Searching for Harold Pinter in AthensHAROLD Pinter was intown this weekend. A select groupof Athenians - members of the press, academics, actors, socialites and fans - had the opportunityto

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Searching for Harold Pinter in AthensKATHRYN KOROMILAS

ImageHarold Pinter was inAthens to attendperformances of two of hisplays 'Ashes to Ashes ' atthe Nea Skini Theatre onSaturday and 'No Man'sLand' at the Aplo Theatroon Sunday.

HAROLD Pinter was in town this weekend. Aselect group of Athenians - members of the press,academics, actors, socialites and fans - had theopportunity to meet the master of puzzles up closeand personal hoping possibly to decipher the puzzleof the man himself. As Pinter fans we often searchfor clues about the man in his body of work, but how often do we geta chance to meet the mysterious pen behind the text? The AthensNews spent the weekend in search of Harold Pinter.

Accepting an invitation by the culture ministry to attend performancesof two of his plays, Ashes to Ashes and No Man's Land, as presentedby the Nea Skini Theatre and the Aplo Theatro respectively, the now70-year-old playwright (he celebrated his birthday on October 10)arrived in Athens at approximately three o'clock on Fridayaccompanied by his wife of 20 years, esteemed historian and authorof the bestselling Mary Queen of Scots, Lady Antonia Fraser (thepair's affair back in the Seventies was described as "scandalous" bytabloids), and a BBC crew currently working on a two-hour specialdedicated to the playwright.

The couple later checked into the prestigious Grande Bretagne Hoteland enjoyed a late lunch at the exquisite Dionysos restaurant boastinga idyllic view of the Acropolis, with hosts, Antonis Antypas (directorof No Man's Land and known both as actor and director havingworked with Karolos Koun), and Eleni Karaindrou (composer knownfor scoring Theo Angelopoulos' films).

Antypas told Greek daily Ta Nea that "they are a very warm couple.They create familiarity. I feel honoured that [Pinter] considers me afriend. He discusses everything - theatre, politics etc...". Later thatnight they were guided through the intimate streets of Plaka wherethey dined at the Taverna Tou Psarra.

Saturday saw the pair arrive at the Nea Skini Theatre on Cycladon Stin Kypseli at around 9.30pm, for the production of Ashes to Ashes,



where a jittery crowd - Yiorgos Patsas, Roula Pateraki, YiorgosVeltsos, Stratos Tzortzoglou and many others - gathered to meet theBritish playwright.

This is Pinter's 1996 play that explores with disturbing accuracy amarriage in crisis between Rebecca (played by Reni Pittaki, the onlyGreek actor to have performed in five Pinter plays, something thatcertainly shows in her stage presence. She is the essence ofPinteresque.) and husband Devlin (Lefteris Voyatzis). Here Pinter'sfascination with isolation and separateness is explored via adysfunctional relationship, in which the husband prods - almost like apsychiatrist does to this patient - his wife to reveal the facts of anearlier abusive relationship - Pinter explores the link between sexualand political fascism.

After the lights dimmed, the pair - sunken in lounge chairs - appear ona revolving stage. They execute the dialogue complete with the typicalPinter silences, the sudden changes of conversation, the talking as ifthrough the other and not with the other. The characters are both hereand yet not here, at once focused on each other and in a world of theirown characterised by an almost hypnotic stance where it seems theyare experiencing a side show of their very own.

Following the production, director Voyatzis invited the playwrighthimself (who had sat through the performance clearly attentive andwhen audience members coughed and settled or fidgeted, he wouldturn his head sternly in their direction) to the stage to thank him,saying in a somewhat self-conscious state, "I'm not very good at this...Harold Pinter is who he is, not much else is needed."

Pinter took the stage, was offered a fresh bouquet of flowers andsuccinctly addressed the crowd: "I would like to thank these twoactors for their performance of my play, I was very moved by it. It wasa very beautiful production, I can't say anymore than that." With that,he stepped off the stage only to be met by his wife - described byPittaki as "dynamic, intelligent, with a great persona - a trulyaristocratic lady". The crowd followed the pair to the bar where theywaited anxiously in line to grab at their opportunity to shake handsand congratulate the most important living British playwright.

On Saturday night, however, Pinter was not interested in talkingpolitics (though later at a more relaxed gathering over dinner he wasmuch more candid). One audience member asked, "What do you thinkof Kostunica?" He replied "What do you think?" and later "I'm notinterested in having this conversation." He was very enthusiastic whena young thespian approached him to tell him that she'd directed TheCaretaker and to give him a souvenir programme of her production.



ImageReni Pittaki and LefterisVoyatzis star in 'Ashes toAshes '.

Over a few glasses of wine, he was asked toelaborate on his thoughts on Ashes to Ashes (it wasthe first production of his plays that he had seen inGreece even though local troupes have beenperforming his work from the early Sixties, thanks to the innovativeKarolos Koun, who initially imported Pinter).

"I think they are wonderful actors," he said of Pittaki and Voyatzisand added that the production was an intelligent one and the actorsdisplayed much sensitivity in their roles."

Asked how he was able to follow the play in Greek - a language hedoesn't know - he replied: "Well, easily, I know the play very well!"

The Athens News asked about translation. Can a play can be renderedaccurately at an international level or can a true presentation of thework stand only in the original. He smiled and explained that "itcertainly works in different languages, each time I see my plays indifferent languages, the laughs are always in the same place".

Is he familiar with contemporary Greek theatre? "No, not really."Could he make a comment on contemporary theatre trends? "I'm not atheorist," he replied. Does he feel that the image has taken over thetext? "Everyone says that, but that is not the case, text will always becentral to theatre," and with that he raised his glass of wine, "Here's totext." Indeed, Pinter has been hailed as "bringing poetry back to thetheatre".

"Another question I'd like to ask you Mr Pinter," I hesitated, "Anotherquestion!" he exclaimed and we laughed, "Look, I don't know if I cananswer it." "Well, I'll just ask it and we'll see... I'd like to ask you aquestion that Nikos Kazantzakis, on his travels, would ask those ofhighly intellectual and spiritual calibre. 'What do you think is the dutythat men of culture and letters have towards society?'"

He took a step toward me to answer, "I don't think I have a duty tosociety as a writer, but rather as a man. And I don't mean, I have a dutyto society as it is, but rather as it should be. As a writer, I have a dutyto write well, and accurately." I sought clarification, "Accurately?""By that I mean precisely," he offered, "I mean to accurately presentthe truth of the characters and not something false."

This is interesting considering that his friends use words like"exactness" and "precision" to describe him. But on the other hand,Pinter according to his friends, (as Kate Kellaway writes in TheObserver on Sunday, 24 September, 2000) "claims not to know howhe writes. While there are authors who claim to have been taken over



by their characters in a way that seems whimsical, in Pinter's case, itwould appear to be true... 'You always wonder,' says ChristopherHampton, 'whether Harold is a miraculous vessel through whichsomething pours.'"

Later Saturday, Pinter dined in the Thission neighbourhood with asmall group including Voyatzis who described him as an "incrediblywarm person, sincere, with a great sense of humour, even blackhumour, who once he trusts you opens himself up to you".

On Sunday, Pinter arrived at Kallithea's Aplo Theatro to take his seatfor the production of No Man's Land - his 1975 comedy of menacethat exudes a nauseating uneasiness where communication breaksdown and one is afflicted by memories of the past that linger like ahaunting and yet at times humorous nightmare.

Brilliant in his role of Spooner, Ilias Logothetis later spoke to theAthens News about performing for the playwright himself. Was heextra nervous? "No, I have known Pinter for years, he is a friend ofmine, I've performed in a number of his plays. Of course, it's quitesignificant to have him here tonight, not just for us on stage but foreveryone, especially on an emotional level." Asked if he wasconcerned whether the playwright would like his performance, "I havebeen working for too many years to be concerned about whether myperformance is liked or not."

Well, not that he needed to worry anyway, Pinter later congratulateddirector and cast for the "magnificent production of my play" and latercommented positively on the actors' balanced performance andmovement. Director Antypas also offered a comment to the AthensNews, "It's very important for us to have Pinter here in the audience,quite an honour, and of course it's natural to feel somewhat nervous,not about the interpretation of the play itself, the play is complete andI am confident with it, but rather a slight sense of nerves aboutsomething going wrong etc."

When Pinter comments on his plays, he doesn't just comment as aplaywright, after all he's taken the stage himself to perform as well asplaced himself in the director's chair.

Most recently Pinter has been busy travelling to different countrieseither to see his plays performed or to direct them himself. "I directedAshes to Ashes," he told daily Eleftherotypia, "in Italy and France. InPalermo, though I didn't know any Italian, the actors spoke Englishand I also used an interpreter." The Observer says that Pinter"emerges as a director who makes life fun for actors and an actor whois willing".



Pinter departed for London yesterday. We are left with more pieces ofthe puzzle, no nearer to putting them all together. Visit the HaroldPinter website for more at http://www.haroldpinter.org

ATHENS NEWS , 24/10/2000, page: A09Article code: C12785A091

Copyright 1995-2003 ATHENS NEWS S.A., 3 C. Lada str. Athens 102 37, GREECEtel: 210 3333555, fax: 210 3231384Reproduction or modification in whole or part without express written permission is prohibited.



BOOKWORM'S notes

A Heller of an endingKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Joseph Heller'sposthumously publishednovel 'Portrait of an Artist,as an Old Man' is availableat Eleftheroudakis book-shops for around 6,000 drs.

IT'S A bit of a Catch-22 situation isn't it? You arean ageing author of universal acclaim, all becauseof one brilliant novel you wrote years ago, but youcan't quite seem to match that prodigal achievementwith anything else you've since written - and youreally want to go out with a bang. In your longwriting career, you've recycled every personalexperience - your early marriages, your wartimeexperiences, your childhood memories - as worthynovel-writing material and you've also tapped intothe wealth of "highbrow" material from historical, biblical ormythological sources, and if you haven't, someone else - Tolstoy,Proust, Joyce, Dickens - has. So, what next? Welcome to JosephHeller's Portrait of an Artist, as an Old Man, his final novel beforehe died at age 76 last December.

In this tale, we follow Heller's 70-odd-year-old protagonist EugenePota's struggle to come up with the perfect idea for a novel that isprobably to be his last before his death, as indeed it must have beenfor Heller. "This book," explains Pota to himself (and Heller to us),"is about a well-known, ageing author trying to close out his careerwith a crowning achievement, with a laudable bang that wouldembellish his reputation rather than with a fainthearted whimper thatwould bring him only condescension and insult."

So, I guess you are wondering, what did the critics say? The New YorkTimes' May 30 review by Michiko Kakutani begins like this: "...Joseph Heller's Portrait of an Artist, as an Old Man is one of thoseposthumously published books that form a sad coda to adistinguished career. Fans of Catch-22 and Something Happened canonly regret that Portrait was ever published."

Heller knew this type of review was coming. Indeed, through Pota -who like Heller enjoyed shining success early on in his career - we seea resigned Heller who although widely regarded and widely knownfor a long "inspired" and at times "brilliant" career, has oft been set



aside in the "has-been" bin. As Pota self-pityingly remarks, he has"lived too long and done too well", he is "prominent, acknowledged,accepted, assimilated and... familiar".

Familiar indeed. He notes and develops numerous abortive ideas inPortrait, but everything, in some form or another has already beendone, even by himself. In any case, he's too tired to focus ondeveloping and sustaining some of the complicated plots he thinks up- he lacks "leisure or patience for a book ponderous with descriptivedetails of character and place... descriptive details of place andcharacter take time, deplete energy."

Depleted yes, but still hungry to achieve some late life success andnotoriety (maybe a film contract!) he comes up A Sexual Biographyof My Wife. His friends love the idea, his editor is guarded butcurious and his wife would prefer not to discuss the issue, thoughanything is better than having her bored and distracted husband notwrite at all.

The idea is a fitting one - sex seems to be constantly on his mind as oflate but as impotent as he is at sustaining new ideas, he is just asimpotent at initiating any such activity with his wife. Indeed, one ofthe most poignant aspects of the novel is the ageing relationshipbetween Pota and his wife Polly - who became alarmed when sheheard "news of the widely publicised development of a male potencypill." Maybe if there was an equally potent writing pill...

Pota is Heller, there is no doubt about that. And it is nice that Hellerallows us into his world, the world of a grand literary figure who isnot ashamed to expose his inability to produce anothergroundbreaking work. The Times may have predictably compared hislast work to his first and announced how sad it is that Heller shouldcap his career with "an anticlimactic book that is, at best, a poorimitation of a novel", but Heller's brilliance is precisely in this, hisself-satirising final work.





FEATURE

Sydney's philosophical taverna

Australia's olympics of the mindKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Plato (L) and an especiallypensive Socrates (R)inspire philosophicalthought at the AthensAcademy .

FOR the classical Greeks a notion of health meantboth an active mind and an athletic body. Duringthe 2000 Olympics, thousands of bodies spilledinto the city of Sydney all trim, taut and terrific -the athletic ideal. The body, its beautification, itsyouthfulness, its athleticism and its strength, has become one ofcontemporary society's most sought after treasures. For many, sportor just generally keeping fit, has become a religion. But what of themind?

During my sojourn in the land Down Under, people asked me, "Didyou come to Sydney for the Olympics?" I replied "Yes, for the'Olympics of the Mind'" - a series of Philosophy Nights held in asmall Greek tavern in a tiny side-street in the alternative, fashionablyferal, pseudo-intellectual soya-latte-drinking and vegan-eating inner-city suburb of Newtown, just next to the University of Sydney.Behind all the Olympic hype, Steki taverna continued its four yearcommitment to the exercise of the mind, via a luscious blend of goodGreek food and wine, drama and philosophy that take place withinthis tiny restaurant with its black-and-white photographs ofbouzoukia and rembetes. Here, you would be forgiven if youexpected to find nothing more than a friendly staff of Greek-

Ann Gwynn-Jones hasbeen actively involved inmaking the dramacomponent of the'Philosophy Nights' cometo life.

Australians (Costas, Costas and Nikos), asumptuous selection of Greek food (just likemum's cooking) and a live music programmefeaturing the bouzouki, and as for conversation,nothing much more than a pleasantly intoxicatedchit-chat. No mind acrobatics.

Indeed, back in early 1997 a young Greek-Australian freelance journalist, Jorge Sotirios,caused a bit of an intellectual storm when hisopinion piece - a scathing attack on the lack of



The poster advertising thisyear's 'Philosophy Nights'programme, entitledfittingly, 'Olympics of theMind'.

intellectual debate in Australian life and especiallyalong King Street in Newtown, considering itsproximity to Australia's oldest university - entitled"Deep thinkers are thin on the ground" waspublished in the Sydney Morning Herald. TheNewtown community was outraged. "How does heknow what we are talking about? Does he goaround listening to other people's conversations?"rang the indignant letters to the editors of localnewspapers.

But within the walls of that unassuming little tavern, a group ofacademics, students and friends from the School of Philosophy at theUniversity of Sydney had already begun to meet regularly to eatheartily, drink retsina and talk philosophy.

The catalyst of these philosophically-inspired social nights out wasEdward Spence, a philosophy lecturer in the School ofCommunication at Charles Sturt University in Bathurst, NSW, whofounded the Philosophy Nights in 1997 and continues to produce andcoordinate. "We gathered together in the spirit of Plato's Symposium.In the original Greek," Spence explains, "the word symposion, meanscoming together in friendship to drink, eat and engage inphilosophical dialogue and, above all, celebrate life."

"In classical Greece, where philosophy as we now understand itbegan," wrote Stephen Gaukroger of the Traditional and ModernPhilosophy department of the University of Sydney in his 1998Philosophy Nights "welcome" note, "it was pursued not inuniversities but in the streets, in gardens, in drama, and over mealsand drinks. This open, democratic side of philosophy is beautifullycaptured in Plato's dialogue, the Symposium, where a discussion ofthe nature of love is carried on at a dinner party..." Something notunlike what was occurring at Steki.

"By natural progression," Spence explained in a 1997 interview withSotirios, "I thought of organising something more structured andmore extensive. The idea was to hold a series of symposia attended byboth practising philosophers and members of the community,particularly first and second generation Greeks".

The last decade or so has seen a "movement away from analyticalphilosophy and pseudo-scientism to a philosophical engagement witheveryday life," as Luke Slattery observed in The Australian two yearsago. A movement which inspired the philosophical counselling trend -commonly believed to have begun back in 1981 when Dr GerdAchenbach opened his practice near Cologne, Germany - fermenting



the ancient Epicurian idea that philosophy can be used to alleviatedistress, help individuals come to a better understanding ofthemselves and their world, and improve a person's life.

The 'Steki' taverna wheregood food, wine,philosophy and dramameet.

It also led to user-friendly philosophical texts likeAlain de Botton's Consolations of Philosophy(Penguin 2000) - the inspiration for the Englishtelevision series Philosophy - which looks at whatphilosophers like Socrates, Epicurus, Seneca,Schopenhauer and Nietszche have to say on issueslike "unpopularity", "not having enough money", "frustration","having a broken heart" and "difficulties".

Within this general atmosphere of philosophical revitalisation, manyother cafe, restaurant and bookshop owners around King Street,Newtown, had a similar idea to Spence's. That philosophy can betaken out of the universities and brought back to the streets. Indeed, inthe aftermath of the "Sotirios Critique," King Street, Newtown,became a smarter street with regular philosophy seminars andinformal meetings aiming to re-establish the habit of intellectualconversation over coffee, beer or wine.

Spence however was interested in doing something a little different.The lecturer in theoretical and applied ethics who was born in Egyptto Greek and Irish parents (his mother from Larnaca, Cyprus, thebirthplace of Zeno, founder of Stoic philosophy) worked as achartered accountant before fulfilling his lifelong ambition when in1985 he began studying philosophy and later completed his PhD atthe University of Sydney. He has since been utterly inspired byclassical Greek philosophy. Indeed it was this fascination for thePlatonic dialogues that gave Spence the key to his version of"Philosophy Nights," where philosophy talks and drama became anentertaining mix, bridging the gap, as it were, between abstractphilosophical thought and a very personal philosophical experience.

Indeed that's why audience participation is essential and why thenights revolve around the drama. As Spence explained in a earlyinterview, "the Platonic dialogues, such as the Crito, the Meno andthe Republic, eminently lend themselves to dramatisation... I thoughtthe drama component of the talks will not only illustrate visually theissues covered in the talks, but also used rhetorically, as Plato himselfhad intended, can thus help render the audience more receptive toabstract philosophical thinking." After all, he maintains, "Plato hasbeen described as the greatest dramatist of reason."

Spence's aim is to "make philosophy, including contemporaryacademic philosophy, more accessible to a greater number of people



and to do it in a way that is not only instructive but also entertainingand engaging." But Spence doesn't want to simplify things and presenta watered down, easily digestible pseudo-philosophical experience.Instead he defines "accessibility" through a "personal experience ofthe philosophical life." And so, back in 1997, the Philosophy Nightsexperience began.

Philosopher Drago Hellerprepares to take on the roleof a philosophical waiter ina recent production thataddressed modern andpost-modern philosophy.

That inaugural night saw Spence take themicrophone to talk about one of our most profoundconcerns, love. "In the film Gentlemen PreferBlondes," he had said, "Marilyn Monroe tells usthat 'when love goes wrong nothing goes right'.Plato I think would have agreed." Two actors thentook the tiny stage and metamorphosed themselvesinto characters from Plato's Symposium - Socrates and a mysteriouswoman from Mantinea who teaches the famous philosopher aboutlove and concludes that love is a longing for immortality. Since thatnight, those who entered Steki have been offered a user-friendlyaccount of the works of the Pre-Socratics, Plato and Aristotle as wellas everything from Wittgenstein and Heidegger to Nietszche andSartre as well as an entire series entitled Zen and Zeno, bringingEastern and Western philosophical thought together.

Spence, via his Philosophy Nights, has taken philosophy out of thelecture room where its study is deemed "serious" and into the tavernwhere "serious" becomes "fun" without becoming superficial. Andthe Philosophy Nights have enjoyed enormous success. One regular,George, reserves a table for every night and manages to fill it witheager and curious friends. "It's a great night out," he says, "I nevermiss it. You know, you can go out anywhere, enjoy good food andwine, but here you actually get to participate in conversation thatmakes you think about things differently."

Although many university-based philosophers have passed throughthe Steki and examined the tavern's star menu while participating inthe post-drama question time and free-flowing conversation, oneneeds no prerequisite philosophy knowledge to participate in thesePhilosophy Nights. Love, friendship, humour, god and religion,happiness, emotions, immortality, the body and soul are issues we areoften concerned with trying to make sense of for our own daily peace.

A typical philosophy night begins at around 7.30pm as tables arefilled with mums, dads, academics, teachers, students - the vaguelycurious and the confident know-alls - sitting side-by-side as they tuckinto the Greek platter of their choice (being Newtown there's avegetarian alternative available) with retsina flowing freely. A



philosopher then takes the stage and microphone and presents a talk -less academic, where humour plays an important part as do referencesto contemporary culture, society and politics.

Edward Spence - founderof Sydney's 'PhilosophyNights' addresses thecurious crowd.

The talk then dissolves into a dramatic presentation- adaptations of dialogues taken from philosophicalor literary texts, dramatised letters written byphilosophers to friends or lovers, or even originalworkshop scripts that a philosopher and a group ofactors may have worked on.

"It is only as a profoundly personal experience thatthe examined life can be worth living," says Spence.Indeed over a drink at a local pub he talks about the "transformation"of the philosophers, largely academic individuals who often findthemselves taking on roles in the drama part of the night,transforming from university lecturer to actor to director and to aperson who can explore other ways to present philosophy to a largelynon-academic crowd.

"One of the most important questions in philosophy is asked bySocrates," Spence states. "How should one live one's life?" To be ableto answer that question, we must examine our own lives, for asSocrates said when facing death at the hands of the accusers, theunexamined life is not worth living, o anexetastos vios ou viotosanthropo. Spence is adamant that philosophy can "offer practicalguidance in people's lives."

Visit the Philosophy Nights website at www.usyd.edu.au/philosophy/steki





The Olympics and Aussie TV's crash testKATHRYN KOROMILAS

IN SYDNEY

"TRY NOT to forget to press the record buttonbefore you go out" said dad on Olympic OpeningCeremony (OOC) night; my folks were off to my brother's place - hehappens to own a massive television set. It was a simple enoughrequest, nothing that would commit me to anything. I wouldn't haveto suffer through any Olympic hype.

Though I had invited them to join me on my planned anti-Olympicsnight out at one of Sydney's historic jazz joints where I would savourthe sounds of one of my favourite local bands, The Whitlams, farfrom Olympic cheers and TV screens - my parents were alreadyhooked on all things Olympics.

And so was everyone else I knew. Others I'd invited to join me hadalready planned their OOC night, opting to "park" themselves in frontof the TV. Angelo was planning an Olympics party at his home inLeichhardt, where 300 dollars worth of alcohol, a massive projectoron a wall and a group of friends who all wanted to "share the spirit"would spend that Friday night. Steve mumbled that he might join meafter the ceremony and opted for a mega-screen at one of the manylive sites around town - tuned into Channel 7 for live coverage of thegames with an added bonus of thousands of spectators and live music.Our neighbours had set the TV out in the backyard where they'dplanned to spend the 4 hours enjoying their typical Aussie BBQ. Therest of my friends were going to pack themselves into the local pub.

Every moment, every medaland every stumble (in thiscase that of US hurdler GailDevers) was all the morepoignant for Aussieviewers

Finding a date on OOC night was impossible. Sadbut true, the Great Aussie Couch Potato lives onwith a vengeance. Sure, sport has always been big inAustralia, and if you weren't out there doing it, youwere certainly indoors watching it - beer canswithin arm's reach.

Maybe that's why the streets of Sydney had seemed quietly complacentover the last four days since my arrival. Maybe all the Olympic hypehadn't yet spilled out into the streets of Sydney - and the week prior tothe opening of the Games - because the Great Aussie Couch Potato



was too busy setting up the TV (I heard that TV sales and rentalsskyrocketed in the weeks preceding the Games), stocking up on beerand flags and rote-learning all the verses to the Australian NationalAnthem.

Anyway, back to the recording button. I didn't forget to press it. (And Ididn't even need to read page 13 of the Sun-Herald's TV Guide,which encouraged, "It's never too late to use the incentive of a home-town Olympic Games to master your VCR's timer record functions".)

I pressed the red-button while adding a final touch of gloss to my lips- precisely at the moment when the "man from snowy river" and hishorse galloped out into Stadium Australia. I was hooked. Mascara-blotched tears soon trickled down my cheeks in sync with the nationalanthem, and by the time Cathy walked across the wet cauldron I wasall out of tissues.What a sucker! That night I made Couch Potatohistory as I joined a whopping 10.4 million viewers across the nation(Princess Diana's funeral in September 1997 clocked up a mere 6.2million) and the TV has been on non-stop ever since.

Channel 7 won the official title of 'Olympic TV' and committedthemselves to providing a total of 23 hours of live coverage per day.It was Channel 7 who also televised the Games back in 1956 - theyear that television first arrived in Australia and the year thatAustralia first hosted the Olympic games.

So, Australians will get a total 380 hours of live Olympic coverageon free TV, plus another 800 on pay TV. 70 presenters are sharing theload (plus 500 staff), headed by Bruce "I-don't-think-I'll-ever-have-a-more-exciting-job-than-this-one" McAvaney.

