Nicosia, Cyprus. Community theatre workshops for children and adults will take place in mountain villages every Saturday in February and March, offering sessions in Greek and English free of charge. The programme, titled O Topos en oi Anthropoi, will be guided by facilitators appointed by Thoc and will require registration.
Programme focus and aims
The workshop series, translated as The Place is the People, draws on the stories, memories and lived experiences of people in each area. Using theatrical tools and techniques, the sessions aim to strengthen cohesion, imagination and collective identity, while documenting local stories and supporting personal and communal identity.
Organisers said the goal is to strengthen the community’s creative voice, develop bonds between generations, encourage cultural renewal based on residents’ experiences, and create a local, living theatrical narrative. The programme will also explore ways to disseminate material produced within participating communities and beyond them.
Schedule and locations
Workshops will run from 10am to 1pm each Saturday in February and March at different locations.
The programme starts at Ayia Marina Xyliatou Cultural Hall, led by Stelios Kallistratis, and is open to residents and surrounding areas aged 12 to 112. The session will focus on participants and their memories or stories they know or discover about the village community, aiming to connect past and present and support collaboration between children and adults.
In Kyperounta, sessions will take place at the Sanatorium with Mikaella Theodoulidou, focusing on myths and truths of the location and on reawakening memories through sharing and storytelling.
The programme will then lead participants aged seven and above to Lania, where Nikoletta Prokopiou will welcome Greek and English speakers from the community and surrounding area. The session will focus on stories, memories and tales of Lania, encouraging collaboration and using elements such as a tree, a bus and a photograph to spark imagination.
Saturday workshops at the Foini Cultural Centre, led by Stella Symeou, will bring together three generations to create theatre by reviving local stories, with a focus on appreciation for the place, its people, traditions and treasures.
Registration and contact details
The workshops are free of charge and require registration. Contact numbers are: 99-893677 (Agia Marina Xyliatou), 99-849586 (Kyperounta), 99-948286 (Lania), 99-301991 (Foini).
Which of the village workshops are you planning to attend?
