Norpa plays the Greek blues
Café Rebetika! is Norpa’s first presentation of the year. This production, having had a very successful premiere in Melbourne, hits the Lismore City Hall stage on Saturday, March 12, at 7.30pm.
Café Rebetika! is passionate and uplifting theatre set in the slums of 1930s urban Greece during the rise of rebetika, which is basically the Greek blues. Cabaret, music, theatre and dance unite in the gutsy rebetika sub-culture. Born out of outcast despair, the men and women of rebetika create a utopia of acceptance, respect and defiance.
The play is set in a hash den, where musicians, anarchists, refugees, communists, prostitutes and manges (tough guys who live by a strict moral code) gather. (I’ve been to places like that around here...)
At the centre of the story are the manga Stavrakas, played by Tony Nikolakopoulos, and Areti (played by Jenny Vuletic). They’re in love and, as always, love presents confronting problems.
Café Rebetika! is directed by Stephen Lloyd Helper, written by Stephen Lloyd Helper and Thomas Papathanassiou, and developed with Rebetiki, a renowned rebetika band Café Rebetika! is performed in English with authentic rebetika songs in Greek, accompanied with English subtitles. (How do you do subtitles in a play?)
Tickets are $47/38/21 available now by visiting www.norpa.org.au.
