Stage | The Guardian: After a three-day visit, it would be presumptuous to sum up Athenian theatre. But in that short time, I saw five productions, met numerous artists and learned a lot. My immediate impression was that Athens is a hive of theatrical activity: some 1,500 productions a year covering everything from Aeschylus and Sophocles to Pinter and Albee.
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This article on theatre in Greece was truly interesting. First of all, I found it incredible that roughly 1500 productions are put on in a year in Athens alone. Granted, Athens is a large city, but still, that number is still absolutely massive to me. It is very difficult to imagine on that scale the amount of work that would go into making all those shows come to life. I also found it really interesting how they interpret and put on productions in different spaces. For instance, their modernized version of Of Mice and Men, in a converted-warehouse theatre space. Instead of the typical farm setting, they opted to set the production in a modern-day Athens factory, and it incorporates into the plotline excellently. I think the most interesting part of the article, however, is the ticket prices. For any National Theatre of Greece shows, one will not be paying any more than €25, or for Of Mice and Men, €12. These ticket prices would simply be unheard of at any theatre company in the United States, which brings up the issue of accessibility to the arts in the U.S. Regardless, I would be more than interested in taking a week in Athens just to explore a little bit of what their theatre scene is like because it definitely sounds very interesting.
Stories like this are so important. It is so easy to think that theater and art in general isn’t important and should be purged during times of crisis, but time and again it has been proven that art matters. During the Great Depression, FDR luckily understood the importance of funding artists. So many wonderful plays have come out of that time. It scares me to see that so often today politicians and even my peers in STEM fields believe funding for artistic endeavors should be cut during times of economic crisis. The fact is that art is most important during these times because of how it helps to stimulate the economy and encourage people to maintain some positivity or at least continue to engage with their community. Greece has proven that. This article showcases the high quality productions that have come out of these tiny budgets. Packed houses are keeping theater, the economy, and people alive in Greece.
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