Drama - Greece

Drama- Greece Tour Operation

Overview

Your group will be based in the resort of Tolo at the Hotel Minoa or Hotel Knossos (run by the Family Georgidakis) on a half board basis. The Minoa can accommodate 90 people and the Knossos 38. Both these hotels are right on the beach in the old part of the village. All the rooms have private facilities and are air conditioned.

We recommend a full day excursion to Mycenae, Nafplion and Epidaurus and we will provide you with a list of places to visit at the time of booking, enabling you to make your choices of where you would like to take your group.

The full day excursion to Mycenae, Nafplion and Epidaurus will include the ancient Greek sites and of course the theatre at Epidaurus. Entry fees are included in the costings. For those groups wishing to travel between June and September, it is worth noting that this is the theatre festival time of year. It may be possible for the group to watch a performance in the evening in the theatre at Epidaurus which take place on a Friday and Saturday.

What's Included:

• Full meet and greet service at Athens Airport on arrival and departure.
• Luxury Coach transfer from Athens to Tolo.
• 7 nights half-board accommodation at the Hotel Minoa / Knossos in Tolo.
• Course Leader in attendance.
• Course Tutors for Drama / Art.
• Fully structured workshop courses in Drama / Art.
• Full day excursion to Mycenae, Epidaurus.
• Luxury Coach transfer from Tolo to Athens for return flights to your country of residence.
• 1:10 free place ratio for your staff.
• Promotional materials and assistance.

Sample - Itinerary:

Saturday
Travel Day - Home to Athens

Sunday
Am - Welcome meeting and introductory workshop
Pm - Beach time

Monday
Am - Workshop 1
Pm - Workshop 2

Tuesday
Full day excursion to Mycenae and Epidaurus

Wednesday
Am - Workshop 3
Pm - Workshop 4

Thursday
Workshop 5 and Beach Afternoon

Friday
Workshop 6 and Final Performances - Disco

Saturday
Travel Day - Athens to Home.

Tolo enjoys a sheltered position on the wide Gulf of Argolis on the Eastern coast of the Peloponese and is set amidst extremely beautiful scenery. Picturesque countryside and seascapes and a friendly village atmosphere have helped Tolo to become a highly sought after destination. Tolo is very well situated for visiting Classical Greece including Epidaurus and Mycenae, and ideal for a day trip to Athens. Set in a bay with long sandy beaches it is a superb spot for swimming, sunbathing and water sports.

Mycenae is tucked into a fold of hills, uncovered in 1874. This ancient city plays host to the site of The Citadel, entered through the famous Lion Gate. Here you will see the remains of the Royal Palace, with the Great Court, Throne Rooms and Royal Apartments. A more salutary remainder of the nature of life in Mycenaean times is the Secret Cistern created in the Twelfth Century BC. The reasons for its design are unclear - whether to enable the Citadel's occupants to withstand siege from outsiders or even rival Mycenaean's - we shall never know. Only the ruling Mycenaean elite could live within the citadel itself, and the main part of the ancient town lies outside its walls, where there are extensive remains to be seen of the Merchant's Houses and evidence of past everyday life.

Epidaurus is a major Greek site, visited for its stunning ancient theatre built in the Fourth Century BC. With its extraordinary acoustics, this has become a very popular venue for the annual Athens Festival Production of Classical Greek drama. The Ancient Theatre is an excellent sight, not a ruin, with a backdrop of rolling hills. The arena, seating 14,000 merges perfectly into the landscape. It is constructed in white limestone, the tiered seats have been repaired, but otherwise restoration has been minimal, with the beaten earth stage being retained, as in ancient times. As well as the Ancient Theatre, the Asclepian Sanctuary holds considerable fascination, for the ruins here are all of buildings with identifiable functions: hospitals for the sick, hotels and amusements for the fashionable visitors to the spa, Greek baths and a huge gymnasium, as well as the outline of the stadium used for ancient games and the Sanctuary of Egyptian Gods.