Some highlights of the 7 coverage included national flags which weretransposed over the lane of each competitor in swimming races - justso we could keep a close eye on the Aussies. Similar high-techdevices were used for other events, such as cycling and athletics.

Television land

Anywhere you happen to go in this Olympic city - pubs, cafes,restaurants, shopping centres, live sites - you'll be sure of a first classseat in front of the tube. Having an early morning coffee in an innercity cafe - subtly decorated in green and gold - along King Street,Newtown, also meant having a great view of one of two TVs and liveOlympic action. One coffee ended up becoming two coffees, thenlunch - all fuelled by the cafe crowd's cheers.

Olympic TV Bloopers



When millions of people are watching you, you are bound todisappoint someone, right? And in the first week of Olympiccoverage, Channel 7 certainly did. The Sydney Morning Heraldsuggested that "the commentators certainly didn't bag any goldmedals". Well we're only human, they said in reply. The bloopers?Missing key moments during the torch relay, failing to capture keypost-race interview moments, (in one instance they interviewed one ofAustralia's swimmers while the US gold winner was ignored) andmissing the start of races, choosing instead to air advertisements.

Patriotic Ads

Speaking of advertisements. The Olympics have brought out the bestin national ad campaigns. Industry experts have noticed a trendtowards patriotism in advertising, and indeed this huge emotionalresponse to the Olympics has been a surprise. If we Australians everhad the chance to think about what it means to be Australian, well thisis it.

Everything from beer and mobile phones to airlines and athletes havebecome national icons. One airline decided to boost Australian's pridewith images of Uluru, a children's choir and the tear-jerker song "IStill Call Australia Home" while other companies went for the "Thisis the best address on the earth" line. And some just wanted to set therecord straight with, "I don't have a kangaroo for a pet." Indeed folks.No kangaroos.

Ad companies agree that "there's no question at all that we are tappinginto the patriotism Australians are feeling right now."

Perec TV

But the punchiest (no pun intended) aspect of Olympic coverage camewith drama-queen Perec. OK, you've all heard about the Perec's6000km out of Sydney but did you all get to hear the live footagerecorded by a very brave and very frightened Channel 9 cameraman?In response to Perec's boyfriend's verbal and physical abuse the Aussiecameraman could be heard shouting a terrified "OK, OK, OK, I'm justdoing my job."

A good laugh

If Perec and boyfriend had been tuning in to Roy Slaven and HGNelson's alternative and wacky sports coverage, not only would shenot have fled (supposedly) the media, but she'd be begging Roy andHG for an interview slot!



This duo are not just about looking at the lighter side of things, theyalso offer sensitive and historical insight to sports. Take theirdiscussion on the Greco-Roman wrestling and its ancient ancestor -how did athletes wrestle in Ancient Greece while naked? Did handscome into contact with naughty bits? Well, it got me thinking. Andwhat about their discussion on the controversial issue of there beingjust too many sports included in the Olympic Games. What othersports can we add? The expert pair suggest that wood-chopping, pubpool, skateboarding and flathead fishing would be most fitting.

Their show hits TV screens each night during the late night slot 11pmand is fittingly entitled The Dream. But it's not that late is it? In aninterview with the Sunday Telegraph they said, "I think mostAustralians will be sleep-deprived by the end of the fortnight and, ifthey're not, they're un-Australian and they haven't been putting in fortheir country."

The real thing (not the drink)

My couch-potato experience ends today. Tomorrow I will brave thecrowds and

transport system and head off to Stadium Australia to catch the actionfrom my B-grade seats with the aid of binoculars. But I'll be pressingthe record button on the VCR before I go. I've bought one of thesenew 5-hour videotapes they've been advertising on Olympic TV. Whowould have thought I was such a sports fan.

What am I seeing tomorrow? Not sure and it doesn't really matter.Anything will do, after all I've got Olympic fever.





Who's who of music and theatre at VyronasFestKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Above, much-loved 'laika'singer Dimitris Mitropanoskicks off this year'sMunicipality of VyronasFestival at the Vrahontheatres. A revival of thehistorical production ofAeschylus' 'Persians'directed by Karolos Kounin 1965 will be performedon July 30.

THIS year's Municipality of Vyronas Festival, StiSkia Ton Vrahon 2000, programme reads like awho's who of the Greek musical and theatricalscene. Kicking off tomorrow and running rightthrough to July 30, a plethora of musical andtheatrical events will be held within the grounds oftwo picturesque theatres: the Melina Mercouri andthe Anna Synodinou Vrahon theatres.

If you have yet to delve into the world of Greekrock, pop and laika music, then this festival is the place to start.Dimitris Mitropanos takes 35 Musical Steps tomorrow and officiallykicks off the fest. Other highlights include much-loved band SynitheisYpoptoi (or Usual Suspects) on Thursday, the honey-sweet voice ofMelina Kana accompanied by Orfeas Peridis on June 14, while EleniTsaligopoulou and Dimitris Basis team up on June 26. NikosPapazoglou will get you up and dancing on June 30, as will ThanosMikroutsikos and Vassilis Papakonstandinou on July 4, Socrates onJuly 5, Socrates Malamas on July 7 and Nikos Portokaloglou on July10. The young and moody Alkinoos Ioannidis will appear on July 19.

And be sure not the miss the incredible Gypsy singer-guitarist KostasHatzis, who's captured the hearts of all Greeks, together with his sonAlexandros, on July 26.

Epidavros is not the only destination for good ancient Greek theatre.The Vrahon theatres will see some excellent productions with thehighlight undoubtedly being Aeschylus' Persians staged by theTheatro Technis on July 30 a revival of the historical production thatwas directed by Karolos Koun and premiered in 1965. YiorgosLazanis and Mimis Kouyioumtzis will direct this performance.Aristophanes' Ecclesiazusae will be performed on June 22-24, whileFrogs will be staged on July 20.

Shows begin at 9.30pm and will take place at the Melina Mercouriand Anna Synodinou Vrahon theatres, located in Vyronas(tel 762-6438 and 762-6738).



Tickets range between 4,000 and 5,500 drs and are available fromMetropolis record stores in Athens, Piraeus, Peristeri, Neo Irakleioand Halandri, Salina record store (125 Ymittou St, Pangrati), theMunicipality of Vyronas Cultural Centre (Kyprou and EvangelikisScholis sts, 9am-2.30pm and 5-8pm) and the Municipality of Vyronas(Karaoli and Dimitriou sts, 10am-3pm).

Keep an eye out in Friday's 'Planning Ahead' guide for fullprogramme details.





ADORATION

Exposure 'au naturel'KATHRYN [email protected]

Now you see it, now youdon't: the sight of women'sbare chests is as commonas pita throughout Greece.

SHOULD television advertisements display thoseadvisory symbols warning unassuming souls as towhat level of nudity will follow? Just curiousreally. I saw some naked breasts on anadvertisement selling a new car and thought, whynot? It could very well be a practical idea.

The advertised vehicle was a cute little red car traversing the verynaked body of a female lying casually atop a white-sheeted bed. OK, Iadmit I was a little shocked at first and emitted a typically patronisingexpat comment. Something like: "Well, we would never see any ofthat on TV in Sydney!" Indeed we wouldn't. We are much toopolitically correct for that. And feminists (me included) would havekicked up a fuss.

But maybe those advisory symbols could aid ID protesters taking tothe streets again, this time blaming the excessive nudity on the factthat the church is slowly being silenced by a state-run conspiracy.

Yes, so I got to see breasts. It's not the first time though. A companyadvertising body wash exposed the female torso in all its glory acouple of years back, and that's just one of many regular female body-part sightings we are all exposed to during all hours of the day.

So what are feminist activists doing about it here in Athens? Somewould say, what feminists? Was there ever a feminist movementhere? I remember my English friend's candid retort. "I left England toget away from feminists!"

But it's just not a feminist issue. Correct me if I'm wrong but thefeminist concern (I once so strongly believed in) that women not onlybecome an oppressed group but could also be subjected to violence, aresult of images that see women as objects that can be bought, sold,used and abused, seems meaningless here. Things aren't so clear cut.



Yes, women walk the streets and men stare or whisper not-so-sweetsomethings as they pass by. But you also get to see well-dressed andfinely-tuned female bodies belonging to women in the public eye,who do speak and give off dynamic, intelligent and powerful auras,even while clad in tiny mini-skirts.

Growing up in Sydney somehow gave me the message that you wereeither smart (and looks didn't count so much) or damn good looking(and intelligence didn't count so much). And if you exposed legs or acleavage you were a good target. Here in Greece, a good and healthybody, proudly displayed in skimpy gear, is a prerequisite. It's not aneither/or.

After all, we are in the land where the ancient Greek philosophersonce encouraged a balance of both body and mind pursuits, and wherethere's a Bodyline on every street corner and where hardcore pornmagazines are available at every periptero.

It's not even just female nudity we get to see. The winter theatricalseason brought many naked male bodies to the stage - the most talkedabout being Tzortoglou's naked-butted Dorian Gray. And while inmany cities in the US, Australia and probably England, you getwarned beforehand as to how much nudity the audience will besubjected to, no such warning came prior to any of these theatricalshows here in Athens.

Back to the ad. Tom Jones' sexy voice (how many years have passedand still so sexy!) singing Sex Bomb reels the viewer in as thematchbox-sized-red-roadster cruises along the fleshy landscape.

And the slogan? The Greek voiceover says, "makes your life morecomfortable and sexier", while the English phrase "Shrink to fit"flashes across the screen as the tiny girl (with tiny breasts) slips into apair of tiny jeans. Well, they do have a point. Owning a thin-ish andhealthy-ish body is indeed more comfortable.

Whatever the case, it's just a bit of flesh.

I get the feeling that Greeks really celebrate their bodies as somethingbeautiful and natural. Sure, there's always a negative side, like theover-abundance of diet crazes, but if you are smart you'll stick to ameasured pursuit of the healthy body. And once you've got it, hell,why not flaunt it!






15/02/2005 08:41:09 pµhttp://www.athensnews.gr/athweb/nathens.print_unique?e=C&f=12699&m=A12...

Epidavros' lights, music, action and agro-tourismKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Last Friday's Greek folkdances at Epidavros' littletheatre.

"AGRO-TOURISM today," said AgricultureMinister George Anomeritis on the occasion of theopening of this year's Musical July festival and theSeeds of the Epidavrian Earth agricultural fair, inAncient Epidavros on Friday, "means holistic andmultifaceted economic autonomy for the smallborderline communities of Greece with theproduction of high-quality local produce and theupgrading of the quality of life." Also present and committed to theagro-tourism initiative of Ancient Epidavros were general secretaryof EOT Evgenios Yiannakopoulos, Agriculture Ministry generalsecretary Lambros Lambropoulos and president of the Friends ofMusic Association, Christos Lambrakis.

In its sixth year, the July programme of musical events that unfoldswithin the grounds of the Little Theatre of Ancient Epidavros hasnow - with the collaboration of the ministries of agriculture andculture - fully developed its identity as an agro-cultural event with themusical performances that occur parallel to the agricultural fair.

Aiming to encourage a model of a smarter and more environment-friendly tourism that will mean the development and internationalpromotion of local produce, the ministry of development has agreedto research initiatives that will successfully promote the Musical Julyprogramme of events abroad (Europe specifically in the first instance)as a central point of contact for a new wave of agro-tourists.

As Lambrakis emphasised on Friday, "cultural events alone do notinitiate a trend of tourism to Greece... If interested foreign visitorshappen to be in Athens, then they may go to a production atEpidavros, but their trip to Greece will not be motivated by culturalevents." Visitors from abroad, he continued, are interested by a levelof engagement with the area they are visiting that surpasses that of a"tourist". Preferring to meet locals, to learn of the day-to-day way oflife, to eat and drink what locals eat and drink and to socialise the waylocals do, our foreign travellers want to get to know their place ofdestination from its roots.



This, for Ancient Epidavros, means a model that will have visitorsstay with locals in their homes and actively participate on their farms.

At this point in time lack of promotion, preparation and infrastructureare the main setbacks to such an ambitious and fundamentallyidealistic venture but the seed has been planted and locals areenthusiastic. However, as Lambropoulos pointed out in his briefaddress, "we need philosophical and ideological support forsomething like this."

(Above) AncientEpidavros fills with life inthe summer when culturalevents here send peopleflocking to this theatre, butthe little theatre at ancientEpidavros (below) has alsobecome a hot favourite forsummer cultural events .

Up until now, the municipality of Epidavrosenjoyed two main, but separate, industries -agriculture and tourism. Uniting the two will be thekey ingredient in the town's development, one thatwill preserve the area's traditional agricultural wayof life as well create new opportunities foremployment, something that could help keep localyouth in the area.

Sustaining youth population is an urgent issue,because the new generation is literally the key to survival ofborderline communities. Citing a successful northern Franceinitiative in a town that had slowly begun to witness the lowering ofits youth population, locals there gained the support of theiragriculture ministry and began organising the production of 60varieties of local produce. Producers gained insight into issues ofquality, pricing, packaging and quantity by liaising with experts inGermany, and the ministry funded a small 20-page informationbooklet that accompanied each product. Once people abroad began topurchase and enjoy the product, they became curious about the placethat produced it and a new wave of tourism began - consumers wereeager to discover where their favourite products were being produced.The initiative was complete once a small cultural festival wasorganised.

The municipality of Epidavros aims to achieve similar success and indoing so to be the point of reference for agro-tourism models inGreece.

With these goals in mind, Lambrakis cited the next four steps thatneed to be taken. Firstly, organisers of Musical July will aim to havetheir programme of events for July 2001 finalised by October thisyear. Secondly, an intensive advertising campaign will hit the foreignpress. A new series of promotional material has just been published,including a series of 10 postcards, a 32-page information bookletentitled An Emerald Land, in English, Greek and German, a brochure



available in both English and Greek and a series of posters. Thirdly,organisers will secure contact with a number of European travelagents. Lastly, they will suggest an eight-day package deal that willinclude Musical July events as a base, with a tour of the easternPeloponnese and participation in other events along the way.

At this point, the only thing that is not yet ready is the inclusion oflocal farmers (apart from the presentation of their products at the fair)as hosts to visitors who would like to live on their farms.

The Athens News spent last weekend at Ancient Epidavros eager toget a taste of agriculture and culture in the one mouthful.

Friday night: Folk dancing and food tasting

I'm walking along the port of Ancient Epidavros. As the sun sets andthe blue of the sky darkens it's time to begin that 20-odd minute strollalong the port and through the dirt pathway that leads to the LittleTheatre of Ancient Epidavros. I'd spent a large part of the afternoonsitting at Mike's restaurant on the far left side of the port, lazilydigesting a salad and slurping a frappe, only one metre from the waterand a glorious view of colourful boats.

But now, I was carefully stepping over a bug hurrying to take cover asthis mass invasion of feet come charging over its turf. Suddenly thesmell of oranges - a man is peeling one and discussing its merits - anda faint smell of manure. At the theatre I'm chatting with a friend as acentipede (or something like that) crawls up her arm. The womanbehind me is smoking and she is curtly reminded that this is an ancientsite, "Ah, I didn't even think of it," she says, "silly Athenian." I smile,the synthesis of this agro-cultural partnership is literally complete.

The lights dim and the scheduled programme of folk dance, music andsong begins with actress Lydia Koniordou reading excerpts fromvarious tales taken from a vast Greek heritage. Rows of dancers cladin richly decorated national costumes take the stage to dance and tosing accompanied by some live musicians, or to perform thoseacrobatics that Peloponnesian men are known for. The crowd wastruly captivated. Offer opera or ballet to a Greek and he or she isthrilled, but give a Greek traditional folk and something incrediblehappens. A cacophony of "bravos" sprang from the crowd, making anydiva envious of the enthusiastic reaction.

The concert ended, but the dancing and music moved onto the streetwith the many tavernas that line the port adding to the glendi.

I walked along the stalls (open from 8pm-2amFridays and Saturdays during the month of July)



selling and promoting local produce from thePrefecture of Argolida. I chatted with local farmersand tasted wine, liqueurs, cheese, sweets, honey andleft with bags of local produce, a book on thehistory of the komboloi (from the nearby Komboloi Museum) andthree jars of locally produced facial products.

Usually when you leave a theatrical, dance or music production youtake with you a programme and a series of impressions (critical orother) about the performance. Today, I left with bags of locallyproduced stuff and felt that I had come a little closer to my hosts,those who had lived all their lives in this area to which the ancienttheatre belongs.

Next up at Musical July:

Tonight and tomorrow night the Little Theatre becomes host to acelebration of the "Year of Bach", with a performance speciallydedicated to the great composer, featuring solo cellist RaphaelWallfisch and other performers from the Leipzig GewandhausOrchestra, who will present three suites for cello as well as otherselected works. July 21-22 will see a special focus on Frenchcomposers who were inspired by the imposing ancient presence ofGreece. Pianist Emile Naoumoff, together with bassoonist CatherineMarchese and our very own soprano Sonia Theodoridou, willinterpret a selection of works by Satie, Debussy and Ravel. MusicalJuly ends on July 28-29 with a mammoth performance by much-loved singer Alkistis Protopsalti who will interpret some of herfavourite songs by Stamatis Kraounakis and Nikos Antypasaccompanied by La Camerata.

The shows kick off at 9pm. Tickets, priced at 8,000 and 5,000 drs, areavailable at the Megaron Mousikis' box office (Vas Sofias andKokkali Sts, tel 728-2333) and from the kiosk at the port at AncientEpidavros.

Saturday night: Ancient theatre and modern taleporia

I walked through the supermarket next to the Epidavria Hotel and saton the little square with locals and German tourists as we waited forthe KTEL bus. I wasn't surprised that the bus was running late, but theGerman woman (who sat beside me and was reading Persians byAeschylus in a German translation as preparation for the show wewere all about to witness) was not only surprised but gently annoyed.

The historic bus arrived and we all clambered on hoping to secure anopen window for the 20-minute ride on the non-air conditioned bus.



My ride down to Epidavros last year went without a hitch. This year,however, it was to be a different experience, one that reminded me ofthe true essence of the word taleporia (discomfort). Trafficeverywhere, on the road, at the toilets - with women rushing into maletoilets, the refreshment stands - with people shouting, "Please we justwant some water", the ticket booth - with a line that was a horrific 50metres long. With so many thousands of people (10,000, organiserssaid), the show started late and agitated spectators alternativelyclapped hands together or shouted "When are we going to start? Youcan't keep letting people in so late".

People were still reeling in as the lights went off and the chorusentered. One spectator warned, "Everyone shut up, so that we can seethe performance." But people were still coming in and struggling tofind seats in the dark, stepping over and in front of other spectatorsonly to hear, "You should be ashamed to arrive at 10pm", and all thiswhile actors performed the revival of the historic 1965 Karolos Kounproduction.

Agriculture MinisterYiorgos Anomeritis at the'Seeds of the EpidavrianEarth' agricultural fair.

I remembered the German woman and her group atthe bus stop (as a mobile phone buzzed behind mesomewhere) and wondered what she would bethinking and what impressions she would take backto Germany about her Ancient Epidavrosexperience.

Whether it was lack of organisation on behalf of the Greek FestivalSA, or whether it is simply a matter of a lack of infrastructure (roads,toilets, ticket booths, refreshment stands) to cater to so manythousands of people, I don't know. But if the agro-tourism model isto work, such things need to be seriously developed.

Next up at the Epidavros Festival

Tonight and tomorrow see Aristophanes' Acharnians with music byDionyssis Savvopoulos. Aristophanes' Ecclesiazusae is on July 21-22, Sophocles' Ajax on July 28-29, Aristophanes' Peace by theNational Theatre of Greece on August 4-5, Sophocles' Oedipus Rexby the National Theatre of Greece on August 11-12, Aristophanes'Wealth on August 18-19 and Euripides' Madness of Heracles onAugust 25-26.

Shows begin at Ancient Epidavros Theatre at 9pm and tickets at10,000, 8,000, 6,000 and 4,000 drs (students half price except for A-zone seats) are available from the Athens Festival box office (4Stadiou St, in the arcade, tel 322-1459 or 331-2400) or at the venue(but get there early).



Getting to Ancient Epidavros

By car: Along the new national road Athens-Corinth-Epidavros,along the Nafplio-Epidavros national road and from the country roadsfrom Ermioni-Kranidi-Epidavros.

By bus: KTEL buses (4,500 drs return ticket) leave from the stationon Kifissou St at 5pm. Be there at least an hour earlier to secure yourseat. The ride takes at least 3 hours. The bus returns to Athensapproximately 20 minutes after the performance's end.

By sea: Your best bet is the Flying Dolphin. The ride via hydrofoiltakes a pleasant 1 hour and 10 minutes. It's comfortable, air-conditioned, fast and on time. Get your tickets (3,800 drs one way)from travel agents in Athens, or once at Ancient Epidavros from alittle booth outside Hotel Mike on the western side of the port.

If you want to travel in style try the specially organised 1-hour-and-45-minute cruise embarking from Trocadero in Neo Faliro at 6.30pmprior to the performance and arriving at 8.30pm. Tickets, at 12,500drs, include a meal on board and can be reserved on 728-2333.

Getting to the Little Theatre of Ancient Epidavros

Once in Ancient Epidavros, walk along the port towards the rightuntil you get to a sign that has you turn right and complete thejourney on a dirt path. It's an easy 20-minute walk.

Getting to the (big) Ancient Epidavros Theatre

Bus tickets to Ancient Theatre of Epidavros (1,000 drs return) areavailable from the supermarket next to Hotel Epidavria. The busdeparts at 7.30 and 7.50pm prior to each performance from the KTELstop opposite the supermarket at the small square. The buses departfrom Epidavros about 20 minutes following the end of the show.

Where to stay

Staying in Ancient Epidavros

Hotels: Verdelis Inn, tel 0753-41332; Poseidon, tel 0753-41211

Rooms: Elena, tel 0753-41207; Socrates, tel 0753-41706

Camping: Becas, tel 0753-41714; Nicolas I, tel 0753-41297

Taverns: Akrogiali, tel 0753-41441; Perivoli, tel 0753-41500

Restaurants: Mike, tel 0753-41213; Poseidon, tel 0753-41211



Helpful numbers

Municipality of Epidavros: 0753-41250

Police: 0753-41203

Health Centre: 0753-22222

Emergency: 0753-41004

Pharmacy: 0753-41301

Information: 0753-42020

Taxi: 0753-41723

KTEL Intercity bus lines: 0753-41173

Museum of Ancient Epidavros: 0753-22009





INTERVIEW

When a punk ballerina seduces CasanovaKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Karole Armitage, the 'punkballerina' will be performingat the Irodion Theatre July9 and 10.

HAILED as the creator of the "punk ballerina",Karole Armitage's choreography is a "virtuosic,high-velocity, image-driven style that is bothexciting and expressive". Invited by the GreekFestival SA to participate in the Athens Festivalthat unfolds each summer within the magicalancient Irodion Theatre, Armitage is due to arrive,arm in arm with Casanova, for a two-night stay onJuly 9 and 10.

The Armitage style - characterised by "stabbing, insect-like motionsand savage confrontations" - has been a much desired commodity eversince she stepped into the world of choreography in New York City in1978. She has since been invited to contribute to the repertoire ofmajor ballet and modern dance companies throughout Europe and theUS, including invitations from Rudolph Nureyev at the Paris Operaand Mikhail Baryshnikov at the American Ballet Theatre. Her workhas been the subject of television documentaries and has alsoappeared in rock videos, such as Madonna's "Vogue" as well as infeature films, such as most recent The Golden Bowl starring NickNolte, Anjelica Huston and Uma Thurman.

Her most recent ballet, Pinocchio (which saw Jean Paul Gaultierdesign costumes), was created in Florence during her stay as directorof the Ballet of Florence, Italy MaggioDanza di Firenze. Pinocchiokicked off her "Italian trilogy" (to be followed by Casanova andMachiavelli in Hell) on the subject of the lie.

The Athens News chatted with Armitage about 'Casanova' andcontemporary dance:

How are rehearsals for 'Casanova' coming along?

Casanova is finished, and I'm thrilled and very proud of the dancersand singer who have done an amazing job in a short three-weekrehearsal period.



I guess you are particularly looking forward to a world premiere insuch an imposing ancient site. How do you feel about the Irodionas a dance stage?

We have a preview performance in the ancient Greek theatre inTaormina, Sicily, to help us get ready for the Irodion. Although theIrodion is a difficult shape and size for dance, I'm thrilled to beperforming there as the beauty of the site inspires the performancesand myself to aim for the greatness that surrounds us. I think it liftseveryone's aspirations and gives us a feeling that it all matters.

The preparatory phase for Casanova took place in both Italy andNew York. Is it difficult to work between two countries?

The biggest difficulty with Casanova is that all of the collaboratorswere spread out across the globe. This is a terrible way to work: I wasin NYC, [composers] Yiorgos Kouroupos in Athens, David Shea inBelgium, Giovanni Sollima in Palermo, while costume designerArjun Bhasin was in Bombay and set designer Andrea Branzi inMilan. But it had to be this way - due to a series of compromisesnecessary to get it financed - or not at all. Believe me, never again!

How do you see Casanova, firstly as a man, secondly as a historicalfigure and thirdly as an abstract idea? What fascinates you about"serial monogamy"?

