I first saw Aristophanes around the age of ten. With Karakatsanis. At the Alcazar Garden Theatre. I remember vividly scattered images, I have an abstract sense of the atmosphere and mostly I remember that it was news that my parents took me with them so young to see Aristophanes, not feeling uncomfortable with the wording of the Aristophanic text and Karakatsani's directorial approach. I'm not sure what the show was, maybe Lysistrata or the Frogs, but I don't think it plays that big of a role.
This year, with my son of roughly the same age, ok he is two or three years older, we saw the premiere of the Thessalian Theater's play "Aristophanes dreams", a composition of texts Lysistrata and Praxogoras, directed by Kyriakis Spanos. It was July 11th. Four days later, another female director staged in Epidaurus also Aristophanes, The Wasps, in a free adaptation and production of the National Theatre. What followed Kitsopoulou's performance is well known. Loss. In the press and on social media. For the Epidaurus we deserve or the Epidaurus we don't deserve...
And while the Athenians and the rest of the Greeks were killing themselves for Kitsopoulou and Epidaurus, we here in Larissa started our own war, as the decision of the Board of Directors of the Thessalian Theater was announced to cancel the performance "Aristophanes dreams" at the Herodeum, even though it had be announced, citing economic reasons initially and then irregularities in the procedure of observing the protocol and the Regulation of Operation of Thessaly. On whether it is worth it for Thessaly to go to Herodion or not.
The local Aristophanic theme, while it began half-heartedly and insinuatingly, day by day flared up more and more in various directions. Is Thessaly today worthy of its glorious past? What do we want, nostalgia or innovation? Classical theater or pioneer? Are we pioneering because we have something to say or for superficial reasons to impress? Is it substance or is it fashion?
And in the battles of comparisons between the past and the present, well-known people from Larisa were involved for their love of culture, current and former artistic directors of Thessaly, members of the Board of Directors of Thessaly, candidates in the self-governing elections and more broadly, beyond the circle of the Larissa intellectuals, every lame Maria who has her opinion, and she does well, and expresses it passionately on social media. If anyone wanted to follow the thread, they got lost in comments upon comments under press posts and personal posts. The matter came to be the subject of political criticism and an attack on the current mayoral authority for discrediting the Thessalian Theatre, its past and the role it can play in the city's extroversion. It was, no matter how we put it, the cancellation of the passage to Herodion on the eve of the elections, especially from a municipal authority that prides itself on investing in culture and talks about a cultural spring. And all of this started from the veiled question of whether or not the specific show was liked or not... So do we deserve Herodion or not? In general; and especially for this particular show.
My answer is indifferent.
Besides, it could never be one. After all, we want freedom of opinion...
But this freedom of expression finally bothered me. Not, of course, for the essence, the diversity and the subjectivity of everyone's personal point of view; from the directorial approach of Spanou in en ikomo and Kitsopoulos in Helladi, to the free criticism. But about the way. There was polarization, insults were said, personal attacks were made, and many insinuations were made; it was all unpleasant. To such a point, that apparently for some, perhaps many, the context seemed deterrent to express their own opinion. Where have we come, the era of absolute freedom of expression, tends to prevent us from saying ours!
The reason I deal with the Aristophanic controversies that arose simultaneously in Larissa and Athens is because it was an amazingly typical example of how social media has shaped modern pop culture. The amount of outrage is staggering! I believed that the phenomenon in Greece was on the rise in recent months due to pre-election and post-election polarization. But obviously, we have something bigger to deal with. A phenomenon that does not depend on individual occasions and causes but constitutes a new way of life, a new communication culture.
Democracy is considered to have as its Achilles heel its dependence on the collective judgment of the people, and democratic communities are subject to the turmoil and weakness of unruly passions.
Humans have an innate tendency to divide ourselves into groups or parties so inflamed with mutual animosity that we are far more inclined to annoy and oppress one another than to cooperate for the common good. At the same time, we are possessed by a confirmation bias, which refers to the human tendency to seek only evidence that confirms our preferred beliefs.
The development of the internet and especially social media have magnified this vulnerability of democracy to superficiality. And our vulnerability to inflaming hostile passions and inciting the most violent conflicts. For everything; and for nothing. For the most important; and the most insignificant.
And when you see violent clashes between members of the same group, you know something is definitely wrong.
Because for me, to return to the topic of Aristophanes and the Thessalian Theater, the aggression, the lack of composure and self-restraint even because of the institutional roles, even for the eyes of the world, developed within a single group. Of the people of Larissa who attend and follow cultural events and love art and culture. This group is not vast, don't laugh...
Its subsets are completely indifferent to me. Because they involve personal egos, interests and rivalries. Which unfortunately, through this ease of placement on social media, their attractive virality, bring to a much greater public view humble and timeless characteristics of human nature.
Not even Aristophanes who spoke of peace could curb hatred and passions...
But should we rethink the possibility that people who think differently from us and are willing to speak up if they disagree with us, act as extensions of our brains and make us smarter?
And that those who try to silence or intimidate their critics are getting dumber?
*Cover photo: Maria Kallas, Delphi, Ancient Theatre. 1959