The performance of the Municipality of Avdelios, which delighted the audience and the critics at the 2013 ATHENS FESTIVAL, returns with the brilliant actress Katerina Gatzogia .

The play was written in Zakynthos, on the occasion of the fearful feelings that overwhelmed Solomon when he saw some Women from besieged Messolonghi facing verbal violence from a badly shaped, empathetic Woman of the island, because they asked her for food for their imprisoned men. A fact that initially caused terror and disappointment to the Poet who could not defend these Mesolonghi women on the spot.

But with this work he was redeemed, because he detected his own sense of fear of "evil", and by bringing to light its causes, he left us a timeless legacy of humanism and self-knowledge.

*The text of the performance is mainly taken from the editorial presentation of the professor of Panteion University, Mr.Dimitris Dimitrioulis.

THE SPIRIT OF THE WORK

This work of Solomos is literally the antithesis of all his other work, in which he poetically recreates what he observes and feels about others and the world.

With "The Woman of Zakynthos*" it is the first time that he turns his attention exclusively to himself, in order to understand what it is that frightens him. In this way he manages to make us also feel that what scares us and we perceive as "evil" is not exactly what it looks or sounds like, but the wrong way we handle it.

Poetic Adeia, therefore, 'borrows' the mask of Saint Dionysius the monk - who was a historical figure and lived until his 172nd year in a monastery of Zakynthos - to look through the eyes of a saint at the 'evil', which here is identified with this ugly and brutal Woman of Zakynthos when he saw her humiliatingly chasing away the refugee women of Mesolonghi.

Looking through the eyes of a saint liberates the poet Solomon and transports him as a spirit, to see the last moments of this Woman, just before she hangs herself with a belt. In that short time, he finds that the Woman everyone feared as "the evil one" not only had no such power, but on the contrary lived herself in fear and confusion.

By extension, it puts forward the idea that "evil" is not the obvious enemy, like the Turks here besieging Messolonghi, and that it is a real fact, which one can calmly calculate and face it with one's own will and decision, as it was done with honor and freedom and recorded as a victorious spiritual event in world history, with the fearless and redemptive Exodus of the besieged, since about 1200 people were rescued, who would have died either from starvation or from the humiliating massacre.

So the real "evil" is the occupation of the mind by fear, a feeling of immaturity and irresponsibility, which creates confusion and the absence of rational thought and action, and which we must never let it become the cause of losing the power of Truth (unconditional faith and love in ourselves and our fellow human beings), the only invincible weapon that shields us from any real or imaginary enemy.

Teaching Interpretation, Dramaturgy-Directing : Municipality of Avdelios

Interpreted by Katerina Gazzogia

Voice of a monk: Municipality of Avdelios

Music Composition: Vangelis Giannakis

Clothing design, models: Aristides Patsoglou

Lighting design: Δ. Abdelious

Audio - Light Operator: Nick Bishop

Assistant Director: Stephanie Vlachou