Casanova is a metaphor for the pursuit of love, erotic encounters andrelationships. I find the man himself to be tremendously interesting,but I'm not portraying him in the dance. He was, however, a precursorto the modern phenomena of the "serial monogamy" lifestyle (goingfrom one commitment to another). I think his restlessness and self-consciousness about his constant chasing of new experiences is verymodern; there is a similar impulse: the desire to live life to the hiltmixed with a fear of mortality and an inability to accept the limits of areasonably comfortable life.

He manifests an "unrequitable" desire for life, which is both creativeand destructive. The particulars of Casanova's life and experiences arereally just background information for me as a choreographer sincethey can't be expressed in the non-verbal form of dance, the danceitself does show the gradual lessening of emotion that accompaniesthis form of detachment in one's relationships, a detachment endemicto the Casanova way of being.

'Casanova' is part of the trilogy that 'Pinocchio' began and that'Machiavelli in Hell' will end "on the subject of the lie". Why thelie?



The lie as a subject came from working in an Italian opera housewhere everyone suspects every trifling word or incident as a strategyto gain or maintain power with enormous forethought going into it.Not my thing or way of seeing the world.

What will 'Machiavelli in Hell' be like?

You never know what something will be like until you do it. But Ihave a real script (for a ballet, it is silent) written with Pulitzer Prizewinner Sebastian de Grazia, who wrote Machiavelli in Hell, so Iknow the outline is really good.

Once you have an idea, say the 'Casanova' idea for example, howdo you begin working? Does the idea exist in your mind first andthen you try and choreograph the movement to interpret the idea?Or does movement come first?

Dances come in different ways. The idea of Casanova as a metaphorfor a dance about relationships, the conflict between the rational andthe irrational in eroticism and love, was a first thought. Then comes abasic structure that forms the voyage of discovery on the subject. Thedance itself comes out only in the studio as a spontaneous creativecollaboration with the performers I work with. It's very personal.

Can you describe the research process a little?

I read Casanova's memoirs with great pleasure, forgot about it andthought about my life. Out came some ideas that became a dance. Inthe background are incidents from Casanova's life that overlap withall our lives - especially those of us who've led a life of adventure.

You've written the libretto loosely based on Casanova'sautobiography. What facts did you retain? How creative did youget in writing the libretto? Which elements inspired you most?

The libretto is a structure with a series of songsabout love. I had different kinds of love in mind foreach scene and searched for poems that captured thespirit I was trying to evoke. I mainly sought poemsin English. Poetry is subtle and I felt inadequatewhen reading Italian poetry. I have used a great dealof W.A. Auden and Tennessee Williams; two whoreally knew both sides of love; its hidden agendasand brutal devastating loss, its promise of hope andbeauty.



The work is made up of six main parts and "six seductions". Whatelements of seduction, interaction and encounter unfold in eachone?

Every scene is called a seduction; this is a loose term. It can be aseduction of style and energy as in the first scene or a "real" seductionbetween man and woman (or whatever sex) where both try to find theconfidence to engage in an erotic encounter.

Is the "seduction in a chat room" what I think it is? That is, twoindividuals connecting via the Internet?

Yes, the chat room is a kind of virtual experience - a haven where onecan imagine an idealised beautiful spirit of seduction like a perfumethat engages your senses and takes you over into a marvellousexperience. It's a kind of illusion that's very attractive.

You're working with Andrea Branzi again. What elements doesthe Branzi style bring to your work?

Branzi is a great artist who is able to distill a vast body of knowledgethat is historical, literary and visual in order to create an essentialimage. This sense of achieving the essential, the perfect one thing,rather than three things, is a very Tuscan thing - he's from Florenceoriginally.

You've worked with a number of singular artists, Jean PaulGaultier and Madonna for example. How does the Armitagepersona come through with such larger-than-life personas?

Noone is larger than life. Sure, some people's image is used as amedia tool to sell stuff so that they can become famous. ThatMadonna has a huge crowd of 13-year-olds who buy her records isnot the thing that impresses me about her but that is fundamentallywhy we hear about her over and over again. That has nothing to dowith art. Art, however, like a signature, is entirely personal. Whenyou're an artist you can't hide who you are; it just comes out throughyour experience. Dennis Hopper directed a thriller about this, aboutan artist who works under an assumed identity but whose real self isultimately revealed.

Working with someone like Gaultier is marvellous because heunderstands collaboration - you work together to make the art whichtakes on its own life beyond any one person's ideas. Personality orfame is not the issue at all.



Cinema designer Arjun Bhasin has done the dancers' costumes.Gaultier designed costumes for your previous work. What elementsdo fashion designers bring to dance?

Fashion designers are really good at theatricality, and this helps toattract the public. Dance is pathetically non-commercial, but we haveto use all of our cleverness to survive and do things that talk totoday's audiences. This is true for content, style, clothes, music,whatever really, but only when it serves the art form itself. One mustalso offer a distinct alternative mass culture, an introspectivealternative to it or it isn't art but some alternative form of massculture. There has to be the right degree of self-conscious reading ofculture otherwise it just results in superficial imitation. Sometimes adesigner is ideal for a certain dance; other times something simpler ismore appropriate. Each dance is its own universe.

How would you describe "contemporary movement trends" asopposed to modern dance?

Contemporary movement trends are less repressive than moderndance for a historical reason. Modern dance defined itself as a morallypure democratic form which needed to prove that dance could standon its own and be appreciated for itself without costume, story ormusic. Now that that battle has been won, dance is free to draw fromwhatever sources inspire the choreographer. Contemporary dancetends to be more physically violent, more about a precarious sense ofbalance and is spatially less centred. I see it as a mix of ballet andmodern dance with influences from popular and world culture.

How significant a role does improvisation with your dance teamhave in your work?

Improvisation plays no role. Accidents help though.

Your first dances were hailed as the creation of the "punkballerina". How would you describe that? What term would youuse to characterise your dance style now?

Punk and my form of punk was a youthful, liberating, delirious joyfulanarchy and wildness that is typical of youth and a celebration of life.Now, I would call what I do "wild ballet" that has the same roots asthe punk era with a desire for a more complex expressive palette.

What feeds/motivates you artistically these days?

I love movies and Africa as inspiration.

Your dance background? Training? Earliest influences?



I trained with [George] Balanchine and danced for him in Geneva[1972-75]. My ballet training [at the School of American Ballet] wasfollowed by five years with Merce Cunningham [1976-80]. As for myearliest influences - Balanchine and love of Motown dance, ChollyAtkins' choreography.

[Armitage was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship for choreographyin 1986, and the French government's Chevalier dans L'ordre desArts et Lettres in 1992.]

You'll be kicking off a period as resident choreographer with theBallet de Lorraine in France this autumn. What are your plans?

The Ballet de Lorraine is mostly in the hands of the new director. Ijust hope to make a couple of hot and exciting ballets.

What does it mean to dance. Is it a holistic way of life? A craft? Acareer move?

Dance is no career move! Certainly as a youth you don't understandhow alienated you'll be from the mainstream, which is bad in thesense that economic survival is difficult. Of course, your body alsochanges and this is hard to take - one has a very graphic acquaintancewith mortality at a young age. In sports you have the same thing, butthey have generally made a fair amount of money. With dancers it'squite the opposite as it's the lowest paid profession besides writingpoetry and at 35 you're washed up. The beauty of dance is its fragilityand ephemeral magic, but that's also at times very painful. We live ina celebrity and business-mad world where a sense of cultural andartistic prestige tends to lie only in what the media deems importantenough to talk about. The media write about things that sell and areavailable to the masses. Dance has nothing to sell and never makesmoney. It is seen by very few people compared to a record, forexample, which can be bought by anyone. This creates a toughsituation for survival and confidence in one's work.

Your greatest dance memory?

The greatest memories of dance are those instances you are so terriblyalive as you put all of your body, soul and mind into the absolutepresent moment. There is nothing like it.

Where do you see yourself in five years? 10 years?

I can't even imagine myself in five months from now. Every projecthas to be invented from scratch and has a whole different way ofcoming to life. I would like to have a more stable situation that would



allow for continuity with a group of dancers so that we could pushthe envelope of ideas and physicality in order to develop somethingunique. That means working together over time.

* Karole Armitage's Casanova will be performed at the ancientIrodion Theatre (D Areopagitou St, at the foot of the Acropolis, tel323-2771 and 323-5582) on July 9 and 10 at 9pm. Tickets at 30,000,20,000, 15,000 and 10,000 drs (students 4,000 drs) are availablefrom the Athens Festival box office (4 Stadiou St, in the arcade, tel322-1459 or 331-2400 - open Monday-Friday 8.30am-4pm and onSaturday 9am-2.30pm) and from Ticket Hellas on 618-9300.





European battle of the electric guitarsKATHRYN KOROMILAS

The European Rock Prize, acompetition now in its thirdyear, will feature manygroups fromEurope, butalso some old favourites,like the Animals (above)and local band SynitheisYpoptoi (below L). Hostingthe competition is actressMaria Papalambrou (belowL).

THESE days music is a big business withaccountants and lawyers claiming the right to makedecisions as to which manufactured stars and tuneswill bring in the cash. If you don't have a recordingcontract it's next to impossible to secure a live gig,and if you don't play live it's impossible to get acontract. That's why the Athens-based EuropeanRock Prize is so important. The competition - nowin its third year - gives musicians from all overEurope the chance to compose, perform, competeand perhaps secure that elusive recordingopportunity.

This year organisers received over 300 applications (an original rockor blues composition) from musicians aged between 18 and 30 yearsfrom Greece and other European countries including Bulgaria,Poland, Germany and Spain, to name but a few. Of the 300, a total of10 finalists will be chosen to perform live at the Olympic Stadium onJune 29 and will be up for one of three cash prizes - 3,000, 2,000 and1,000 euro for first, second and third places respectively. More sothan the prize money, however, what these ambitious youngmusicians really covet is the possibility of securing a recordingcontract (just as other competition finalists have done in the past).

The June 29 competition night will also see much-loved Greek bandSynitheis Ypoptoi perform.

The following night, guitar legend Mick Taylor (of Rolling Stonesfame) will take centre stage with the Animals (remember "We GottaGet Outta This Place", "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" and "Houseof the Rising Sun"?). The original Animals, namely guitarist andvocalist Hilton Valentine, drummer John Steel and guitarist DaveRowberry will team up with vocalist (of Saxon fame) Tony Liddleand bassist (of the Kinks fame) Jim Rodford. The three competitionfinalists will kick-start their career as support acts for these rocklegends. Mid-show, Christos Thiveos of Synitheis Ypoptoi



(interestingly, he studied philosophy under Umberto Eco in Bologna)will join the Animals on stage for a jam that should include anostalgic ride back to the Stones era.

But Taylor and the Animals are not just special guests. They arepersonally committed to the cause and will also sit on the judgespanel, which by the way, reads like a who's who in rock.

Animals manager and director of Sensible Music Productions,Claude Taylor, will also take part. Present at a press gathering onThursday, Taylor spoke about the importance of such an event andabout the beginning of the rock era back in the Sixties.

He remembers the Sixties and Seventies when clubs and recordingcompanies were run by ex-musicians encouraging an entirely differentmusic scene, one that saw so many clubs to play in, where themusicians all knew each other, where it was easier to get signed, playa gig and get financial backing. A time when the music scene was lesscommercial and less manufactured.

Indeed, as a manager Taylor generally looks for amusician who can write and perform. He's notinterested in "manufactured" bands like the SpiceGirls. "The good thing about competitions like the European RockPrize, is that it's run by people who know music, unlike theEurovision competition, for example, which is run by politiciansthese days."

In its third year, the competition has seen no financial support fromthe state but depends on sponsorship from private companies in orderto be able to cover finalists' travel and accommodation costs and tosecure prize money.

Taylor candidly recalls the early Stones days. A time when the status-quo of a very "Victorian" England was being challenged by the bandwho literally unleashed a new attitude that led to the "sex, drugs androck 'n' roll" phenomenon. "The Stones were the centre of this," saidTaylor, "and although the Beatles were great musicians they werereally on the nice side of things. The Stones changed the style andoutlook resulting in totally outrageous behaviour that saw peoplethrowing televisions out of hotel rooms, driving their cars right up toa hotel's pool or walking naked through a rock venue. The moreoutrageous you were, the more you were accepted."

Asked if he thinks that older and successful musicians havingcompleted their musical journey, so to speak, should retire, step asideand let younger musicians take the limelight. "Oh sure, they are old



musicians," Taylor agreed, "but older bands are doing better thannewer bands. There are so many fans who are now in their fifties, whowant to see these bands play live again."

Indeed, the Animals are currently playing live every weekend in theUS as part of the Viet Rock series of concerts for war veterans - andtheir fittingly named "We Gotta Get Outta This Place" is the mostrequested song.

Hosting the competition is actress Maria Papalambrou. Present onThursday, she expressed enthusiasm about appearing on a rock musicstage - so different to a theatrical stage - where she would share thescene with the musicians she listened to when she was younger. She'sproud to be a part of this event that offers such a golden opportunityto promising bands to begin their career.

Mick Taylor and the Animals will play the Olympic Stadium inMaroussi on June 30 at 9.30pm (tickets at 6,000 drs) following the3rd Lucky Strike European Rock Prize competition that will see the10 finalists plus Synitheis Ypoptoi perform on June 29 at 9pm(tickets at 3,000 drs). Grab a 7,000-drachma ticket for both showsfrom central record stores.

Yes, it goes without saying that rock 'n' roll will simply never die.





Carreras' concert to help fund ACS centreKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Tickets have almost soldout for Jose Carreras' one-night only performance, sohurry, if you want to seethis star shine tonight atthe Irodion.

THOUGH one might normally expect to wait awhile for the arrival of a show's star, there are caseswhen the opposite occurs. Jose Carreras - here for aone-night only performance at the Irodion tonight,a concert that will raise money to build aperformance centre for the American CommunitySchools of Athens (ACS) - waited patientlyyesterday for arrival of US Ambassador to GreeceNicholas Burns and his wife Mrs Elizabeth Baylies-Burns to chatwith the press about the ambitious venture.

"I'm sorry we're late," explained Burns, "but we have an excuse. It'sthe 4th of July and we're expecting 3,000 people at our home thisevening." Nonetheless, once excuses were duly given, the humble andpatient tenor filled two glasses with water for the couple and gotdown to business.

Invited by ACS, Carreras - accompanied by soprano Isabel Rey and theERT National Symphony Orchestra with David Gimenez at thepodium - will be performing in the fund-raising event to support theconstruction of a performing arts centre on the school campus. The3,000m2 space, expected to cost a 8 million dollars, will seat 600-800 people.

The centre will also host musical and theatrical performances ofpublic and private organisations and institutions, local andinternational musical competitions, seminars and conferences, as wellas events for the 2004 Olympic Games.

ACS board president, Baylies-Burns enthusiastically explained that"we decided to kick off the fund-raising with a summer concert. Wedecided to aim high - and as we tell our students - reach for the stars,and we got a star", she smiled and addressed the tenor. "I can't think ofa better way to spend a warm summer evening in Athens than underthe stars serenaded by Jose Carreras."

Ambassador Burns has offered to chair the centre's fund-raisingcommittee, one that consists of prominent representatives of business,political and cultural life in Greece.



When the limelight finally fell on Carreras, he said: "What can I say, Iam very happy to be here and to help with this very nice initiative."Carreras spoke of his wonderful memories not only of performing inGreece (he last sang at Epidavros in 1993) but of the "tremendouscordiality and warmth" he receives from his Greek fans. Theinternationally acclaimed tenor is also thrilled to be playing at theIrodion, a place he feels is "probably the most beautiful in the worldto have the opportunity to play in".

The conversation turned to the singer's knowledge of Theodorakis andHadjidakis. Will he ever visit us with a concert of Greek songs? hewas asked. "Do you want me to punish the audience?" he replied witha burst of laughter. In any case, Carreras is eager to explore newmusical experiences and has even sung with pop artists such as DianaRoss. He adores all sorts of music, "of a certain quality", andelaborates that there's "a music for every occasion and mood".

* Carreras will be taking the Irodion stage (Dionysiou AreopagitouSt, at the foot of the Acropolis) at 9 tonight in works by Verdi,Puccini, Strauss as well as Italian songs sung by tenors of the past.Tickets have almost sold out. Try your luck at the Pallas Theatre (1Voukourestiou St, tel 322-4434) or at the venue on 323-5582 -answering calls daily 9am-2pm and 7-10pm.





Christmas time: A patchwork of traditionKATHRYN KOROMILASA COMMON complaint around Christmas time isthat the holy holiday has become a playground forruthless retailers, cunning advertising executives,indulgent partygoers and materialistic children.

We seem to get confused around Christmas time. Searching for somesolemn, age-old meaningful tradition centring on the mysterious birthof a baby boy who brought with him all the hope, joy and love aworld could need, we are instead lured into a world that would haveus travel far from family to a special Xmas idyllic hideaway or partyfor 24 hours a day for each of the 12 days of Christmas, or purchasemore than a manger's worth of awe-inspiring gifts on sale in 12interest-free instalments.

As the calendar counts us down towards December 25 we areperfecting our balancing act. Feasting and revelling on the one handand quiet family-oriented meditating on the other - that in somevaguely nostalgic way represents the essence of Christianity.

If you are sighing dejectedly as you read this, and muttering,'Christmas seems to have lost its meaning and has become acommercial circus!', then you just haven't done your historyhomework.

Look, we all know that we don't know when Christ was really born.The December 25 date was chosen in the 4th century not because ithad anything to do with Christ's birthday, but as Stephen Nissenbaumput it in his 1997 book The Battle for Christmas, "simply because ithappened to mark the approximate arrival of the winter solstice, anevent that was celebrated long before the advent of Christianity...Christmas was nothing but a pagan festival [the Roman Saturnaliacelebrating seasonal agricultural plenty] covered with a Christianveneer."

In any case, the birth date had long belonged to the Persian's mysterygod Mithra, the Sun of Righteousness.

Christmas was always about drinking, feasting and generally spendingbig. Our ancestors were mighty partygoers around this time of theyear. The days began to lengthen, the year's supply of food was in



store and there wasn't much else to do apart from some heavyboozing. Ancient civilisations in Egypt, Persia and Greece celebratedthe winter solstice - a time of renewal and indulgence - guilt-free;unlike poor us today who need journalists to ask questions such as"can seasonal feasting be ethical?" as published in The Independenton November 22 in an article entitled Dreaming of a guilt-freeChristmas.

With the earliest documented Nativity celebrations said to have takenplace in Rome in 336 (others say 354) and in Constantinople in 379(again depending on your source), later spreading to Egypt and ataround the 500s to Europe and England, the church began to declareownership of the celebrations and with that the indulgentbacchanalian face of Christmas began to change, was suppressedaltogether for a time and was finally established as a federal holiday inAmerica in 1870.

A fact that, some 100 years later, has irkedAmerican lawyer Richard Ganulin so much that in1998 he sued the federal government on the basis,according to abc.com, that Congress violated theseparation of church and state when the Christianfestival became an official state one. Interestingly,government lawyers are opposing the claim byfocusing on the secular aspects of Christmas (including Christmastrees, Santa Claus, and presents) in their arguments. The case is stillbeing argued at a federal appeals court.

Some Christians wouldn't have a problem if there were no Christmas.The small congregation of the Texas-based Austin Park Church ofChrist has published, on their website, a well-researched essaydetailing the links between Christmas and paganism, concluding thatChristians should not observe Christmas because of its pagan roots.

The pagan bits have always been a point of contention for the churchthroughout Christmas' 1700-year history. In the late 1500s thePresbyterian church suppressed the observation of Christmas inScotland due the absence of any biblical references to Christmascelebrations. Likewise, the English Puritans weren't too at ease withthe absence of a biblical suggestion that we should celebrate the birthof Christ or with the bacchanalian nature of the fest. Oliver Cromwellabolished English Christmas by an act of Parliament in 1644, as didthe New England Puritans in 1659.

When, in 1843, Charles Dickens published A Christmas Carol thefestival had already begun to acquire its new face of Christian givingand good cheer and the tale served to counter opposition to the



festival. (Britain's National Trust now holds Christmas lunchesfeaturing readings of Dickens.) None of us want to be Scrooges atChristmas time - a time when we snap out of compassion fatigue evenwhen there'll be more open palms appearing on the streets of Athens(nay, the world).

Christmas is virtually a global phenomenon and has probably beenembraced by the world more because of its secular roots than itsredemptive overtones. According to an article published in USAToday magazine in 1997, as early as 1900 some American rabbiscondoned the celebration of Christmas among Jews, arguing that itwas a secular, rather than a sacred, holiday. Later, of course, a Jewishalternative to the Christian holiday was found in the minor Jewishfestival, Hanukkah.

The Christmas tradition - some tag it the "invented" tradition - is amixture of many cultures worldwide, a patchwork quilt of ancient,adapted and new traditions - of Santa Claus and his elves, ofdecorated trees, lit candles and carols.

Embracing the world is 'Silent Night' (known as 'Agia Nyhta' inGreece) the Christmas carol that has been translated into almost everylanguage. Every Christian nation boasts its own version of the tune,and if not it will, even if for tourist purposes.

The Christmas tree has been venerated as a symbolof life in the dead of winter for the past 4000 years.Folks have since sought to decorate the evergreenbranches with home-made flowers or apples andnuts. An ecological guide to Christmas onlyrecently suggested decorating trees with edible treats, for a more eco-friendly holiday. Mango and banana trees are decorated in India, whilein China paper lanterns decorate the Tree of Light where childrenawait visits from Dun Che Lao Ren, which means Christmas OldMan.

The Christmas tree tradition is less common in Greece. According tosome traditions homes boasted a decorated wooden ship, probably todo with Saint Nicholas, Greece's patron saint of sailors (whoincidentally was dressed in clothes drenched in brine and sported abeard dripping seawater).

Candles (or more commonly these days, electric lights) decoratewindowsills, Christmas dinner tables, trees and wreathes.



In Germany, many houses have little wooden frames holding electriccandles. The use of candles has a long history in pagan worship and inthe rites to the dead. The Persians fittingly used fire to honour theirsun god, while Romans used candles to drive spirits away.

For modern Greeks, keeping the fire burning is one way of keepingthe Kallikantzari at bay. These are small goblin-like creatures,Greece's version of elves, who (instead of Santa) would climbthrough the chimney and get up to all sorts of mischief during the 12-day period from Christmas through to the Epiphany (Fota) on January6.

The Kallikantzari are a bit like Iceland's more sinister YuletideLands, sons of a female ogre Gryla, who spend Christmas keepingchildren in line. According to tradition, 13 days before Christmas,children place a shoe in the window ledge and - if they've been good -the elves fill it with a present.

As for the practice of gift-giving, the Romans exchanged simple giftslong before the birth of Christ and the presents brought by three wisemen. Though early Christians denounced gift-giving Santa Claus hassince become the official bearer of gifts.

Known in some countries as Father Christmas and in others as SaintNicholas (who lived in around the 4th century and held a reputationfor generosity and kindness especially when it came to children andthe poor) the Santa Claus figure was also denounced by puristChristians because he seemed to take the limelight away from JesusChrist.

Nonetheless, Latvians believe that Father Christmas brings presentson each of the 12 days of Christmas starting on Christmas Eve, whilein Belgium Saint Nicholas comes earlier, on December 6.

Greeks normally exchange gifts on Agios Vassilis' Saint's Day onJanuary 1 but it's Agios Vassilis, not St Nicholas, who has the luckygift-giving task.

Christmas is celebrated virtually worldwide. It's simply a happy timeof the year and its beauty is that it embraces old and new traditionsfrom all over the world.

The message is a simple one - unity, peace. Something they are shortof in Bethlehem this year.




Ferry on making music& LykavittosmemoriesKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Bryan Ferry has fondmemories of playing atopLykavittos Hill, where he'llfind himself again tonight,before heading up toThessaloniki.

SUBTLY glamorous and smoothly casual, BryanFerry glided into one of the Ledra Marriott'smeeting rooms on Monday evening and spent anhour chatting candidly for the first time with theGreek press prior to his shows last night andtonight in Athens and tomorrow evening in thenorthern port city of Thessaloniki.

It's his third visit to Greece - in 1982 he came withRoxy Music and in 1994 on a solo tour. Thoughtouring hasn't always been a big thing with Ferry and performing livehasn't always been first on his agenda, he's "pleased to be back, I havegreat memories of playing at Lykavittos last time".

Ferry's current tour promoting his new album As Time Goes Byfeaturing 1930s standards (a "familiar project for me" he explainedsince he started his career in 1973 with a recording of a 1930s track,"These Foolish Things") has taken him to the US, the UK, all aroundEurope, and even South Africa.

As Time Goes By is his first acoustic album. Ferry has worked instudios for years with modern technology, and now it's "good to getback to doing songs of that time. It's a fun project working withstrings again and really good jazz players", whom he found inLondon.

The popular singer expressed his surprise with the positive responseto his new album. "I guess people are really starved of good songs,"he explained. "I wish I could write songs like these. When I was a lad,I was a big jazz fan. And it's great to turn people back into it. Themusic can still work for people and that really feels good."

It's certainly a risk doing these tunes, "some songs have such a greatpedigree and heritage, but it just felt right at the time".

What do these tunes have in common with his own and the stuff fromthe 1930s? "Well, only that I like them," he replies in his



characteristic humble tone (he later looked down to doodle as hiswords were translated to the press). "If you do a song by anotherwriter, you gotta love that song. I choose songs that I can really getinside of. There is also a romanticism and they work on a real one-to-one level."

