Aristophanes Now Wows London Audiences

At the end of its European tour, after successful performances in Athens, Istanbul and Timișoara in Romania, Aristophanes Now came to London to strong reviews and audience applause.

The show was performed at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London  by the Greek musical theater company Speira Speira, backed by an array of musicians from around Europe under the guidance of leading contemporary composer Stamatis Kraounakis.

Aristophanes Now is a modern interpretation of the works of the foremost Ancient Greek writer of comedies which have survived in the public consciousness for centuries. Although Aristophanes was undoubtedly a comic and dramatist, he believed very much in the duty of the writer- to educate the audience, to reveal truths through humor.

His witty satire and relentless pursuit of justice, respect and freedom have kept his works popular from fifth century B.C. up until now. These 11 survived comedies by Aristophanes inspired Kraounakis to write the music of the show, a music so strong that managed to surpass Greece’s borders and to impress the audiences around Europe.

Kraounakis, who is one of the most important contemporary Greek pop music composers, has won acclaim for the past 30 years, producing over 50 albums and 100 theater productions. He also helped found the Speira Speira company in 1999. Kraounakis told the news agency ANA-MPA: “

Those three performances were the crowning achievement of a life’s toil in a moment that Greece needs more than ever its art and its civilization. In the same way, the passages from the eleven Aristophanes comedies that we play in the show, recorded the fall of a great era. We had to look back at the Greek pathos through the following triptych: city, democracy, depravity with music and revelry, Dionysus and sanctity”.

The carefully simple costumes and backdrops of the show were designed by Takis, whose work has been seen in around 80 productions worldwide in various indoor and outdoor venues. He is also the artistic director of his own company called Artluxe, which produces installation and performance art.

Takis has collaborated with Kraounakis for a decade now and they have made together 12 productions. “We tried to make the costumes combine the Greek traditional attire with the European one. All the costumes of the show are white and simple, because the color of the performance is given by the music,“ Takis said.