Two final performances remain this week as the Cultural Festival of the University of Cyprus wraps up its 29th edition at Axiothea Mansion. A festival that began in early summer has entered its autumn calendar and presents two exquisite musical productions by some of Cyprus’ most acclaimed musicians today.

On Friday, October 9, Nama Dama, Hayat Sebep, Naz Atun and Christos Gogakis present the performance Songs from the Garden. The artists come from different artistic backgrounds and come together for this multidisciplinary show to create a shared world of music, image and storytelling. Live compositions, polyphonic singing and contemporary puppetry are interwoven into a unified stage work that combines musical performance and visual theatre.

At the centre of the performance is the figure of a female writer, embodied through a puppet, who struggles to complete her book. As her creative process unfolds, memories, images and fragments of imagination surface and merge with the narrative itself, leading into a world where the distinction between creator and creation gradually dissolves.

Influenced by the fluid, non-linear narrative style of Virginia Woolf, the work moves through fragmentation and inner landscapes, where identity is constantly shifting and the boundaries between reality and invention remain deliberately open.

The festival’s closing event on Sunday, October 11 welcomes the TratSik String Quartet to Axiothea Mansion. Four performers and seven composers of Cyprus’ younger generation come together to create a new body of repertoire for string quartet inspired by the island’s rich musical heritage.

Performing on stage will be Giorgos Hadjigeorgiou and Spyros Spyrou on violin, Nikolas Efthymiou on viola and Doros Zissimos on cello. The featured composers of this performance include Andys Skordis, Andreas Papapetrou, Dimitris Tsoukas, Stavros Hoplaros, Apollonas Kalamenios, Alexandros Darnas and Aris Antoniadis.

Drawing on traditional Cypriot melodies as their primary source material, the composers reimagine them through the language and techniques of contemporary chamber music. While preserving the distinctive character of these melodies, they experiment with rhythm, harmony, form and timbre, reimagining tradition and revealing new expressive possibilities.

Since its formation in 2017, the ensemble has built a unique repertoire consisting entirely of works written especially for the quartet. Through performances in Cyprus and abroad, the TratSik String Quartet offers a contemporary perspective on Cyprus’ musical heritage, demonstrating how tradition can become a source of inspiration for the creation of new chamber music.

Songs from the Garden

Performance with live compositions, polyphonic singing and contemporary puppetry. By Nama Dama, Hayat Sebep, Naz Atun and Christos Gogakis. Part of the 29th Cultural Festival of the University of Cyprus. October 9. Axiothea Mansion, Nicosia. 8.30pm. €10. Tel: 22-894531, [email protected]

TratSik String Quartet

Four musicians present the works of seven Cypriot composers. Part of the 29th Cultural Festival of the University of Cyprus. October 11. Axiothea Mansion, Nicosia. 8.30pm. €10. Tel: 22-894531, [email protected]