The best moment in his career? He smiles and is silent for a while ashe thinks. "Well, I'm really enjoying this tour. It's a retrospective, theband can really play everything from my repertoire - they are a verygood all-round orchestra, can bring out the beauty of the slower songsand we are even performing tunes that we never played live in RoxyMusic."

Speaking of which, will there be a reunion with Roxy? "We've hadcontact over the years and so you never know. It would be nice to doit for a night, we broke up after an album that was a big hit which wasquite unusual."

Ferry affirms that he's always been big on bebop and blues and, as formodern stuff, Beck, Radiohead and Macy Gray as well as Buena VistaSocial Club - "the film made me cry", he said.

What motivates him? Quite simply, "I love to make music." Ferryneeds to be occupied and have many things to do. Lately he's excitedby his Slave to Love compilation, which is a good way to get to knowa certain part of his repertoire. What next? "Can't tell you that, it'llspoil the surprise."

* Catch Bryan Ferry tonight at the magical open-air LykavittosTheatre atop Lykavittos Hill (tel 722-7209) and tomorrow night atThessaloniki's Theatro Gis (tel 031-256783). Show kicks off at 9pm.Try securing your last-minute tickets from central record stores, thevenue or from Ticket Hellas on 618-9300.





Hilton hotel transformed into 'Little Havana'KATHRYN KOROMILAS

Duo Trinitario y Coco(above) will be serenadingand cigar makers rolling atthe festival.

JUNE in Athens is rapidly becoming synonymouswith Cuba what with the Hilton's Cuban Culturaland Food Festival in its third successful year. Thehotel's rooftop Galaxy BBQ restaurant once againbecomes host for lovers of all things of thisCaribbean island for 10 colourful days startingJune 15 all the way through to June 25. This year however, it's notjust the Hilton that will metamorphose into a little Cuba, we'll alsoget to view the works of artist Carlos Alberto Fernandez on exhibit inThissio, participate in theatrical workshops with the Buendia Theatrein central Athens, attend a lecture on contemporary theatre in Cuba inPlaka, and catch six new Cuban films to be screened at variouscinemas around town.

Food and drink

The stomach, they say, is a good way to a man's heart, but it's also agood way to learn more about a culture. So head up to Galaxy (therestaurant opens its doors at 8.30 nightly) to experience, as the hoteldescribes it, "the magical atmosphere of the largest island in theCaribbean". Authentic Cuban delicacies will be prepared by two chefsspecially invited to fly to Athens from Havana just for this occasion.They'll be accompanied by a barman who will aim to alter ourunderstanding of what a cocktail should really be like. In fact, manyAthenians have already begun drinking the refreshing Mojito - apotent combination of Cuba's authentic Havana Club Rum, lemonjuice, club soda and mint leaves.

While dining and drinking, Ramon Fabian Veloz - "one of the bestsingers in Cuba" - will be performing together with three dancersfrom one of the isle's contemporary dance ensembles.

But wherever you are in the hotel you'll get to hear the sound ofCuba, since the Duo Trinitario y Coco will be serenading gueststhroughout the building. In the foyer try the Havana cigars speciallyhand rolled by a traditional cigar roller who's also flying in to Athensstraight from Cuba.



Ambassador of Cuba to Greece Ana Maria Gonzales addressed thepress yesterday - "I'll speak in Spanish," she smiled, "that will be thefirst touch of the Cuban festival," - to explain how the event is alreadygrowing and getting better with the added cinema, theatrical andartistic parallel events.

Art

The artwork of CarlosAlberto Fernandez (above)and a Mojito drink (below).

Artist Carlos Alberto Fernandez will be exhibitinghis ethereal flower- and wings-inspired acrylics andoils on canvas at the Melina Mercouri CulturalCentre (66a Iraklidon and Thessalonikis sts,Thissio, tel 345-2150 or 341-4466) on June 15-28. The gallery is open daily (expect Mondays and Sundays) 9am-1pmand 5-9pm.

Theatre

The Buendia Theatre arrives to lead (in English) a series ofworkshops (following their academic research on Cuba's theatricalheritage and its roots in Africa and Latin America) on the theme ofAfro-American Ritual and Tragedy taking place daily between 1 and6pm starting today through to June 16 at the Lidra Studio (12Kekropos St, tel322-9440). "Theatre in Cuba," explained director Flora Lauten, "islike a Greek Orthodox church in ruins. We have taken it and restoredit. Indeed, theatre for us is a religion."

Lecture

A lecture (in English) entitled Afro-American Ceremony and Theatrein Contemporary Cuba will be delivered at the Athens UniversityHistory Museum (5 Tholou St in Plaka, tel 324-0861) on Tuesday at7pm.

Cinema

Six Cuban films may seem a little too much and a little too sudden,but there's been an explosion of local production. The films will beshowing at various cinemas around Athens kicking off with JoyceBunuel's Salsa featuring music by Sierra Maestra on June 16. Two ofthe films Salsa and Arturo Sotto's Amor Vertical are complete Cubanproductions while the others (Fernando Colomo's Quarteto De LaHabana, Gerardo Chijona's Un Paradiso Bajo De Las Estrellas,Pastor Vega's Las Profecias De Amanda and Alberto Leki'sOperacion Fangio) are joint productions with Spain, France,Venezuela and Argentina.



Ladies sing the blues in AthensKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Odetta (above) was theone to kick off the 'BluesWay Festival 2000' lastnight, but there's moreblues ahead tonight atopthe hill.

THE LADIES sang the blues loud and clear lastnight at the magical open-air theatre atopLykavittos Hill as part of the Blues Way Festival2000. Deborah "the female Hendrix" Colemanopened an energy-packed show that culminatedwith the appearance of one of the greatest treasuresof folk blues, Odetta. Tonight, Shemekia Copeland(yes, Johnny's daughter) and New Orleans soulqueen Irma Thomas take the stage.

Prior to yesterday's show, the four ladies caught up with the Greekpress. The result? Blues women have one hell of a humorous take onthings. Kicking off the conference, organisers offered the mike to theperformers, but the diva of folk herself Odetta wondered: "Aren't theygoing to ask any questions? I don't know what to say!" Laughter filledthe room and accompanied almost everything they had to say, just likean applause that follows a good song.

What's in store for fans? Coleman - influenced by greats like MuddyWaters, John Lee Hooker and Memphis Minnie - described the showshe was due to give last night as a "mid-to-high energy stageperformance. This is what I'm known for. Hope you enjoy it," shesaid, "if you don't, I'm sure you'll let me know."

Odetta - who performed tunes from her latest album BluesEverywhere I Go - pointed out that if she passed "the test, then I guessI'll be back to perform at your [Half Note] jazz club".

Asked if the world is still protesting through the blues, Odettaexplained that there are certainly some singers and songwriters whohave the same concerns, although not as rampant as in the Sixties. Ofcourse, in recent years those concerns have filtered through to rapmusic.

Thomas addressed the crowd with the Greek that she has alreadypicked up, "Geia sou Athens." Performing tonight, Thomas expressedher enthusiasm about singing alongside the other ladies, especially"the legend [Odetta] sitting next to me". As for her show - she'saccompanied by saxophonists Humphrey Davis Jr and Lance Ellis,



keyboardist Kim Philis, trumpeter Percy Williams, bassist Bobby Joeand drummer Wilbert Widow - "I'll be performing as much as I can ofeverything I've done over the last 42 years," she said.

She laughs confidently and says that it will be hard to do, andalthough she's given organisers a set list of songs she's prepared,"whether I'll keep to it is another story." Thomas is well known fordoing requests. "I prefer for an audience to ask me to play certainsongs, that way I know exactly what they want."

Asked what New Orleans is like in the year 2000, Thomas replies:"New Orleans is New Orleans, be it 2000 or 1900. We have one footin the year 2000 and the other in New Orleans. It's a very uniqueplace, we are who we are."

Copeland, being "the baby of the bunch" as she addressed herself, ishappy to be in Greece especially since she'd heard so much about thelocal cuisine. "I just can't wait to try the food," she exclaimed. "I liketo eat, this morning I tried spinach pie and I'm going to try and eat asmuch as I can while I'm here!"

As for her show tonight? "Well, everything I do is basically stuff Istole from these ladies right here," she addresses Odetta, Thomas andColeman. (Everyone bursts out into laughter again.) "But my band[namely, guitarist Arthur Neilson, keyboardist Dona Oxford, bassistEric King and drummer Barry Harrison] and I are just going to get upthere and have a great time."

She's got one album to her name, one that boldly demands us to Turnthe Heat Up, "but you don't need to turn the heat up here," she laughs,"it's already so hot."

Shemekia has been performing since she was eight years old with herfather, the late Texan blues guitar legend Johnny Copeland. Sheremembers, "I was real scared and preferred to hide under a table orbehind a curtain." These days, she still gets very nervous but tries to"turn the nervousness into excitement".

Tonight's show kicks off around 9.30. Few tickets, priced at 7,500drs, are still available. Try Virgin Megastores on 6-8 Stadiou St, tel331-4788.





Vanessa-Mae on violins, classical and popmusicKATHRYN KOROMILASVANESSA-Mae, the dimple-cheeked violin virtuoso famous for herunique marriage of classical and pop musical genres and herimpressive stage appearance, arrived yesterday (straight from rainyLondon) and greeted the frenzied Greek press at the Athens airport'sVIP lounge at approximately 6pm.

The charming 21-year-old spoke confidently and cheerfully abouttaking time out from working on her new pop album to perform for"such a worthy cause as Elpida". Proceeds from tonight's sold-outIrodion concert will go towards building a new children's oncologyhospital. Asked if she was going to fit in some sightseeing before sheleaves for Holland tomorrow morning, she replied, "Performing atsuch a historical site [like the Irodion] is a sightseeing experience initself." She also hopes to be inspired for a piece she's currentlyworking on entitled The Greek Song, which she hopes will evoke theatmosphere of ancient Greece. Tonight's show will incorporate aclassical component, her characteristic techno-acoustic style andtunes from the Storm tour that never made it to Greece. What's herreaction to the "child prodigy" tag? "Well, it's too soon to review thepast," she said, "after all, I'm only 21 years old. Perhaps when I'm 60 Ican look back and say, 'yes, I was a child prodigy'."

Wondering just how many violins someone like Vanessa-Mae wouldown? Well, just one classical - made in 1761 - that she's had since shewas 10. As for electric violins, she owns about three or four - shedoesn't get so emotionally attached to those, though. The violinistsees classical music as being "in my bones" but pop music issomething she's connected to on a different level and, considering shegrew up listening to Michael Jackson, it's a way of life these days. Theyoung soloist was accompanied by her maternal grandmother and heradoptive father.


Copyright 1995-2003 ATHENS NEWS S.A., 3 C. Lada str. Athens 102 37, GREECEtel: 210 3333555, fax: 210 3231384



When the diaspora says 'Ohi'KATHRYN KOROMILAS

Greeks throughout theglobal village celebrateOctober 28.

PIECES of the puzzle of what it means to begrowing up Greek in the diaspora were offered tous during nationalistic days of remembrance likethe historic "Ohi" day.

I remember the October 28 parades through thecentre of Sydney. Children from afternoon Greekschools run by local churches would dress in theblue and white of the Greek flag or in traditionalcostume.

Wreathes were placed on the Tomb of the Unknown Solider in MartinPlace and parades converged at the magnificent Opera House, wherepoliticians and other members of the Greek church and communitywould take the stage to talk of unity and courage as Greek ideals.Speeches were made in both Greek and English, and nervous childrenwith clammy palms took hesitant steps on stage to recite poems aboutall things Greek. Following the formal proceedings the rest of the daymeant celebration, local troupes displayed their traditional dances andre-enacted historical events and the music rang loud over SydneyHarbour.

Evenings were spent at home (it was spring so gatherings usually tookplace in backyards) with parents and their friends who would talkloudly of politics and sing songs of the era. I remember intense andpassionate conversations often topped off with tears (though I suspectthose probably had more to do with immigrant nostalgia rather thanwith that proud and historic NO.)

Though the details of the events surrounding Metaxas' decision to sayno (on that October 28 back in 1940) and not yes - to BenitoMussolini's idea that stomping all over Greece would be a good thingto do - had always eluded me, those patriotic days made my bloodboil with a sense of pride. Something I didn't feel when observingAnzac Day on April 25 to commemorate those of the Australia andNew Zealand Army Corps who died in World War I.

Anzac Day brought with it a day off school, and later work, and bythen national holidays (just like "Ohi" day) had lost their solemn



purpose of silent meditation and remembrance as I joined other busycivilians who preferred to use the day to rest rather than to participatein ceremonies and parades paying tribute to something that had nodirect relevance to our comfortable lives.

Today, however, the words "Lest We Forget" ring loud in my mind.Remembering (and not forgetting) the many thousands of sons,brothers, husbands, fathers, daughters, sisters, wives and mothers whocommitted themselves (at the front line or back at home) to fightingfor their country is one way of working towards (personal and global)peace.

A Greek-born friend of mine will devote time today (Saturday) toremembering those who fought and died. "I don't think it reallymatters what someone does on this particular day, but rather howsomeone participates in life everyday," he says. "I'm proud of thosemen who fought.

Just like I am proud of Kenderis' win at the Olympics. I guess I'mproud of being Greek. Saying 'no' to the Italians meant that Greecerefused to be passive in a war that the Germans finally lost. Was itChurchill who said that it's not that Greeks fought like heroes, butthat heroes fight like the Greeks. I'm proud of that.

I don't know whether it was a waste to lose all those lives or not, Ithink that those who fought truly believed in what they were doing.And I'm pretty sure that if it was up to me, I too would do the samething. I would fight for Greece".

Though the facts of the October 28 "Ohi" were fragmented for mostof us Greek-Australians who participated in those parades, thegathering together of the Greek community on this day (and on the25th of March) sustained a sense of national pride and identity in thediaspora, a sense of unity with mother Greece that was so remarkablystrong that many young Greek-Australians - some of whom had nevervisited Greece and who had only a minimal knowledge of thelanguage - would confidently say: "I too would fight for Greece."

It all sounds tremendously nationalistic in an age where the globalvillage thrives and borders between races and nations have becomefuzzy, but at a time when the Powers That Be hold everyone on apuppet string, it's nice to know that once, Greece, instead of saying"yes Sir, anything you like Sir", said "No, no way, absolutely not,forget it... mate."

Today, I'll add three more pieces to the puzzle of being Greek - unity,continuity and courage.



Unity - regardless of internal strife, disagreement and power games,Greeks will always stick together.

Continuity - modern Greeks are direct descendants of the ancients,after all, Greece has always presented a unified front to an externalthreat.

Courage - being unequivocal about what you believe in, wheneveryone else seems to be doing something else, that saying "no, I seethings a little differently," is a good thing.

A great thing. A thing of which to be proud.





'Poseidon' fest: A music mustKATHRYN KOROMILASSO many concerts this summer, and so little time... and money! Getorganised, beg, borrow or steal, if you must, just don't miss out on asummer literally packed to the brim with international rock, jazz andother music events that will embrace Athens (and Thessaloniki) in ahalo of rhythm right from the top of Lykavittos Hill all the waythrough to Piraeus port. Piraeus you ask? Indeed, Athens' newestmusic fest, namely the Poseidon Festival, kicks off on July 1 withnone other than Ireland's hottest alternative pop/rock sensation, theCranberries. Set to make Piraeus a new and stylish live musicdestination through to July 9 are living blues legend BB King, gospelsinger and internationally acclaimed soprano Barbara Hendricks, Irishdance troupe (move over Riverdance) Magic of the Dance and sassysaxman Courtney Pine.

The Poseidon Festival is the musical baby of organisers Neo RevmaInternational headed by Dimitris Helmis who yesterday described theteam's efforts to create a "festival of the city, a cultural celebration, asummer different from all the others" to the press who'd gathered in afunky Kolonaki cafe.

Why Piraeus? Helmis explains, "I live in Piraeus, I love it, and Ibelieve in its community, its people and especially its youth." Athensis generally short of appropriate concert space, and Piraeus is easy toget to, offering an impressive post-industrial backdrop to thesummer's live music events.

Neo Revma has secured one of the port's docks to host two of the sixevents that make up this year's festival. The most attractivecharacteristic of the dock is the industrial appeal of the series ofwarehouses that enclose an open yard. Concerts will also take place atthe Veakio Theatre and Votsalakia Beach.

The Cranberries (above)will be kicking off thePoseidon Festival on July1, (tickets go on sale

The festival's programme will feature musicalevents, since music "is one of the best ways tocommunicate with people", as Helmis believes.Once established, the fest will not only be longerbut will also incorporate "happenings", theatricaland artistic events and exhibitions.



Friday). (Below) BB Kingwill be performing on July 3(tickets go on sale nextweek).

For the time being, what better way to "baptise"Poseidon than by securing the appearance - theirfirst in Greece - of the explosive Dolores O'Riordan, brothers Noeland Mike Hogan and Fergal Lawler, otherwise known as theCranberries. They're full of Promises this summer as their latestsingle makes known in no uncertain way and will be taking the dockarea on July 1 heading north to Thessaloniki where they'll "linger" forjust one more night.

BB King will appear on July 3 to tell us that Makin' Love is Goodfor You. And I doubt anyone will disagree.

Hendricks - accompanied by the Moses Hogan Singers - known forher renditions of classical and operatic excerpts will offer locals herspiritual side with a show devoted to gospel music at the VeakioTheatre on July 6.

Spectacular dance team Magic of the Dance, consisting of 30 dancers,will present Michael Donnellan's (he's worked with Michael Flatleyof Lord of the Dance and Riverdance) intoxicating choreography. Astory of love set in Dublin will be "narrated" via dance at the VeakioTheatre on July 7-8 and at Thessaloniki's Theatro tis Gis on July 5.

Bringing the Poseidon Festival to an end this year on July 9 will berevolutionary British saxman Pine (he impressed crowds at last year'sJazz Weekend) who will spill his version of classic jazz, Sixties soul,hip-hop and pop rhythms over the port's Votsalakia Beach. He'll beaccompanied by guest DJs from Greece, Israel and Algeria.

Shows should kick off at around 9pm. Tickets for the Cranberries(10,000 drs), are expected to have gone on sale by Friday. For othershows, BB King (9,000 drs), Barbara Hendricks (10,000 drs), Magicof the Dance (5,000 drs) and Courtney Pine (6,000 drs), tickets willgo on sale next week. Secure yours at Virgin (7-9 Stadiou St, tel 331-4788); Happening (13 Harilaou Trikoupi St, tel 381-8474) and Trust(62 Academias St, tel 360-2436) and at the Piraeus MunicipalTheatre's box office (2 Agiou Konstandinou, tel 419-4550).

The Cranberries will be performing in Thessaloniki on July 2 andMagic of the Dance will follow on July 5. Both events will take placeat the Theatro tis Gis, tel 031-256783.

Tickets are expected to have gone on sale by next week at Virginrecord stores, at Patsis record shop (39-41 Tsimiski St, tel 031-231805) and Star FM.



If you'd like to purchase your tickets with a credit card, Neo Revmahelps out by offering an interest-free payment scheme. Call 338-8400and have your credit card details ready.





Are you ready to rock and trip-hop?KATHRYN KOROMILAS

Coming soon... the frenziedsounds of Rage Againstthe Machine and the'womb-like' tunes ofMorcheeba (R).

SUMMER temperatures are steadily rising and thehottest bands are on their way to our shores. As ofthis coming week, expect one hot live musicalevent after another... and another. Trip-hop trioMorcheeba, promoting their soon-to-be-releasedalbum Fragments of Freedom, head up LykavittosHill on Tuesday. The alternative metal heavies Rage Against theMachine prepare to conquer Petras Theatre in Petroupolis, on June14. Waiting in line are Radiohead, Pet Shop Boys, Oasis, Moby andthe Cranberries, to name some of the cherries on a luscious musiccake. Are you up for it?

Morcheeba

Morcheeba's Paul Godfrey (he beats and scratches) once said "it onlytakes the right song, the right voice and the right arrangement" tomake ears tingle and fans cheer for more. Indeed, Morcheeba alreadyhave a series of "right songs" such as "The Sea", "Trigger Hippie","Fear and Love" and "Big Calm". And they've also secured the "rightvoice" in the form of the velvet-smooth, haunting and jazzy sound ofSkye Edwards, who does absolutely extraordinary things with thesesongs. The "right arrangement" is also complete with the addition ofthose emotive strings, a touch of brass, a strong beat, a bit of fusion,blues and funk and a touch of mixing and sampling borrowed fromthe hip-hop scene.

Morcheeba have two albums to their name, 1996 Who Can You Trustand their 1998 Big Calm, and are arriving in Greece - a total of 12musicians including violinists, percussionists, trumpeters and amandolin player - to introduce tracks from the soon-to-be-releasedthird album entitled Fragments of Freedom.

Influenced by classic Sixties American icons like Crosby, Neil Young,Bob Dylan and Marvin Gaye, the Godfrey Brothers (Paul andguitarist/keyboardist Ross) worked together for a good four yearscomposing and experimenting before they met up with Edwards at a



party in 1995. Paul explained, "When she came into the picture, thework Ross and I were doing became whole. She's quite an amazingcharacter. She's just naturally enchanting."

As surreal and melancholy as the Morcheeba sound may initiallycome across, it seems that the trio really love this hard 21st-centurylife, or at least they're trying real hard to. Listen for the half-smile, theraw honesty and the underlying passion for music that gives off apositive vibe even though the content is often about fear andloneliness and the difficulty in finding happiness. But for the band,"the challenge is coming from a negative way of looking at the worldand trying to make things positive". Indeed, they can't understandanyone who can live without music. "How can you get up and faceanother day without music? I'd prefer to die."

The trio have been compared to Portishead. In response they say, "It'squite flattering really that people would compare us to acts that makea lot of money. I don't think it hurts us at all. It gave us a great intro,and now we're proving that we're the best of the bunch." How doMorcheeba work? In an interview Ross explained, "I write all themusic, my brother Paul writes the lyrics and the concepts for thesubject matter on songs. We get together and just sort of back thingsout and then we give Skye the lyrics and a tape of music and she doesthe melody. Sometimes Skye comes up with ideas for the stringarrangement and stuff like that. Mainly it's just me and Paul gettingreally drunk. We wrote most of Big Calm in one night." The result? Athing they call "womb-like". So follow this groove-oriented act intothe warm and safe place where hip-hop meets ambience.

Rage Against the Machine

Frenzied and bombastic ranting, anti-establishment and socio-political activism are what these punk-inspired hard rock heavies areall about. And this is precisely what Greek fans want to see thissummer. After all, they were rated the 5th most wanted band to appearlive this summer in a poll conducted by Didi Music.

Formed in Los Angeles in 1991, Rage Against the Machine namely,lead vocalist Zack De La Rocha, guitarist Tom Morello, bassistTimmy C and drummer Brad Wilk, were opening shows for the likesof Pearl Jam and Public Enemy by 1992, the year they released theirdebut Rage Against the Machine. Their next album, Evil Empire,was to arrive in 1996 and the guys are on tour now promoting theirlatest release, last year's The Battle of Los Angeles.

The best thing about these fellows is their provocative commitment topolitical causes, making eyebrows stay in a state of raised surprise -



like during their appearance on Saturday Night Live in 1996 whenthey hung two inverted American flags from their amplifiers. Ofcourse, it goes without saying that their appearance was cut short.

Greg Heller, in his review of one of Rage's live acts and on thebrilliance of guitarist Morello, predicts that "Generation Y will soonbegin scrawling 'Morello is God' on the walls of convenience storesand construction sites. So spot on was every riff, wail, squeak andsqueal Tom Morello conjured from a revolving cast of guitars andpedals that you'd swear there was a frantically scratching DJ tuckedaway offstage."

Well, we're in for an intense night when Rage hit Athens. Let's hopewe also get to hear some of De La Rocha's brilliant rants: "We'vebeen all put to sleep. Put to sleep in a system. A system that continuesto perpetrate ignorance amongst our spirits and amongst our minds.One that wants you not to act." Go on act up! Visit the band's officialwebsite at ratm. com to read all the rant and we'll see you at the gig.

* Morcheeba will play the Lykavittos Theatre (situated atopLykavittos Hill, tel 722-7209) on Tuesday at 10pm and will head upto the northern port city of Thessaloniki on June 14 to do the Myloscomplex (located at 20B Koletti St, Dimokratias Square, tel 031-525968).

* Rage Against the Machine will play the Petras Theatre (located atthe end of V Epirou St in Petroupolis) on June 14 at 9.30pm.

* Tickets at 8,000 drs for Morcheeba and 7,500 drs for Rage Againstthe Machine are on sale from central record stores.

Don't want to miss any live music event? Keep an eye out in our'Planning Ahead' guide, published every Friday in the 'Weekend'supplement.





'Poseidon' fest: A music mustKATHRYN KOROMILASSO many concerts this summer, and so little time... and money! Getorganised, beg, borrow or steal, if you must, just don't miss out on asummer literally packed to the brim with international rock, jazz andother music events that will embrace Athens (and Thessaloniki) in ahalo of rhythm right from the top of Lykavittos Hill all the waythrough to Piraeus port. Piraeus you ask? Indeed, Athens' newestmusic fest, namely the Poseidon Festival, kicks off on July 1 withnone other than Ireland's hottest alternative pop/rock sensation, theCranberries. Set to make Piraeus a new and stylish live musicdestination through to July 9 are living blues legend BB King, gospelsinger and internationally acclaimed soprano Barbara Hendricks, Irishdance troupe (move over Riverdance) Magic of the Dance and sassysaxman Courtney Pine.

