“Ichneutae” by Sophocles – Directed by Dimos Avdeliodis

The “Ichneutae” by Sophocles is the one and only preserved Satyr Play written by the Athenian Dramatist and it refers to the stealing of the sacred oxen of Apollo by the young Hermes and the invention of the first string instrument, the lyre.

However, the main theme of the Satyr play seems to be the humanization of the human beast through the initiatory and liberating character of music.

The performance was firstly presented at the International Conference on Theatrical Traditions of the Mediterranean that was organized by the Centre of Ancient Greek Drama of Panteion University, in cooperation with the Ecole des Hautes Etudes (Paris), the Royal Theatre Academy of London and the Piccolo Theatre of Milan, on July 2010.

The play’s great success and its contemporary-vivid way of performance imposed the presentation of the play to a wider audience. In addition, the critics described Avdeliodis’ approach of “Ichneutae” as one of the most important contemporary performances of the Ancient Drama during the recent years.

The play was the official Greek entry at the International Festivals of Ephesos and Black Sea with a great success.