Our View

In July 1999 we set off for our inaugural Greece trip with the students and staff from Hautlieu School in Jersey. The journey was remarkably smooth - our flight ran to time arriving at Athens Eastern Airport at 18.00. The coach - fully air conditioned - was there to meet us and we set off for the 2hrs 45 minutes journey to our resort in Tolo. We had a stop half-way for a toilet and coffee break at the facilities adjacent to the Corinth Canal and all took the opportunity to walk down to the bridge and look at this amazing architectural feat. Suitably refreshed we continued on to our destination, arriving at 21.45. This was the group's first meeting with Yannis Georgidakis - our agent and hotelier - and the welcome we received was extremely friendly and hospitable. Moving straight in to the dining room at the Hotel Minoa we all sat down to eat in this most amazing of settings, three feet from the edge of the water, with the sound of the ripples of the sea in the background! As we ate and relaxed our luggage was conveyed to the Hotel Knossos - our base for the next week - so that by the time we arrived to check in all was organised to get everyone to their rooms in no time at all. The rooms were impeccable, all en-suite with newly fitted bathrooms and air conditioning units. Time to sleep!

The first morning we awoke to discover the delights of Tolo in the daylight - a stunning bay and the patio of our hotel running virtually to the waters edge. Breakfast was buffet style, consisting of cereals, bread, croissants, toast, ham, cheeses, jams, eggs, juices, tea and coffee. Plenty for everyone and you could sit out on the patio even at 08.00 in amazing temperatures and gradually wake up still pinching yourself to see if you were really there.

The first day was structured as a working day and we split into the two groups to start our project on Sophocles 'King Oedipus' - half the group working with me as actors and the other half starting their mask making project and Chorus work with Helen Green our mask specialist. The work was able to be split between indoors and out and we had a three hour break everyday between noon and 3pm (because of the heat) for everyone to get some lunch at the local shops and bakery - extremely cheap - and then to spend some time relaxing, swimming or taking a pedallo out into the bay. Five hours of work later it was time to change for another wonderful dinner in the Hotel Minoa and then to spend the evening on a walk exploring the full length of the town and some of the local nightlife.

Day two continued with workshops - blocking of the scenes well under way by now and the masks virtually completed. In the evening we all worked up a sweat watching and then trying the Greek Dancing at an evening entertainment session in the Minoa. Great fun.

Day three provided us with the first of our excursions. Thankful for a fully air conditioned coach we set off from Tolo for the 45 minute drive to Epidaurus for our fascinating visit to this ancient theatre. Lots to see here, not only the theatre and its location but also a very interesting museum and many costumes and designs from some of the productions mounted there. From Epidaurus it was approximately one hour to Mycenae and the ancient citadel. The drive itself was impressive, but nothing compared to the wonder and astonishment on the faces of the students who climbed to the top of the ruins with me. From here we drove back through Argos and into the first Capital of Greece - Nafplion - a beautiful ocean side town with an incredible ancient walled town built high on the hill overlooking the newer town. Time here for everyone to replenish with a late lunch and ice cream and then back to Tolo for a couple of hours swimming and beach time.

Then evening Cabaret time - much like all the cabarets we have in Spain except that the location for this was outdoors on the roof terrace of the Hotel Minoa - thanks again Yannis!

Day four and it was back to work with a full workshop day and in the evening Karaoke at another beachfront bar and day five led us into the final rehearsals day leading to our performance at around 8pm. Final rehearsal days are normally rather hectic and this was certainly no exception with everyone focussed on their roles and grabbing every opportunity for last minute group and individual work. In the afternoon we managed to fit in a full tech/dress run and then finally arrange our outdoor venue in front of our hotel. Thankfully the performances were tremendous - a full 45 minutes of an abridged version of 'King Oedipus' including two masked chorus sections and music and a finale where everyone led Oedipus out into the ocean for his banishment! Stunning work that seemed to be greatly enjoyed by our audience of some 30/40 people of all ages, sexes and nationalities. To finish the day a late night out at the Gorilla Disco in town - just what we needed!

Our final day now and one that will be remembered by everyone. A chance to relax and fully unwind on our fishing boat trip to a nearby beach for a few hours of sunbathing, swimming, listening to music and eating the most wonderful BBQ cooked for us by our two fishermen and served beachside! This is how to live!!

As if that wasn't enough - the final evening was spent back at Epidaurus, this time as an audience watching a performance of the second and third parts of 'The Orestia'. What a place to see theatre - a setting hard to beat anywhere in the world.

Alas, all too soon it was time to return to England, but this trip will be remembered by everyone concerned for years to come. One where we worked incredibly hard producing a very impressive performance piece at the end; where we visited the most amazing places on our excursions; where we had terrific fun on our social evenings; and finally where we will never forget the stunning location of Tolo, our hotel and the hospitality of the Georgidakis family.

Next time, this could be you...................