Two decades of the life of Eleftherios Venizelos, from 1910, when he came to power, until 1930, when the Greek-Turkish friendship pact was signed, crowning the realistic policy that he pursued after the overthrow of the Great Idea in Smyrna. .. On the one hand, the “big” History: the Balkan Wars, the National Schism, the Asia Minor Catastrophe. And on the other hand, the human side of the Greek leader: his anxieties, his personal battles, his love. All this will come to life on stage on February 3 and 4 at the Heraklion Cultural Conference Center in Crete with Dimitris Maramis’ new opera Eleftherios Venizelos, musically directed by Miron Michaelidis and choreographed by a Swiss. Guy Montavon. The libretto was signed by the poet Sotiris Trivizas. “In this opera, all the elements of my personal musical identity are at their peak,” says the prolific composer “K”.

– The operas “Erotokritos” (2017), “Captain Michalis” (2021) and now this make up my Cretan trilogy with their respective themes: love and dream, love and revolution, vision and leadership. The moment is associated with the empathy of the creator, which sometimes does not keep up with the present, but also with the future. It is true that the period covered by the work contains truths that are more relevant than ever as we live through a period of revisionism, but also of war in the heart of Europe. But my main motivation is memory. Memory, history, give us the knowledge to understand the world and make it better.

I am attracted to complex things. I have already tried out two very important Cretan works: “Erotokritos” by Vincenzos Kornaros, sacred and sacred to Crete, and “Captain Michalis” by Nikos Kazantzakis. It is important that this work begin at the place of his birth and, if he succeeds there, continue further.

– It is based on real testimonies and historical events, according to the biography of Venizelos written by Nikolaos Papadakis. However, we have chosen the most important of them, those that emphasize the psychological and emotional side of the characters who meet them face to face. Elements of fantasy are absent, since the dramatic needs of the work are met by a flurry of actions and deeds of real historical figures.

“It amazes me that behind his calm urban appearance was a passionate rebel and warrior. As a person, he was … an arsenal of diplomacy, with all the tricks, with all the colors. I am inspired by the fact that he built great things in non-existent conditions. He imagined and created situations from scratch. He made the impossible possible. This evoked amazement and faith. Although he was a great visionary, he was also a realist. He fought for the Greek people to believe that he can do great things, and the people prospered.

“I would ask him where he got his strength and faith from.

– But that is why I submit a new work as a creator: to overcome the previous one. And since this is an opera, the bar is raised even higher. However, whether the new project will become more popular or better, time will tell. I dare say, however, that Venizelos has all the elements of my personal musical identity at its peak.

– I don’t care anymore, as long as there are enlightened performers and an alarmed public. Our country is in dire need of original and meaningful creativity. I was born among obstacles and I go through obstacles as a creator. However, once every two years, since 2017, I have been producing a long and complex musical-theatrical work that is already being uploaded. In the region, not in Athens, but perhaps more important. Fertile soil is created by the faith of the creator and no one else.

– If he cannot live without what he dreams of, believe in it, work hard and look only ahead. There is no recipe, there is only faith and devotion to the dream. Nothing more…