For three nights this week, Camden’s Theatro Technis will be staging For the Love of Cyprus, a special celebration of contemporary Cypriot roots and culture, whilst also expressing “a desire for unity and peace on the 50th anniversary of the division of the island.”
Hosted by award-winning music-comedy duo Martha and Eve (Martha D. Lewis and Eve Polycarpou, formerly known as Donna and Kebab), each night special guests from both the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities will serve up a delicious mix of music, dance, spoken word and comedy.
Among the performers over the three days are star of stage and screen Peter Polycarpou, award-winning author Aydin Mehmet Ali, acoustic dub songwriter, poet and author Haji Mike, queer Turkish Cypriot icon Tahini Molasses (aka a Cypriot goddess, singer and songwriter), Echo Wants Her Voice Back (folk noir with blues), Elena Hadjiafxendi (actress, singer and storyteller) and Theo Lucas (Pop/EDM singer-songwriter).
For the Love of Cyprus is specially commissioned by Theatro Technis as part of a series of events at the venue in July as part of the commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the 1974 War, where a Greece-backed coup on 15 July led to Turkiye’s intervention five days later and the subsequent division of the island into a Turkish North and a Greek South.
While the vast majority of Turkish Cypriots view Turkiye’s actions fifty years ago as a vital act of liberation freeing them from a decade of brutal oppression at the hands of Greek Cypriot nationalists, for their former neighbours the 1974 War was a national calamity that saw their island cleft in two, and thousands killed, injured and displaced.
Sadly, the passage of time has failed to heal the deep trauma experienced by both communities, and political efforts to reunite the island have also faltered, most notably in 2004 when two thirds of Turkish Cypriots voted in favour of unification in a UN-backed referendum, whilst three quarters of Greek Cypriots voted against.
Trying to open a new, more positive chapter are Martha and Eve, who have carefully curated three special evenings and invited some of their favourite artists to perform, who, like them, share a special connection to Cyprus. The pair will perform an array of songs, including old hits and new releases with guest musicians Spiros Paisos and Mike Minas.
Speaking about the event, Martha and Eve said: “We’re so excited to return to Theatro Technis, the venue where we began our journey over 30 years ago. It’s such a pleasure to be performing with some of the greats from our Cypriot community, especially on a project so close to our hearts.”
Theatro Technis’s new creative director, Kerry Kyriacos Michael MBE echoed their sentiments: “For the Love of Cyprus promises to be a beautiful, exciting and poignant night of entertainment, where we celebrate some of the best British-Cypriot talent, with all profits going to help develop the next generation of Cypriot performers, culminating in a VIP friend’s night on Saturday 13 July.”
Tickets for the event are priced £29 for Thursday and Friday, and £32 for Saturday’s showcase. Although the core line-up is the same each night, there are some variations. Details for each night can be found on the venue website.
Event Details
Title: For the Love of Cyprus
Date: Thursday 11, Friday 12 and Saturday 13 July 2024
Start Time: 7.30pm
Duration: 2 hours plus interval
Venue: Theatro Technis 26 Crowndale Road, Camden, London NW1 1TT
Tickets: buy online from Tickettailor.com – click here.
More info: visit the theatre website theatrotechnis.com
