DON JUAN – How Hard It Is To Be A Man

After a highly successful season in Athens, the production “Don Juan”, starring Panos Vlachos and directed by Lyto Triantafyllidou, comes to the 68th Philippi Festival, where it will be presented for two unique performances on Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 July at 21:30, at the Ancient Theatre of Philippi.

“Don Juan”, which won over audiences and critics alike with its original take on the legendary anti-hero by highlighting both the timelessness and contemporary force of the myth, offers the audience the opportunity to enjoy a singular theatrical experience, in which the great seducer is transformed into a charismatic yet dangerous leader.

Actor Panos Vlachos and director Lyto Triantafyllidou craft a new narrative around the iconic anti-hero, re-examining the position of men in the modern world.

A great seducer, blasphemous and indifferent to the consequences of his actions. From Molière to Lord Byron, Don Juan symbolises the rejection of traditional values and the pursuit of personal freedom. However, in a society of stark divisions and ideological confusion, Don Juan survives by reproducing ideologies that serve his own ambitions and desires. Thus, in this revised version, Panos Vlachos—as Don Juan—transforms into a narcissistic leader who offers simplistic answers in the face of an ideologically complex world, brought to life through the performances of Kostas Filippoglou, Panagiotis Katsolis, Ilektra Fragkiadaki, Eirini Bounta, Melina Vamboula, Tereza Kazitori, and Katerina Galanaki.

A few words about the production:

In an attempt to escape the consequences of his actions, a failed artist, Don Juan, takes refuge in his father’s bar. In this landscape, which forms a distorted reflection of our society, Don Juan discovers that his true talent lies in gaining followers. And so, we watch as he charms the disoriented patrons and builds a new cult around his persona. As the bar transforms into a “Church,” a space for a New Age cult to emerge, and as his followers grow ever more devoted, the line between faith and manipulation begins to blur.

In this reimagined version of the character, Don Juan becomes the ultimate symbol of our era, possessing two critical “gifts”: a lack of ideology and unrestrained ambition. Freed from all moral constraints, Don Juan engages in a trade of hope, offering each of his followers the easy road to happiness. He becomes a leader without an ethical core, a merchant of dreams promising boundless freedom, yet incapable of foreseeing the destructive consequences that the shallowness of his teachings may bring.

In this subversive new approach to Don Juan, a remarkable creative team comes together: Alexandros Kouros signs the music, performed live on stage, with lyrics by Panos Vlachos. The set is designed by Dimitris Polychroniadis and the costumes by Matína Megla. Movement direction is by Panagiota Kallimani and lighting design by Valentina Tamiolaki.