Η ομάδα αρχαίας όρχησης στην Αρχαία Ολυμπία / Δελτίου τύπου Gr/Eng

Αγαπητοί φίλοι,

Η ομάδα παρουσίασε το δρώμενο ΘΕΙΟΣ ΧΟΡΟΣ στην πλατεία Δημαρχείου της Αρχαίας Ολυμπίας στις 8.5.2012 στο πλαίσιο των παράλληλων πολιτιστικών εκδηλώσεων του Δήμου Αρχαίας Ολυμπίας, με αφορμή την ΑΦΗ ΤΗΣ ΟΛΥΜΠΙΑΚΗΣ ΦΛΟΓΑΣ.

Τα μέλη της ομάδας είχαν την ευκαιρία να δείξουν το καλλιτεχνικό αποτέλεσμα της έρευνάς τους στο κοινό της πόλης, αλλά και στη διεθνή αποστολή αδελφοποιημένων με την Αρχαία Ολυμπία πόλεων , από την Γερμανία, Γαλλία, Ιαπωνία και Ρωσία, εκτός της ελληνικής γλώσσας σε αγγλική, γαλλική, ρωσική και γερμανική μετάφραση. Ως γενική εντύπωση και συνολικό αποτέλεσμα της όλης προσπάθειάς μας, η ομάδα πέτυχε το στόχο της και θα τον συνοψίσω στα ακόλουθα:

Σε μια χρονική στιγμή όπου συνειδητοποιείται από τους περισσότερους η ανάγκη για μεταβολή και μετασχηματισμό των παλαιών δομών σε όλους σχεδόν τους τομείς του δημόσιου βίου, όπου πρέπει να αναδυθούν οι νέες δυνάμεις ή τουλάχιστον να ανακαλυφθούν οι κοινωνικοί και πολιτισμικοί καταλύτες που θα μπορέσουν να πυροδοτήσουν την μετατροπή του σκοταδιού σε φως, της λογικής της βίας και της απάτης σε αρετή και τόλμη, τα μέλη της ομάδας αρχαίας όρχησης, τόσο με το δρώμενο ΘΕΙΟΣ ΧΟΡΟΣ όσο και με την όλη τους παρουσία από πλευράς πολιτικού ήθους και καλλιτεχνικής τακτικής, καλούνται να ανταποκριθούν στο κάλεσμα της εποχής και να εκπληρώσουν μιαν αποστολή:

Αποστολή που περιλαμβάνει την επίγνωση της ιστορίας και της πολιτιστικής ταυτότητας ως πρότερα και προϋποτιθέμενα όποιας προς τα έξω προβολής της αρχαίας ελληνικής τέχνης και κουλτούρας με τις δυνάμεις του σύγχρονου ελληνισμού.

Που υπαγορεύει την έννοια του ιερού σε συνάρτηση όχι με τηλεοπτικές φιέστες και την πλαστική αισθητική ή με την επωνυμία και την ισχύ του πλούτου, αλλά με την καθημερινή ζωή των πολιτών, καθώς και με την ποικιλομορφία - ηλικίας, τάξης, μορφωτικού επιπέδου - του λαού, την αυθεντική και ρεαλιστική κατάστασή τους και τις συνεπαγόμενες ανθρωπιστικές ανάγκες τους.

Στη βάση αυτής της λογικής η ομάδα αρχαίας όρχησης, συνισταμένη δύο επίσημων και αναγνωρισμένων φορέων της χώρας μας, του Πανεπιστημίου Αθηνών και του Θεάτρου Δόρας Στράτου, προσκλήθηκε από το Δήμο της Αρχαίας Ολυμπίας, κατόπιν προτάσεων που υπέβαλαν μέλη του Δημοτικού συμβουλίου και της εκπαιδευτικής κοινότητας της Ηλείας, στην οποία είναι από παλιά γνωστό το έργο της. Συμμετείχε με το ελάχιστο χρηματικό κόστος αλλά καταθέτοντας το μέγιστο δυναμικό της ενέργειάς της, εθελοντικά και αφιλοκερδώς. Δίδαξε την ποίηση του Ευριπίδη, της Κόριννας, των σύγχρονων ελληνίδων ποιητριών σε κοινό που δεν έχει την ευκαιρία στον τρέχοντα τρόπο ζωής του - σε αντίθεση με τον βομβαρδισμό του από ποικίλες άλλες μορφές τέχνης (;) και αγοραίας αλλά και ξενόφερτης ακριβοπληρωμένης αισθητικής - να την γνωρίσει και να την αναγνωρίσει, ερμήνευσε σοβαρή σύγχρονη ελληνική μουσική, χόρεψε, τραγούδησε, κουράστηκε και θριάμβευσε.