The Poseidon Festival is the musical baby of organisers Neo RevmaInternational headed by Dimitris Helmis who yesterday described theteam's efforts to create a "festival of the city, a cultural celebration, asummer different from all the others" to the press who'd gathered in afunky Kolonaki cafe.

Why Piraeus? Helmis explains, "I live in Piraeus, I love it, and Ibelieve in its community, its people and especially its youth." Athensis generally short of appropriate concert space, and Piraeus is easy toget to, offering an impressive post-industrial backdrop to thesummer's live music events.

Neo Revma has secured one of the port's docks to host two of the sixevents that make up this year's festival. The most attractivecharacteristic of the dock is the industrial appeal of the series ofwarehouses that enclose an open yard. Concerts will also take place atthe Veakio Theatre and Votsalakia Beach.

The Cranberries (above)will be kicking off thePoseidon Festival on July1, (tickets go on sale

The festival's programme will feature musicalevents, since music "is one of the best ways tocommunicate with people", as Helmis believes.Once established, the fest will not only be longerbut will also incorporate "happenings", theatricaland artistic events and exhibitions.



Friday). (Below) BB Kingwill be performing on July 3(tickets go on sale nextweek).

For the time being, what better way to "baptise"Poseidon than by securing the appearance - theirfirst in Greece - of the explosive Dolores O'Riordan, brothers Noeland Mike Hogan and Fergal Lawler, otherwise known as theCranberries. They're full of Promises this summer as their latestsingle makes known in no uncertain way and will be taking the dockarea on July 1 heading north to Thessaloniki where they'll "linger" forjust one more night.

BB King will appear on July 3 to tell us that Makin' Love is Goodfor You. And I doubt anyone will disagree.

Hendricks - accompanied by the Moses Hogan Singers - known forher renditions of classical and operatic excerpts will offer locals herspiritual side with a show devoted to gospel music at the VeakioTheatre on July 6.

Spectacular dance team Magic of the Dance, consisting of 30 dancers,will present Michael Donnellan's (he's worked with Michael Flatleyof Lord of the Dance and Riverdance) intoxicating choreography. Astory of love set in Dublin will be "narrated" via dance at the VeakioTheatre on July 7-8 and at Thessaloniki's Theatro tis Gis on July 5.

Bringing the Poseidon Festival to an end this year on July 9 will berevolutionary British saxman Pine (he impressed crowds at last year'sJazz Weekend) who will spill his version of classic jazz, Sixties soul,hip-hop and pop rhythms over the port's Votsalakia Beach. He'll beaccompanied by guest DJs from Greece, Israel and Algeria.

Shows should kick off at around 9pm. Tickets for the Cranberries(10,000 drs), are expected to have gone on sale by Friday. For othershows, BB King (9,000 drs), Barbara Hendricks (10,000 drs), Magicof the Dance (5,000 drs) and Courtney Pine (6,000 drs), tickets willgo on sale next week. Secure yours at Virgin (7-9 Stadiou St, tel 331-4788); Happening (13 Harilaou Trikoupi St, tel 381-8474) and Trust(62 Academias St, tel 360-2436) and at the Piraeus MunicipalTheatre's box office (2 Agiou Konstandinou, tel 419-4550).

The Cranberries will be performing in Thessaloniki on July 2 andMagic of the Dance will follow on July 5. Both events will take placeat the Theatro tis Gis, tel 031-256783.

Tickets are expected to have gone on sale by next week at Virginrecord stores, at Patsis record shop (39-41 Tsimiski St, tel 031-231805) and Star FM.



If you'd like to purchase your tickets with a credit card, Neo Revmahelps out by offering an interest-free payment scheme. Call 338-8400and have your credit card details ready.





Are you ready to rock and trip-hop?KATHRYN KOROMILAS

Coming soon... the frenziedsounds of Rage Againstthe Machine and the'womb-like' tunes ofMorcheeba (R).

SUMMER temperatures are steadily rising and thehottest bands are on their way to our shores. As ofthis coming week, expect one hot live musicalevent after another... and another. Trip-hop trioMorcheeba, promoting their soon-to-be-releasedalbum Fragments of Freedom, head up LykavittosHill on Tuesday. The alternative metal heavies Rage Against theMachine prepare to conquer Petras Theatre in Petroupolis, on June14. Waiting in line are Radiohead, Pet Shop Boys, Oasis, Moby andthe Cranberries, to name some of the cherries on a luscious musiccake. Are you up for it?

Morcheeba

Morcheeba's Paul Godfrey (he beats and scratches) once said "it onlytakes the right song, the right voice and the right arrangement" tomake ears tingle and fans cheer for more. Indeed, Morcheeba alreadyhave a series of "right songs" such as "The Sea", "Trigger Hippie","Fear and Love" and "Big Calm". And they've also secured the "rightvoice" in the form of the velvet-smooth, haunting and jazzy sound ofSkye Edwards, who does absolutely extraordinary things with thesesongs. The "right arrangement" is also complete with the addition ofthose emotive strings, a touch of brass, a strong beat, a bit of fusion,blues and funk and a touch of mixing and sampling borrowed fromthe hip-hop scene.

Morcheeba have two albums to their name, 1996 Who Can You Trustand their 1998 Big Calm, and are arriving in Greece - a total of 12musicians including violinists, percussionists, trumpeters and amandolin player - to introduce tracks from the soon-to-be-releasedthird album entitled Fragments of Freedom.

Influenced by classic Sixties American icons like Crosby, Neil Young,Bob Dylan and Marvin Gaye, the Godfrey Brothers (Paul andguitarist/keyboardist Ross) worked together for a good four yearscomposing and experimenting before they met up with Edwards at a



party in 1995. Paul explained, "When she came into the picture, thework Ross and I were doing became whole. She's quite an amazingcharacter. She's just naturally enchanting."

As surreal and melancholy as the Morcheeba sound may initiallycome across, it seems that the trio really love this hard 21st-centurylife, or at least they're trying real hard to. Listen for the half-smile, theraw honesty and the underlying passion for music that gives off apositive vibe even though the content is often about fear andloneliness and the difficulty in finding happiness. But for the band,"the challenge is coming from a negative way of looking at the worldand trying to make things positive". Indeed, they can't understandanyone who can live without music. "How can you get up and faceanother day without music? I'd prefer to die."

The trio have been compared to Portishead. In response they say, "It'squite flattering really that people would compare us to acts that makea lot of money. I don't think it hurts us at all. It gave us a great intro,and now we're proving that we're the best of the bunch." How doMorcheeba work? In an interview Ross explained, "I write all themusic, my brother Paul writes the lyrics and the concepts for thesubject matter on songs. We get together and just sort of back thingsout and then we give Skye the lyrics and a tape of music and she doesthe melody. Sometimes Skye comes up with ideas for the stringarrangement and stuff like that. Mainly it's just me and Paul gettingreally drunk. We wrote most of Big Calm in one night." The result? Athing they call "womb-like". So follow this groove-oriented act intothe warm and safe place where hip-hop meets ambience.

Rage Against the Machine

Frenzied and bombastic ranting, anti-establishment and socio-political activism are what these punk-inspired hard rock heavies areall about. And this is precisely what Greek fans want to see thissummer. After all, they were rated the 5th most wanted band to appearlive this summer in a poll conducted by Didi Music.

Formed in Los Angeles in 1991, Rage Against the Machine namely,lead vocalist Zack De La Rocha, guitarist Tom Morello, bassistTimmy C and drummer Brad Wilk, were opening shows for the likesof Pearl Jam and Public Enemy by 1992, the year they released theirdebut Rage Against the Machine. Their next album, Evil Empire,was to arrive in 1996 and the guys are on tour now promoting theirlatest release, last year's The Battle of Los Angeles.

The best thing about these fellows is their provocative commitment topolitical causes, making eyebrows stay in a state of raised surprise -



like during their appearance on Saturday Night Live in 1996 whenthey hung two inverted American flags from their amplifiers. Ofcourse, it goes without saying that their appearance was cut short.

Greg Heller, in his review of one of Rage's live acts and on thebrilliance of guitarist Morello, predicts that "Generation Y will soonbegin scrawling 'Morello is God' on the walls of convenience storesand construction sites. So spot on was every riff, wail, squeak andsqueal Tom Morello conjured from a revolving cast of guitars andpedals that you'd swear there was a frantically scratching DJ tuckedaway offstage."

Well, we're in for an intense night when Rage hit Athens. Let's hopewe also get to hear some of De La Rocha's brilliant rants: "We'vebeen all put to sleep. Put to sleep in a system. A system that continuesto perpetrate ignorance amongst our spirits and amongst our minds.One that wants you not to act." Go on act up! Visit the band's officialwebsite at ratm. com to read all the rant and we'll see you at the gig.

* Morcheeba will play the Lykavittos Theatre (situated atopLykavittos Hill, tel 722-7209) on Tuesday at 10pm and will head upto the northern port city of Thessaloniki on June 14 to do the Myloscomplex (located at 20B Koletti St, Dimokratias Square, tel 031-525968).

* Rage Against the Machine will play the Petras Theatre (located atthe end of V Epirou St in Petroupolis) on June 14 at 9.30pm.

* Tickets at 8,000 drs for Morcheeba and 7,500 drs for Rage Againstthe Machine are on sale from central record stores.

Don't want to miss any live music event? Keep an eye out in our'Planning Ahead' guide, published every Friday in the 'Weekend'supplement.





The Olympics and Aussie TV's crash testKATHRYN KOROMILAS

IN SYDNEY

"TRY NOT to forget to press the record buttonbefore you go out" said dad on Olympic OpeningCeremony (OOC) night; my folks were off to my brother's place - hehappens to own a massive television set. It was a simple enoughrequest, nothing that would commit me to anything. I wouldn't haveto suffer through any Olympic hype.

Though I had invited them to join me on my planned anti-Olympicsnight out at one of Sydney's historic jazz joints where I would savourthe sounds of one of my favourite local bands, The Whitlams, farfrom Olympic cheers and TV screens - my parents were alreadyhooked on all things Olympics.

And so was everyone else I knew. Others I'd invited to join me hadalready planned their OOC night, opting to "park" themselves in frontof the TV. Angelo was planning an Olympics party at his home inLeichhardt, where 300 dollars worth of alcohol, a massive projectoron a wall and a group of friends who all wanted to "share the spirit"would spend that Friday night. Steve mumbled that he might join meafter the ceremony and opted for a mega-screen at one of the manylive sites around town - tuned into Channel 7 for live coverage of thegames with an added bonus of thousands of spectators and live music.Our neighbours had set the TV out in the backyard where they'dplanned to spend the 4 hours enjoying their typical Aussie BBQ. Therest of my friends were going to pack themselves into the local pub.

Every moment, every medaland every stumble (in thiscase that of US hurdler GailDevers) was all the morepoignant for Aussieviewers

Finding a date on OOC night was impossible. Sadbut true, the Great Aussie Couch Potato lives onwith a vengeance. Sure, sport has always been big inAustralia, and if you weren't out there doing it, youwere certainly indoors watching it - beer canswithin arm's reach.

Maybe that's why the streets of Sydney had seemed quietly complacentover the last four days since my arrival. Maybe all the Olympic hypehadn't yet spilled out into the streets of Sydney - and the week prior tothe opening of the Games - because the Great Aussie Couch Potato



was too busy setting up the TV (I heard that TV sales and rentalsskyrocketed in the weeks preceding the Games), stocking up on beerand flags and rote-learning all the verses to the Australian NationalAnthem.

Anyway, back to the recording button. I didn't forget to press it. (And Ididn't even need to read page 13 of the Sun-Herald's TV Guide,which encouraged, "It's never too late to use the incentive of a home-town Olympic Games to master your VCR's timer record functions".)

I pressed the red-button while adding a final touch of gloss to my lips- precisely at the moment when the "man from snowy river" and hishorse galloped out into Stadium Australia. I was hooked. Mascara-blotched tears soon trickled down my cheeks in sync with the nationalanthem, and by the time Cathy walked across the wet cauldron I wasall out of tissues.What a sucker! That night I made Couch Potatohistory as I joined a whopping 10.4 million viewers across the nation(Princess Diana's funeral in September 1997 clocked up a mere 6.2million) and the TV has been on non-stop ever since.

Channel 7 won the official title of 'Olympic TV' and committedthemselves to providing a total of 23 hours of live coverage per day.It was Channel 7 who also televised the Games back in 1956 - theyear that television first arrived in Australia and the year thatAustralia first hosted the Olympic games.

So, Australians will get a total 380 hours of live Olympic coverageon free TV, plus another 800 on pay TV. 70 presenters are sharing theload (plus 500 staff), headed by Bruce "I-don't-think-I'll-ever-have-a-more-exciting-job-than-this-one" McAvaney.

Some highlights of the 7 coverage included national flags which weretransposed over the lane of each competitor in swimming races - justso we could keep a close eye on the Aussies. Similar high-techdevices were used for other events, such as cycling and athletics.

Television land

Anywhere you happen to go in this Olympic city - pubs, cafes,restaurants, shopping centres, live sites - you'll be sure of a first classseat in front of the tube. Having an early morning coffee in an innercity cafe - subtly decorated in green and gold - along King Street,Newtown, also meant having a great view of one of two TVs and liveOlympic action. One coffee ended up becoming two coffees, thenlunch - all fuelled by the cafe crowd's cheers.

Olympic TV Bloopers



When millions of people are watching you, you are bound todisappoint someone, right? And in the first week of Olympiccoverage, Channel 7 certainly did. The Sydney Morning Heraldsuggested that "the commentators certainly didn't bag any goldmedals". Well we're only human, they said in reply. The bloopers?Missing key moments during the torch relay, failing to capture keypost-race interview moments, (in one instance they interviewed one ofAustralia's swimmers while the US gold winner was ignored) andmissing the start of races, choosing instead to air advertisements.

Patriotic Ads

Speaking of advertisements. The Olympics have brought out the bestin national ad campaigns. Industry experts have noticed a trendtowards patriotism in advertising, and indeed this huge emotionalresponse to the Olympics has been a surprise. If we Australians everhad the chance to think about what it means to be Australian, well thisis it.

Everything from beer and mobile phones to airlines and athletes havebecome national icons. One airline decided to boost Australian's pridewith images of Uluru, a children's choir and the tear-jerker song "IStill Call Australia Home" while other companies went for the "Thisis the best address on the earth" line. And some just wanted to set therecord straight with, "I don't have a kangaroo for a pet." Indeed folks.No kangaroos.

Ad companies agree that "there's no question at all that we are tappinginto the patriotism Australians are feeling right now."

Perec TV

But the punchiest (no pun intended) aspect of Olympic coverage camewith drama-queen Perec. OK, you've all heard about the Perec's6000km out of Sydney but did you all get to hear the live footagerecorded by a very brave and very frightened Channel 9 cameraman?In response to Perec's boyfriend's verbal and physical abuse the Aussiecameraman could be heard shouting a terrified "OK, OK, OK, I'm justdoing my job."

A good laugh

If Perec and boyfriend had been tuning in to Roy Slaven and HGNelson's alternative and wacky sports coverage, not only would shenot have fled (supposedly) the media, but she'd be begging Roy andHG for an interview slot!



This duo are not just about looking at the lighter side of things, theyalso offer sensitive and historical insight to sports. Take theirdiscussion on the Greco-Roman wrestling and its ancient ancestor -how did athletes wrestle in Ancient Greece while naked? Did handscome into contact with naughty bits? Well, it got me thinking. Andwhat about their discussion on the controversial issue of there beingjust too many sports included in the Olympic Games. What othersports can we add? The expert pair suggest that wood-chopping, pubpool, skateboarding and flathead fishing would be most fitting.

Their show hits TV screens each night during the late night slot 11pmand is fittingly entitled The Dream. But it's not that late is it? In aninterview with the Sunday Telegraph they said, "I think mostAustralians will be sleep-deprived by the end of the fortnight and, ifthey're not, they're un-Australian and they haven't been putting in fortheir country."

The real thing (not the drink)

My couch-potato experience ends today. Tomorrow I will brave thecrowds and

transport system and head off to Stadium Australia to catch the actionfrom my B-grade seats with the aid of binoculars. But I'll be pressingthe record button on the VCR before I go. I've bought one of thesenew 5-hour videotapes they've been advertising on Olympic TV. Whowould have thought I was such a sports fan.

What am I seeing tomorrow? Not sure and it doesn't really matter.Anything will do, after all I've got Olympic fever.





Who's who of music and theatre at VyronasFestKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Above, much-loved 'laika'singer Dimitris Mitropanoskicks off this year'sMunicipality of VyronasFestival at the Vrahontheatres. A revival of thehistorical production ofAeschylus' 'Persians'directed by Karolos Kounin 1965 will be performedon July 30.

THIS year's Municipality of Vyronas Festival, StiSkia Ton Vrahon 2000, programme reads like awho's who of the Greek musical and theatricalscene. Kicking off tomorrow and running rightthrough to July 30, a plethora of musical andtheatrical events will be held within the grounds oftwo picturesque theatres: the Melina Mercouri andthe Anna Synodinou Vrahon theatres.

If you have yet to delve into the world of Greekrock, pop and laika music, then this festival is the place to start.Dimitris Mitropanos takes 35 Musical Steps tomorrow and officiallykicks off the fest. Other highlights include much-loved band SynitheisYpoptoi (or Usual Suspects) on Thursday, the honey-sweet voice ofMelina Kana accompanied by Orfeas Peridis on June 14, while EleniTsaligopoulou and Dimitris Basis team up on June 26. NikosPapazoglou will get you up and dancing on June 30, as will ThanosMikroutsikos and Vassilis Papakonstandinou on July 4, Socrates onJuly 5, Socrates Malamas on July 7 and Nikos Portokaloglou on July10. The young and moody Alkinoos Ioannidis will appear on July 19.

And be sure not the miss the incredible Gypsy singer-guitarist KostasHatzis, who's captured the hearts of all Greeks, together with his sonAlexandros, on July 26.

Epidavros is not the only destination for good ancient Greek theatre.The Vrahon theatres will see some excellent productions with thehighlight undoubtedly being Aeschylus' Persians staged by theTheatro Technis on July 30 a revival of the historical production thatwas directed by Karolos Koun and premiered in 1965. YiorgosLazanis and Mimis Kouyioumtzis will direct this performance.Aristophanes' Ecclesiazusae will be performed on June 22-24, whileFrogs will be staged on July 20.

Shows begin at 9.30pm and will take place at the Melina Mercouriand Anna Synodinou Vrahon theatres, located in Vyronas(tel 762-6438 and 762-6738).



Tickets range between 4,000 and 5,500 drs and are available fromMetropolis record stores in Athens, Piraeus, Peristeri, Neo Irakleioand Halandri, Salina record store (125 Ymittou St, Pangrati), theMunicipality of Vyronas Cultural Centre (Kyprou and EvangelikisScholis sts, 9am-2.30pm and 5-8pm) and the Municipality of Vyronas(Karaoli and Dimitriou sts, 10am-3pm).

Keep an eye out in Friday's 'Planning Ahead' guide for fullprogramme details.





BOOKWORM'S notes

A Heller of an endingKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Joseph Heller'sposthumously publishednovel 'Portrait of an Artist,as an Old Man' is availableat Eleftheroudakis book-shops for around 6,000 drs.

IT'S A bit of a Catch-22 situation isn't it? You arean ageing author of universal acclaim, all becauseof one brilliant novel you wrote years ago, but youcan't quite seem to match that prodigal achievementwith anything else you've since written - and youreally want to go out with a bang. In your longwriting career, you've recycled every personalexperience - your early marriages, your wartimeexperiences, your childhood memories - as worthynovel-writing material and you've also tapped intothe wealth of "highbrow" material from historical, biblical ormythological sources, and if you haven't, someone else - Tolstoy,Proust, Joyce, Dickens - has. So, what next? Welcome to JosephHeller's Portrait of an Artist, as an Old Man, his final novel beforehe died at age 76 last December.

In this tale, we follow Heller's 70-odd-year-old protagonist EugenePota's struggle to come up with the perfect idea for a novel that isprobably to be his last before his death, as indeed it must have beenfor Heller. "This book," explains Pota to himself (and Heller to us),"is about a well-known, ageing author trying to close out his careerwith a crowning achievement, with a laudable bang that wouldembellish his reputation rather than with a fainthearted whimper thatwould bring him only condescension and insult."

So, I guess you are wondering, what did the critics say? The New YorkTimes' May 30 review by Michiko Kakutani begins like this: "...Joseph Heller's Portrait of an Artist, as an Old Man is one of thoseposthumously published books that form a sad coda to adistinguished career. Fans of Catch-22 and Something Happened canonly regret that Portrait was ever published."

Heller knew this type of review was coming. Indeed, through Pota -who like Heller enjoyed shining success early on in his career - we seea resigned Heller who although widely regarded and widely knownfor a long "inspired" and at times "brilliant" career, has oft been set



aside in the "has-been" bin. As Pota self-pityingly remarks, he has"lived too long and done too well", he is "prominent, acknowledged,accepted, assimilated and... familiar".

Familiar indeed. He notes and develops numerous abortive ideas inPortrait, but everything, in some form or another has already beendone, even by himself. In any case, he's too tired to focus ondeveloping and sustaining some of the complicated plots he thinks up- he lacks "leisure or patience for a book ponderous with descriptivedetails of character and place... descriptive details of place andcharacter take time, deplete energy."

Depleted yes, but still hungry to achieve some late life success andnotoriety (maybe a film contract!) he comes up A Sexual Biographyof My Wife. His friends love the idea, his editor is guarded butcurious and his wife would prefer not to discuss the issue, thoughanything is better than having her bored and distracted husband notwrite at all.

The idea is a fitting one - sex seems to be constantly on his mind as oflate but as impotent as he is at sustaining new ideas, he is just asimpotent at initiating any such activity with his wife. Indeed, one ofthe most poignant aspects of the novel is the ageing relationshipbetween Pota and his wife Polly - who became alarmed when sheheard "news of the widely publicised development of a male potencypill." Maybe if there was an equally potent writing pill...

Pota is Heller, there is no doubt about that. And it is nice that Hellerallows us into his world, the world of a grand literary figure who isnot ashamed to expose his inability to produce anothergroundbreaking work. The Times may have predictably compared hislast work to his first and announced how sad it is that Heller shouldcap his career with "an anticlimactic book that is, at best, a poorimitation of a novel", but Heller's brilliance is precisely in this, hisself-satirising final work.





ADORATION

Exposure 'au naturel'KATHRYN [email protected]

Now you see it, now youdon't: the sight of women'sbare chests is as commonas pita throughout Greece.

SHOULD television advertisements display thoseadvisory symbols warning unassuming souls as towhat level of nudity will follow? Just curiousreally. I saw some naked breasts on anadvertisement selling a new car and thought, whynot? It could very well be a practical idea.

The advertised vehicle was a cute little red car traversing the verynaked body of a female lying casually atop a white-sheeted bed. OK, Iadmit I was a little shocked at first and emitted a typically patronisingexpat comment. Something like: "Well, we would never see any ofthat on TV in Sydney!" Indeed we wouldn't. We are much toopolitically correct for that. And feminists (me included) would havekicked up a fuss.

But maybe those advisory symbols could aid ID protesters taking tothe streets again, this time blaming the excessive nudity on the factthat the church is slowly being silenced by a state-run conspiracy.

Yes, so I got to see breasts. It's not the first time though. A companyadvertising body wash exposed the female torso in all its glory acouple of years back, and that's just one of many regular female body-part sightings we are all exposed to during all hours of the day.

So what are feminist activists doing about it here in Athens? Somewould say, what feminists? Was there ever a feminist movementhere? I remember my English friend's candid retort. "I left England toget away from feminists!"

But it's just not a feminist issue. Correct me if I'm wrong but thefeminist concern (I once so strongly believed in) that women not onlybecome an oppressed group but could also be subjected to violence, aresult of images that see women as objects that can be bought, sold,used and abused, seems meaningless here. Things aren't so clear cut.



Yes, women walk the streets and men stare or whisper not-so-sweetsomethings as they pass by. But you also get to see well-dressed andfinely-tuned female bodies belonging to women in the public eye,who do speak and give off dynamic, intelligent and powerful auras,even while clad in tiny mini-skirts.

Growing up in Sydney somehow gave me the message that you wereeither smart (and looks didn't count so much) or damn good looking(and intelligence didn't count so much). And if you exposed legs or acleavage you were a good target. Here in Greece, a good and healthybody, proudly displayed in skimpy gear, is a prerequisite. It's not aneither/or.

After all, we are in the land where the ancient Greek philosophersonce encouraged a balance of both body and mind pursuits, and wherethere's a Bodyline on every street corner and where hardcore pornmagazines are available at every periptero.

It's not even just female nudity we get to see. The winter theatricalseason brought many naked male bodies to the stage - the most talkedabout being Tzortoglou's naked-butted Dorian Gray. And while inmany cities in the US, Australia and probably England, you getwarned beforehand as to how much nudity the audience will besubjected to, no such warning came prior to any of these theatricalshows here in Athens.

Back to the ad. Tom Jones' sexy voice (how many years have passedand still so sexy!) singing Sex Bomb reels the viewer in as thematchbox-sized-red-roadster cruises along the fleshy landscape.

