Theatrical performances in public spaces? Yes, please. That is what is coming up this week in Larnaca as part of the Women’s Narratives event series. On the occasion of Europe Day, and wishing to highlight and strengthen the female perspective, which is a fundamental area of its activities and artistic programme, Larnaka 2030 welcomes two theatrical productions that focus on this important theme.

First up is the musical theatrical comedy Ekines, which will take place at The Passage bar in Zouchouri Square on Friday at 9.30pm. This is an original Cypriot musical theatre comedy that through humour, music and emotion presents the reality of women in Cyprus today.

Based on the revelry and melodies of rembetiko and folk songs, the show brings to light real women’s stories, the challenges, joys and contradictions they experience on a daily basis. The protagonist is the woman who carries the expectations and stereotypes of a world that often does not let her breath, who wonders if she is enough, if she lives up to the roles she has been given.

But through song, company and revelry, she lets her voice be heard, her stories find their way into the community. Ekines is a musical journey full of life celebrating the female experience and the power of collectivity.

On Saturday and Sunday, at the Medieval Castle of Larnaca DIDO/ELISSA or a wandering tale will be presented. With this production, Project SEASON Women aims to highlight marginalised narratives of women and revise, through the lens of gender, narratives that are considered classic and universal.

The play brings to the stage, for the first time, the unknown story of Dido, or Elissa, the legendary princess from Tyre who founded Carthage. In Western tradition, Dido is known as the unfortunate mistress of Aeneas — a tragic heroine who commits suicide for love. She captured the public imagination for centuries through opera, theatre, poetry and paintings. But before this legend, there was another one, remembered by Lebanese and Tunisians to this day — about an epic heroine who defended her independence to the end of her life.

The nearly lost story told by the Carthaginians themselves about their queen defies the usual literary stereotypes surrounding female characters, while revealing unknown aspects of Mediterranean history. This is the version told by the descendants of the Phoenicians, in Lebanon and Tunisia, to this day. It reveals relations between Cyprus and its neighbouring peoples. It is worth telling today because it is filled with the dreams of youth, the pain of uprooting, and the weight of betrayal.

The text is inspired by the wandering history of Dido through the centuries. Inspired by classical forms and lesser-known ancient sources, by historical and archaeological evidence, and by the oral folk narrative poetry of Cyprus, by traditional Mediterranean music, and the modern language of the theatre of narration, it re-composes the profile of Dido.

Women’s Narratives

Musical theatrical performance ‘Ekines’. May 9. The Passage Bar, Zouchouri Square, Larnaca. 9.30pm. Staged reading of ‘DIDO/ELISSA or a wandering tale’. May 10-11. Medieval Castle Larnaca. 8.30pm. €12. www.soldoutticketbox.com. More information: [email protected]