The Road Passes Within (1990)

Ο Δρόμος Περνά από Μέσα – Πειραματικό Θέατρο της Πόλης – Μαριέττα Ριάλδη

Directed by: Iakovos Kambanellis
Set Design: Gioula Gazetopoulou
Costumes: Lydia Gravani
Music: Filippos Sofianos

Έργο σε δύο μέρη και επτά εικόνες. Σε ένα παρηκμασμένο νεοκλασικό αρχοντικό ζει ο γερο-Ποριώτης, ένας ξεπεσμένος μεγαλοαστός με μοναδική συντροφιά την πιστή του οικονόμο. Ξαφνικά εισβάλλει στο σπίτι ο Αντωνάκος, ένας μικρομεσαίος επιχειρηματίας με τη γυναίκα του, οι οποίοι με “δόλωμα” τις αυθεντικές αντίκες που φέρνουν, επιδιώκουν να πείσουν τον ιδιοκτήτη να συμμετάσχει σε ένα σχέδιο οικονομικής “ανάδειξης” του μεγάρου, με απώτερο σκοπό να γίνουν οι ίδιοι ιδιοκτήτες του και να ανέλθουν κοινωνικά.

An outstanding contribution to modern Greek theatre is the play “The Road Passes Within,” the final work of Iakovos Kambanellis, directed by the author himself at the Experimental Theatre of the City. The economy, and at the same time the richness, of its incisive monologues; the balance between introspection and the cataloguing of social types; the dramatic space as a field of poetic elevation and metaphor; its ellipsis, which moves in tandem with suggestiveness; the discreet interweaving of a lyrical language; and, above all, the robust construction of individual cases, constitute some of the work’s principal merits. At the point where the old world intersects with the new, where the past—whether as memory, fear, or remorse—collides with the ruthless present, where a dying social class is being undermined by the rising class of climbers, the economically powerful, uncultivated, and unscrupulous, with the aim of gradually replacing it, Kambanellis composed his own “Cherry Orchard.”

Ελένη Βαροπούλου – ΤΟ ΒΗΜΑ

“In his new work, Kambanellis proves himself a significant poet. While there is a discernible structural framework, the dramaturgical development soars, becoming a true dramatic challenge for the future of our theatrical path. Maturing as an artist, Kambanellis reveals a tender inner landscape, a lyrical region of his talent previously hidden. Whereas his earlier work had satirized nouveau-riche kitsch, the obsession with taste, and slavish adherence to trends, he now opens the way for us to savor the touch of the rare, the wisdom of craftsmanship, and the value of the precious and unique. In The Invisible Troupe, there are exquisite nostalgic references to the authenticity of the landscape, to lost communal life, to the nurturing bonds built within the courtyard, and to broad human kinship. Kambanellis’s work stands as a spiritual event, beyond being merely a significant achievement in modern Greek dramaturgy.”

Κώστας Γεωργουσόπουλος – ΤΑ ΝΕΑ

The Eulogy (1992)

Ο Επικήδειος – Θανάσης Παπαγεωργίου – Θέατρο Στοά

It was first performed as the third one-act play in the recital performance by Thanasis Papageorgiou, featuring monologues by Iakovos Kambanellis, under the overall title “Three in Solitude,” at the Stoa Theatre.
((He and his Pants, The Celebratory Speech, The Eulogy))

Directed and Performed by: Thanasis Papageorgiou
Set and Costume Design: Lea Kousi

A comic monologue infused with dark humor. The play portrays the plight of an elderly writer who believes he was not granted the recognition he deserved during his lifetime and who strives to attain it, even after death.

“…This is a monologue which, through the course of a single telephone call, essentially reveals the deeper nature of ambition and the terror of obscurity.” “…With verbal clarity, underlying humor, and sharp sarcasm, the author presents us with the image of a man who macabrely defines his own validation, who regards the achievement of recognition as more significant than even his own life, as an accomplishment surpassing his very existence.”

