Under Self
A performance - a dive into the depths of the city, "Under Self", an imaginary exploration in the Hadrian's Aqueduct of Athens, was presented by UrbanDig Project, originally written by Panagiota Pantazi and directed by Giorgos Sachinis, on 24 & 25 August at the Archaeological Museum of Thebes and on 10 September at the Rematia Theatre of Chalandri, in the framework of the 1st Hidrant Festival.
A Roman aqueduct is still in operation, 1900 years after its construction. An artificial river flows unseen in the subsoil of the city. A man crosses the Hadrian's Aqueduct of Athens, on a 20-kilometre underground route, connecting Menidi and Kolonaki. His cruel ordeal in the underground gallery will give voice to the monument, bringing it back to light. Following with geographical precision the geometry and characteristics of the monument, "Under Self" attempts a "dive" on the vertical axis, a journey into the uncharted depths, into the city's hidden elements, but also into our own.
Incorporating elements of theatre, dance, live music and performance, "Under Self" dives into the depths of the city, searching for its lost romanticism, trying to reinvent it as a text that narrates itself in space and time. The movement on the vertical axis and the "excavation" process itself bring to light the materials of a "buried" local ecosystem, ready to emerge, to become history and a new element of identity for residents and passers-by.
How can the "invisible" narrate itself as part of the visible urban life? Urban Dig Project collects elements concerning both the morphology and the history of the Aqueduct, and attempts to transform them into the living experience of a subterranean traveller in the magical environment of the unseen monument. The performance features drawings of the Hadrian's Aqueduct from the collection of the Historical Archive of E.Y.D.A.P. S.A., which, together with the exhibition of the exploration work of the Hadrian's Aqueduct by the National Technical University of Athens (P. Deuteraios and M. Mamasis), were the main sources of the artistic research.
Conception - Research:UrbanDig Project - Panagiota Pantazi
Text: Panagiota Pantazi
Director: George Sachinis
Choreography: Irini Alexiou
Music: Thanos Kosmidis
Screenings: Anestis Anestis
Props/Costumes: Anna Magoulioti
Lighting: Christina Thanasoula
Production Manager: Eleni Linaki
Technical Director: Rea Zekkou
Contact & Viewing: Eva Anagnostaki, Elena Georgiou
Assistant Lighting Designer: Semina Papalexandropoulou
Trailer: Alekos & Christos Bourelias
Photos: Alekos & Christos Bourelias
Interpretation: Irini Alexiou, Fenia Schoina, Thanos Kosmidis