2024 /// THEATER PERFORMANCE /// NATIONAL THEATER
A youth party begins. The social media generation, who live and breathe technology, are confronted with the dangers of the online world. Nothing is innocent any longer. Nothing is hidden. When young people, parents and teachers are forced to take a stand in a case of cyberbullying, a chain reaction reveals the nature of complicity and the role that silence plays in allowing violence to thrive. School, bedrooms, and even free time become like prisons. Who is telling the truth and who is lying? The boundaries between fact and fantasy are blurred. And reality is constantly slipping away.
It is a coming-of-age story set in the digital age and all that that entails: ‘likes’, red hearts, anonymity, violation of privacy, and internet rights. How safe do you really feel?
Maria Zavakou’s highly original new work, inspired by the personal narratives of under-eight teens who have suffered online harassment, becomes a living theatrical experience. The result of months of research working with experts including criminologists, psychiatrists, journalists, and A.I. scientists, the play grapples with the thorny issue of bullying both at school and in cyberspace, mental health, and how to prevent and deal with abuse. How can the circle of silence be broken? What should our position be regarding retaliation? The production explores the unique stage of life known as adolescence, as well as the need we all have for real, meaningful communication.
Writer: Maria Zavakou
Director: Yolanda Markopoulou
Set and Costumes: Aristotle Karananos, Alexandra Siafkou
Music and Sound Design: David Blouin
Video Design: Erato Tzavara
Lighting: Alekos Anastasiou
Playwright: Irini Moundraki
Assistant Director: Stella Papakonstantinou
Assistant Set and Costume Designer: Afroditi Psychouli
Photographers: Elina Giounanli
After the party is funded by Stavros Niarchos Foundation
After the party, directed by Yolanda Markopoulou, was presented at REX THEATRE – ELENI PAPADAKI STAGE from 8/11/2024 to 19/1/2025.
Cast (in alphabetical order): Asimina Anastasopoulou, Themistoklis Malesagos, Michail Melissis, Eleni Michailidou, Vivi Fotopoulou
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