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13-16 June 2009
a dynamic space for young talent and artists
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The 1st Greek Festival of Youth Arts at the Hellenic Centre on Sunday 6 July 2008 was a great success. It brought together young artists and performers form the UK, Europe and even Australia and offered a broad range of superb performances that excited and inspired the audience with their powerful expression, originality, youthful energy and high quality.
The Festival was launched as an annual event by the Director of the Hellenic Centre, Mrs Agatha Kalisperas, who highlighted the important role that young artists play in cultural life and stressed the efforts of the Hellenic Centre as well as of EKON to promote Greek arts in their diverse forms to a wide audience.
In her address, Dr Niki Katsaouni, Counsellor for Cultural Affairs at the Cyprus High Commission in London, drew emphasis on the dynamism of a new generation of artists reflected in the broad spectrum of artistic genres that were shown at the Festival. Describing the event as ‘an ambitious venture’, Dr. Katsaouni pledged her support for the Festival on behalf of the Cypriot government. Support for the Festival was also lent by Mr. Nikolaos Skinitis on behalf of the World Council of Hellenes Abroad.
The programme began with a recital of classical music which featured exceptional young Greek concert artists and also saw the world premiere of Nebulous by composer and conductor Christina Athinodorou. It then led to a varied repertoire of modern Greek song ranging from ‘rebetika’ and ballad songs to pop & rock music bringing the poetry of Sappho, Byzantine musical influences and the passions of the Greeks of the 1920s into a modern sensibility.
The Festival ended in dramatic Dionysian style with a de-constructive piece of instrumental theatre set against the more traditional, although no less original in its strands of cultural fusion, sound of Greek rural folk dance that thrilled the audience with the talent, exuberance and artistic skill of the performers.
It was a unique opportunity to enjoy a variety of performances which made the Festival a remarkable event. And of course special thanks must go to each and everyone who contributed to its success. As an independent cultural body, EKON aims to create a space where young emerging artists can work together in a stimulating environment, in which they can pioneer their work, reveal their creative abilities and present different expressions of Greek culture, not only traditional but also contemporary.
