Mataroa on the Horizon

Alternative Stage founding donor

Major Sponsor of the Greek National Opera

The Alternative Stage of the Greek National Opera, in co-production with the National Theatre of Greece, presents the new and ambitious music theatre production Mataroa on the Horizon, directed and conceptualized by Theo Abazis and featuring music by Nikos Kypourgos and Theo Abazis. The true story of the ship “Mataroa”, which transported Greek intellectuals to France after the Second World War, has inspired a new music theatre fiction based on these historical events and their connection to the present. The production Mataroa on the Horizon will receive its Greek premiere at the GNO Alternative Stage in the SNFCC on 14 December 2024, and will run for 21 performances until the 12^th of January 2025.

Mataroa on the Horizon projects the fragmented memories of a country with a traumatic past onto the screen of a dystopian present. The legendary ship promises a longed-for escape. An escape necessary for some, uncomfortable and futile for others, and doubtful for all. People in perpetual motion to the point of extinction, fugitives from a rotting world, await the ship for a place that promises justice and allows for dreams. Heirs to defeat and frustration, haunted in the “between” worlds, stuck in the timeless, they await in turn the hope of a journey, the redemptive future, the arrival to the new land of freedom. The field for utopia remains open, only the horizon is empty, sightless. Where is the Promised Land today? Does it still exist? If so, who are they who will embark on the liberty ark?

The libretto, penned by Elsa Andrianou, serves as a fertile foundation for multilayered scenes, where speech, music, and stage action coexist equally, all contributing to the overall storytelling. The performance features a select cast of versatile actors, dancers, and musicians.

Il était un petit navire / There once was a little ship…

The ship was called “Mataroa” and departed from Greece at dawn on 22 December 1945. In the most difficult period of modern Greek history, at the outbreak of the Civil War, in a gloomy climate of persecution and fear, the philhellene Octave Merlier, director of the French Institute, in collaboration with deputy director, Roger Milliex, foreseeing the ominous political developments, evacuated the new generation of the intellectual elite of Greece to Paris through the institution of scholarships of the French state. The British ship “Mataroa”, a word which, according to one version, means “woman with big eyes” in Polynesian and, according to others, suggests insight, restlessness, hope, being alive, took with it 125 young Greek scientists and artists to save them from the “white terror” that began after the Dekemvriana clashes. These people included Kornilios Kastoriadis, Kostas Papaioannou, Mimika Kranaki, Kostas Axelos, historian Nikos Svoronos, architecture students Emmanouil Kindynis, Aristomenis Provelengios, Athanasios Gattos, Konstantinos Manouilidis, Nikolas Hatzimichalis, Giorgos Kandylis, Panos Tsolakis, and Takis Zenetos, cinematographer Manos Zacharias, sculptor Memos Makris, painter Dikos Vyzantios, musician Dimitris Horafas, art critic Angelos Prokopiou, doctors Andreas Glinos and Evangelos Brikas, author Elli Alexiou, poetess Matsi Hatzilazarou, poet Andreas Kampas, philologists Emmanouil Kriaras and Stamatios Karatzas, and many more.

This restless “precious load” would seek a way of salvation in the French universities and later would change the course of thought, science, letters and arts in the whole of Europe with their works. Since then, however, a lot has changed. Now – eighty years later – what? Where to? And why?

“Airplanes vanish into the clouds. Ships fade away into time…” 

The music theatre production Mataroa on the Horizon marks the first collaboration of the GNO Alternative Stage with the National Theatre of Greece. The production is conceptualized and directed by Theo Abazis, an experienced and significant creator, composer, and director, whose works blend the theatrical and contemporary musical language in perfect harmony. In composing the original music for the performance, Theo Abazis has collaborated once again with his distinguished colleague Nikos Kypourgos, one of the most popular modern Greek musicians, known for his extensive experience and versatile contributions to both music for theater and music theater. The two composers join forces to create a unique sound universe that elegantly passes from dramatic extroversion and sarcastic acidity to subtle humour and nostalgic melodiousness. Their work combines abstract sounds and lyrical inspiration, resulting in an expressive music-theatre blend that converses with the musicality and inner rhythm of the speech and movement of the skilled actors who undertake the challenging task of performing it.

Based on an original libretto by Elsa Andrianou, a hybrid blend of political and poetic theatre that masterly navigates between verse and prose and portrays the recent modern Greek experience as a bitterly comic Babel of conflicting voices, Theo Abazis directs a modern and fascinating piece of pure music theatre, where memory connects the past to the present.

The stage depicts the quay of a port and a sea of countless little flags, where the heroes of the story – hopeful travellers of a new Mataroa – never stop singing, dancing, playing their musical instruments, and dreaming, while struggling against disparities, the burden of a post-civil-war legacy, and their more recent European experience. As they find themselves in a state of uncertain departure, the world and history unfold before them, confirming that “even when dreams shrink, it only happens so they can grow big again” and that failures, dangers, and pain exist to give meaning to forgiveness, victory, and joy.

“At a harbor's pier, a group of young people is preparing for a ‘big exit.’ They are waiting for a ship that will take them away from the bleak reality towards a place of freedom, well-being, inspiration, and new opportunities.  All of them know the story of ‘Mataroa’ and, the more they wait, the more references they make to that historical journey. Yet the differences between the era of the legendary ‘Mataroa’ and today are more than evident; the old story, in and of itself, fails to feed their anticipation, which gradually turns into doubt and, eventually, despair. The ‘young travelers’, halted in an ‘in-between’ place, unable to intervene, and having lost the sense of time and space, end up becoming weak-willed observers of the vast horizon. The unexpected arrival of an original ‘Mataroa’ passenger flips their story around, redefining both the significance of this journey and its goal.”, notes Theo Abazis.

Kenny McLellan designed the sets and costumes. Stavroula Siamou is in charge of the movement, and Nikos Vlassopoulos designed the lighting. Eleana Tsichli is the associate director, and Elita Kounadi is responsible for the historical research and dramaturgy.

The cast includes Dimitris Xanthopoulos, Manolis Mavromatakis, Angeliki Stellatou, Lena Bozaki, Giannis Englezos, Antigoni Frida, Electra Kartanou, Elita Kounadi, Marios Kritikopoulos, Vasilis Papadopoulos, Stefanos Pittas, and Periklis Sioundas

Featuring the musicians: Marinos Galatsinos (clarinet, saxophone), Thanos Polymeneas-Liontiris (double bass), Thodoris Vazakas (percussion), Haroula Tsalpara piano.

Fully accessible performances of the music theatre Mataroa on the Horizon

The performances of Mataroa on the Horizon will be fully accessible on the 15th and 18th of December 2024, providing an inclusive audiovisual experience for all audiences in collaboration with ATLAS E.P. In this context, there will be designated seats for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing and use Greek Sign Language, places for those who rely on captions (CAPS) covering the entire audio channel, as well as seats for individuals who are blind or have limited access to the visual channel of communication and use the audio description (AD) service. Guide dogs for the visually impaired will also be permitted.

The full accessibility services for this production are funded by the Ministry of Culture, as part of the project“SUB.1.1.6 Attracting 65+ individuals and persons with disabilities to events of the Greek National Opera”. This project is implemented as part of the “Greece 2.0 - National Recovery and Resilience Plan” with funds from the European Union-NextGeneration EU.

Audience members who wish to use the accessibility services are requested to purchase their tickets at the GNO Box Office, over the phone at 2130885700, or via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. If you need assistance with your reservation, you can also contact ATLAS E.P. at 6993507553 or via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.@gmail.com.