One theater closes, another opens. We are used to seeing this in Athens and its environs, where some theaters change their purpose, new ones arise, not always meeting all safety conditions, but rejoicing in their courage. In such a difficult year, which will test the endurance of the public, and even more so of all those involved in the theater, some people persevere. Energy experts such as Llewelyn King believe, according to a Time magazine report, that the end of the year for Europe is likely to be “the worst winter since the end of World War II, from 1944 to 1945.” Society is preparing to face a grim new reality, inflation is rampant, rents have risen and, like every year since 2009, the number of actors, theatres, producers and premieres on stage has increased.

Television, during the theatrical lockdown due to the pandemic, offered jobs to many unemployed actors and endured. We had no other choice, we locked ourselves in our homes, and now more than 30 fantastic series are fighting for a share of the audience pie. Of course, many get jobs in the theater, but also have competition from good platform jobs.

How much can the audience and viewers consume? This will be seen at the end of the season. How and how long the theatrical world will endure. Some producers, before new increases, are guided by a possible increase in tickets in their cinemas, otherwise the costs, as they say, “do not come out”.

Alas, to limit the expression. This and the support of the public creates, among other things, a demand for seats on the theater map of Athens, which welcomes the Philippe Theater in Kypseli, a former cinema with a history from 1966 that has been closed for 12 years. Now the theater stage with modern architectural features and energy transformation will open in November.

The new year is interesting, characterized by many proposals. In addition to reruns, it contains many American classics, literary masterpieces, Greek plays, monologues, musicals and sheet music readings, entertainment shows, contemporary and obscure works. Theatrical inflation, but also the pre-sale of tickets that many have seen for a long time.

“We want to make theater. In two years everyone wants to work,” Vangelis Theodoropoulos told K last Sunday. They will do it; “No, not all theaters work. This season is a mystery.” Last August, Nikos Diamantis called the season “disastrous” due to energy issues. “In this climate, people can’t choose repertory theatre.” So far, no one can confidently mark the beginning of the winter theatrical season. The question is what impact this expensive and busy season, which started with high hopes and so many worries, will leave. We’re not talking about trends yet…