And the slogan? The Greek voiceover says, "makes your life morecomfortable and sexier", while the English phrase "Shrink to fit"flashes across the screen as the tiny girl (with tiny breasts) slips into apair of tiny jeans. Well, they do have a point. Owning a thin-ish andhealthy-ish body is indeed more comfortable.

Whatever the case, it's just a bit of flesh.

I get the feeling that Greeks really celebrate their bodies as somethingbeautiful and natural. Sure, there's always a negative side, like theover-abundance of diet crazes, but if you are smart you'll stick to ameasured pursuit of the healthy body. And once you've got it, hell,why not flaunt it!




Epidavros' lights, music, action and agro-tourismKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Last Friday's Greek folkdances at Epidavros' littletheatre.

"AGRO-TOURISM today," said AgricultureMinister George Anomeritis on the occasion of theopening of this year's Musical July festival and theSeeds of the Epidavrian Earth agricultural fair, inAncient Epidavros on Friday, "means holistic andmultifaceted economic autonomy for the smallborderline communities of Greece with theproduction of high-quality local produce and theupgrading of the quality of life." Also present and committed to theagro-tourism initiative of Ancient Epidavros were general secretaryof EOT Evgenios Yiannakopoulos, Agriculture Ministry generalsecretary Lambros Lambropoulos and president of the Friends ofMusic Association, Christos Lambrakis.

In its sixth year, the July programme of musical events that unfoldswithin the grounds of the Little Theatre of Ancient Epidavros hasnow - with the collaboration of the ministries of agriculture andculture - fully developed its identity as an agro-cultural event with themusical performances that occur parallel to the agricultural fair.

Aiming to encourage a model of a smarter and more environment-friendly tourism that will mean the development and internationalpromotion of local produce, the ministry of development has agreedto research initiatives that will successfully promote the Musical Julyprogramme of events abroad (Europe specifically in the first instance)as a central point of contact for a new wave of agro-tourists.

As Lambrakis emphasised on Friday, "cultural events alone do notinitiate a trend of tourism to Greece... If interested foreign visitorshappen to be in Athens, then they may go to a production atEpidavros, but their trip to Greece will not be motivated by culturalevents." Visitors from abroad, he continued, are interested by a levelof engagement with the area they are visiting that surpasses that of a"tourist". Preferring to meet locals, to learn of the day-to-day way oflife, to eat and drink what locals eat and drink and to socialise the waylocals do, our foreign travellers want to get to know their place ofdestination from its roots.



This, for Ancient Epidavros, means a model that will have visitorsstay with locals in their homes and actively participate on their farms.

At this point in time lack of promotion, preparation and infrastructureare the main setbacks to such an ambitious and fundamentallyidealistic venture but the seed has been planted and locals areenthusiastic. However, as Lambropoulos pointed out in his briefaddress, "we need philosophical and ideological support forsomething like this."

(Above) AncientEpidavros fills with life inthe summer when culturalevents here send peopleflocking to this theatre, butthe little theatre at ancientEpidavros (below) has alsobecome a hot favourite forsummer cultural events .

Up until now, the municipality of Epidavrosenjoyed two main, but separate, industries -agriculture and tourism. Uniting the two will be thekey ingredient in the town's development, one thatwill preserve the area's traditional agricultural wayof life as well create new opportunities foremployment, something that could help keep localyouth in the area.

Sustaining youth population is an urgent issue,because the new generation is literally the key to survival ofborderline communities. Citing a successful northern Franceinitiative in a town that had slowly begun to witness the lowering ofits youth population, locals there gained the support of theiragriculture ministry and began organising the production of 60varieties of local produce. Producers gained insight into issues ofquality, pricing, packaging and quantity by liaising with experts inGermany, and the ministry funded a small 20-page informationbooklet that accompanied each product. Once people abroad began topurchase and enjoy the product, they became curious about the placethat produced it and a new wave of tourism began - consumers wereeager to discover where their favourite products were being produced.The initiative was complete once a small cultural festival wasorganised.

The municipality of Epidavros aims to achieve similar success and indoing so to be the point of reference for agro-tourism models inGreece.

With these goals in mind, Lambrakis cited the next four steps thatneed to be taken. Firstly, organisers of Musical July will aim to havetheir programme of events for July 2001 finalised by October thisyear. Secondly, an intensive advertising campaign will hit the foreignpress. A new series of promotional material has just been published,including a series of 10 postcards, a 32-page information bookletentitled An Emerald Land, in English, Greek and German, a brochure



available in both English and Greek and a series of posters. Thirdly,organisers will secure contact with a number of European travelagents. Lastly, they will suggest an eight-day package deal that willinclude Musical July events as a base, with a tour of the easternPeloponnese and participation in other events along the way.

At this point, the only thing that is not yet ready is the inclusion oflocal farmers (apart from the presentation of their products at the fair)as hosts to visitors who would like to live on their farms.

The Athens News spent last weekend at Ancient Epidavros eager toget a taste of agriculture and culture in the one mouthful.

Friday night: Folk dancing and food tasting

I'm walking along the port of Ancient Epidavros. As the sun sets andthe blue of the sky darkens it's time to begin that 20-odd minute strollalong the port and through the dirt pathway that leads to the LittleTheatre of Ancient Epidavros. I'd spent a large part of the afternoonsitting at Mike's restaurant on the far left side of the port, lazilydigesting a salad and slurping a frappe, only one metre from the waterand a glorious view of colourful boats.

But now, I was carefully stepping over a bug hurrying to take cover asthis mass invasion of feet come charging over its turf. Suddenly thesmell of oranges - a man is peeling one and discussing its merits - anda faint smell of manure. At the theatre I'm chatting with a friend as acentipede (or something like that) crawls up her arm. The womanbehind me is smoking and she is curtly reminded that this is an ancientsite, "Ah, I didn't even think of it," she says, "silly Athenian." I smile,the synthesis of this agro-cultural partnership is literally complete.

The lights dim and the scheduled programme of folk dance, music andsong begins with actress Lydia Koniordou reading excerpts fromvarious tales taken from a vast Greek heritage. Rows of dancers cladin richly decorated national costumes take the stage to dance and tosing accompanied by some live musicians, or to perform thoseacrobatics that Peloponnesian men are known for. The crowd wastruly captivated. Offer opera or ballet to a Greek and he or she isthrilled, but give a Greek traditional folk and something incrediblehappens. A cacophony of "bravos" sprang from the crowd, making anydiva envious of the enthusiastic reaction.

The concert ended, but the dancing and music moved onto the streetwith the many tavernas that line the port adding to the glendi.

I walked along the stalls (open from 8pm-2amFridays and Saturdays during the month of July)



selling and promoting local produce from thePrefecture of Argolida. I chatted with local farmersand tasted wine, liqueurs, cheese, sweets, honey andleft with bags of local produce, a book on thehistory of the komboloi (from the nearby Komboloi Museum) andthree jars of locally produced facial products.

Usually when you leave a theatrical, dance or music production youtake with you a programme and a series of impressions (critical orother) about the performance. Today, I left with bags of locallyproduced stuff and felt that I had come a little closer to my hosts,those who had lived all their lives in this area to which the ancienttheatre belongs.

Next up at Musical July:

Tonight and tomorrow night the Little Theatre becomes host to acelebration of the "Year of Bach", with a performance speciallydedicated to the great composer, featuring solo cellist RaphaelWallfisch and other performers from the Leipzig GewandhausOrchestra, who will present three suites for cello as well as otherselected works. July 21-22 will see a special focus on Frenchcomposers who were inspired by the imposing ancient presence ofGreece. Pianist Emile Naoumoff, together with bassoonist CatherineMarchese and our very own soprano Sonia Theodoridou, willinterpret a selection of works by Satie, Debussy and Ravel. MusicalJuly ends on July 28-29 with a mammoth performance by much-loved singer Alkistis Protopsalti who will interpret some of herfavourite songs by Stamatis Kraounakis and Nikos Antypasaccompanied by La Camerata.

The shows kick off at 9pm. Tickets, priced at 8,000 and 5,000 drs, areavailable at the Megaron Mousikis' box office (Vas Sofias andKokkali Sts, tel 728-2333) and from the kiosk at the port at AncientEpidavros.

Saturday night: Ancient theatre and modern taleporia

I walked through the supermarket next to the Epidavria Hotel and saton the little square with locals and German tourists as we waited forthe KTEL bus. I wasn't surprised that the bus was running late, but theGerman woman (who sat beside me and was reading Persians byAeschylus in a German translation as preparation for the show wewere all about to witness) was not only surprised but gently annoyed.

The historic bus arrived and we all clambered on hoping to secure anopen window for the 20-minute ride on the non-air conditioned bus.



My ride down to Epidavros last year went without a hitch. This year,however, it was to be a different experience, one that reminded me ofthe true essence of the word taleporia (discomfort). Trafficeverywhere, on the road, at the toilets - with women rushing into maletoilets, the refreshment stands - with people shouting, "Please we justwant some water", the ticket booth - with a line that was a horrific 50metres long. With so many thousands of people (10,000, organiserssaid), the show started late and agitated spectators alternativelyclapped hands together or shouted "When are we going to start? Youcan't keep letting people in so late".

People were still reeling in as the lights went off and the chorusentered. One spectator warned, "Everyone shut up, so that we can seethe performance." But people were still coming in and struggling tofind seats in the dark, stepping over and in front of other spectatorsonly to hear, "You should be ashamed to arrive at 10pm", and all thiswhile actors performed the revival of the historic 1965 Karolos Kounproduction.

Agriculture MinisterYiorgos Anomeritis at the'Seeds of the EpidavrianEarth' agricultural fair.

I remembered the German woman and her group atthe bus stop (as a mobile phone buzzed behind mesomewhere) and wondered what she would bethinking and what impressions she would take backto Germany about her Ancient Epidavrosexperience.

Whether it was lack of organisation on behalf of the Greek FestivalSA, or whether it is simply a matter of a lack of infrastructure (roads,toilets, ticket booths, refreshment stands) to cater to so manythousands of people, I don't know. But if the agro-tourism model isto work, such things need to be seriously developed.

Next up at the Epidavros Festival

Tonight and tomorrow see Aristophanes' Acharnians with music byDionyssis Savvopoulos. Aristophanes' Ecclesiazusae is on July 21-22, Sophocles' Ajax on July 28-29, Aristophanes' Peace by theNational Theatre of Greece on August 4-5, Sophocles' Oedipus Rexby the National Theatre of Greece on August 11-12, Aristophanes'Wealth on August 18-19 and Euripides' Madness of Heracles onAugust 25-26.

Shows begin at Ancient Epidavros Theatre at 9pm and tickets at10,000, 8,000, 6,000 and 4,000 drs (students half price except for A-zone seats) are available from the Athens Festival box office (4Stadiou St, in the arcade, tel 322-1459 or 331-2400) or at the venue(but get there early).



Getting to Ancient Epidavros

By car: Along the new national road Athens-Corinth-Epidavros,along the Nafplio-Epidavros national road and from the country roadsfrom Ermioni-Kranidi-Epidavros.

By bus: KTEL buses (4,500 drs return ticket) leave from the stationon Kifissou St at 5pm. Be there at least an hour earlier to secure yourseat. The ride takes at least 3 hours. The bus returns to Athensapproximately 20 minutes after the performance's end.

By sea: Your best bet is the Flying Dolphin. The ride via hydrofoiltakes a pleasant 1 hour and 10 minutes. It's comfortable, air-conditioned, fast and on time. Get your tickets (3,800 drs one way)from travel agents in Athens, or once at Ancient Epidavros from alittle booth outside Hotel Mike on the western side of the port.

If you want to travel in style try the specially organised 1-hour-and-45-minute cruise embarking from Trocadero in Neo Faliro at 6.30pmprior to the performance and arriving at 8.30pm. Tickets, at 12,500drs, include a meal on board and can be reserved on 728-2333.

Getting to the Little Theatre of Ancient Epidavros

Once in Ancient Epidavros, walk along the port towards the rightuntil you get to a sign that has you turn right and complete thejourney on a dirt path. It's an easy 20-minute walk.

Getting to the (big) Ancient Epidavros Theatre

Bus tickets to Ancient Theatre of Epidavros (1,000 drs return) areavailable from the supermarket next to Hotel Epidavria. The busdeparts at 7.30 and 7.50pm prior to each performance from the KTELstop opposite the supermarket at the small square. The buses departfrom Epidavros about 20 minutes following the end of the show.

Where to stay

Staying in Ancient Epidavros

Hotels: Verdelis Inn, tel 0753-41332; Poseidon, tel 0753-41211

Rooms: Elena, tel 0753-41207; Socrates, tel 0753-41706

Camping: Becas, tel 0753-41714; Nicolas I, tel 0753-41297

Taverns: Akrogiali, tel 0753-41441; Perivoli, tel 0753-41500

Restaurants: Mike, tel 0753-41213; Poseidon, tel 0753-41211



Helpful numbers

Municipality of Epidavros: 0753-41250

Police: 0753-41203

Health Centre: 0753-22222

Emergency: 0753-41004

Pharmacy: 0753-41301

Information: 0753-42020

Taxi: 0753-41723

KTEL Intercity bus lines: 0753-41173

Museum of Ancient Epidavros: 0753-22009





FEATURE

Sydney's philosophical taverna

Australia's olympics of the mindKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Plato (L) and an especiallypensive Socrates (R)inspire philosophicalthought at the AthensAcademy .

FOR the classical Greeks a notion of health meantboth an active mind and an athletic body. Duringthe 2000 Olympics, thousands of bodies spilledinto the city of Sydney all trim, taut and terrific -the athletic ideal. The body, its beautification, itsyouthfulness, its athleticism and its strength, has become one ofcontemporary society's most sought after treasures. For many, sportor just generally keeping fit, has become a religion. But what of themind?

During my sojourn in the land Down Under, people asked me, "Didyou come to Sydney for the Olympics?" I replied "Yes, for the'Olympics of the Mind'" - a series of Philosophy Nights held in asmall Greek tavern in a tiny side-street in the alternative, fashionablyferal, pseudo-intellectual soya-latte-drinking and vegan-eating inner-city suburb of Newtown, just next to the University of Sydney.Behind all the Olympic hype, Steki taverna continued its four yearcommitment to the exercise of the mind, via a luscious blend of goodGreek food and wine, drama and philosophy that take place withinthis tiny restaurant with its black-and-white photographs ofbouzoukia and rembetes. Here, you would be forgiven if youexpected to find nothing more than a friendly staff of Greek-

Ann Gwynn-Jones hasbeen actively involved inmaking the dramacomponent of the'Philosophy Nights' cometo life.

Australians (Costas, Costas and Nikos), asumptuous selection of Greek food (just likemum's cooking) and a live music programmefeaturing the bouzouki, and as for conversation,nothing much more than a pleasantly intoxicatedchit-chat. No mind acrobatics.

Indeed, back in early 1997 a young Greek-Australian freelance journalist, Jorge Sotirios,caused a bit of an intellectual storm when hisopinion piece - a scathing attack on the lack of



The poster advertising thisyear's 'Philosophy Nights'programme, entitledfittingly, 'Olympics of theMind'.

intellectual debate in Australian life and especiallyalong King Street in Newtown, considering itsproximity to Australia's oldest university - entitled"Deep thinkers are thin on the ground" waspublished in the Sydney Morning Herald. TheNewtown community was outraged. "How does heknow what we are talking about? Does he goaround listening to other people's conversations?"rang the indignant letters to the editors of localnewspapers.

But within the walls of that unassuming little tavern, a group ofacademics, students and friends from the School of Philosophy at theUniversity of Sydney had already begun to meet regularly to eatheartily, drink retsina and talk philosophy.

The catalyst of these philosophically-inspired social nights out wasEdward Spence, a philosophy lecturer in the School ofCommunication at Charles Sturt University in Bathurst, NSW, whofounded the Philosophy Nights in 1997 and continues to produce andcoordinate. "We gathered together in the spirit of Plato's Symposium.In the original Greek," Spence explains, "the word symposion, meanscoming together in friendship to drink, eat and engage inphilosophical dialogue and, above all, celebrate life."

"In classical Greece, where philosophy as we now understand itbegan," wrote Stephen Gaukroger of the Traditional and ModernPhilosophy department of the University of Sydney in his 1998Philosophy Nights "welcome" note, "it was pursued not inuniversities but in the streets, in gardens, in drama, and over mealsand drinks. This open, democratic side of philosophy is beautifullycaptured in Plato's dialogue, the Symposium, where a discussion ofthe nature of love is carried on at a dinner party..." Something notunlike what was occurring at Steki.

"By natural progression," Spence explained in a 1997 interview withSotirios, "I thought of organising something more structured andmore extensive. The idea was to hold a series of symposia attended byboth practising philosophers and members of the community,particularly first and second generation Greeks".

The last decade or so has seen a "movement away from analyticalphilosophy and pseudo-scientism to a philosophical engagement witheveryday life," as Luke Slattery observed in The Australian two yearsago. A movement which inspired the philosophical counselling trend -commonly believed to have begun back in 1981 when Dr GerdAchenbach opened his practice near Cologne, Germany - fermenting



the ancient Epicurian idea that philosophy can be used to alleviatedistress, help individuals come to a better understanding ofthemselves and their world, and improve a person's life.

The 'Steki' taverna wheregood food, wine,philosophy and dramameet.

It also led to user-friendly philosophical texts likeAlain de Botton's Consolations of Philosophy(Penguin 2000) - the inspiration for the Englishtelevision series Philosophy - which looks at whatphilosophers like Socrates, Epicurus, Seneca,Schopenhauer and Nietszche have to say on issueslike "unpopularity", "not having enough money", "frustration","having a broken heart" and "difficulties".

Within this general atmosphere of philosophical revitalisation, manyother cafe, restaurant and bookshop owners around King Street,Newtown, had a similar idea to Spence's. That philosophy can betaken out of the universities and brought back to the streets. Indeed, inthe aftermath of the "Sotirios Critique," King Street, Newtown,became a smarter street with regular philosophy seminars andinformal meetings aiming to re-establish the habit of intellectualconversation over coffee, beer or wine.

Spence however was interested in doing something a little different.The lecturer in theoretical and applied ethics who was born in Egyptto Greek and Irish parents (his mother from Larnaca, Cyprus, thebirthplace of Zeno, founder of Stoic philosophy) worked as achartered accountant before fulfilling his lifelong ambition when in1985 he began studying philosophy and later completed his PhD atthe University of Sydney. He has since been utterly inspired byclassical Greek philosophy. Indeed it was this fascination for thePlatonic dialogues that gave Spence the key to his version of"Philosophy Nights," where philosophy talks and drama became anentertaining mix, bridging the gap, as it were, between abstractphilosophical thought and a very personal philosophical experience.

Indeed that's why audience participation is essential and why thenights revolve around the drama. As Spence explained in a earlyinterview, "the Platonic dialogues, such as the Crito, the Meno andthe Republic, eminently lend themselves to dramatisation... I thoughtthe drama component of the talks will not only illustrate visually theissues covered in the talks, but also used rhetorically, as Plato himselfhad intended, can thus help render the audience more receptive toabstract philosophical thinking." After all, he maintains, "Plato hasbeen described as the greatest dramatist of reason."

Spence's aim is to "make philosophy, including contemporaryacademic philosophy, more accessible to a greater number of people



and to do it in a way that is not only instructive but also entertainingand engaging." But Spence doesn't want to simplify things and presenta watered down, easily digestible pseudo-philosophical experience.Instead he defines "accessibility" through a "personal experience ofthe philosophical life." And so, back in 1997, the Philosophy Nightsexperience began.

Philosopher Drago Hellerprepares to take on the roleof a philosophical waiter ina recent production thataddressed modern andpost-modern philosophy.

That inaugural night saw Spence take themicrophone to talk about one of our most profoundconcerns, love. "In the film Gentlemen PreferBlondes," he had said, "Marilyn Monroe tells usthat 'when love goes wrong nothing goes right'.Plato I think would have agreed." Two actors thentook the tiny stage and metamorphosed themselvesinto characters from Plato's Symposium - Socrates and a mysteriouswoman from Mantinea who teaches the famous philosopher aboutlove and concludes that love is a longing for immortality. Since thatnight, those who entered Steki have been offered a user-friendlyaccount of the works of the Pre-Socratics, Plato and Aristotle as wellas everything from Wittgenstein and Heidegger to Nietszche andSartre as well as an entire series entitled Zen and Zeno, bringingEastern and Western philosophical thought together.

Spence, via his Philosophy Nights, has taken philosophy out of thelecture room where its study is deemed "serious" and into the tavernwhere "serious" becomes "fun" without becoming superficial. Andthe Philosophy Nights have enjoyed enormous success. One regular,George, reserves a table for every night and manages to fill it witheager and curious friends. "It's a great night out," he says, "I nevermiss it. You know, you can go out anywhere, enjoy good food andwine, but here you actually get to participate in conversation thatmakes you think about things differently."

Although many university-based philosophers have passed throughthe Steki and examined the tavern's star menu while participating inthe post-drama question time and free-flowing conversation, oneneeds no prerequisite philosophy knowledge to participate in thesePhilosophy Nights. Love, friendship, humour, god and religion,happiness, emotions, immortality, the body and soul are issues we areoften concerned with trying to make sense of for our own daily peace.

A typical philosophy night begins at around 7.30pm as tables arefilled with mums, dads, academics, teachers, students - the vaguelycurious and the confident know-alls - sitting side-by-side as they tuckinto the Greek platter of their choice (being Newtown there's avegetarian alternative available) with retsina flowing freely. A



philosopher then takes the stage and microphone and presents a talk -less academic, where humour plays an important part as do referencesto contemporary culture, society and politics.

Edward Spence - founderof Sydney's 'PhilosophyNights' addresses thecurious crowd.

The talk then dissolves into a dramatic presentation- adaptations of dialogues taken from philosophicalor literary texts, dramatised letters written byphilosophers to friends or lovers, or even originalworkshop scripts that a philosopher and a group ofactors may have worked on.

"It is only as a profoundly personal experience thatthe examined life can be worth living," says Spence.Indeed over a drink at a local pub he talks about the "transformation"of the philosophers, largely academic individuals who often findthemselves taking on roles in the drama part of the night,transforming from university lecturer to actor to director and to aperson who can explore other ways to present philosophy to a largelynon-academic crowd.

"One of the most important questions in philosophy is asked bySocrates," Spence states. "How should one live one's life?" To be ableto answer that question, we must examine our own lives, for asSocrates said when facing death at the hands of the accusers, theunexamined life is not worth living, o anexetastos vios ou viotosanthropo. Spence is adamant that philosophy can "offer practicalguidance in people's lives."

Visit the Philosophy Nights website at www.usyd.edu.au/philosophy/steki





Searching for Harold Pinter in AthensKATHRYN KOROMILAS

ImageHarold Pinter was inAthens to attendperformances of two of hisplays 'Ashes to Ashes ' atthe Nea Skini Theatre onSaturday and 'No Man'sLand' at the Aplo Theatroon Sunday.

HAROLD Pinter was in town this weekend. Aselect group of Athenians - members of the press,academics, actors, socialites and fans - had theopportunity to meet the master of puzzles up closeand personal hoping possibly to decipher the puzzleof the man himself. As Pinter fans we often searchfor clues about the man in his body of work, but how often do we geta chance to meet the mysterious pen behind the text? The AthensNews spent the weekend in search of Harold Pinter.

Accepting an invitation by the culture ministry to attend performancesof two of his plays, Ashes to Ashes and No Man's Land, as presentedby the Nea Skini Theatre and the Aplo Theatro respectively, the now70-year-old playwright (he celebrated his birthday on October 10)arrived in Athens at approximately three o'clock on Fridayaccompanied by his wife of 20 years, esteemed historian and authorof the bestselling Mary Queen of Scots, Lady Antonia Fraser (thepair's affair back in the Seventies was described as "scandalous" bytabloids), and a BBC crew currently working on a two-hour specialdedicated to the playwright.

The couple later checked into the prestigious Grande Bretagne Hoteland enjoyed a late lunch at the exquisite Dionysos restaurant boastinga idyllic view of the Acropolis, with hosts, Antonis Antypas (directorof No Man's Land and known both as actor and director havingworked with Karolos Koun), and Eleni Karaindrou (composer knownfor scoring Theo Angelopoulos' films).

Antypas told Greek daily Ta Nea that "they are a very warm couple.They create familiarity. I feel honoured that [Pinter] considers me afriend. He discusses everything - theatre, politics etc...". Later thatnight they were guided through the intimate streets of Plaka wherethey dined at the Taverna Tou Psarra.

Saturday saw the pair arrive at the Nea Skini Theatre on Cycladon Stin Kypseli at around 9.30pm, for the production of Ashes to Ashes,



where a jittery crowd - Yiorgos Patsas, Roula Pateraki, YiorgosVeltsos, Stratos Tzortzoglou and many others - gathered to meet theBritish playwright.

This is Pinter's 1996 play that explores with disturbing accuracy amarriage in crisis between Rebecca (played by Reni Pittaki, the onlyGreek actor to have performed in five Pinter plays, something thatcertainly shows in her stage presence. She is the essence ofPinteresque.) and husband Devlin (Lefteris Voyatzis). Here Pinter'sfascination with isolation and separateness is explored via adysfunctional relationship, in which the husband prods - almost like apsychiatrist does to this patient - his wife to reveal the facts of anearlier abusive relationship - Pinter explores the link between sexualand political fascism.

