EVENTS

The unveiling of the commemorative stele

A central moment of this year’s tribute will be the unveiling of a commemorative stele dedicated to Spyridon Peresiadis, erected in the square of Mesorrougi, the playwright’s birthplace. One hundred and eight years after his death, the Mesorrougi Local Community is raising a monument in the village square where he was born, honouring his memory and restoring a symbolic bond between the artist and his native place.

The initiative belongs to the Golfo Festival, with the care of the Mesorrougi Local Community and the financial support of pharmacist Panos Asimakopoulos and Mrs Fotini Peresiadou-Tsangalaki.

The unveiling ceremony will take place at 11:30, in the presence of officials and local residents. It will be accompanied by the Children’s Choir of the Akrata Philharmonic, performing the song “Akrata, Daughter of Chelmos,” with music by Ioannis Chasapis and lyrics by Peresiadis himself.

The erection of the stele is not merely an act of tribute to an important artist; above all, it is a symbolic return of Peresiadis to his native place and an enduring reminder of his decisive contribution to the theatrical and cultural heritage of Aigialeia and Greece as a whole.

Writer and educator Anastasia Efstathiou will offer, in her own distinctive poetic manner, a portrait of the honoured Achaean author of Golfo.

From Peresiadis to the theatre of Akrata and Aigialeia

The event will continue with a rich artistic programme centred on Peresiadis’ work Esme, presented as a staged reading and curated by Panos Koumparas.

Participating will be amateur actors from Akrata: Nikos Gravanis, Panos Koumparas, Natasa Asimakopoulou, Giannis Malavetas, Anthi Pambouki and Vasiliki Kalyva, who will also perform two traditional songs from the Morea.

The participation of amateur actors from Akrata carries particular symbolic significance, as the area’s theatrical tradition is historically connected with Peresiadis himself. Amateur theatrical activity in Akrata began as early as the late 19th century, with the playwright as its driving force. The legendary Golfo—the work through which Peresiadis secured a lasting place in modern Greek theatre—was first staged in Akrata in 1894 by a local amateur troupe.

From that first theatrical spark emerged a tradition that remains vibrant in Aigialeia today. The area’s many active amateur theatre companies continue to serve the theatre and gather every summer in Aigio, in a theatrical celebration that has become an important part of Aigialeia’s cultural life.

“Grandfather Miltiadis” and The Chronicle of Morea

The programme also includes a reading of the award-winning fairy tale “Grandfather Miltiadis from Chalkianika,” by its young author, student Giorgos Zafeiropoulos.

A special place in this year’s tribute is reserved for the presentation of an excerpt from the renowned verse Chronicle of Morea—in its medieval Greek version. An anonymous work of approximately nine thousand verses, it is one of the most important sources for the medieval history of the Peloponnese. This presentation is the result of more than a year of research and artistic development, within the framework of a wider project to adapt the Chronicle for the stage.

The presentation is linked to an interesting, though as yet unsubstantiated, oral family tradition according to which Peresiadis may have encountered this work during his school years, before losing his sight.

This tradition concerns his father, Sotirios Peresiadis, a legal practitioner, who is said to have been under the protection of his fellow villager, the clergyman Ambrosios Frantzis (1778–1851)—a member of the Filiki Etaireia who took part in the secret Assembly of Vostitsa and later wrote the monumental four-volume work An Epitome of the History of Reborn Greece. It is established that Frantzis registered the young Sotirios Anagnostopoulos in the municipal rolls of Athens, initially under the surname Peretes and later as Peresiadis; the reasons for this change remain unclear.

Regardless of the historical documentation of this family testimony, the presence of the Chronicle in the tribute creates a fruitful symbolic dialogue between medieval Peloponnese, the historical memory of the Morea, and Peresiadis’ dramaturgy.

Those attending will have the opportunity to hear the excerpt in its original medieval Greek verse, performed by Andreas Diamantopoulos, with musical accompaniment by Christos Magalioulis, who will appear on stage as a contemporary troubadour from the period of Frankish rule in the Morea. The presentation is directed by Anna Gourzi.

This presentation is the first trial of a broader artistic project, planned to expand and travel to other locations in the Peloponnese associated with the Chronicle of Morea.

Community and Memory

The artistic programme will conclude with music and songs by the Children’s Choir of the Akrata Philharmonic, under the direction of Maria Gerolymou.

The event will be coordinated and presented by philologist and historian Anthi Pambouki.

The tribute will close with refreshments, in the convivial atmosphere of an autumn gathering amid the enchantment of Chelmos.

The 3rd Tribute to Spyridon Peresiadis is not simply an event of remembrance. It is an effort to bring the honoured artist back to his homeland; to illuminate anew his connection with Mesorrougi, Akrata and Aigialeia; to reunite his work with the public; and to strengthen the collective memory of all those who continue to keep both the artist and his creations alive.

The events are supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Municipality of Aigialeia, the Mesorrougi Local Community, the “Georgios Lefentarios” Akrata Cultural Association, the “Akrata Philharmonic” Music and Dance Association, and the “Anagennisis” Association of Akrata.