A man (Dimitris Bozinis) was waiting for us as we entered in the theater.Seated alone on a bench. His face is pale white covered by his hat.
The stage becomes softer and colorful upon the arrival of the woman (Ioanna Katsarou).She appears as the personification of the Persian Chorus; a girl dressed in a light colored dress and pink ballerina shoes with her hair separated in two strong solid ponytails. A depiction of the once Persian youth. But that youth when hidden in her private room uncovers the icon of Atossa, the wife of Darius the Great and mother of Xerxes who lived to see her son invade Greece.
Atossa stood still on the stage of the Greek Cultural Center last night in Astoria.Alone dressed in garments announcing the ecstasy of Gold and power of the Persians.
'Ατοσσα:Και ποιός είναι ο αρχηγός που το στρατό εξουσιάζει?
Χορός: Δεν είναι δούλοι ή υπήκοοι κανενός.
As I was watching Dimitris Bozinis in one of his four faces in the play as the messenger who returns from the war to bring the news to Atossa screaming in ancient Greek, I was reminded of how proud I am to be Greek..
He shouted in a stormy whisper that echoed all over the theater :
Ω παίδες Ελλήνων, ίτε, ελευθερούτε πατρίδ', ελευθερούτε δε παίδας, γυναίκας, θεών τε πατρώων έδη, θήκας τε προγόνων, νυν υπέρ πάντων αγών.
And she stood still.
Alone covered in a coat of grief for the loss of all the Persian Army in the fight with the Greeks.
When I returned home I searched for that first photo I had taken of Ioanna Katsarou when I met her for the first time one night in East Village, Nyc. Looking at the photo,it was all clear to me. I could see now the image my lense wanted to capture. An amazing performer standing still. And behind her, the shadow of an ancient army of men dressed in Gold.
Congratulations to the whole cast of the p-roject, Ioanna Katsarou, Dimitris Bozinis, Dimitris Dimitrakopoulos, Sofia Tsekoura, Drew Florida. The p- roject, based on the play “THE PERSIANS” by Aeschylus will travel on June 8th to Montreal, Canada as part of the Fringe Festival.
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