| The Travelling Players | |
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Poster for The Travelling Players |
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| Directed by | Theo Angelopoulos |
| Produced by | Giorgis Samiotis |
| Written by | Theo Angelopoulos |
| Starring | Eva Kotamanidou Aliki Georgouli Vangelis Kazan Stratos Pahis Maria Vassiliou Petros Zarkadis Kiriakos Katrivanos Giannis Fyrios Nina Papazaphiropoulou Alekos Boubis Grigoris Evangelatos Kosta Stiliaris |
| Music by | Loukianos Kilaidonis |
| Editing by | Takis Davlopoulos Giorgos Triandafyllou |
| Distributed by | Papalios Productions |
| Release date(s) | July 1975 |
| Running time | 230 minutes |
| Country | Greece |
| Language | Greek German English |
The Travelling Players (Greek: Ο Θίασος, translit. O Thiassos) is a 1975 Greek film directed by Theo Angelopoulos that traces the history of mid-20th century Greece from 1939 to 1952.
Contents |
A group of travelling players peregrinates through Greece attempting to perform the popular erotic drama Golfo The Shepherdess. In a first level the film focuses on the historical events between 1939 and 1952 as they are experienced by the travelling players and as they affect the villages which they visit: The last year of Metaxas' fascist dictatorship, the war against the Italians, the Nazi occupation, the liberation, the civil war between left and right wingers, the British and American interventionism in the Greek politics. In a second level the characters live their own drama of jealousy and betrayal, with its roots in the ancient myth of the House of Atreus. Agamemnon, a Greek refugee from Asia Minor, goes to war against the Italians in 1940, joins the resistance against the Germans, and is executed by them after being betrayed by Clytemnestra and Aegisthos. Aegisthos, Clytemnestra's lover, is an informer and collaborator working with the German occupiers. Orestes, son of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, fights on the side of the leftists, avenges his father's death by killing his mother and Aegisthos. He is arrested in 1949 for his guerrilla activities and is executed in prison in 1951. Electra, his sister, helps the leftists and aids her brother in avenging the treachery of their mother and Aegisthos. After the death of Orestes she continues the work of the troupe and her relationship with Pylades. Chrysotheme, Electra's younger sister, collaborates with the Germans, prostitutes herself during the occupation, sides with the British during liberation, and later marries an American. Pylades, close friend of Orestes, is a Communist who is exiled by the Metaxas regime, joins the guerrillas and is arrested and exiled again. Finally he is forced to sign a written denunciation of the left after torture by the right wing and he is released from prison in 1950.
The Travelling Players was released to the general public after the Regime of the Colonels had ended in 1975 and Greek returned to democratic rule. However Theo Angelopoulos had been working on the film throughout 1974 when the dictatorship was still in power, and had to hide his work from the authorities. To continue working he claimed he was producing a version of the Orestes myth set in the Axis occupation of Greece during World War II. Angelopoulos claimed that the colonels' junta gave him the idea for The Travelling Players; Angelopoulos, who was formerly a film critic for a socialist newspaper wanted to analyze two things: the first being the history of Greece from a left-wing perspective, and second why it had been so difficult to establish democracy in Greece. The film was released in 1975.
Like many of Theo Angelopoulos' films, The Travelling Players uses long, static takes combined with complex tracking shots, and beautiful landscape photography to create a surrealistic atmosphere. Only eighty shots are used throughout the entire film. Shots in the film often drift back and forth in time without warning and after a major scene there will be some down time for the viewer to contemplate what has just transpired.
Reaction to The Travelling Players has been overwhelmingly positive. Upon release it was instantly proclaimed one of the greatest films of all time and has won numerous awards. The film holds an 82% freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The director intended to participate officially with this film in the Cannes's festival at 1975, but the conservative Greek government prevented this. Despite the acclaim The Travelling Players has yet to receive a proper DVD release in Region 1.
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