Fortunato by Marco Antonio Foscolo

Axiothea’s audience, which has had the opportunity in the previous years to get a good taste of the stage presentation of important literary works, owing to the performances of the Theatrical Workshop of the University of Cyprus, but also of other theatre companies (Erotocritos, Fortunato, The Sacrifice of Abraham, works of the Italian Commedia dell’ Arte, Dante Aligieri’s Divine Comedy), will now have the chance to enjoy a Renaissance Cretan comedy of the 17th century, which will be presented by the ELME Theatre Company from Heraklion, Crete.
Fortunato (“The Fortunate”) by Marco Antonio Foscolo is one of the three extant comedies of Renaissance Cretan theatre and is probably the most “theatrical” of all in its expressive means, comic characters and effortless spontaneity (the other two being “Katzourbos” by Georgios Hortatsis and “Stathis”).

Written in Western Cretan dialect, at the time when the Turks were besieging the Venetian castle of Handakas, the comedy has reached us in the manuscript of its very poet, dated 1655. Much like “Erotocritos”, the central theme of the play is love that meets obstacles and manages to overcome them with Fate’s intervention.

In the performance of the ELME Theatre Company, “Fortunato” is presented after the critical edition of its major researcher, the Professor of Modern Greek Alfred Vincent.

Director: Antonis Perantonakis
Costumes: Desislava Topalova
Music: Dimitris Hatzakis
Dramaturgy Consultant:
Tasoula Markomichelaki

Cast (in order of appearance)
Miser Gianoutsos: Aris Kapetanakis
Fortunato: Giorgos Stratakis
Louras: Stelios Vergos
Bozikis: Kostis Manias – Eleni Giamalaki
Pendandes (Teacher): Giorgos Micheloudakis
Tzavarlas: Stelios Neroladakis
Bernabutsos: Lista Kalogeridi – Nikos Papadimitriou
Thodoros: Haris Zacharioudakis
Milia: Vangelio Motsovolea
Petronela: Aphrodite Kritsotaki
Agustina: Irini Kourletaki
Petrou: Maria Panagiotaki
Fraros: Yannis Neroladakis