“The Only Journey of his Life” by Georgios Vizyinos

Georges Vizyinos’ masterpiece “The Only Journey of my Life” is about author’s autobiographical “journey” at the age of ten years old to Istanbul, in 1859, to become an apprentice of a cruel and tyrannical tailor. The confinement in the tailor shop, his phobias and expectations, his imagination as a little kid when his grandfather confesses his last wish about riding a horse at night, all these things are accompanied by poetry, realism and meditation and Vizyinos’ journey is one of the greatest novels ever written in the history of world literature.

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Dimos Avdeliodis notes on Vizyinos’ Art

“Only through imagining Vizyinos’ potential absence from the Greek literature, one can realise and comprehend his unique contribution. It could probably seem like a Cavafy’s absence in poerty, or Chadjidakis’ absence in music. What could be the deficit and what is the thing that interconnects all these personas?     

We do not have to be destructed by the coincidence of their common birthplace (Thrace), instead of this one can seek the common elements in their art by evaluating their work through rules and methods.

Vizyinos starts his novel “The Only Journey of my Life” with a fairy-tale about a young kid that tries to accomplice an outstanding mission assigned by the king, in order to win the love of the princess, always with the inspiration given by a Fairy/Mother Art. This little story creates a unique and perfect parable about Art’s function and reason through the law of “Other” in terms of dramaturgical and aesthetic adequacy. Timing is also important in order to have a piece of art that cannot be described as obsolete or old-fashioned.

During the process, from the conception until the creation of the story, there is a passionate idea that incites the plot. The idea of a princess that is blindly in love with someone. Hence, there is the idea of Eros that adjusts the passion of the creation and it reminds its perception by Plato. For Plato, Eros is the attraction and the overcome of Truth and Truth is not something vague. Truth is action, idea and fate that cannot be forgotten.

The erotic character that is pronounced by Vizyinos, Cavafy and Chadjidakis is the exceedance of Truth and it can be detected in Art’s functional elements: simplicity, clarity, speed, lack of sophistication and pure erotic communion. Through these elements, we can identify ourselves in the “Other” and listen to the story as something familiar.

Formidable joy and compassion can be offered by these three “unique” artists and their masterpieces.”

Direction – Theatrical Adaptation: Dimos Avdeliodis
Music: Vangelis Yannakis
Speech and Movement Teaching – Stage Overview: Dimos Avdeliodis
Piano: Alexandros Avdeliodis
Photographs: Vassilis Makris

With Danae Roussou