The Great Tamer

The work, originally produced in Athens by the Onassis Cultural Center, premiered in May 2017 and has been performed in different stages, following two and a half years of a world tour with stops, among many others, from Australia to Asia, including Los Angeles, the Avignon Festival, and New York.

 The performance revolves around the idea that human life is a journey of discovery, exploring hidden treasures and searching within for deeper meaning. The set features an uneven, sloping hill covered with thin, removable panels. These sections are often ripped up, flipped over, and dragged around. The floor's dull appearance hides entrances and exits, allowing dancers to seem as if they are being swallowed by the stage. The performers roll and walk on their hands, with one entering encased in ceramics that are cracked off and swept away. Lifting a panel might reveal a body, a body part, or a pool, making the stage feel like a mix between a graveyard and an advent calendar.

The stage, designed like a giant rippled wave, supports much of the visual magic, with moveable floorboards used as shields, fans, and escape routes. In "The Great Tamer," there is always a sense of the underworld beneath the shifting tiles. In one scene, clusters of arrows are thrown at a naked man who hides under a piece of wood on the stage. When the "storm" ends and the arrows are stuck in the ground, the scene changes into a pulsing, flowery meadow. This simple yet powerful transformation creates two worlds—one on stage and one below—turning mythology into reality.