Past appearance
26 July 2015
Athens Festival
Theatro Tecnhis Frynichou
Athens, Greece
Premiere
Project Description
On 20 January 2014, eleven Afghans, including eight children, lost their lives when their boat, attempting to reach the Greek shore, sank near the Greek island of Farmakonisi. Farmakonisi’s shipwreck, the Greek equivalent of Lampedusa, has raised great public concern over a long time, mainly at an international level, as the Greek authorities failed to adequately investigate the deaths of the refugees drowned at sea, showing a blatant disregard for justice for the victims and their families.
Case Farmakonisi or The Right of Water is a reality theatre project focusing on the stance of justice as regards the major issue of refugees approaching Europe of closed borders. The play, framed by vigorous field and archive research, utilizes a mixed team of professional performers and related experts, seeking to stimulate public debate on the ongoing tragedy in the Mediterranean and the request for unhampered and safe mobility.
Balancing between documentary and fiction, testimony and intellectual fabrication, artistic creation and political reflection, Case Farmakonisi or The Right of Water unfolds on stage the systemic mechanisms that lead to the devaluation and finally the loss of human life – a life that stands “bare”, being deprived of its access to dignity, law and justice.
