COMEMADRE
Based on the book by Roque Larraquy
Io Voulgaraki
The story of Comemadre is set in 1907 at a sanatorium on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, where a group of scientists embarks on a monstrous experiment designed to explore the boundary between life and death. With disarming cynicism, peculiar humour, and a bizarre horror atmosphere, Larraquy paints a world steeped in despair and grotesque, where men entirely dominate its dramatic action and narrative.
The all-male group of doctors at the sanatorium, with what seems like self-righteous entitlement, and despite their initial moral reservations, control the lives of dozens of people, orchestrating a dystopia from which even they cannot find an emergency exit. As the experiment progresses, one woman—the head nurse—becomes the object of desire for the entire scientific team. With ruthless clarity, the author lampoons his own gender, exposing its flaws in the fields of male authority, self-actualisation, ambitions, love, and the search for meaning.
The performance serves as an allegory for present-day humanity, a satire on toxic masculinity with lyrical digressions. Through the story of a group of incredibly ludicrous, unexpectedly dangerous and mediocre scientists, it attempts to dissect apathy. Amid beheadings, stretchers, cigarettes, ballots, and male phantasies, a fundamental component of human nature is utterly gutted. Does this desolation leave any trace behind?
CREDITS
Text
Based on on the book by Roque Larraquy
Direction—Dramaturgy
Io Voulgaraki
Adaptation—Dramaturgy Collaboration
Sofia Eftychiadou
Translation
Efi Giannopoulou
Set Design
Magdalene Avgerinou
Costume Design
Vasiliki Syrma
Original Music
Nikos Galenianos
Lighting Design
Alekos Anastasiou
Movement
Katerina Foti
Projections
Mavra Gidia / Marios Gampierakis and Chrysoula Korovesi
Assistant to the director
Magia Kyriazi
Sound Engineering
Brian Coon
Assistant to the set designer
Mirto Stamatopoulou
Head costume assistant
Νada Abdrabbo
Second costume assistant
Stavros Chronopoulos
Set Construction
ergon-ioannou
Tailoring
Evangelia Tsiouni
Tailor
Giorgos Parliaros
Second costume assistant - Apprentice
Stella Stamouli
Cast
Christina Christodoulou, Dimitris Drosos, Nikolas Hanakoulas, Margarita Klagos, Nikolas Papadomichelakis, Dionysis Pifeas, Aineias Tsamatis
Production Management / Line Production
LEFOU PRODUCTIONS (Vasia Attarian, Serafeim Radis)
Line Production Associate
Angelika Stavropoulou
Roque Larraquy's novel La Comemadre (2010, 2nd edition Fulgencio Pimentel, 2022) is translated by Efi Yannopoulou and published in Greece by Antipodes Publications (2022).
The performance is implemented within the framework of the operation “Organisation of artistic events under the Athens Epidaurus Festival for the years 2024 and 2025”, which is included in the Regional Programme “Attiki 2021–2027”, under the Partnership Agreement 2021–2027, and is co-financed by the European Union.