Μαρία Κυριάκη – ΕΠΙ ΣΚΗΝΗΣ (Οκτώβριος 2014)

The Supper (1993)

Ο Δείπνος (Γράμμα στον Ορέστη, Ο Δείπνος, Πάροδος Θηβών) – Εθνικό Θέατρο – Νέα Σκηνή

Directed by: Iakovos Kambanellis
Set and Costume Design: Dora Lelouda
Music Supervision: Olympia Kyriakaki

A play composed of three one-act plays, based on the myths of the Atreides and the Labdakides: Letter to Orestes, The Supper and Thebes Side Sidestreet. In the first one-act, Clytemnestra writes a letter to her son Orestes, recounting the events that led her to commit murder. She speaks of her time, of the unjust universe of men, of wars, violence, crime, and blood. She calls for an end. In the second one-act play, the descendants of the House of Atreus organize a memorial dinner for their murdered parents. The living and the dead are present together at the same table, repentant for their deeds and united by a desire for reconciliation. In the third, the plot of the play may be seen as a continuation of the tragedy of Antigoni. The myth unfolds after the burial of Polynices, when unrest breaks out in Thebes between the supporters of Creon and those of Oedipus.

“Entering the eighth decade of his life, Kambanellis continues to surprise us with his pioneering spirit, for what else are the three one-act plays he presents at the New Stage of the National Theatre, under his own direction, if not surprises? The Dinner is a brilliant conception. The presence at this banquet of the dead alongside the living—yet with no communication between them (the dead can hear the living, but the living remain unaware of the dead’s presence)—gives Kambanellis the opportunity to explore fascinating facets of the heroes of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides after the killings, where the victims have now attained the experience of eternity, and the living perpetrators bear the unbearable guilt of the victims’ absence.”

Κώστας Γεωργουσόπουλος – ΤΑ ΝΕΑ

“Once again, Iakovos Kambanellis has surprised us with his theatrical creation, distinguished by high quality, poetic inspiration, thematic richness, formal flexibility, and intellectual freshness. In our view, it represents a major contribution to contemporary dramaturgy—not only in Greece. Kambanellis’s achievement is remarkable not only for the aesthetic and dramaturgical mastery of these one-act plays, but because, through them, he explores with astonishing originality, superb psychological insight, profound love and understanding of humanity, and a contemporary sociological perspective, the tragic myths of the Atreids and the Labdacids.”

Θυμέλη – ΡΙΖΟΣΠΑΣΤΗΣ

In Ibsenland (1995)

Στη Χώρα Ίψεν – Πειραματική Σκηνή της Τέχνης, Θεσσαλονίκη

Directed by: Petros Zivanos
Set and Costume Design: Ioanna Manoledaki
Music and Supervision: Dimitris Naziris

A work – a study on Ibsen’s Ghosts. Initially, the portrait is presented of the two Ibsenian characters, Mrs. Alving and Pastor Manders, as they might have been in their youth, when they first met and fell in love. Then the two figures are shown at a later moment, when they encounter one another again, yet once more love remains unfulfilled and the characters are left spiritually desolate.

“Regarding the understanding of the characters themselves, it is true that, despite the recognized timelessness of Ibsen’s works, we today cannot easily connect with the cultural context of the 1880s. The particular language of the characters of that era, their beliefs and expressions, contain not a single great confessional, wise, or sincere work—a document of an existential journey, deeply intertwined with the historical environment and the times in which it unfolded.”

Γιώργος Χατζηδάκης – ΡΑΔΙΟΤΗΛΕΟΡΑΣΗ

“In the course of theatre and its engagement with audiences, there are certain playwrights who seem perpetually evergreen—authors who remain, over time, consistently creative, inquisitive, and pioneering, continuously evolving their writing and thought while maintaining a living connection with society and the life around them. One such author in the Greek theatrical and social sphere is Iakovos Kambanellis, the ‘patriarch’ of modern theatre in the country. An author who seems never to rest on the countless and exceedingly significant contributions he has already made, but constantly seeks new ways to express his expanding reflections—reflections that, over the past decade, appear gradually to move away from a decisively descriptive and critical gaze toward ‘symbiotic’ life, diving instead into the very core of human ontological existence. With heroes and themes no longer defined solely by their ‘Greekness,’ yet intrinsically embodying it.”

Βάιος Παγκουρέλης – ΕΛΕΥΘΕΡΟΣ ΤΥΠΟΣ

Stella with the Red Gloves (1997)

Η Στέλλα με τα Κόκκινα Γάντια – ΔΗ.ΠΕ.ΘΕ. Βόλου

Directed by: Themis Moumoulidis
Set and Costume Design: Giorgos Asimakopoulos

A love story in two parts and six scenes. Influenced by Lorca’s work and the opera Carmen, Kambanellis wrote the play on commission for Melina Mercouri, drawing inspiration from her for the central heroine. The work unfolds the stories and dramas of the microcosm of the rebetiko song tradition of the era.

