start date: Friday, August 25, 2023

Ticket: 15€ general admission
Ticket can be purchased exclusively at the Elefsina Old Town Hall (Monday to Friday – except Tuesday – 17:00-21:00 & Saturday-Sunday 12:00-20:00 | To confirm your status as a permanent resident, please have with you a utility bill and your identity card/passport.)
Age guidance: 14+

Sponsors

With the support of the Ephorate of Antiquities of West Attica

The project Mystery 11 MA is realised in the framework of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan “Greece 2.0” with funding from the European Union – NextGenerationEU.

ΜΑ – a one-word title interpreted in multiple languages: the first clear word of an infant calling its mother; the root of the word ‘‘matrice,’’ i.e. the womb which opens itself to earth in order to generate, and the mould that gives form to lifeless matter; moreover, in both Italian and Greek, the word MA is used as an exclamation of objection, opposition, but also as a linguistic marker of an oath, an appeal to the divine.

Castellucci’s protagonist is a non-Greek matricide, a foreigner. His arrival at the archaeological site undermines and subverts the original cult, which forbade entry to anyone who had stained their hands with blood. Laying hands on a mother was tantamount to subverting the order of the universe − since a mother gives birth, she can also bring death; a child, as it cannot give birth to its mother, it cannot kill her either. Βarbarians were also prohibited to participate in the Eleusinian Mysteries, because their language was limited and thus had no notion of logos (discourse), of words and silence; they also had no notion of rhythm, which distributes meanings, expectations, pulses and pauses – the measure that restrains and orders chaos.

Without resorting to a representation of the archaic ritual according to archaeological typology, nor to a contemporary re-interpretation and re-articulation of the history of the Eleusinian Mysteries, Romeo Castellucci places the uninitiated, the barbarians and the matricides at the centre of attention, to highlight the symbolism and the allegorical dimension of the drama.

In the unbroken silence of the Eleusis archaeological site – without the use of consumable energy, under broad daylight – the man, having served his sentence, crosses the sacred locus. Only through sacrilege, however, can the sanctuary be reactivated. Forgiveness, the longed-for reconciliation, can only come through desecration.

With the support of the Ephorate of Antiquities of Western Attica.

Warm thanks: to Christina Merkouri, Director of EF.A.D.A. and to Efstathia Anesti, Archaeologist of the EF.A.D.A., Dr. Eleni-Eva Toumbakari, project manager of the Department of Restoration of Ancient Monuments in Elefsina, as well as to all the security personnel of the Archaeological site of Elefsina.

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Mystery 20 Performing Arts Initiator – Narrative Archaeology

Mystery 20 Performing Arts Initiator − Narrative Archaeology, one of the most significant action-models of the 2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture programme, returns curated and directed by Gemma Hansson Carbone, in collaboration with Hliana Kaladami, with a renew cast, on 22, 23, 28 & 31 March at the iconic archaeological site of Ancient Eleusis.


Mystery 188 The Light

From 10 to 31 March, at the Old Town Hall, 2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture presents Mystery 188 THE LIGHT, an exhibition about the “Educational and Cultural Association of Elefsina” through the eyes of Thanasis Leventis, a founding member, a special and multifaceted personality inextricably linked with the city.


Mystery 195 The Goumas Army by Dionisis Christofilogiannis

In the framework of the two-day conference “Archaeology and Narrativity. Performance in archaeological sites and excavation of human experience” (29 & 30 March), on Friday 29 March at 18.00, 2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture presents Mystery 195 The Goumas Army, a sculptural work by artist Dionisis Christofilogiannis, along with a live performance. Forty-nine clay heads from the ceramic universe of Charalampos Goumas


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Από την 1η Μαρτίου έως τις 14 Απριλίου, η 2023 Ελευσίς Πολιτιστική Πρωτεύουσα της Ευρώπης παρουσιάζει στο Σινέ Ελευσίς το Μυστήριο 176 Μέρες Κινηματογράφου, τρία θεματικά τριήμερα προβολών ντοκιμαντέρ που σχετίζονται με το καλλιτεχνικό της πρόγραμμα, την πόλη, αλλά και σύγχρονους προβληματισμούς γύρω από καίρια και διαχρονικά ζητήματα. Πάντα με μια κρυφή φιλοδοξία να μετατραπεί η Ελευσίνα σε τοπόσημο μιας ξεχωριστής κινηματογραφικής εμπειρίας.

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