The Readers of Homer Thrills New York on its Epic Tour

Wall Street Greek Film & Theatre Columnist Penelope Karageorge got the opportunity to partake in the New York City reading of Homer's Odyssey late last fall. Penelope provides a review of the touring event for you here. The Readers of Homer is a unique touring spectacle, using audience participation to maximize the fun. It has been taken the world over, including to Chios, Greece, a legendary home of Homer, and certainly the ancestral home of Wall Street Greek founder Markos Kaminis.

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The Readers of Homer Thrills New York on its Epic Tour

Hundreds of New Yorkers turned on to the master Greek poet Homer, with an extraordinary marathon reading of The Odyssey at New York’s 92ND St. Y. Staged by the Readers of Homer and led by the remarkable actor/theatre director Yiannis Simonides, this reading nourished the soul and the stomach. A dinner preceded the reading with succulent roast lamb, as well as other delicious Greek foods – many dishes replicating those found in The Odyssey, and wine. During the marathon, participants could step out for honey and yogurt reinforcement, or a glass of wine.

But the thrills didn’t stop there! Just as mind-blowing, LyrAvlos played hand-made instruments replicating those from the Homeric era. Fantastic! Represented in New York by Panagiotis, Olga and Michalis Stefas, LyrAvlos is totally unique. And the Choreo Dance Group! One had to be there at 1 a.m. when the dancers, dressed as sirens, lit up the theatre as they sinuously moved up the aisles.

A total of two hundred readers participated, reading for between two and three minutes and remarkably, it proceeded as smoothly as moonlight on the Aegean. I was thrilled to be one of the readers, Number 59. Before the program, Simonides provided readers with complete instructions, via the charming Oxford U. graduate Stephania Xydia, PR woman for the program. I learned my exact minute, 23:26 and was given my lines. (Odysseus encountering the Cyclops in his cave)

Although I could have left the auditorium at any time previous to presenting, I found myself totally mesmerized. It was extraordinary to hear the great Homeric poetry read aloud. Although I’ve read and reread The Odyssey – kicking it off with a child’s version – and taught it at CUNY, The Readers of Homer brought vibrant life and color to Homer’s work.

The program began at 7 p.m., and ended at 8 a.m. with Four Meditations on War, a musical piece scored for bass-baritone and string quartet, conducted by composer Mark Latham. Created during some of the bleakest days of the war in Iraq, the composition reflected the complexity of the Homeric theme of war and all that arises from it: courage, cowardice, beauty, fulfillment, heroism and love.

Born in Constantinople and raised in Athens, Simonides is a Yale Drama School graduate and Emmy-award winning documentary producer. He has served as professor and chair of the NYU Tisch SOA Drama Department, and as executive director of COSMOS FM. He continues to tour the world with The Apology Project, a Socrates dramatization based on Plato, written and directed by the amazing Loukas Skipitaris.

Simonides and the Readers have brought Homer to Montevideo, Uruguay and Kos island in Greece. On April 30, 2011, the group staged a marathon reading of Homer’s Iliad at the Getty Villa in Malibu, California.

Readers of Homer can only be described as wonderful, an amazing group that we hope will flourish forever. We urge anybody who has the opportunity to attend and/or be a part of the Homeric readings to get involved. If you’re interested in participating or even making a contribution, you can go to the website: Thereadersofhomer.org



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