The author already demonstrates his virtues here: a realistic text with poetic “flights,” an exceptional sense of dramatic economy and theatrical dialogue, even if it does not delve beyond melodrama and has not yet transcended its time. The influences are evident: Stella and Carmen—a Carmen more socially aware—the dialogues inspired by Lorca and Tennessee Williams, and the encounter with the young man drawn directly from A Streetcar Named Desire… Yet these do not diminish its value.

Γιώργος Δ. Σαρηγιάννης – ΤΑΧΥΔΡΟΜΟΣ

The Last Act (1997)

Η Τελευταία Πράξη – Πειραματική Σκηνή της Τέχνης, Θεσσαλονίκη

Directed by: Petros Zivanos
Set and Costume Design: Ioanna Manoledaki
Music: Faidon Chatzisantoniou

A play in six tableaux, full of reversals and surprises. The years pass and Odysseus does not return to Ithaca. He harbors the obsessive belief that his political opponents intend to eliminate him. At some point he returns in secret, but he is discovered, and a plan is devised to restore him to his senses. As Nikiforos Papandreou notes, “Kambanellis returns with undiminished zest to a myth that has long preoccupied him, while simultaneously winking at Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Pirandello’s Henry IV, placing theatre’s illusion in the service of truth.”

“…Today, Odysseus returns to Ithaca and constantly hides because he is out of touch with reality, suffering, moreover, from… persecution mania.” “…Playing with himself, with his heroes who deceive him, Iakovos Kambanellis seeks to share the joy of the game with the audience, returning to the myth of Odysseus that has occupied him in the past (Odysseus, Go Home). This time, he unravels the thread of his story with a pronounced Pirandellian mood and a humorous flair.”

Γιώργος Βιδάλης – ΕΛΕΥΘΕΡΟΤΥΠΙΑ (Νοέμβριος 1997)

“…The Final Act contains all the elements of a carefully crafted theatrical text: excellent plot, unexpected twists, tight dialogue, and a vibrant, contemporary theatrical language. The author draws his material from the Homeric myth of Odysseus, as he has done in earlier theatrical works, integrating the primary elements of the myth into modern reality with enviable mastery. In doing so, he transcends the pitfall of oversimplified ‘adaptation’ and renders, with exceptional sensitivity, a new work that is both timeless and contemporary, immediate and rooted in everyday life.”

Μαρία Παπαδοπούλου – ΕΞΩΣΤΗΣ (Νοέμβριος 1998)

A Meeting Elsewhere (1997)

Μια Συνάντηση Κάπου Αλλού – Θέατρο Τέχνης – Κάρολος Κουν

Directed by: Mimis Kougioumtzis
Set Design: Antonis Danglidis
Set and Costume Design: Antonis Danglidis, Christina Papageorgiou
Music: Filippos Tsalachouris

A work “in ten images and memories.” According to the author, “the impetus for the work was a line spoken by a character in The Invisible Tpoupe: ‘I came to gather myself, the self I left behind here.’” It is a stage narrative of a journey through the most significant events in the protagonist’s life. Behind the episodes and landscapes he recalls lie moments from the lives of other figures in Iakovos Kambanellis’ dramaturgy, as well as from the writer’s own personal experiences.

“…In this new work, the author charmingly connects the real and recognizable aspects of life with the symbolic, crafting the image of a person’s journey from birth to death.” “…And this journey, which ideologically leads to the culmination of life’s ‘endurance’ (a message to which, it seems, all great writers arrive in their maturity), is theatrically accompanied by a highly ingenious text, rich in humor and poetry.”

Βάιος Παγκουρέλης – ΕΛΕΥΘΕΡΟΣ ΤΥΠΟΣ (Ιανουάριος 1998)

“…Kambanellis illuminates each stage of life with a significant and often traumatic experience. He narrates small but intense incidents, fragmentary and unanchored, as if shafts of light penetrate the stage-time and illuminate the remnants of a life. The mystery of this ingenious work lies precisely in this. He tells the story in fragments, accumulating images, as if drawn from memory through a painful birth, while simultaneously the five consciousnesses—or rather, a single consciousness in five phases of its development—exist independently of the events. One gets the impression that Kambanellis, with Aristotelian precision, separates essence, subject, and character from mere occurrences.”

Κώστας Γεωργουσόπουλος – ΤΑ ΝΕΑ (Φεβρουάριος 1998)