Epidaurus Festival 2017: The Arrival of the Outsider

The Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, this legendary monument of arts, well-known worldwide, is one of the theatre venues that every person keen on the art of theatre wants to visit!

On 11th September 1938, the first performance since antiquity took place in the Ancient Theater. The Greek National Theater presented Sophocles’ Electra, directed by Dimitris Rondiris, with the famous Greek actress Katina Paxinou in the homonymous role. The play was performed before sun set, due to the lack of electricity. It took 17 more years until the official opening of the Epidaurus Festival, with Hecuba directed by Alexis Minotis and since then, “the most beautiful theater of the world” attracts thousands of visitors every year; not only during the summer festival, but as an archaeological site on its own merit. Drop a coin in the orchestra and see a visitor at the top of the Amphitheatre  be startled. The acoustics are uncanny.

The Festival as is its trademark, hosts a wide range of performances of both Greek and international artists, with the performances taking place in both the Ancient Theater, as well as the atmospheric – so called – Little Theatre nearby! It is worth noting that all performances in this summers’ program, will be presented with English surtitles. Do not miss out the chance to enjoy an open-air performance in an ancient theatre, it’s always an experience you’ll cherish.

This year’s festival is cast as “The Arrival of the Outsider”, the program includes plays from all the great ancient Greek writers (the three tragedians – Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides and the comic playwright Aristophanis), directed by Greek artists including well  a modern text based on a section from Odyssey and two emblematic tragedies (Prometheus Bound, The Suppliants) directed and translated into French by Olivier Py; a two-part, minimalist production with a cast of three, which premiered last summer at the Festival d’Avignon.