Θριάμβευσε στην έννοια του ιερού που ζωντάνεψε, στα δάκρυα του κοινού της πλατείας που προκάλεσε, στην άμεση εκφραστική αντίδραση θαυμασμού κι ευγνωμοσύνης της δημοτικής αρχής που εισέπραξε, στη σιωπή των μικρών θεατών της πλατείας που επέβαλε, στα επαινετικά σχόλια των θεατών μετά την παράσταση και στις προσκλήσεις για μελλοντική επανάληψη της παράστασης που έλαβε.. .

Και τέλος στα εύστοχα λόγια της παρουσιάστριας κ. Τίτας Τερζή "Αυτά τα θεάματα ταιριάζουν στο χώρο της Αρχαίας Ολυμπίας"...

Προς γνώση λοιπόν και για καλύτερο μελλοντικό σχεδιασμό, χρήσιμη και σημαντική η εμπειρία της Αρχαίας Ολυμπίας
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english
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Dear Friends,
The team presented the performance DIVINE DANCE at the Square of the Municipality of Ancient Olympia on 8.5.2012 in the context of organizing parallel cultural events on the occasion of THE OLYMPIC FLAME.
 Group members had the opportunity to show the artistic outcome of their research to the public of the city, but also to the international mission of the twinned with the city of Olympia, German, French, Japanese and Russian cities, using English, French , Russian and German translation of all texts. As a general impression and overall effect of all its efforts, the team achieved its goal and will summarize as following:
 At a time when awareness of the need for a major change and transformation of old structures in almost all spheres of public life, must emerge, as soon as new forces are to be discovered as the social and cultural catalysts that could trigger the transformation of darkness into light, of the logic of violence and fraud in virtue and courage, members of the ancient orchesis study  group, with both the performance DIVINE DANCE and with all their political presence in terms of moral and artistic tactics, are invited to respond to the call of the era and to fulfill a task:
 A task that includes awareness of history and cultural identity as prior and presupposed to any outward display of ancient Greek art and culture with the forces of modern Hellenism.
 A task that dictates the meaning of the sacred, not by reference to television fiestas and a superficial aesthetic or to big names and the  power of wealth, but to the daily lives of the people and in their diversity - age, class, educational level -in  their authentic and realistic situation and the resulting humanitarian needs.
 On the above grounds, the group of ancient orchesis, consisting of two official and recognized  bodies of our country, the University of Athens and  Dora Stratou Theatre, was invited by the Municipality of Ancient Olympia, following proposals made by members of the City Council and the educational community of Elis, to whichthe group's work has long been known . The group  participated with the minimum cost of money, but depositing the maximum potential of its energy, voluntarily and without profit.They taught the poetry of Euripides, of Corinna and modern Greek poets to the public that does not have otherwise the opportunity in the current way of life - as opposed to the bombing from a variety of other art forms (;), market outlandish and paid dearly aesthetic - to know and recognize; they moreover interpreted serious contemporary Greek music, danced, sang, got tired and finally triumphed.
 Triumphed in bringing about to life the concept of sanctuary, in the causing of tears to the public of the city square, in provoking the immediate expressive reaction of admiration and gratitude of the municipal authorities and in imposing silence to the audience of small children, in the praising comments of the audience after the performance and in receiving new invitations for future repetition of the performance ..... .. .
 And finally in the aptly words uttered by the presenter Mrs Tita Terzi  "These events fit the site of Ancient Olympia" ...
 So for the knowledge and better future planning, the experience of Olympia was useful and important.

Historical Sources of Ancient Greek and Traditional Dance

By Anna Lazou
The Theatre of Greek Dances “Dora Stratou”, the “Living Museum” of Greek Dance is the personal vision andresult of long time efforts of its founder Dora Stratou – since 1950 – while today it gives the opportunity of dance education -of national and global amplitude – for thousands of visitors and trainees. The theatre  is sponsored annually by Greek organizations mainly for culture and tourism; thanks to Dora Stratou continuers, its President since 1987, Alkis Raftis, the secretarial personnel and its Association active members, the theatre constitutes a significant and worldwide recognized cultural and research centre.                           

