Nicosia Municipal Theatre
Dragons, princes, and princesses of Cypriot fairy tales arrive at the Nicosia Municipal Theatre and come to life in a performance with original music and songs by Kostas Cacoyannis and Pambos Koouzalis, with a live orchestra, animations, puppets, children's choir and immersive cinema-like sound.
 
With the verse by Michalis Pasiardis "...but these are the songs and the myths", Nicosia 2030, candidate for European Capital of Culture, embraces the tradition, myths and fairy tales of Cyprus, highlighting the intangible cultural heritage of our country. It presents the theatrical performance "Once upon a time", with traditional Cypriot fairy tales. The performance will be presented on 16 November 2024 (16:00) and 17 November 2024 (11:00 and 16:00), at the Nicosia Municipal Theatre, as part of the Nicosia International Festival.
 
The fairy tales were recorded by the researcher Nearchos Clerides in his book "Cypriot Fairy Tales", published by the Nearchos Clerides Cultural Centre. Back then, when the villages still spoke the rough Cypriot dialect. Nearchos Clerides compiled the collection of these tales through narratives of 19 men and 14 women from many regions of Cyprus, from Paphos to Yialousa. The tales are told by the storytellers at the time of the grain harvest, when they are gleaning the pampaki, at the fireplace during the winter months and in the village café (kafeneio).
 
Alpha Cyprus has created an innovative audio podcast based on the Cypriot fairy tales from the book by Nearchos Clerides, directed by Klitos Klitou, music composed by Kostas Kakogiannis and lyrics by Pambos Kouzalis. Through these podcasts, the idea for a performance "Once upon a time" was born in a dramaturgy by Stavros Stavrou. For this purpose, the following fairy tales were chosen: “The dragoness tziai i Vasilopoulla”, “The Pittortos”, “Triantafyllene”, “Dkiamantis” and “Stachtoula”.
 
Creative team
Dramaturgy: Stavros Stavrou
Cypriot dialect editing: Andreas Tsouris
Music Credits:
Music: Kostas Kakogiannis
Lyrics: Pambos Kouzalis
Interpretation (in alphabetical order): Mariam Venizelou, Andrea Markou, Andrea Neocleous, Georgia Neocleous
 
Participants:
Anthi Papaphilippou Children's Choir and the Nicosia Municipality Children's Choir
Choir conductor: Anthi Papafilippou
Assistant choir conductor: Araam Kontos
Support: Nicosia School Comittee
 
Musicians playing:
Percussion: Andreas Davison
Lute, mandolin, bouzouki, lute: Pambos Theodorou
Guitar, bass, piano, voice: Avraam Kontos
Pithkiyail, violin, flute, piano, voice: Kostas Kakogiannis
Friendly participation: percussion, voice: Pambos Kouzalis
Choreography: Fotis Nikolaou
Sets/ costumes: Lakis Genethlis
Lighting design: Christos Charalambous
Sound design: Nicolas Prokopiou
Animation/visual design: Black Dog Creative Agency

Actors: Andreas Tsouris, Astero Kyprianou, Semeli Kyriazi
Participants: Androula Eracleous, Anthi Antoniadou
And in a special appearance Andri Karantoni
Directed by: Klitos Klitou
Masks: Martha Foka
 
Duration: 70΄
 
Tickets:
Sold Out Tickets: bit.ly/NIF24_tickets, at Stephanis stores and the Nicosia Municipal Theatre box office (Monday - Friday 10:00-13:00).
 
Ticket prices:
ZONE A: €16/ €14
ZONE B: €14/ €12
ZONE C: € 12/ €10
ZONE D: €8
 
Information: 22797979 (Monday - Friday 10:00-13:00) & bit.ly/Website_NIF2024
 
Festival identity
Organisers: Nicosia Municipality, Nicosia For Art
Institutional Sponsor: Deputy Ministry of Culture, Republic of Cyprus
Communication sponsors: ALPHA CYPRUS, Love Radio