Alone Onstage at the Ancient Greek Theater of Epidavros

One of my great treats is being literally all alone (with a fine local guide) at some of our civilization’s greatest sights. With this clip, you’re here with me — late in the day when it’s silent and cool — at Epidavros, the most amazing theater surviving from the ancient world. After visiting so many museums here in Greece, I couldn’t help but notice how my guide, Patty, actually has an “archaic” smile — perfectly matching the enigmatic little grin you see on the statues from Greece’s Archaic Period (500 to 700 B.C.), before the Golden Age came and saddled us with reality.

Comments

4 Replies to “Alone Onstage at the Ancient Greek Theater of Epidavros”

  1. Thanks. The acoustics are spectacular. Did you go on a tour of the Stavros Niarchos Cultural Center, it will be finished next year. It was designed by Italian Master architect Renzo Piano, with an opera house having great acoustics and a gorgeous Mediterranean Park. It will be a new and huge attraction in Athens. A city that will change drastically by 2017. Your Athens tour book will have major changes in the following few years.

  2. This is absolutely incredible. I got shivers just watching your video! How amazing! The Greeks were truly innovative.

    Are there still performances there sometimes? Or is it just a sightseeing spot now?

  3. I’ve been to Epidaurus a number of times, bringing “newbie” friends, always in May and thus uncrowded … and part of the fun is seeing how tourists react. Some recite poems or sing favorite songs: most common is to sing a national Anthem — Polish, German, Canadian. The best performances are by Greek schoolkids (usually Jr High age). One May a class acted out a hilarious scene from the ancient Greek comedy “Lysistrata” (the play where women refuse to have sex until their men give up war). These students giggled with embarrassment, declaiming the ancient witty-naughty lines. it was good to see that — despite the crude rock lyrics airing everywhere today — teenagers can still blush at Aristophanes!

Comments are closed.