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Iphigeneia in Aulis by Euripides
SUMMER TOUR
 
Première: Thessaloniki, Forest Theatre
(5th Forest Festival)
Wednesday 3 & Thursday 4 July
With english surtitles
 
Epidaurus, Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus
(Athens & Epidaurus Festival)
Friday 19 & Saturday 20 July
With english surtitles

 
Euripides’ tragedy Iphigeneia in Aulis is the National Theatre of Northern Greece's summer production, with which it will be taking part in the Athens & Epidaurus Festival 2019.
 
The production, which the NTNG will be taking on a major tour of Greece and Cyprus in the summer of 2019, features a new Modern Greek translation by Pantelis Boukalas and is directed by Yannis Kalavrianos. The tour will begin in Thessaloniki on July 3 & 4 (Forest Theatre), and will include performances at the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus on July 19 & 20.
 
The role of Iphigeneia will be played by Anthi Efstratiadou, the winner of the 11th Melina Mercouri Theatre Award in 2016. With Giorgos Glastras as Agamemnon, Maria Tsima as Clytemestra, Yorgos Kafkas as the Old Man, Nikolas Maragopoulos as Menelaus, Christos Stylianou as the Messenger and Thanasis Raftopoulos as Achilles.
 

 
A few words about the play
Iphigeneia in Aulis was written in the court of King Archelaus of Macedonia in 408-406 BC. Euripides died shortly after completing the tragedy. It is the last of the five Trojan plays written by the tragic poet, the second last being Bacchae. It was presented at the Great Dionysia after its author's death by Euripides the Younger (the son or nephew of the great tragedian) and took first prize.
 
The tragedy focuses on the decision taken by Agamemnon, the commander-in-chief of the Achaeans, to sacrifice his daughter Iphigeneia so that the Greek fleet, which is becalmed in Aulis, can set sail for Troy. When it is revealed to Agamemnon by the seer Calchas that the lack of wind is the goddess Artemis’ doing, the general summons Iphigeneia to Aulis on the pretext that she is to marry the Achaeans’ greatest warrior Achilles before they depart for the war. Faced with a terrible dilemma, since he will have to choose between his daughter and his homeland, Agamemnon feels duty-bound to proceed with the sacrifice, ignoring the pleas of Clytemestra, Iphigenia, Achilles, and even Menelaus himself. Ultimately, noble Iphigeneia reconciles herself to her tragic fate and agrees to be sacrificed for the good of her homeland. At the end of the play, a messenger announces to Clytemestra that Iphigeneia vanished off the altar before the fatal blow was struck.

In this, his crowning achievement, a drama whose characters develop from scene to scene, Euripides, profoundly wise and mature, rearranges the epic material to address the divided Greeks of his era and become a herald for patriotism.
 

 
Director's note
As his life nears its end, Euripides gives us a work full of emotional shifts and ongoing dilemmas, a sense of irony and unexpected comic moments.
Imbued with the atmosphere of his times, with Athens’ democracy faltering and defeat in the Peloponnesian war soon to come, the play records a world in which faith in heroism and traditional values has been shaken to its core. A world in which the mob now plays the lead role and heroes-unstable, riddled with flaws and continually changing their minds-topple. Which is to say that heroes are becoming so human they leave a bad taste in the mouth. The only constants that remain in this world in transition are the thirst for power, that inescapable drive which wrecks lives, and the endless succession of good intentions that can lead to disaster. Athens can no longer claim the moral high ground that comes with fighting a defensive war or waging war on barbarians. Nonetheless, the issue of unity is paramount and must prevail.
 
And yet Iphigeneia's sacrifice is in no way necessary. The Argives could have elected not to embark for Troy. Euripides creates a heroine who bows to necessity and allows herself to be sacrificed. Hers is no romantic self-sacrifice and this is not some one-dimensional patriotic drama; the tragedy is a tale of endless conflict and instability, of twists and turns. It lays the foundations for the future quest for a perfect man who is not crushed by society's demands and retains their freedom of thought, a will of their own, and an innate goodness.
 
Until then, Man will not know there they truly are, though they will continue to envision where they want to be.

Yannis Kalavrianos
 

CONTRIBUTORS
Translation: Pantelis Boukalas
Direction: Yannis Kalavrianos
Sets and Costumes: Alexandra Bousoulega, Rania Yfantidou
Music composition-Music coaching-Sound design: Thodoris Economou
Movement: Dimitris Sotiriou
Lighting: Nikos Vlasopoulos
1st Assistant Director: Alexia Beziki
2nd Assistant Director: Haris Pechlivanidis
Set & Costume Design Assistants: Elina Eftaxia, Isabela Tudorache
Stills photography: Tasos Thomoglou
Production: Marleen Verschuuren, Maria Lazaridou
 
* Set design assistant (on an internship): Sophia Tsirigoti
 
Featuring (in alphabetical order): Yorgos Glastras (Agamemnon), Anthi Efstratiadou (Iphigenia), Yorgos Kafkas (Old Man), Nikolas Marangopoulos (Menelaus), Thanasis Raftopoulos (Achilles), Christos Stylianou (Messenger), Maria Tsima (Clytemestra).
 
Chorus: Momo Vlachou, Stellina Vogiatzi, Despina Giannopoulou, Ioanna Demertzidou, Danae Epithymiadi, Aigli Katsiki, Leda Koutsodaskalou, Maria Konstanta, Alexia Beziki, Zoi Mylona, Marianthi Pantelopoulou, Katerina Papadaki, Revecca Tsiligaridou
 
On-stage musician: Dimitris Chountis
 
Iphigeneia in Aulis by Euripides
Thessaloniki, Forest Theatre (5th Forest Festival)
Wednesday 3 & Thursday 4 July
Epidaurus, Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus (Athens & Epidaurus Festival)
Friday 19 & Saturday 20 July
 

 
SUMMER TOUR DATES

JULY

AUGUST

SEPTEMBER

TICKET PRICES
FOREST THEATRE & TOUR:
Online pre-sale price (available up to 15 days before the show): 10 €
Pre-sale price: 12 €
Regular ticket: 15 €
Student / Over 65 / Group: 10 €
Students covered by the NTNG's Agreement with the Ministry of Education: 8 €
People with disabilities + companions: 8 €
Unemployed: Free (20 seats per performance for the performances at the Forest Theatre and the Royal Theatre)
 
PRICING POLICY, EPIDAURUS SUMMER 2019:
PREMIUM ZONE: 45€
ZONE A: 40€
ZONE B: 20€
ZONE B, STUDENT: 13€ *For holders of the European Youth Card
UPPER TIER: 8€
PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES/UNEMPLOYED: 5€ (Upper Tier, on presentation of the relevant card)
 
For group booking (of 21 people or more), there is a discount of 20% on the original price of the tickets (valid for Zone B & Upper Tier).
 

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TOUR SPONSOR

 

WITH THE SUPPORT OF
 

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