CyprusTODAY Volume LVI, No 2, April-June 2017 201 202 Contents New elements of Intangible Cultural Heritage .....................4 The Poems of Nikos S. Vrachimis ......................................18 Solomos Frangoulides: The Artist – The Art Critic ............20 20th Cyprus Contemporary Dance Festival .........................22 15th Cyprus Film Days International Festival .....................29 Tefkros Anthias and Theodosis Pierides Awards ................32 Sender-Recipient .................................................................37 Images & Views of Alternative Cinema Film Festival .......42 Belief ....................................................................................46 Once Removed ....................................................................48 17th International Pharos Chamber Music Festival .............50 THOC presents ....................................................................62 Linking Continents – Bridging Cultures .............................64 Volume LVI, No 2, April-June 2017 A quarterly cultural review of the Ministry of Chief Editor: Education and Culture published and distributed by Jacqueline Agathocleous the Press and Information Office (PIO), Ministry of [email protected] Interior, Nicosia, Cyprus. GNORA COMMUNICATION CONSULTANTS (website: www.gnora.com) Tel: +357 22441922 Fax: +357 22519743 Address: Ministry of Education and Culture Editorial Assistance: Kimonos & Thoukydides Corner, 1434 Nicosia, Cyprus Chryso Demosthenous cdemosthenous@pio,moe.gov.cy Website: http://www.moec.gov.cy Press and Information Office Press and Information Office Apellis Street, 1456 Nicosia, Cyprus Design: GNORA COMMUNICATION CONSULTANTS Website: http://www.moi.gov.cy/pio Front cover: Still from Cypriot filmBoy on the Bridge, which won the Audience Award at the 15th Cyprus Film Days EDITORIAL BOARD International Festival Chairperson: Pavlos Paraskevas, Director of Cultural Services, PIO 131/2017 Ministry of Education and Culture ISSN(ONLINE) 1986-2547 The electronic editions of Cyprus Today can be found on the websites of the Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education and Culture (www. moec.gov.cy/politistikes_ypiresies/) and of the Press and Information Office (www.pio.gov.cy) Editor’s Note: Articles in this magazine may be freely quoted or reproduced provided that proper acknowledgement and credit is given to Cyprus Today and the authors (for signed articles). The sale or other commercial exploitation of this publication or part of it is strictly prohibited. Disclaimer: Views expressed in the signed articles are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the publishers. The magazine can also be found on the Press and Information Office website at www.pio.gov.cy. 1 Editorial elcome to our brand new issue of Cyprus Today, where we start off by taking a look W at the eight new registrations that have been included in the Cyprus Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of UNESCO. Readers can find out all the details of the new inscriptions, which include the Karagiozis Shadow Theatre, which has entertained people of all ages for decades, the Traditional Cyprus Wedding and its amazing customs and traditions, and Fervolites Lace, and learn more about our intangible cultural heritage and its importance. Our issue also presents the great Cypriot poet Nikos S. Vrachimis, who was killed in a car accident at the age of 47 but who left his mark on Cypriot letters as the creator of poetic works that are part of the global current of inter-war modernism. The Leventis Art Gallery pays tribute to another of the pioneering artists of the first generation of Modern Cypriot Art, with an exhibition dedicated to Solomos Frangoulidis: The Artist – The Art Critic. A number of festivals grace this issue’s pages, including the 20th Cyprus Contemporary Dance Festival, which brought together dance performers from France, Israel, Austria, Switzerland, Japan and Spain, alongside Cypriot dancers, as well as the 15th Cyprus Film Days International Festival; the largest international film event in Cyprus dedicated exclusively to contemporary world cinema and fiction feature films. Read on to find out about the exhibition Sender-Recipient with Cypriot artists Ioanna Kythreotou, Thekla Papadopoulou and Elena Tsigaridou, which was held at The Cyprus House in New York; or take a walk with us through internationally-acclaimed Israeli photographer Natan Dvir’s travelling outdoor photography exhibition entitled Belief, which travelled to all of the island’s towns. The exhibition was initiated by the newly- founded BPRarts Art & Cultural Management Company and co-organised by the Embassy of Israel in Cyprus. These and plenty more for our art and culture lovers, in this issue of Cyprus Today! 