"MY GRANDMOTHER KYRIAKOU"

The documentary theatre piece “My Grandmother Kyriakou”, a co-production of the 2025 Nicosia International Festival and the Municipality of Paralimni, returns to the Nicosia Municipal Theatre on 18 and 19 March 2026.
 
Nicosia For Art proudly presents the acclaimed production that left a strong impression as it explored the life of Kyriakou Pelagia, a master of Cypriot song and musical tradition, through the eyes of her granddaughter, Irini Pelagia, who also served as the production’s music director.
Written by Andreas Nicolaides and directed by Kleitos Kleitos, the play does not present Kyriakou’s life as a conventional biography, but as a collective memory - as remembrance, as a voice inviting us to dance, ache, and celebrate - with the dignity, pride, and boldness of an honest woman who began writing and performing traditional music later in life, at the age of 60, inspiring even younger generations.
 
Documentary theatre
 
Documentary theatre has been gaining increasing popularity across Europe in recent years. It is a genre that radically revitalises the relationship between theatre and reality, art and life, fiction and documentation, as it uses entire or partial pieces of material such as newspapers, interviews, and more, as the source for the theatrical script. All the more so when it is constructed from the exact words spoken by people in interviews or testimonies, it is more specifically known as verbatim theatre.
 
Credits
 
Research, script: Andreas Nicolaides
Direction: Kleitos Kleitou
Musical direction/ vocals: Irini Pelagia
Cast: Margarita Zachariou, Andreas Tselepos
Set & costume design: Lakis Genethlis
Lighting design: Christos Charalambous
Sound design: Nikolas Prokopiou
On-stage camera: Savvas Chrysostomou
Animation/ visual design: Black Dog Creative Agency
Assistant director: Emilios Koromias
 
Musicians:
Lute: Kyriakos Hadjiandreou
Violin: Nikolas Papadopoulos
Pithkiavli, Lafta: Christos Isidorou
 
Warm thanks to the family of Kyriakou Pelagia for providing material and interviews for the production.
Special thanks to Michalis Hadjimichael for material from his personal archive used in the performance.
 
Duration: 90’
Ages: Suitable for all audiences
 
Tickets
 
Available via more.com https://bit.ly/4t3ajoT and at the Nicosia Municipal Theatre box office (Monday - Friday 10:00 - 13:00).
 
Ticket Prices:
VIP: €16 - €18
Zone A: €14 - €16
Zone B: €12 - €14
Zone C: €10 - €12
Zone D: €8 - €10
 
Reduced tickets are valid for: Children, students, soldiers, pensioners, large families, unemployed, actors, people with disabilities (free) with presentation of relevant ID.
 
Information: 22797979 (Mon–Fri 10:00–13:00) & bit.ly/4jYJvSD
 
Festival Information
 
Organisers: Municipality of Nicosia, Nicosia For Art
Media Sponsors: DIESI 101.1, “KATHIMERINI” newspaper