The world premiere of the performance Klytaimnḗstra by the renowned Belgian group tg STAN was held with great success on Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24 at the Old Olive Mill Open Theater.With riveting performances by Maria Skoula and international performers from Belgium, Greece, Norway and the Philippines, the group’s disruptive performance sent a loud, global message against gender-based violence, misogyny and toxic masculinity.
Based on Aeschylus’ “Agamemnon,”the groundbreaking performance by tg STAN was the first of a series of actions held as part of Mystery 35_Aeschylus Project ^ by 2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture, with the aim of instituting a dialogue on Aeschylus Drama in the birthplace of the great tragedian.
The next stop is another important performance, Aeschylus’ Persians, directed by Dimitris Karantzas, and featuring a team of excellent actors, premiered by Reni Pittaki, on Saturday, July 30 and Sunday, July 31, at the Old Olive Mill Open Theater. With the participation of 40 volunteers from Elefsina and the wider region.
A few words about tg STAN’s Klytaimnḗstra
tg STAN are one of the most important contemporary groups in Europe, with a radical aesthetic and a long history in both contemporary drama and the classical repertoire. Their iconic version of Klytaimnḗstra shed light on a crucial aspect of Aeschylean tragedy, in a modern, bold adaptation of this age-old tale of honor and revenge.
Based on an idea by Jolente De Keersmaeker,a founding member of the group and a formidable figure in the European performing arts scene, the performance approached the three different versions of the first part of Oresteia in an unexpected way: it connected the astonishing poetic power of the original work by Aeschylus with the skillful translation into English by Ted Hughes, and “injected” it with Austrian author Gustav Ernst’s Blood Bath,a work of raw and dismembered poetry. The result was an unexpected polyphonic ensemble, combining speech and dance, aligned with the Greek choral tradition.
Click here to see why Clytemnestra’s voice is so important.
For more information on the performance, click here.
