One of the most beloved books of modern literature for children is transferred to the Theatre for the first time. «The Boy in the Box» by the award-winning author Angeliki Darlasi will be presented from 4 December at the Main Stage of the Mikros National Theatre.
The National Theatre invites its young friends to the Main Stage, to travel and converse through the magical world of theatre, with «The Boy in the Box». The adaptation for the theatre is by Andri Theodotou and the direction is by Sophia Marathaki. The award-winning novel published in 2017, a story about loss, refugeeism, humanity and the power of imagination, is inspired by the real-life event of the settlement of Asia Minor refugees at the Municipal Theatre of Athens in 1922, and its production by the National Theatre is also a tribute to the centenary of the Asia Minor Catastrophe.
«It's a dollhouse here…» whispers Areti to her brother Drosso when she sees the theatre and decides to live hidden in a trunk. People who were rescued from a Greek ship on the terrible night of the Catastrophe make their home in the Municipal Theatre of Athens. Alongside the two children, Domna - a woman who cares for them as her own children in a hostile world. Each box and a story, each box and a hope. A boy who makes a living as a market stooge, a girl who is always sewing and unpicking the veil of her wedding dress, a girl who doesn't speak but only sings, and many other wonderful and painful neighbors.
One day Areti mysteriously disappears. All of them, united, offer to help Drosso find his sister. With the help of a half-torn book of Shakespeare's The Tempest, translated by James Polylas, which tells the adventures of a spirit - Ariel, and a wizard - Prospero, Drosos and his friends discover the Truth. Now, a new life awaits them...
A story about the power of the soul, dealing with small and big disasters, the nightmares of life, adulthood, dreams, the «reality» of fantasy, the Truth that man hides in his heart.
The performance, using all the primary materials of theatre, the human body and voice, action and narration, song, dance, movement and musicality and, above all, play and the power of transformation, will bring a magical and real world to life. A performance that celebrates the human being and his faith in life!
Performance identity
Adaptation: Andri Theodotou
Directed by Sophia Marathaki
Props-costumes: Konstantinos Zamanis
Music: Vassilis Tzavaras
Motion: Briseida Solomou
Lights: Sakis Birbilis
Music teaching: Melina Peonidou
Assistant director: George Loxas
Assistant set designer and costume designer: Maria Papadopoulou
Playing (alphabetically): Eleni Vlachou, Nadia Katsoura, Stathis Koikas, Sofia Marathaki, Michael Melissis, Vassilis Milionis, Athena Moustakas, Danae Saridaki, Thalia Stamatelou, Roula Tsernou, George Syrmas, Elektra Fragiadaki.
Musicians on stage: Vassilis Tzavaras, Manolis Christodoulou. Performance photographer: Elina Younani. Elina Yonzalina Yonzalina Yonzalina.
Notes: The Tents of the National Theatre operate as pure spaces for vaccinated and sick people. Admission of spectators will be strictly upon presentation of a certificate of vaccination or illness. For children from 4 to 17 years of age, a self-test is required.
Performance days and times: daily for schools, Saturday at 16:30 and Sunday at 11:00 (the performance schedule will vary during the holidays).
