The Birds: Karagiozis in the Land of Birds

Karagiozis meets Aristophane's “The Birds” in a huge shadow puppetry play with live music of the awardwinning director and shadow theater player Elias Karellas.

Elias Karellas creates a colorful lyrical tale, inspired by the traditional shadow puppet theater's popular heroes as well as the ancient comedy of Aristophanes. Ninety gigantic figures come alive in a 45 sq. meter puppet theater scene with the voices of Elias Karellas, Christos Thivaios (as the hoopoe bird), Georgia Kefala of the band “Μπλέ”(as the nightingale), while Promitheus is played by Thanos Kosmidis from the band “Burger Project”. The play's music was written by the “String Demons” who play and sing live on stage.

Karagiozis as “Pisthetaerus” and his famous uncle “Barbayorgos” as Evelpides, disappointed by their city, seek out the ideal state to live happily and peacefully in. “The Birds” who see everything flying up high are the best advisers to point out the whereabouts of this beautiful ideal state. So they decide to leave those tall apartment buildings, the noise and the gray of the city behind and spread out through the Stavros Niarchos Park in order to meet “The Birds” and their leader in their natural surroundings.

The shadow puppeteer and director Elias Karellas, during the past decades has succeeded in bringing a fresh outlook to the Theater for Children and Young Adults creating avant- garde performances in which actors, shadows, puppets, masks, multimedia and live music co-exist on stage in harmony. In this performance he takes things a step further by creating an impressive spectacle for the whole family in which the values of popular shadow puppet theater, meet the allegory of Aristophane's ancient comedy.

Contributors:
Adaptation – Direction -Lyrics: Ilias Karellas
Original Music Score: String Demons
Movement – Choreography: Antigone Gyra
Set & Light Design: Ilias Karellas
Costumes: Angeliki Bozou
Assistant Director: Dimitra Konsta
Shadow Puppets Construction : Ilias Karellas, Nikolas Tzivelekis
Set Construction : Michalis Raptis
Sound Producer & Designer: Dimitris Doulias
Special Lighting Construction: Grigoris Kourelis

Cast:
Karagiozis, Barba-Yorgos and 35 more voices: Ilias Karellas
Hoopoe: Christos Thiveos
Nightingale: Georgia Kefala
Narrators – Musicians: String Demons
Prometheus – Musician: Thanos Kosmidis
Drummer: Haris Panagiotopoulos
Shadow Puppeteers: Spyros Georgiou, Konstantina Gorou, Haris Billinis, Nikolas Tzivelekis, Dimitra Konsta

Priority passes to be given 1 hour before (20.00), at the Labyrinth Info Kiosk.
Up to 2 passes to be given to each participant.