Lysistrata was written in 411 BCE. In this year, the city-state of Athens found itself at a difficult turning point in the Peloponnesian War. The Sicilian Expedition had ended in disaster, and Alcibiades had defected to the Spartans, who, having fortified Decelea, were attacking the Athenians with great ferocity. Inside the city of Athens, the situation was equally dire, as political intrigues had weakened the Ecclesia (the people’s assembly) and the oligarchs were an increasingly strong presence.
Aristophanes presented Lysistrata at the Lenaia Festival of 411 BCE, taking women out of the home and putting them in a public space, as he would do later in the Assemblywomen, giving them the opportunity for political agency both domestically and in the city at large.
His heroine, Lysistrata, as her name suggests, can disband armies, albeit with a plan that is more than a little utopian. Aristophanes thus uses comedy to turn the spotlight on politics, proposing a solution that is far from conventional.
The plot
Twenty years after the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War, Athens and Sparta are embroiled in a conflict that seems to have no end. The human losses and destruction continue unabated on both sides, while every effort to bring peace has met with failure. However, the head of the Athenian women, Lysistrata, does not despair and comes up with an unorthodox way of bringing the hostilities to an end.
She and Lampito, her Spartan counterpart, declare a strict and comprehensive sex strike by the women on both sides, with the aim of forcing the men to sign a peace treaty.
Lysistrata increases the pressure on the men by denying them access to the state treasury, held in the Acropolis, which she gets a group of older women to guard.
Despite the various comic reactions on the part of both the men and the women, the plan bears fruit and Lysistrata’s strategy proves effective.
Peace will soon appear in the form of a beautiful young woman, who inaugurates the festivities inside the Acropolis.
Information
Summer Tour
- 31/07/2020 21:00Epidaurus Ancient TheatreBUY TICKETS
- 01/08/2020 21:00Epidaurus Ancient TheatreBUY TICKETS
- 02/08/2020 21:00Epidaurus Ancient TheatreBUY TICKETS
- 09/08/2020 21:00Ancient Theatre of Dodoni
- 21/08/2020 21:00Open Theater Floka
- 29/08/2020 21:00Petras TheatreBUY TICKETS
- 05/09/2020 21:00SCHOOL OF ATHENS - Irene PapasBUY TICKETS
- 06/09/2020 21:00SCHOOL OF ATHENS - Irene PapasBUY TICKETS
- 16/09/2020 21:00SCHOOL OF ATHENS - Irene PapasBUY TICKETS
- 17/09/2020 21:00SCHOOL OF ATHENS - Irene PapasBUY TICKETS
- 18/09/2020 21:00SCHOOL OF ATHENS - Irene PapasBUY TICKETS
- 19/09/2020 21:00SCHOOL OF ATHENS - Irene PapasBUY TICKETS
- 20/09/2020 21:00SCHOOL OF ATHENS - Irene PapasBUY TICKETS
- 23/09/2020 21:00SCHOOL OF ATHENS - Irene PapasBUY TICKETS
Audiences can purchase tickets for the performances at “School of Athens – Irene Papas” in one of the three following ways:
- ZILLER BUILDING BOX OFFICE
Agiou Konstantinou 22-24
Monday to Friday 9:00-15:00
- SCHOOL OF ATHENS - Irene Papas BOX OFFICE
17:00 - 22:00, during the performance' s days (210 4833922)
The performances at the Epidaurus Ancient Theatre are presented with surtitles in English and Greek.
creation team
-
Sotiris kakisis
Translated by -
Odysseas Papaspiliopoulos
Dramaturgy, Directing -
Olga Brouma
Set design -
Angelos Mentis
Costume deisgn -
Katerina Polemi
Music -
Tassos Karahalios
Movement -
Nikos Vlasopoulos
Lighting design -
Melina Peonidou
Music coach -
Anastasia Stylianidi
Assistant to the director -
Iro Koronidi
Assistant to the set designer -
Aella Tsilikopoulou
Assistant to the costume designer -
Irene Moundraki
Dramaturg