The theatrical reading “The tears of heroes” was held at the auditorium of the Italian Cultural Institute of Athens, featuring actor Giuseppe Cederna, renowned for his work on stage and screen and for his role in Gabriele Salvatores’ film Mediterraneo, winner of the 1992 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
Cederna performed excerpts from Books V, VI and VII of the Odyssey, which include some of the most celebrated passages of the Homeric poem — from the encounter with the nymph Calypso to Odysseus’ arrival on the island of the Phaeacians.
The episodes of shipwreck and of landing on a foreign shore offered an opportunity to reflect on the age-old yet ever-relevant theme of welcoming the stranger.
The evening was further enriched by the participation of Vana Barba, the Greek actress who played the character Vasilissa in Salvatores’ film.
