Upcoming: "Erotokritos" by Vitsentzos Kornaros
So excited for this comeback ... after 25+ years away from the Greek Theatrical Scene a thrilling debut at The National Theatre of Northern Greece with the masterpiece of Cretan Renaissance Literature "Erotokritos" by Vitsentzos Kornaros (1600 AD) in the beautiful dialect of Eastern Crete, in a fifteen-syllable iambic verse, adapted and directed by the remarkable Argyro Chioti!!! I am living a dream!!!
“Erotokritos” by Vitsentzos Kornaros
Adapted & Directed by: Argyro Chioti
Premiere: Wednesday January 18 2023
National Theatre of Northern Greece
More info TBA
About:
Erotokritos is one of the most remarkable works of the early Modern Greek literature. It is a romance in verse, consisting of 10.012 fifteen-syllable rhymed verses. It was written by Vitsentzos Kornaros in Sitia and Heraklion around 1600 AD, in the hight of the Cretan Renaissance, which lacks nothing compared to the Western European Renaissance. It narrates the great love of Erotokritos, a charismatic young man of humble descent, and princess Aretousa. The story has much in common with the romantic poem Paris et Vienne by the French poet Pierre de la Cypède, which was published in 1487. However, the Cretan masterpiece is of significantly higher quality in writing and meaning. The story unfolds in five parts, and it is about love, bravado, hardship, warfare and redemption.
Erotokritos is written in a flowing language, in the beautiful dialect of Eastern Crete, in a fifteen-syllable iambic verse, which is well known and loved until today in the form of the local rhyming 15-syllable couplets, known as “mandiniades”. Erotokritos celebrates love, friendship, ethos-guided manliness, as well as the right to pursue happiness, typical to the Renaissance man, and the fight for freedom from every kind of oppressive authority -religious, royal, paternal- which stands in the way. The worth of gender equality also stands out in this work. Erotokritos was an instant favourite with the Cretan people, who would draw life standards from it, and have been singing its verses up to this day in everyday life. On the other hand, its reception by the scholar community went through various stages, until it received its current universal recognition. Indeed, at a certain stage it was considered a light read, harmful to the linguistic, nationalistic and moral ideals; in that spirit, it was even re-written in “purist” formal Greek (“katharevousa”).
Erotokritos has been translated in many languages, it is taught in universities around the world and continues to inspire musicians, theatre directors, sculptors and painters.