Φως στη σκηνή/The stage exposed

T he photographic album The stage exposed , the product of the collaboration between the Cyprus Theatre Organisation and the Press and information Office, is a publication-tribute to the valuable contribution of two pioneering Cypriot photographers, Costas Farmakas and Giorgos Katsouris. it aspires to showcase the art of theatre photography and to become a study document for both theatre lovers and the most demanding theatre scholar. The two bosom friends and associates were destined to offer us material of immeasurable value, a selected sample of which is contained in this album. With their art, perspective and hard work, they contributed to the first crucial steps and openings of THOC, they reinforced the presence of a generation of artists –perhaps the most important–, who laid the foundations of the state theatre, and captured and recorded with their camera repertoire choices, artistic aspirations and artists, who, with their work and creativity, made every plan on paper a tangible reality, giving life and substance to every vision. The art of theatre, an art born after the third bell that begins to breathe the very moment the curtain is raised, lives, matures and, eventually, fades with the audience’s applause –in other words a stillborn art–, is offered on the spot as a life-long gift, which has as its ultimate destination, our minds and hearts. The art of photography comes to build an invisible bridge that connects yesterday with today and tomorrow. For what is a photograph but the vehicle that carries a moment frozen in time and leads it into the future; a time capsule whose mission is to deliver a gesture, a look, the atmosphere of a production, a collaboration and an entire era into the arms of History. Cypriot theatre owes a lot to Costas Farmakas and Giorgos Katsouris: their work functions as a visual, tangible proof of theatre activity during a specific period of time and, without exaggeration, as a sacred legacy for us and future generations, for the history and tradition of our country. For tradition –let’s not forget– is what was delivered to us, and thus what we will, in turn, deliver to those who will come after us. A generation-to-generation passing of the baton that aims to bring out everything that is true, everything in other words – paraphrasing the title of the photographic album-that exposes the area of memory; and being a relay race, has nothing that is static; as the baton delivered to us is made of dreams, desires and talent, of a lot of yearning and even of more work, of values, principles and ideals. And such a baton, made of the same materials, we must pass on. The photographic legacy of Costas Farmakas and Giorgos Katsouris consolidates, in the best possible way, this sense of continuity; it makes the depth of our responsibility more solid and illuminates the delicate yet distinct line that connects eras, people and objects: a pointer to the future. in order to know where we want to go, it is essential we acknowledge where we have started from. it sounds self-evident, but it is not. Finally, i would like to express my warmest thanks to the Press and information Office, the families of Costas Farmakas and Giorgos Katsouris, and the working team that edited this publication, without whose participation, contribution and care, the publication of this photographic album would not have been possible. Antigone Athienitis ADDRESS By THE CHAiRMAN OF THE BOARD OF DiRECTORS OF THE CyPRUS THEATRE ORGANiSATiON 8 |