The promotion of the historical sources and continuity of Greek traditional dances since antiquity has been a primary concern of Dora Stratou's investigation. This aim is being realized nowadays by hundreds of researchers, teachers and dancers in Greece and abroad. D. Stratou was writing in 1964: “..... Our traditional dances and songs are of significant value....... Our history found its expression through this treasure that no conqueror could take away. And the inalienable heritage that our people carried inside them became their Muse... In our national dances, their expression, their movement, their musical rhythm, we find the thread connecting us with the ancient texts, the ancient musical scales, ancient meters, the painting of ancient vases, byzantine wall paintings, with byzantine music” (D. Stratou “A tradition, an adventure”, April, 1964).
Dance in Ancient Greece was a deep and multiplicate phenomenon. We should speak about a variety of dances when referring to periods of Ancient Greek Dance. As to the reconstruction of the morphological elements of ancient dances, while many cohesive links of information are missing, it is though possible to combine the evidence of all visual and imaging data and conform a satisfactory picture of the essence, value and variety of the dancing activity of Ancient Greeks. Movement according to a rhythmical pattern and accompanied by a melody was a part of a wide range of events during their life, including religious cult – rituals and processions in honor of the gods – educational and athletic activity of the young people, entertainment in the cities, theatrical performances of dramas (tragedy, comedy and satirical drama) based on dance: group orchesis (dancing) with chanting as a constituent part of drama.
Gradually our knowledge of the role and position of dance in ancient Greece has been enriched due to the systematic research as in every sort of philological source there is to be found a plurality of direct or indirect references to dance. From the Lyric and Choric poetry a lot of information is derived about the kinds of dances, while we learn a lot from the historical texts about specific dance patterns. Of catalytic importance for the study of ancient dance are the surviving iconography and the corresponding sources (vases, mosaic, reliefs, wall paintings, coins and statues) providing us with information about forms of dance and their evolution from the archaic period up to the roman and byzantine times.
In particular, the meticulousness and attention to detail has preserved many potters in the form of many dance movements, which would have complete ignorance because there is little information on dance steps described or depicted. Outdoor and urban dances, martial or purificatory, of aesthetic or social type, from Homer to Lucian have been the characteristic of a spiritual culture that was imitated and continues to be subject to interpretation and understanding from the perspective of various disciplines.
We may distinguish the dancing figures of antiquity on the basis of their shape: As the first figure in the history of dance we can locate the circle, followed by dancing in line - series, as in an example from the Museum of Argos from the archaic period, where two dancers move one behind the other. We also have dances which combine lines - contrasting dances, parallel, etc. in lines, as in an example from Egypt, or even dancing in curves; we still have dance in pairs, and finally should mention individual dances - solo dances, i.e. performed by a single dancer. It is not excluded that small solo dance groups are combined with dance groups mentioned above. So a circular dance for example could involve a dancer who had to be cut off from the rest of the team and dance by himself. The famous "Kyvistitires" that Homer's Iliad refers to as revolving in the center of the dance, is a typical example.
On the basis of their operation and their broader context the dances may also be divided into: 
- religious dances, dances in a religious ceremony in honor of a deity.
- dances associated with the change of seasons and the land, vine harvest, harvesting etc.
- war dances that accompanied most times with similar weapons.
- dances that were performed in rendering of the dead, as depicted on vases of the Geometric period.
- acrobatic dances, with special skills required by the dancer.
- dances which were held during any festive event without being associated with a deity or a seasonal change, as in a mosaic from Argos.
- dances that were performed at banquets.
- dances related to ceremonies transitions from childhood to adolescence, from adolescence to adulthood etc.. In the same category we may integrate and dances that were performed at weddings.
The modern era more particularly, as to the valuation of the ancient dance, not only is no exception compared to the attention of thinkers and artists of previous centuries, but it gives us the impression that an outbreak has occurred both in the theoretical investigation of ancient Greek dance as well as in terms of the effects of this research and of the idea of ​​ancient Greek dance in the field of artistic applications. The appearance of Isadora Duncan and the development of the ideal of free dance in the 20th century, after her pioneering work, are signaling the exception of dance interest in the early centuries of the specified forms of ballet and ethnic dances to freedom of movement, the "cult of plastic, tangible beauty" ("The Art and Meaning of Isadora Duncan") and finally the subjectivity of the artists who created on this level and the originality of their choices.
In conclusion, the ancient Greek dances are forms of dance and specific dance models.  The importance of ancient Greek dance, as well as of Greek traditional dance, lies not only in the interest of the variable and high aesthetic morphology and structure, but basically in their functional role and the values ​​underlying public activities: purifying rituals, artistic events, educational events and processes of social cohesion and personal expression.