Aikaterini Hadjipateras, known professionally as Kathryn Hunter, will portray Prometheus in the upcoming Stavros Tsakiris production of Aeschylus’ “Prometheus Bound.”
Slated for August 9th and 10th at Ancient Theater of Epidaurus as part of the Athens & Epidaurus Festival, the portrayal of the Titan by a woman is a bold move by the director, according to many. As for Hunter, she is a performer of almost legendary status in the UK.
On the decision to cast her in the role, she told reporters she’s wanted to come to Greece for years, but something always got in her way. After receiving the call from Stavros Tsakiris asking me to play Prometheus, she said she “was scared stiff.” She told reporters:
“I thought of my parents, who are now gone, telling me: ‘Are you kidding Katerina? You don’t say no to such an offer.”
Hailed for her versatility and powerful presence, Kathryn Hunter has played several classic male roles, including King Lear, Richard III and Timon of Athens. Prometheus will be a new challenge for the RADA-trained actress, who, however, said she feels that she’s in “safe hands” with Tsakiris.
Tsakiris defended the decision to cast a woman in the role of the Titan who defies the gods by giving man fire, arguing that it wasn’t for the sake of “exoticism.”
“It was the result of a thought, that Prometheus, as a representative of the human race, has no gender. That the god of men has no gender,” noted the director.
The role of Narrator will be played by Nikitas Tsakiroglou, a veteran of the Greek stage who has himself played Prometheus twice in his career, while Dimitris Piatas is Hephaestus and Peggy Trikalioti is Io.
The sets for this high-caliber production have been designed by sculptor Kostas Varotsos and the costumes by Yiannis Metsikov, while Dimitris Dimitriadis is responsible for the new translation.
The performance at Epidaurus will include Greek and English surtitles. For details on transportation and tickets, visit www.greekfestival.gr.