Puppets of Prassein Aloga group tell a magical tale of growing up
Drawing inspiration from an old folk tale from the region of Macedonia in northern Greece, the Prassein Aloga puppet theater group presents «The Princess with the Green Tail» for the 2002-2003 season. The performance will have its premiere tonight at the Proskinio Theater in central Athens as part of the UNESCO International Theater Institute Conference, before a season run at the same venue in November, starting on November 3 with a children’s premiere. Combining the romanticism of folklore with techniques and concepts more applicable to present-day society, the group relates the tale of a princess who is gradually transformed into a small lizard, paying the price of her immaturity with her beauty. Her metamorphosis opens the way to wisdom, as both she and her father, who has trouble coming to terms with her growing up, get in touch with their emotions. The story line, which is based on the tale «The Man Who Understood Animals,» also examines people’s ability to become acquainted with their instinctual side and to understand both the norms of the society we live in and our more basic needs. The puppets the Prassein Aloga group uses are almost life-size, and thus the actors manipulate them by using their entire bodies, creating, in effect, choreographed movements of actor and puppet together. The performance has been written and directed by Emmanuela Kapokaki, who stars along with Maria Papastefanaki. It is aimed mostly at children and has a simple narrative structure, with bright colors and music that will appeal to both the young and the young at heart. Performances will be held for children every Sunday at 12.30 p.m. as of November 3 and on Mondays and Tuesdays at 9.30 p.m. from November 11, for adults. Tonight’s performance will start at the Proskinio Theater (8 Kapnokoptiriou Street) at 9 p.m.
