site specific choreographic project for 4 dancers

Archaeological Site of Olympia 
as part of the program “All of Greece one Culture 2024”

CHOREOGRAPHER’S NOTE

Prometheus, according to the modern approach, is not just a mythical hero but a higher idea that addresses humanity in order to make it realise the inexorable necessity and the timeless meaning of its struggles for justice. In an era when the old idols have collapsed from the winds of history, “PROMETHEUS 2024 (unbound bodies)”, poses the question: What kind of bodies do we need today ? Do we need contemporary Prometheus ? The performers’ bodies, as receivers of metaphysical and socio-political forces, constitute the surface on which the conflict between desire and responsibility manifests itself, a conflict that gradually reveals all the greatness of man who does not struggle for material interest but for moral values. They are the dreamers who seek the impossible, those who, even if there is nothing to strive for, will invent it. And even if Prometheus today seems to remain bound, he implores us to untie him. It is time…

ABSTRACT

Inspired by the myth of Prometheus, Spyros Kouvaras continues his choreographic explorations in our collective memory. Using movement, sound and image as the main axes of creation, he draws material by the monumental struggle of the mythical hero, attempting to explore the parallels between then and today. The choreographer places the body in the fragile present and at the same time sees behind the myth a hidden dream for the future. Choreographic rebellion or liberating manifesto ? “PROMETHEUS 2024 (unbound bodies)”, proposes the proud independence of a heroism that explores the uncompromising limits of imagination and shows us the current battlefield that is our own civilisation. It thus focuses on the anthropological dimension of the myth, carrying to the modern, changeable world, a crucial question. Can man save man ?

CREDITS

Production: Synthesis 748 Coproduction – Support: Hellenic Ministry of Culture, The Greek National Opera Concept, Choreography, Set Design: Spyros Kouvaras Original Music: Thanasis Koumenteris Artistic Collaboration: Korina Kotsiri Dancers: Christina Karagianni, Loukiani Papadaki, Elton Petri, Spyros Kouvaras Dramaturgy: Stella Dimitrakopoulou Visual Curation: Alexandra Nasioula Costumes: Kenneth Haarstring Sound Design and Installation: Studio 19st Lighting Design: Thomas Economacos Choreography Assistant: Alexandros Zarmakoupis Videography & Photos: Yiorgos Bakalis, Valeria Isaeva