Heroine, rebel, or sinner and adulteress? Inspired by the love affair between Kyra Frosyni and Muhtar, the son of Ali Pasha, and by her tragic drowning in the Lake of Ioannina together with sixteen other women on Ali Pasha’s orders, this work explores a woman’s right to her own body, to love, and to freedom. It recounts a collective femicide carried out by one of the most powerful men of his time because—according to Valaoritis—she rejected his advances. But who is truly powerful in the end? The one who kills, or the woman who chooses her own fate alongside the person she loves, even when that choice leads to death? Like an ancient tragedy, the audience witnesses the protagonists singing and being shaken by their passions. Inspired by the musical traditions of Epirus and the wider Pindus region, FROSYNI takes the form of an oratorio. The leading characters perform highly expressive solo vocal lines rich in ornamentation, while the chorus narrates the story through elements of Epirot polyphony. The orchestra, led by Nikos Filippidis, virtuously performs newly composed works infused with the distinctive musical idioms of Epirus.

Concept, artistic direction, music: Xanthoula Dakovanou

Adaptation and original text: Marios Chatziprokopiou

Director: Vasilis Kyritsis

Orchestra conductor: Nikos Filippidis

Musical transcription and coaching: Taxiarchis Vasilakos

Performers (voices)

Lefkothea Filippidi (Narrator – Lady Vasiliki, Virgin Mary),

Kostas Filippidis (Ali Pasha),

Alexandros Rizopoulos (Tahir),

Xanthoula Dakovanou (Lady Frosyni, Hamko),

Spyros Chalaris (Muhtar)

Chorus

Lefkothea Filippidi, Xanthoula Dakovanou, Alexandros Rizopoulos, Spyros Chalaris, Taxiarchis Vasilakos

Orchestra

Nikos Filippidis (clarinet, flute), Kostas Filippidis (lute), Maria Skandali (cello), Spyros Chalaris (qanun), Alexandros Rizopoulos (percussion, hurdy-gurdy), Taxiarchis Vasilakos (accordion)

Featuring

Odysseas Vasilakos (clarinet) and Anatoli Vasilakos (vocals)

Production assistant: Maro Panagi

NPO

Non-Profit Cultural Organization: MOUSA

credit video YOOL Films