2 New elements added to the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage Contemporary Dance Festival THOC presents… Sender-Recipient 3 New elements added to the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage ight new registrations have been included (karagiozopaiktes) who would come to the Ein the Cypriot UNESCO national list of island to perform shows, and from Cypriots who intangible cultural heritage of humanity, the learned their craft from puppeteers in Greece. Cyprus National UNESCO Committee and the Today, the few remaining karagiozopaiktes are Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education to be found in the Paphos, Limassol, Nicosia and Culture announced. The new inscriptions and Larnaca districts. include the Karagiozis Shadow Theatre, the Description Traditional Cyprus Wedding and Fervolites The first karagiozopaiktes would perform in Lace. The Representative List of the Intangible coffee shops, inns and open spaces such as Cultural Heritage of Humanity aims to provide village squares and school yards. Children greater visibility to the intangible cultural heritage in general, raise awareness of its and adults would watch and be entertained by importance and encourage dialogue in respect the plot of the shadow play, and would either of cultural diversity. pay a fixed fee or contribute whatever they wished to - or were able to give. Today the karagiozopaiktes continue this tradition, and Shadow Theatre - Karagiozis perform in festivals and fetes, as well as in The art of Karagiozis, the most popular form schools and various cultural events. Through of shadow theatre in Cyprus, made its first their performances and teaching activities, they appearance on the island in the early 20th aim to pass on the art to the new generation, in century, through Greek shadow puppeteers order for this popular art form to continue. Shadow Theatre – Karagiozis © Christodoulos A. Pafios 4 A shadow-theatre performance in Agios Therapon village © 2014, Yiannis Pafios Shadow Theatre – Karagiozis © Christodoulos A. Pafios The subjects of the plays are largely drawn from too, they would present many of their plays ancient Greek mythology, the Scriptures (Old in episodes. Most Cypriot karagiozopaiktes and New Testament), Greek and world history, would bring and perform published works from world literature, popular legends and traditions, Greece or purchase the scripts from bookstores local history, news and events. In older times, in Cyprus. because karagiozopaiktes would set up their A karagiozopaiktis must have his or her own stage at a coffee shop or a similar establishment workshop to make the cardboard or wood for a set amount of time - and they wanted to puppet figures, the props and set designs, and attract an audience for the following evenings have the knowledge and skills to create them 5 The “zosimo” ritual © 2015, Tolis Xepaterakis and perform a show. The skills needed include the figures. But as the figures would fray, the designing, painting, carving and cutting shadow theatre masters would paint them with the puppets, writing, acting, improvising one or more layers of wood glue. Christodoulos and directing skills, correct articulation and Antoniades Pafios would make his own glue, enunciation, musical talent to perform songs, by mixing powder with water. And by painting and good communication skills. the figures, the karagiozopaiktes became folk The shadow theatre plays are presented on a artists too. Nowadays, the figures are made white, tightly stretched screen, lit from behind mainly from coloured transparent plastic, which by a bright light. In older times karagiozopaiktes showcases their colours with more vibrancy would use acetylene, oil lamps and paraffin and they represent various heroes, such as: lamps to light up the screen, whereas today they Karagiozis: The model of the rascal, intelligent, actually use electric lamps. Besides singing scandalous, poor and hungry Greek man. Always songs during their plays, karagiozopaiktes cheerful and willing to get involved in anything. would also provide the appropriate sound He almost always ends up being beaten up. effects by clapping or slapping their hands and Aglaia: Karagiozis’ wife. She represents the using instruments and sound-making objects, character of the impoverished, bedraggled such as reeds, bells and tins. Nowadays, recorded music and sound effects are also used. Greek housewife, who is always trying to help her family. The puppet figures were initially made from hard condensed cardboard, which Kollitiria: Karagiozis’ three children - karagiozopaiktes would cut out after drawing Kollitiris, Myrikongos and Kopritis, are always the outline. In rare cases, they would also use hungry but crafty enough to ensure they always animal skin. The various