The autocratic aristocrat Dareios Ronkalas stubbornly refuses to allow his daughter Garoufalia to marry the young man who loves her, because he is her social inferior. Unaware that Garoufalia is already pregnant, he resolves to shut her up in a monastery, attempting to impose his old-fashioned ideas by cruel and unfair means... A way out of the impasse is found with the help of Draganigos, Ronkalass only son, who expresses the revolutionary spirit and passion of young people and rails against the outmoded ideas of the older generation.
The Basil Plant written by Antonios Matesis in 1830, was inspired by the great revolutionary movements of the time and summarises the arguments of the Enlightenment, convincingly recreating the social mores of Zakynthos under Venetian rule. The writer tempers the dramatic tension of the plot with masterly comic episodes and Zakynthian tunes. The condemnation of prejudice and the vision of a fairer society are the main themes of the play, which has justly been described as the cornerstone of modern Greek theatre.
The Basil Plant will be performed on the Main Stage in a production directed by Spyros Evangelatos, who has unequalled experience of the genre. He directs a cast of well-known actors whose presence is a guarantee of artistic quality.
cast
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Giorgis Tsambourakis
Philippakis Giargyropoulos -
Thanassis Dimou
Glossidis -
Lefteris Polychronis
Another of Giargyropouloss workers -
Giorgos Velentzas
Old man, Nikolas, vendor -
Evdokia Roumelioti
Garoufalia -
Thanasis Kourlabas
Gerasimakis, Prevedouross informant -
Panos Skouroliakos
Kosmas Karapatis -
Michalis Mitroussis
Thomas -
Nikitas Tsakiroglou
Dareios Ronkalas -
Georgia Kallergi
Vassilo -
Katerina Helmy
Ronkalaina -
Vangelio Andreadaki
Lanaro -
Mina Adamaki
The Jewess Mantzardo -
Nikolas Papagiannis
Draganigos -
Lefteris Polychronis
Corporal Trapolas -
Giorgis Tsouris
Mattio, Venetian soldier -
Vasilis Papageorgiou
Giuanne, Venetian soldier -
Thodoros Katsafados
Bousakas, Ronkalass tenant -
Georgia Kallergi (percussion)
Musicians & singers -
Vasilis Papageorgiou (guitar)
Musicians & singers -
Giorgis Tsouris (clarinet)
Musicians & singers