After completing its performances in Athens,“Invisible Olga” continues its success story in Austria, as part of the Emergency Entrance, an international theatre project to be hosted in Graz, Austria, from 26 to 29 January, 2012.
Europe portrayed as an “Emergency Entrance” is the key theme of cooperation between the National Theatre of Greece, Teatro Garibaldi (Italy), the Habima National Theatre of Israel, the National Theatre of Prague, the Hungarian Theatre of Cluj (Romania) and Schauspielhaus Graz (Austria).
Groups of artists – theatrical and cinema directors, professional and amateur actors, musicians and video artists – have probed for several months different contemporary issues relating to immigration. They have worked with refugees, representatives of minority groups, younger and older people, and men and women “without papers” from Eastern Europe and Africa.
This preliminary research, seen as an organic part of the rehearsal process, traced modern human tragedies and looked into an unfamiliar present. The findings of the research produced six plays, completely different in their aesthetics and content; six plays that are either non-conformist, grotesque, full of humor, or very subtle.
During the second phase of the project, 2 or 3 groups came together in Cluj, Prague and Graz, presenting the data and findings that emerged from their research and choosing the material upon which their joint improvisations would be based.
The National Theatre of Greece took part in the international project with Yiannis Tsiros’ “Invisible Olga”, a play about human trafficking based on a true story and personal accounts.
Directed by George Paloumpis with the music of Marios Strofalis, “Invisible Olga” raises a series of questions on the issue of immigration. A young immigrant woman becomes the victim of human trafficking and is trapped with no hope of escape in a system with no moral code.
The play was presented last year for a limited number of performances and received positive reviews.
Besides the performances, the Emergency Entrance Festival will host a celebratory symposium in cooperation with the Karl Franzens Universitaet of Graz, which will be attended by Dr. Bettina Vollath (Federal Counsel of Finance and Integration, Graz), Andrea Böhm (journalist of German daily newspaper DIE ZEIT, Hamburg), Hans-Werner Kroesinger (director, Berlin), Waltraud Klasnic (Governor of Styria, Ret.) and Mag. Mario Matzer (economist, Graz).
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