Theatre

From screen to stage: Dogville of Lars von Trier

The widely discussed and multi-awarded movie of the Danish subversive film director Lars von Trier is presented for the second time at the Greek theater. The young director Efi Gousi undertakes this project after the successful Sarah Kane’s “Cleansed”. Besides, von Trier’s film included plenty dramatic features, while its allegory seems to have a perfect function on stage. In the performance that is presented from November, 20th 2015 onwards at the Acropol Theater, on Mondays & Tuesdays (evening) and Fridays & Saturdays (midnight), in translation of Adonis Galeos, there are two leading actors Youlika Skafida and Dimitris Passas.

In a recent interview for the Greek online magazine www.glow.gr, the talented director and actress Efi Gousi, who has already directed The Diary of Anne Frank, “Miss Julie” by August Strindberg and “Cleansed” by Sarah Kane, stated that one of the basic elements of her work is the creation of images. “Dogville is a play about greed and that’s my main focus on the play. The citizens of a town are tolerant of Grace’s arrival as long as they take what they want but what they take is never enough for them”.

The cooperation with Efi Gousi as well as with the theater troupe has been very creative, according to the leading actress Youlika Skafida, at the same interview, who believes that Dogville is an allegory of fate, of love, of forgiveness and of the end of innocence. And she adds: “In my life, I try to excuse people and I even forgive them sometimes. I believe in people and in their own choices. No one is adrift on the currents of fate imposed upon him or her”.

The movie’s theatrical adaptation of Christian Lollike was first presented in Greece eleven years ago, at the National Theater of Athens, in direction of Antonis Kalogeridis, with Natasa Kalogeridis and Mirka Papakonstantinou as the leading actors.

Synopsis:

Imagine a small town called Dogville. At that place, no gifts ever fall from the sky, till that night that Grace appears, the beautiful refugee, chased by gangsters. The citizens take advantage from her work. As time goes by, Dogville will show its teeth to Grace and Grace will reveal her own Grace. Dogville will soon belong to the past.

Credits:

Playwright: Lars von Trier
Theatrical adaptation: Christian Lollike
Translation: Adonis Galeos
Direction / Art Direction / Dramaturgy: Efi Gousi
Music: Nalyssa Green
Kinesiology / Director Assistant: Vaggelis Telonis
Set Design: Ira Spagadorou
Costumes: Daphne Iliaki

Featuring:
Efthimis Zisakis
Orestis Karydas
Michalis Leventogiannis
Romanna Lobats
Dimitris Passas
Youlika Skafida
Penelope Tsilika

The Artbassador has granted the licence for the stage production of the play to Acropol Theatrer on behalf of Nordiska - International Performing Rights Agency.