After the lights dimmed, the pair - sunken in lounge chairs - appear ona revolving stage. They execute the dialogue complete with the typicalPinter silences, the sudden changes of conversation, the talking as ifthrough the other and not with the other. The characters are both hereand yet not here, at once focused on each other and in a world of theirown characterised by an almost hypnotic stance where it seems theyare experiencing a side show of their very own.

Following the production, director Voyatzis invited the playwrighthimself (who had sat through the performance clearly attentive andwhen audience members coughed and settled or fidgeted, he wouldturn his head sternly in their direction) to the stage to thank him,saying in a somewhat self-conscious state, "I'm not very good at this...Harold Pinter is who he is, not much else is needed."

Pinter took the stage, was offered a fresh bouquet of flowers andsuccinctly addressed the crowd: "I would like to thank these twoactors for their performance of my play, I was very moved by it. It wasa very beautiful production, I can't say anymore than that." With that,he stepped off the stage only to be met by his wife - described byPittaki as "dynamic, intelligent, with a great persona - a trulyaristocratic lady". The crowd followed the pair to the bar where theywaited anxiously in line to grab at their opportunity to shake handsand congratulate the most important living British playwright.

On Saturday night, however, Pinter was not interested in talkingpolitics (though later at a more relaxed gathering over dinner he wasmuch more candid). One audience member asked, "What do you thinkof Kostunica?" He replied "What do you think?" and later "I'm notinterested in having this conversation." He was very enthusiastic whena young thespian approached him to tell him that she'd directed TheCaretaker and to give him a souvenir programme of her production.



ImageReni Pittaki and LefterisVoyatzis star in 'Ashes toAshes '.

Over a few glasses of wine, he was asked toelaborate on his thoughts on Ashes to Ashes (it wasthe first production of his plays that he had seen inGreece even though local troupes have beenperforming his work from the early Sixties, thanks to the innovativeKarolos Koun, who initially imported Pinter).

"I think they are wonderful actors," he said of Pittaki and Voyatzisand added that the production was an intelligent one and the actorsdisplayed much sensitivity in their roles."

Asked how he was able to follow the play in Greek - a language hedoesn't know - he replied: "Well, easily, I know the play very well!"

The Athens News asked about translation. Can a play can be renderedaccurately at an international level or can a true presentation of thework stand only in the original. He smiled and explained that "itcertainly works in different languages, each time I see my plays indifferent languages, the laughs are always in the same place".

Is he familiar with contemporary Greek theatre? "No, not really."Could he make a comment on contemporary theatre trends? "I'm not atheorist," he replied. Does he feel that the image has taken over thetext? "Everyone says that, but that is not the case, text will always becentral to theatre," and with that he raised his glass of wine, "Here's totext." Indeed, Pinter has been hailed as "bringing poetry back to thetheatre".

"Another question I'd like to ask you Mr Pinter," I hesitated, "Anotherquestion!" he exclaimed and we laughed, "Look, I don't know if I cananswer it." "Well, I'll just ask it and we'll see... I'd like to ask you aquestion that Nikos Kazantzakis, on his travels, would ask those ofhighly intellectual and spiritual calibre. 'What do you think is the dutythat men of culture and letters have towards society?'"

He took a step toward me to answer, "I don't think I have a duty tosociety as a writer, but rather as a man. And I don't mean, I have a dutyto society as it is, but rather as it should be. As a writer, I have a dutyto write well, and accurately." I sought clarification, "Accurately?""By that I mean precisely," he offered, "I mean to accurately presentthe truth of the characters and not something false."

This is interesting considering that his friends use words like"exactness" and "precision" to describe him. But on the other hand,Pinter according to his friends, (as Kate Kellaway writes in TheObserver on Sunday, 24 September, 2000) "claims not to know howhe writes. While there are authors who claim to have been taken over



by their characters in a way that seems whimsical, in Pinter's case, itwould appear to be true... 'You always wonder,' says ChristopherHampton, 'whether Harold is a miraculous vessel through whichsomething pours.'"

Later Saturday, Pinter dined in the Thission neighbourhood with asmall group including Voyatzis who described him as an "incrediblywarm person, sincere, with a great sense of humour, even blackhumour, who once he trusts you opens himself up to you".

On Sunday, Pinter arrived at Kallithea's Aplo Theatro to take his seatfor the production of No Man's Land - his 1975 comedy of menacethat exudes a nauseating uneasiness where communication breaksdown and one is afflicted by memories of the past that linger like ahaunting and yet at times humorous nightmare.

Brilliant in his role of Spooner, Ilias Logothetis later spoke to theAthens News about performing for the playwright himself. Was heextra nervous? "No, I have known Pinter for years, he is a friend ofmine, I've performed in a number of his plays. Of course, it's quitesignificant to have him here tonight, not just for us on stage but foreveryone, especially on an emotional level." Asked if he wasconcerned whether the playwright would like his performance, "I havebeen working for too many years to be concerned about whether myperformance is liked or not."

Well, not that he needed to worry anyway, Pinter later congratulateddirector and cast for the "magnificent production of my play" and latercommented positively on the actors' balanced performance andmovement. Director Antypas also offered a comment to the AthensNews, "It's very important for us to have Pinter here in the audience,quite an honour, and of course it's natural to feel somewhat nervous,not about the interpretation of the play itself, the play is complete andI am confident with it, but rather a slight sense of nerves aboutsomething going wrong etc."

When Pinter comments on his plays, he doesn't just comment as aplaywright, after all he's taken the stage himself to perform as well asplaced himself in the director's chair.

Most recently Pinter has been busy travelling to different countrieseither to see his plays performed or to direct them himself. "I directedAshes to Ashes," he told daily Eleftherotypia, "in Italy and France. InPalermo, though I didn't know any Italian, the actors spoke Englishand I also used an interpreter." The Observer says that Pinter"emerges as a director who makes life fun for actors and an actor whois willing".



Pinter departed for London yesterday. We are left with more pieces ofthe puzzle, no nearer to putting them all together. Visit the HaroldPinter website for more at http://www.haroldpinter.org





INTERVIEW

When a punk ballerina seduces CasanovaKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Karole Armitage, the 'punkballerina' will be performingat the Irodion Theatre July9 and 10.

HAILED as the creator of the "punk ballerina",Karole Armitage's choreography is a "virtuosic,high-velocity, image-driven style that is bothexciting and expressive". Invited by the GreekFestival SA to participate in the Athens Festivalthat unfolds each summer within the magicalancient Irodion Theatre, Armitage is due to arrive,arm in arm with Casanova, for a two-night stay onJuly 9 and 10.

The Armitage style - characterised by "stabbing, insect-like motionsand savage confrontations" - has been a much desired commodity eversince she stepped into the world of choreography in New York City in1978. She has since been invited to contribute to the repertoire ofmajor ballet and modern dance companies throughout Europe and theUS, including invitations from Rudolph Nureyev at the Paris Operaand Mikhail Baryshnikov at the American Ballet Theatre. Her workhas been the subject of television documentaries and has alsoappeared in rock videos, such as Madonna's "Vogue" as well as infeature films, such as most recent The Golden Bowl starring NickNolte, Anjelica Huston and Uma Thurman.

Her most recent ballet, Pinocchio (which saw Jean Paul Gaultierdesign costumes), was created in Florence during her stay as directorof the Ballet of Florence, Italy MaggioDanza di Firenze. Pinocchiokicked off her "Italian trilogy" (to be followed by Casanova andMachiavelli in Hell) on the subject of the lie.

The Athens News chatted with Armitage about 'Casanova' andcontemporary dance:

How are rehearsals for 'Casanova' coming along?

Casanova is finished, and I'm thrilled and very proud of the dancersand singer who have done an amazing job in a short three-weekrehearsal period.



I guess you are particularly looking forward to a world premiere insuch an imposing ancient site. How do you feel about the Irodionas a dance stage?

We have a preview performance in the ancient Greek theatre inTaormina, Sicily, to help us get ready for the Irodion. Although theIrodion is a difficult shape and size for dance, I'm thrilled to beperforming there as the beauty of the site inspires the performancesand myself to aim for the greatness that surrounds us. I think it liftseveryone's aspirations and gives us a feeling that it all matters.

The preparatory phase for Casanova took place in both Italy andNew York. Is it difficult to work between two countries?

The biggest difficulty with Casanova is that all of the collaboratorswere spread out across the globe. This is a terrible way to work: I wasin NYC, [composers] Yiorgos Kouroupos in Athens, David Shea inBelgium, Giovanni Sollima in Palermo, while costume designerArjun Bhasin was in Bombay and set designer Andrea Branzi inMilan. But it had to be this way - due to a series of compromisesnecessary to get it financed - or not at all. Believe me, never again!

How do you see Casanova, firstly as a man, secondly as a historicalfigure and thirdly as an abstract idea? What fascinates you about"serial monogamy"?

Casanova is a metaphor for the pursuit of love, erotic encounters andrelationships. I find the man himself to be tremendously interesting,but I'm not portraying him in the dance. He was, however, a precursorto the modern phenomena of the "serial monogamy" lifestyle (goingfrom one commitment to another). I think his restlessness and self-consciousness about his constant chasing of new experiences is verymodern; there is a similar impulse: the desire to live life to the hiltmixed with a fear of mortality and an inability to accept the limits of areasonably comfortable life.

He manifests an "unrequitable" desire for life, which is both creativeand destructive. The particulars of Casanova's life and experiences arereally just background information for me as a choreographer sincethey can't be expressed in the non-verbal form of dance, the danceitself does show the gradual lessening of emotion that accompaniesthis form of detachment in one's relationships, a detachment endemicto the Casanova way of being.

'Casanova' is part of the trilogy that 'Pinocchio' began and that'Machiavelli in Hell' will end "on the subject of the lie". Why thelie?



The lie as a subject came from working in an Italian opera housewhere everyone suspects every trifling word or incident as a strategyto gain or maintain power with enormous forethought going into it.Not my thing or way of seeing the world.

What will 'Machiavelli in Hell' be like?

You never know what something will be like until you do it. But Ihave a real script (for a ballet, it is silent) written with Pulitzer Prizewinner Sebastian de Grazia, who wrote Machiavelli in Hell, so Iknow the outline is really good.

Once you have an idea, say the 'Casanova' idea for example, howdo you begin working? Does the idea exist in your mind first andthen you try and choreograph the movement to interpret the idea?Or does movement come first?

Dances come in different ways. The idea of Casanova as a metaphorfor a dance about relationships, the conflict between the rational andthe irrational in eroticism and love, was a first thought. Then comes abasic structure that forms the voyage of discovery on the subject. Thedance itself comes out only in the studio as a spontaneous creativecollaboration with the performers I work with. It's very personal.

Can you describe the research process a little?

I read Casanova's memoirs with great pleasure, forgot about it andthought about my life. Out came some ideas that became a dance. Inthe background are incidents from Casanova's life that overlap withall our lives - especially those of us who've led a life of adventure.

You've written the libretto loosely based on Casanova'sautobiography. What facts did you retain? How creative did youget in writing the libretto? Which elements inspired you most?

The libretto is a structure with a series of songsabout love. I had different kinds of love in mind foreach scene and searched for poems that captured thespirit I was trying to evoke. I mainly sought poemsin English. Poetry is subtle and I felt inadequatewhen reading Italian poetry. I have used a great dealof W.A. Auden and Tennessee Williams; two whoreally knew both sides of love; its hidden agendasand brutal devastating loss, its promise of hope andbeauty.



The work is made up of six main parts and "six seductions". Whatelements of seduction, interaction and encounter unfold in eachone?

Every scene is called a seduction; this is a loose term. It can be aseduction of style and energy as in the first scene or a "real" seductionbetween man and woman (or whatever sex) where both try to find theconfidence to engage in an erotic encounter.

Is the "seduction in a chat room" what I think it is? That is, twoindividuals connecting via the Internet?

Yes, the chat room is a kind of virtual experience - a haven where onecan imagine an idealised beautiful spirit of seduction like a perfumethat engages your senses and takes you over into a marvellousexperience. It's a kind of illusion that's very attractive.

You're working with Andrea Branzi again. What elements doesthe Branzi style bring to your work?

Branzi is a great artist who is able to distill a vast body of knowledgethat is historical, literary and visual in order to create an essentialimage. This sense of achieving the essential, the perfect one thing,rather than three things, is a very Tuscan thing - he's from Florenceoriginally.

You've worked with a number of singular artists, Jean PaulGaultier and Madonna for example. How does the Armitagepersona come through with such larger-than-life personas?

Noone is larger than life. Sure, some people's image is used as amedia tool to sell stuff so that they can become famous. ThatMadonna has a huge crowd of 13-year-olds who buy her records isnot the thing that impresses me about her but that is fundamentallywhy we hear about her over and over again. That has nothing to dowith art. Art, however, like a signature, is entirely personal. Whenyou're an artist you can't hide who you are; it just comes out throughyour experience. Dennis Hopper directed a thriller about this, aboutan artist who works under an assumed identity but whose real self isultimately revealed.

Working with someone like Gaultier is marvellous because heunderstands collaboration - you work together to make the art whichtakes on its own life beyond any one person's ideas. Personality orfame is not the issue at all.



Cinema designer Arjun Bhasin has done the dancers' costumes.Gaultier designed costumes for your previous work. What elementsdo fashion designers bring to dance?

Fashion designers are really good at theatricality, and this helps toattract the public. Dance is pathetically non-commercial, but we haveto use all of our cleverness to survive and do things that talk totoday's audiences. This is true for content, style, clothes, music,whatever really, but only when it serves the art form itself. One mustalso offer a distinct alternative mass culture, an introspectivealternative to it or it isn't art but some alternative form of massculture. There has to be the right degree of self-conscious reading ofculture otherwise it just results in superficial imitation. Sometimes adesigner is ideal for a certain dance; other times something simpler ismore appropriate. Each dance is its own universe.

How would you describe "contemporary movement trends" asopposed to modern dance?

Contemporary movement trends are less repressive than moderndance for a historical reason. Modern dance defined itself as a morallypure democratic form which needed to prove that dance could standon its own and be appreciated for itself without costume, story ormusic. Now that that battle has been won, dance is free to draw fromwhatever sources inspire the choreographer. Contemporary dancetends to be more physically violent, more about a precarious sense ofbalance and is spatially less centred. I see it as a mix of ballet andmodern dance with influences from popular and world culture.

How significant a role does improvisation with your dance teamhave in your work?

Improvisation plays no role. Accidents help though.

Your first dances were hailed as the creation of the "punkballerina". How would you describe that? What term would youuse to characterise your dance style now?

Punk and my form of punk was a youthful, liberating, delirious joyfulanarchy and wildness that is typical of youth and a celebration of life.Now, I would call what I do "wild ballet" that has the same roots asthe punk era with a desire for a more complex expressive palette.

What feeds/motivates you artistically these days?

I love movies and Africa as inspiration.

Your dance background? Training? Earliest influences?



I trained with [George] Balanchine and danced for him in Geneva[1972-75]. My ballet training [at the School of American Ballet] wasfollowed by five years with Merce Cunningham [1976-80]. As for myearliest influences - Balanchine and love of Motown dance, ChollyAtkins' choreography.

[Armitage was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship for choreographyin 1986, and the French government's Chevalier dans L'ordre desArts et Lettres in 1992.]

You'll be kicking off a period as resident choreographer with theBallet de Lorraine in France this autumn. What are your plans?

The Ballet de Lorraine is mostly in the hands of the new director. Ijust hope to make a couple of hot and exciting ballets.

What does it mean to dance. Is it a holistic way of life? A craft? Acareer move?

Dance is no career move! Certainly as a youth you don't understandhow alienated you'll be from the mainstream, which is bad in thesense that economic survival is difficult. Of course, your body alsochanges and this is hard to take - one has a very graphic acquaintancewith mortality at a young age. In sports you have the same thing, butthey have generally made a fair amount of money. With dancers it'squite the opposite as it's the lowest paid profession besides writingpoetry and at 35 you're washed up. The beauty of dance is its fragilityand ephemeral magic, but that's also at times very painful. We live ina celebrity and business-mad world where a sense of cultural andartistic prestige tends to lie only in what the media deems importantenough to talk about. The media write about things that sell and areavailable to the masses. Dance has nothing to sell and never makesmoney. It is seen by very few people compared to a record, forexample, which can be bought by anyone. This creates a toughsituation for survival and confidence in one's work.

Your greatest dance memory?

The greatest memories of dance are those instances you are so terriblyalive as you put all of your body, soul and mind into the absolutepresent moment. There is nothing like it.

Where do you see yourself in five years? 10 years?

I can't even imagine myself in five months from now. Every projecthas to be invented from scratch and has a whole different way ofcoming to life. I would like to have a more stable situation that would



allow for continuity with a group of dancers so that we could pushthe envelope of ideas and physicality in order to develop somethingunique. That means working together over time.

* Karole Armitage's Casanova will be performed at the ancientIrodion Theatre (D Areopagitou St, at the foot of the Acropolis, tel323-2771 and 323-5582) on July 9 and 10 at 9pm. Tickets at 30,000,20,000, 15,000 and 10,000 drs (students 4,000 drs) are availablefrom the Athens Festival box office (4 Stadiou St, in the arcade, tel322-1459 or 331-2400 - open Monday-Friday 8.30am-4pm and onSaturday 9am-2.30pm) and from Ticket Hellas on 618-9300.





European battle of the electric guitarsKATHRYN KOROMILAS

The European Rock Prize, acompetition now in its thirdyear, will feature manygroups fromEurope, butalso some old favourites,like the Animals (above)and local band SynitheisYpoptoi (below L). Hostingthe competition is actressMaria Papalambrou (belowL).

THESE days music is a big business withaccountants and lawyers claiming the right to makedecisions as to which manufactured stars and tuneswill bring in the cash. If you don't have a recordingcontract it's next to impossible to secure a live gig,and if you don't play live it's impossible to get acontract. That's why the Athens-based EuropeanRock Prize is so important. The competition - nowin its third year - gives musicians from all overEurope the chance to compose, perform, competeand perhaps secure that elusive recordingopportunity.

This year organisers received over 300 applications (an original rockor blues composition) from musicians aged between 18 and 30 yearsfrom Greece and other European countries including Bulgaria,Poland, Germany and Spain, to name but a few. Of the 300, a total of10 finalists will be chosen to perform live at the Olympic Stadium onJune 29 and will be up for one of three cash prizes - 3,000, 2,000 and1,000 euro for first, second and third places respectively. More sothan the prize money, however, what these ambitious youngmusicians really covet is the possibility of securing a recordingcontract (just as other competition finalists have done in the past).

The June 29 competition night will also see much-loved Greek bandSynitheis Ypoptoi perform.

The following night, guitar legend Mick Taylor (of Rolling Stonesfame) will take centre stage with the Animals (remember "We GottaGet Outta This Place", "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" and "Houseof the Rising Sun"?). The original Animals, namely guitarist andvocalist Hilton Valentine, drummer John Steel and guitarist DaveRowberry will team up with vocalist (of Saxon fame) Tony Liddleand bassist (of the Kinks fame) Jim Rodford. The three competitionfinalists will kick-start their career as support acts for these rocklegends. Mid-show, Christos Thiveos of Synitheis Ypoptoi



(interestingly, he studied philosophy under Umberto Eco in Bologna)will join the Animals on stage for a jam that should include anostalgic ride back to the Stones era.

But Taylor and the Animals are not just special guests. They arepersonally committed to the cause and will also sit on the judgespanel, which by the way, reads like a who's who in rock.

Animals manager and director of Sensible Music Productions,Claude Taylor, will also take part. Present at a press gathering onThursday, Taylor spoke about the importance of such an event andabout the beginning of the rock era back in the Sixties.

He remembers the Sixties and Seventies when clubs and recordingcompanies were run by ex-musicians encouraging an entirely differentmusic scene, one that saw so many clubs to play in, where themusicians all knew each other, where it was easier to get signed, playa gig and get financial backing. A time when the music scene was lesscommercial and less manufactured.

Indeed, as a manager Taylor generally looks for amusician who can write and perform. He's notinterested in "manufactured" bands like the SpiceGirls. "The good thing about competitions like the European RockPrize, is that it's run by people who know music, unlike theEurovision competition, for example, which is run by politiciansthese days."

In its third year, the competition has seen no financial support fromthe state but depends on sponsorship from private companies in orderto be able to cover finalists' travel and accommodation costs and tosecure prize money.

Taylor candidly recalls the early Stones days. A time when the status-quo of a very "Victorian" England was being challenged by the bandwho literally unleashed a new attitude that led to the "sex, drugs androck 'n' roll" phenomenon. "The Stones were the centre of this," saidTaylor, "and although the Beatles were great musicians they werereally on the nice side of things. The Stones changed the style andoutlook resulting in totally outrageous behaviour that saw peoplethrowing televisions out of hotel rooms, driving their cars right up toa hotel's pool or walking naked through a rock venue. The moreoutrageous you were, the more you were accepted."

Asked if he thinks that older and successful musicians havingcompleted their musical journey, so to speak, should retire, step asideand let younger musicians take the limelight. "Oh sure, they are old



musicians," Taylor agreed, "but older bands are doing better thannewer bands. There are so many fans who are now in their fifties, whowant to see these bands play live again."

Indeed, the Animals are currently playing live every weekend in theUS as part of the Viet Rock series of concerts for war veterans - andtheir fittingly named "We Gotta Get Outta This Place" is the mostrequested song.

Hosting the competition is actress Maria Papalambrou. Present onThursday, she expressed enthusiasm about appearing on a rock musicstage - so different to a theatrical stage - where she would share thescene with the musicians she listened to when she was younger. She'sproud to be a part of this event that offers such a golden opportunityto promising bands to begin their career.

Mick Taylor and the Animals will play the Olympic Stadium inMaroussi on June 30 at 9.30pm (tickets at 6,000 drs) following the3rd Lucky Strike European Rock Prize competition that will see the10 finalists plus Synitheis Ypoptoi perform on June 29 at 9pm(tickets at 3,000 drs). Grab a 7,000-drachma ticket for both showsfrom central record stores.

Yes, it goes without saying that rock 'n' roll will simply never die.





Carreras' concert to help fund ACS centreKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Tickets have almost soldout for Jose Carreras' one-night only performance, sohurry, if you want to seethis star shine tonight atthe Irodion.

THOUGH one might normally expect to wait awhile for the arrival of a show's star, there are caseswhen the opposite occurs. Jose Carreras - here for aone-night only performance at the Irodion tonight,a concert that will raise money to build aperformance centre for the American CommunitySchools of Athens (ACS) - waited patientlyyesterday for arrival of US Ambassador to GreeceNicholas Burns and his wife Mrs Elizabeth Baylies-Burns to chatwith the press about the ambitious venture.

"I'm sorry we're late," explained Burns, "but we have an excuse. It'sthe 4th of July and we're expecting 3,000 people at our home thisevening." Nonetheless, once excuses were duly given, the humble andpatient tenor filled two glasses with water for the couple and gotdown to business.

Invited by ACS, Carreras - accompanied by soprano Isabel Rey and theERT National Symphony Orchestra with David Gimenez at thepodium - will be performing in the fund-raising event to support theconstruction of a performing arts centre on the school campus. The3,000m2 space, expected to cost a 8 million dollars, will seat 600-800 people.

The centre will also host musical and theatrical performances ofpublic and private organisations and institutions, local andinternational musical competitions, seminars and conferences, as wellas events for the 2004 Olympic Games.

ACS board president, Baylies-Burns enthusiastically explained that"we decided to kick off the fund-raising with a summer concert. Wedecided to aim high - and as we tell our students - reach for the stars,and we got a star", she smiled and addressed the tenor. "I can't think ofa better way to spend a warm summer evening in Athens than underthe stars serenaded by Jose Carreras."

Ambassador Burns has offered to chair the centre's fund-raisingcommittee, one that consists of prominent representatives of business,political and cultural life in Greece.



When the limelight finally fell on Carreras, he said: "What can I say, Iam very happy to be here and to help with this very nice initiative."Carreras spoke of his wonderful memories not only of performing inGreece (he last sang at Epidavros in 1993) but of the "tremendouscordiality and warmth" he receives from his Greek fans. Theinternationally acclaimed tenor is also thrilled to be playing at theIrodion, a place he feels is "probably the most beautiful in the worldto have the opportunity to play in".

The conversation turned to the singer's knowledge of Theodorakis andHadjidakis. Will he ever visit us with a concert of Greek songs? hewas asked. "Do you want me to punish the audience?" he replied witha burst of laughter. In any case, Carreras is eager to explore newmusical experiences and has even sung with pop artists such as DianaRoss. He adores all sorts of music, "of a certain quality", andelaborates that there's "a music for every occasion and mood".

* Carreras will be taking the Irodion stage (Dionysiou AreopagitouSt, at the foot of the Acropolis) at 9 tonight in works by Verdi,Puccini, Strauss as well as Italian songs sung by tenors of the past.Tickets have almost sold out. Try your luck at the Pallas Theatre (1Voukourestiou St, tel 322-4434) or at the venue on 323-5582 -answering calls daily 9am-2pm and 7-10pm.





Christmas time: A patchwork of traditionKATHRYN KOROMILASA COMMON complaint around Christmas time isthat the holy holiday has become a playground forruthless retailers, cunning advertising executives,indulgent partygoers and materialistic children.

We seem to get confused around Christmas time. Searching for somesolemn, age-old meaningful tradition centring on the mysterious birthof a baby boy who brought with him all the hope, joy and love aworld could need, we are instead lured into a world that would haveus travel far from family to a special Xmas idyllic hideaway or partyfor 24 hours a day for each of the 12 days of Christmas, or purchasemore than a manger's worth of awe-inspiring gifts on sale in 12interest-free instalments.

