Last Thursday evening we revisited one of Greece’s most fascinating and immersive cultural events, the Minoan Theater outside Heraklion, Crete. It was with great pleasure we retouched the colorful world of the ancient Minoans that has been brought to inspire present-day visitors to Greece’s biggest island.
The 2019 season of performances at the Minoan Theater in Karteros now draws to a close. The theater’s Director, Anna Bastakis tells us there will probably only be one or two more days of performances remaining this year, depending on the weather. The cultural events have taken place every Thursday in the afternoons from 15:00-16:10, and evenings 19:30 – 23:00 from June to August and 19:15-22:45 in September and early October, as well as during May. The video below reveals some highlights of the events you’ll be taking in.
We covered the Minoan Theater previously here on Argo, at Travel Daily News, and on Greek Reporter, and with each visit to this amazing venue, some new aspect of Cretan history and/or culture surfaces. From the moment the guest is welcomed by Evangelia, who portrays Phaedra, daughter of King Minos, the broader experience is captivating. Every facet of the experience is continually being refined as if Anna were the director of a cultural archaeology dig. The result, for the guest, is spellbinding and wonderful.
Guests at the theater are pulled inside a Minoan Spring ritual reenactment played out by the theater’s talented and acrobatic actors, on the lush grounds of the Cretan Riding Academy and the family’s Ippikos Omilos event venue. Situated on the sea at the end of amazing Karteros Gorge, the riding academy is in a historic setting that imbued with Minoan legend and spirit, not to mention beach wonders. This was the settlement of Amnisos, which was the port to the palace city of Knossos during the Bronze Age. We have the following from the Minoan Theater website:
The Minoan Night Experience begins with the theatrical dance and acrobatics performance. In the end, the Minoans invite spectators to take part in an interactive game with (Mitos) Ariadne’s thread. Dancing to the sounds of drum banging and singing they get intertwined together.
Guests are welcomed in the Minoan dining area, where they will experience the Minoan and modern-day Cretan cuisine. A special live music set accompanies the dinner, starting with music played with ancient and modern Greek instruments, moving towards a more traditional Greek fiesta with dancing.
After the reenactment, guests are led in procession to an authentic Minoan/Cretan kitchen where they are invited into the world of Minoan and Cretan gastronomy, and to experience authentic Cretan entertainment. You can book the experience here.
The Minoan Theater is one of Argo’s Top 10 Crete experiences.