As the calendar counts us down towards December 25 we areperfecting our balancing act. Feasting and revelling on the one handand quiet family-oriented meditating on the other - that in somevaguely nostalgic way represents the essence of Christianity.

If you are sighing dejectedly as you read this, and muttering,'Christmas seems to have lost its meaning and has become acommercial circus!', then you just haven't done your historyhomework.

Look, we all know that we don't know when Christ was really born.The December 25 date was chosen in the 4th century not because ithad anything to do with Christ's birthday, but as Stephen Nissenbaumput it in his 1997 book The Battle for Christmas, "simply because ithappened to mark the approximate arrival of the winter solstice, anevent that was celebrated long before the advent of Christianity...Christmas was nothing but a pagan festival [the Roman Saturnaliacelebrating seasonal agricultural plenty] covered with a Christianveneer."

In any case, the birth date had long belonged to the Persian's mysterygod Mithra, the Sun of Righteousness.

Christmas was always about drinking, feasting and generally spendingbig. Our ancestors were mighty partygoers around this time of theyear. The days began to lengthen, the year's supply of food was in



store and there wasn't much else to do apart from some heavyboozing. Ancient civilisations in Egypt, Persia and Greece celebratedthe winter solstice - a time of renewal and indulgence - guilt-free;unlike poor us today who need journalists to ask questions such as"can seasonal feasting be ethical?" as published in The Independenton November 22 in an article entitled Dreaming of a guilt-freeChristmas.

With the earliest documented Nativity celebrations said to have takenplace in Rome in 336 (others say 354) and in Constantinople in 379(again depending on your source), later spreading to Egypt and ataround the 500s to Europe and England, the church began to declareownership of the celebrations and with that the indulgentbacchanalian face of Christmas began to change, was suppressedaltogether for a time and was finally established as a federal holiday inAmerica in 1870.

A fact that, some 100 years later, has irkedAmerican lawyer Richard Ganulin so much that in1998 he sued the federal government on the basis,according to abc.com, that Congress violated theseparation of church and state when the Christianfestival became an official state one. Interestingly,government lawyers are opposing the claim byfocusing on the secular aspects of Christmas (including Christmastrees, Santa Claus, and presents) in their arguments. The case is stillbeing argued at a federal appeals court.

Some Christians wouldn't have a problem if there were no Christmas.The small congregation of the Texas-based Austin Park Church ofChrist has published, on their website, a well-researched essaydetailing the links between Christmas and paganism, concluding thatChristians should not observe Christmas because of its pagan roots.

The pagan bits have always been a point of contention for the churchthroughout Christmas' 1700-year history. In the late 1500s thePresbyterian church suppressed the observation of Christmas inScotland due the absence of any biblical references to Christmascelebrations. Likewise, the English Puritans weren't too at ease withthe absence of a biblical suggestion that we should celebrate the birthof Christ or with the bacchanalian nature of the fest. Oliver Cromwellabolished English Christmas by an act of Parliament in 1644, as didthe New England Puritans in 1659.

When, in 1843, Charles Dickens published A Christmas Carol thefestival had already begun to acquire its new face of Christian givingand good cheer and the tale served to counter opposition to the



festival. (Britain's National Trust now holds Christmas lunchesfeaturing readings of Dickens.) None of us want to be Scrooges atChristmas time - a time when we snap out of compassion fatigue evenwhen there'll be more open palms appearing on the streets of Athens(nay, the world).

Christmas is virtually a global phenomenon and has probably beenembraced by the world more because of its secular roots than itsredemptive overtones. According to an article published in USAToday magazine in 1997, as early as 1900 some American rabbiscondoned the celebration of Christmas among Jews, arguing that itwas a secular, rather than a sacred, holiday. Later, of course, a Jewishalternative to the Christian holiday was found in the minor Jewishfestival, Hanukkah.

The Christmas tradition - some tag it the "invented" tradition - is amixture of many cultures worldwide, a patchwork quilt of ancient,adapted and new traditions - of Santa Claus and his elves, ofdecorated trees, lit candles and carols.

Embracing the world is 'Silent Night' (known as 'Agia Nyhta' inGreece) the Christmas carol that has been translated into almost everylanguage. Every Christian nation boasts its own version of the tune,and if not it will, even if for tourist purposes.

The Christmas tree has been venerated as a symbolof life in the dead of winter for the past 4000 years.Folks have since sought to decorate the evergreenbranches with home-made flowers or apples andnuts. An ecological guide to Christmas onlyrecently suggested decorating trees with edible treats, for a more eco-friendly holiday. Mango and banana trees are decorated in India, whilein China paper lanterns decorate the Tree of Light where childrenawait visits from Dun Che Lao Ren, which means Christmas OldMan.

The Christmas tree tradition is less common in Greece. According tosome traditions homes boasted a decorated wooden ship, probably todo with Saint Nicholas, Greece's patron saint of sailors (whoincidentally was dressed in clothes drenched in brine and sported abeard dripping seawater).

Candles (or more commonly these days, electric lights) decoratewindowsills, Christmas dinner tables, trees and wreathes.



In Germany, many houses have little wooden frames holding electriccandles. The use of candles has a long history in pagan worship and inthe rites to the dead. The Persians fittingly used fire to honour theirsun god, while Romans used candles to drive spirits away.

For modern Greeks, keeping the fire burning is one way of keepingthe Kallikantzari at bay. These are small goblin-like creatures,Greece's version of elves, who (instead of Santa) would climbthrough the chimney and get up to all sorts of mischief during the 12-day period from Christmas through to the Epiphany (Fota) on January6.

The Kallikantzari are a bit like Iceland's more sinister YuletideLands, sons of a female ogre Gryla, who spend Christmas keepingchildren in line. According to tradition, 13 days before Christmas,children place a shoe in the window ledge and - if they've been good -the elves fill it with a present.

As for the practice of gift-giving, the Romans exchanged simple giftslong before the birth of Christ and the presents brought by three wisemen. Though early Christians denounced gift-giving Santa Claus hassince become the official bearer of gifts.

Known in some countries as Father Christmas and in others as SaintNicholas (who lived in around the 4th century and held a reputationfor generosity and kindness especially when it came to children andthe poor) the Santa Claus figure was also denounced by puristChristians because he seemed to take the limelight away from JesusChrist.

Nonetheless, Latvians believe that Father Christmas brings presentson each of the 12 days of Christmas starting on Christmas Eve, whilein Belgium Saint Nicholas comes earlier, on December 6.

Greeks normally exchange gifts on Agios Vassilis' Saint's Day onJanuary 1 but it's Agios Vassilis, not St Nicholas, who has the luckygift-giving task.

Christmas is celebrated virtually worldwide. It's simply a happy timeof the year and its beauty is that it embraces old and new traditionsfrom all over the world.

The message is a simple one - unity, peace. Something they are shortof in Bethlehem this year.




Ferry on making music& LykavittosmemoriesKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Bryan Ferry has fondmemories of playing atopLykavittos Hill, where he'llfind himself again tonight,before heading up toThessaloniki.

SUBTLY glamorous and smoothly casual, BryanFerry glided into one of the Ledra Marriott'smeeting rooms on Monday evening and spent anhour chatting candidly for the first time with theGreek press prior to his shows last night andtonight in Athens and tomorrow evening in thenorthern port city of Thessaloniki.

It's his third visit to Greece - in 1982 he came withRoxy Music and in 1994 on a solo tour. Thoughtouring hasn't always been a big thing with Ferry and performing livehasn't always been first on his agenda, he's "pleased to be back, I havegreat memories of playing at Lykavittos last time".

Ferry's current tour promoting his new album As Time Goes Byfeaturing 1930s standards (a "familiar project for me" he explainedsince he started his career in 1973 with a recording of a 1930s track,"These Foolish Things") has taken him to the US, the UK, all aroundEurope, and even South Africa.

As Time Goes By is his first acoustic album. Ferry has worked instudios for years with modern technology, and now it's "good to getback to doing songs of that time. It's a fun project working withstrings again and really good jazz players", whom he found inLondon.

The popular singer expressed his surprise with the positive responseto his new album. "I guess people are really starved of good songs,"he explained. "I wish I could write songs like these. When I was a lad,I was a big jazz fan. And it's great to turn people back into it. Themusic can still work for people and that really feels good."

It's certainly a risk doing these tunes, "some songs have such a greatpedigree and heritage, but it just felt right at the time".

What do these tunes have in common with his own and the stuff fromthe 1930s? "Well, only that I like them," he replies in his



characteristic humble tone (he later looked down to doodle as hiswords were translated to the press). "If you do a song by anotherwriter, you gotta love that song. I choose songs that I can really getinside of. There is also a romanticism and they work on a real one-to-one level."

The best moment in his career? He smiles and is silent for a while ashe thinks. "Well, I'm really enjoying this tour. It's a retrospective, theband can really play everything from my repertoire - they are a verygood all-round orchestra, can bring out the beauty of the slower songsand we are even performing tunes that we never played live in RoxyMusic."

Speaking of which, will there be a reunion with Roxy? "We've hadcontact over the years and so you never know. It would be nice to doit for a night, we broke up after an album that was a big hit which wasquite unusual."

Ferry affirms that he's always been big on bebop and blues and, as formodern stuff, Beck, Radiohead and Macy Gray as well as Buena VistaSocial Club - "the film made me cry", he said.

What motivates him? Quite simply, "I love to make music." Ferryneeds to be occupied and have many things to do. Lately he's excitedby his Slave to Love compilation, which is a good way to get to knowa certain part of his repertoire. What next? "Can't tell you that, it'llspoil the surprise."

* Catch Bryan Ferry tonight at the magical open-air LykavittosTheatre atop Lykavittos Hill (tel 722-7209) and tomorrow night atThessaloniki's Theatro Gis (tel 031-256783). Show kicks off at 9pm.Try securing your last-minute tickets from central record stores, thevenue or from Ticket Hellas on 618-9300.





Hilton hotel transformed into 'Little Havana'KATHRYN KOROMILAS

Duo Trinitario y Coco(above) will be serenadingand cigar makers rolling atthe festival.

JUNE in Athens is rapidly becoming synonymouswith Cuba what with the Hilton's Cuban Culturaland Food Festival in its third successful year. Thehotel's rooftop Galaxy BBQ restaurant once againbecomes host for lovers of all things of thisCaribbean island for 10 colourful days startingJune 15 all the way through to June 25. This year however, it's notjust the Hilton that will metamorphose into a little Cuba, we'll alsoget to view the works of artist Carlos Alberto Fernandez on exhibit inThissio, participate in theatrical workshops with the Buendia Theatrein central Athens, attend a lecture on contemporary theatre in Cuba inPlaka, and catch six new Cuban films to be screened at variouscinemas around town.

Food and drink

The stomach, they say, is a good way to a man's heart, but it's also agood way to learn more about a culture. So head up to Galaxy (therestaurant opens its doors at 8.30 nightly) to experience, as the hoteldescribes it, "the magical atmosphere of the largest island in theCaribbean". Authentic Cuban delicacies will be prepared by two chefsspecially invited to fly to Athens from Havana just for this occasion.They'll be accompanied by a barman who will aim to alter ourunderstanding of what a cocktail should really be like. In fact, manyAthenians have already begun drinking the refreshing Mojito - apotent combination of Cuba's authentic Havana Club Rum, lemonjuice, club soda and mint leaves.

While dining and drinking, Ramon Fabian Veloz - "one of the bestsingers in Cuba" - will be performing together with three dancersfrom one of the isle's contemporary dance ensembles.

But wherever you are in the hotel you'll get to hear the sound ofCuba, since the Duo Trinitario y Coco will be serenading gueststhroughout the building. In the foyer try the Havana cigars speciallyhand rolled by a traditional cigar roller who's also flying in to Athensstraight from Cuba.



Ambassador of Cuba to Greece Ana Maria Gonzales addressed thepress yesterday - "I'll speak in Spanish," she smiled, "that will be thefirst touch of the Cuban festival," - to explain how the event is alreadygrowing and getting better with the added cinema, theatrical andartistic parallel events.

Art

The artwork of CarlosAlberto Fernandez (above)and a Mojito drink (below).

Artist Carlos Alberto Fernandez will be exhibitinghis ethereal flower- and wings-inspired acrylics andoils on canvas at the Melina Mercouri CulturalCentre (66a Iraklidon and Thessalonikis sts,Thissio, tel 345-2150 or 341-4466) on June 15-28. The gallery is open daily (expect Mondays and Sundays) 9am-1pmand 5-9pm.

Theatre

The Buendia Theatre arrives to lead (in English) a series ofworkshops (following their academic research on Cuba's theatricalheritage and its roots in Africa and Latin America) on the theme ofAfro-American Ritual and Tragedy taking place daily between 1 and6pm starting today through to June 16 at the Lidra Studio (12Kekropos St, tel322-9440). "Theatre in Cuba," explained director Flora Lauten, "islike a Greek Orthodox church in ruins. We have taken it and restoredit. Indeed, theatre for us is a religion."

Lecture

A lecture (in English) entitled Afro-American Ceremony and Theatrein Contemporary Cuba will be delivered at the Athens UniversityHistory Museum (5 Tholou St in Plaka, tel 324-0861) on Tuesday at7pm.

Cinema

Six Cuban films may seem a little too much and a little too sudden,but there's been an explosion of local production. The films will beshowing at various cinemas around Athens kicking off with JoyceBunuel's Salsa featuring music by Sierra Maestra on June 16. Two ofthe films Salsa and Arturo Sotto's Amor Vertical are complete Cubanproductions while the others (Fernando Colomo's Quarteto De LaHabana, Gerardo Chijona's Un Paradiso Bajo De Las Estrellas,Pastor Vega's Las Profecias De Amanda and Alberto Leki'sOperacion Fangio) are joint productions with Spain, France,Venezuela and Argentina.



Ladies sing the blues in AthensKATHRYN KOROMILAS

Odetta (above) was theone to kick off the 'BluesWay Festival 2000' lastnight, but there's moreblues ahead tonight atopthe hill.

THE LADIES sang the blues loud and clear lastnight at the magical open-air theatre atopLykavittos Hill as part of the Blues Way Festival2000. Deborah "the female Hendrix" Colemanopened an energy-packed show that culminatedwith the appearance of one of the greatest treasuresof folk blues, Odetta. Tonight, Shemekia Copeland(yes, Johnny's daughter) and New Orleans soulqueen Irma Thomas take the stage.

Prior to yesterday's show, the four ladies caught up with the Greekpress. The result? Blues women have one hell of a humorous take onthings. Kicking off the conference, organisers offered the mike to theperformers, but the diva of folk herself Odetta wondered: "Aren't theygoing to ask any questions? I don't know what to say!" Laughter filledthe room and accompanied almost everything they had to say, just likean applause that follows a good song.

What's in store for fans? Coleman - influenced by greats like MuddyWaters, John Lee Hooker and Memphis Minnie - described the showshe was due to give last night as a "mid-to-high energy stageperformance. This is what I'm known for. Hope you enjoy it," shesaid, "if you don't, I'm sure you'll let me know."

Odetta - who performed tunes from her latest album BluesEverywhere I Go - pointed out that if she passed "the test, then I guessI'll be back to perform at your [Half Note] jazz club".

Asked if the world is still protesting through the blues, Odettaexplained that there are certainly some singers and songwriters whohave the same concerns, although not as rampant as in the Sixties. Ofcourse, in recent years those concerns have filtered through to rapmusic.

Thomas addressed the crowd with the Greek that she has alreadypicked up, "Geia sou Athens." Performing tonight, Thomas expressedher enthusiasm about singing alongside the other ladies, especially"the legend [Odetta] sitting next to me". As for her show - she'saccompanied by saxophonists Humphrey Davis Jr and Lance Ellis,



keyboardist Kim Philis, trumpeter Percy Williams, bassist Bobby Joeand drummer Wilbert Widow - "I'll be performing as much as I can ofeverything I've done over the last 42 years," she said.

She laughs confidently and says that it will be hard to do, andalthough she's given organisers a set list of songs she's prepared,"whether I'll keep to it is another story." Thomas is well known fordoing requests. "I prefer for an audience to ask me to play certainsongs, that way I know exactly what they want."

Asked what New Orleans is like in the year 2000, Thomas replies:"New Orleans is New Orleans, be it 2000 or 1900. We have one footin the year 2000 and the other in New Orleans. It's a very uniqueplace, we are who we are."

Copeland, being "the baby of the bunch" as she addressed herself, ishappy to be in Greece especially since she'd heard so much about thelocal cuisine. "I just can't wait to try the food," she exclaimed. "I liketo eat, this morning I tried spinach pie and I'm going to try and eat asmuch as I can while I'm here!"

As for her show tonight? "Well, everything I do is basically stuff Istole from these ladies right here," she addresses Odetta, Thomas andColeman. (Everyone bursts out into laughter again.) "But my band[namely, guitarist Arthur Neilson, keyboardist Dona Oxford, bassistEric King and drummer Barry Harrison] and I are just going to get upthere and have a great time."

She's got one album to her name, one that boldly demands us to Turnthe Heat Up, "but you don't need to turn the heat up here," she laughs,"it's already so hot."

Shemekia has been performing since she was eight years old with herfather, the late Texan blues guitar legend Johnny Copeland. Sheremembers, "I was real scared and preferred to hide under a table orbehind a curtain." These days, she still gets very nervous but tries to"turn the nervousness into excitement".

Tonight's show kicks off around 9.30. Few tickets, priced at 7,500drs, are still available. Try Virgin Megastores on 6-8 Stadiou St, tel331-4788.





Vanessa-Mae on violins, classical and popmusicKATHRYN KOROMILASVANESSA-Mae, the dimple-cheeked violin virtuoso famous for herunique marriage of classical and pop musical genres and herimpressive stage appearance, arrived yesterday (straight from rainyLondon) and greeted the frenzied Greek press at the Athens airport'sVIP lounge at approximately 6pm.

The charming 21-year-old spoke confidently and cheerfully abouttaking time out from working on her new pop album to perform for"such a worthy cause as Elpida". Proceeds from tonight's sold-outIrodion concert will go towards building a new children's oncologyhospital. Asked if she was going to fit in some sightseeing before sheleaves for Holland tomorrow morning, she replied, "Performing atsuch a historical site [like the Irodion] is a sightseeing experience initself." She also hopes to be inspired for a piece she's currentlyworking on entitled The Greek Song, which she hopes will evoke theatmosphere of ancient Greece. Tonight's show will incorporate aclassical component, her characteristic techno-acoustic style andtunes from the Storm tour that never made it to Greece. What's herreaction to the "child prodigy" tag? "Well, it's too soon to review thepast," she said, "after all, I'm only 21 years old. Perhaps when I'm 60 Ican look back and say, 'yes, I was a child prodigy'."

Wondering just how many violins someone like Vanessa-Mae wouldown? Well, just one classical - made in 1761 - that she's had since shewas 10. As for electric violins, she owns about three or four - shedoesn't get so emotionally attached to those, though. The violinistsees classical music as being "in my bones" but pop music issomething she's connected to on a different level and, considering shegrew up listening to Michael Jackson, it's a way of life these days. Theyoung soloist was accompanied by her maternal grandmother and heradoptive father.


Copyright 1995-2003 ATHENS NEWS S.A., 3 C. Lada str. Athens 102 37, GREECEtel: 210 3333555, fax: 210 3231384

Page 2GreeceNow: Maria's moves

01/02/2005 10:52:18 µµhttp://www.greece.gr/CULTURE/TheatreAndDance/mariasmoves.stm

how the New York Times described thecontemporary dance scene: "Manhattan'sdowntown choreographers have beenusing movement that is functional,conventional and pedestrian to illuminatemovement that we think of as art." In thissense, Hassabis work fits in.

In one of her more recent works entitledLights (performed in Athens earlier thisyear, at the Biennial of Young EuropeanArtists in Sarajevo last year as well as atthe International Festival of ContemporaryDance in Portugal) her dancers are litdramatically from below and mimic amodel's catwalk poses "they jut out theirhips, lift a shoulder...their profiles instriking poses, all the while quiteexpressionless" or move over and aroundtheir light.

Hassabi explains that, each dancercontrols his/her own light and as such isable to control what is shown and what ishidden from the spectator. "It is a gamethat begins with the light and the storiesunfold by the dancers."

Goals and acceptanceAfter seven years as a dancer and two-and-a-half years as a choreographer,"there is a lot of stress". Still Hassabimaintains that "a city like New York cansurprise you with so much culture allaround - with exhibitions, music, dance,art and the endless amount of news andinformation".

Surprises also come in the form of positivereception of her in the press. The VillageVoice , for example, called her work"breathtaking". Showbusiness Weekly,said last year, "Maria Hassabi performs acontinuously moving cycle of dance thatentrances the audience. She locomoteson the floor, her hips barely leaving theground. Although the movement requiresincredible strength, her style barelyimplies effort as she glides over hershoulder to another corner of the stage."

Her work has also shone on the catwalkand Calvin Klein's invitation tochoreograph his Spring 2002 collectionmust have come as an added pat on theback for Hassabi, who regularly acceptswork in the fashion industry, though sheremains faithful to dance.



When the diaspora says 'Ohi'KATHRYN KOROMILAS

Greeks throughout theglobal village celebrateOctober 28.

PIECES of the puzzle of what it means to begrowing up Greek in the diaspora were offered tous during nationalistic days of remembrance likethe historic "Ohi" day.

I remember the October 28 parades through thecentre of Sydney. Children from afternoon Greekschools run by local churches would dress in theblue and white of the Greek flag or in traditionalcostume.

Wreathes were placed on the Tomb of the Unknown Solider in MartinPlace and parades converged at the magnificent Opera House, wherepoliticians and other members of the Greek church and communitywould take the stage to talk of unity and courage as Greek ideals.Speeches were made in both Greek and English, and nervous childrenwith clammy palms took hesitant steps on stage to recite poems aboutall things Greek. Following the formal proceedings the rest of the daymeant celebration, local troupes displayed their traditional dances andre-enacted historical events and the music rang loud over SydneyHarbour.

Evenings were spent at home (it was spring so gatherings usually tookplace in backyards) with parents and their friends who would talkloudly of politics and sing songs of the era. I remember intense andpassionate conversations often topped off with tears (though I suspectthose probably had more to do with immigrant nostalgia rather thanwith that proud and historic NO.)

Though the details of the events surrounding Metaxas' decision to sayno (on that October 28 back in 1940) and not yes - to BenitoMussolini's idea that stomping all over Greece would be a good thingto do - had always eluded me, those patriotic days made my bloodboil with a sense of pride. Something I didn't feel when observingAnzac Day on April 25 to commemorate those of the Australia andNew Zealand Army Corps who died in World War I.

Anzac Day brought with it a day off school, and later work, and bythen national holidays (just like "Ohi" day) had lost their solemn



purpose of silent meditation and remembrance as I joined other busycivilians who preferred to use the day to rest rather than to participatein ceremonies and parades paying tribute to something that had nodirect relevance to our comfortable lives.

Today, however, the words "Lest We Forget" ring loud in my mind.Remembering (and not forgetting) the many thousands of sons,brothers, husbands, fathers, daughters, sisters, wives and mothers whocommitted themselves (at the front line or back at home) to fightingfor their country is one way of working towards (personal and global)peace.

A Greek-born friend of mine will devote time today (Saturday) toremembering those who fought and died. "I don't think it reallymatters what someone does on this particular day, but rather howsomeone participates in life everyday," he says. "I'm proud of thosemen who fought.

Just like I am proud of Kenderis' win at the Olympics. I guess I'mproud of being Greek. Saying 'no' to the Italians meant that Greecerefused to be passive in a war that the Germans finally lost. Was itChurchill who said that it's not that Greeks fought like heroes, butthat heroes fight like the Greeks. I'm proud of that.

I don't know whether it was a waste to lose all those lives or not, Ithink that those who fought truly believed in what they were doing.And I'm pretty sure that if it was up to me, I too would do the samething. I would fight for Greece".

Though the facts of the October 28 "Ohi" were fragmented for mostof us Greek-Australians who participated in those parades, thegathering together of the Greek community on this day (and on the25th of March) sustained a sense of national pride and identity in thediaspora, a sense of unity with mother Greece that was so remarkablystrong that many young Greek-Australians - some of whom had nevervisited Greece and who had only a minimal knowledge of thelanguage - would confidently say: "I too would fight for Greece."

It all sounds tremendously nationalistic in an age where the globalvillage thrives and borders between races and nations have becomefuzzy, but at a time when the Powers That Be hold everyone on apuppet string, it's nice to know that once, Greece, instead of saying"yes Sir, anything you like Sir", said "No, no way, absolutely not,forget it... mate."

Today, I'll add three more pieces to the puzzle of being Greek - unity,continuity and courage.



Unity - regardless of internal strife, disagreement and power games,Greeks will always stick together.

Continuity - modern Greeks are direct descendants of the ancients,after all, Greece has always presented a unified front to an externalthreat.

Courage - being unequivocal about what you believe in, wheneveryone else seems to be doing something else, that saying "no, I seethings a little differently," is a good thing.

A great thing. A thing of which to be proud.



Documents

Searching for Harold Pinter in AthensHAROLD Pinter was intown this weekend. A select groupof Athenians - members of the press, academics, actors, socialites and fans - had the opportunityto