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For the 6th continuous year, the Cultural Organization of the City of Athens is organizing the International Dance Festival from July 1st - July 15th, with the support of ‘Texnopolis'.  Dancers from Greece and abroad will display their talents and illustrate various combinations of modern dance so that we can gain an insight on the current trends of dance throughout Europe. 

The program will include:  'Le Ballet National de Marseille' on July 1st and 2nd, the 'Hip Hop Dance Company X-press' on July 4th and 5th, the 'National Theatre of Northern Greece' on July 7th, the 'Hanover Competition - Ballet Gesellschaft Hannover E.V.' on July 9th, the 'Scottish Dance Theater' on July 11th and 12th, and the dance-theater group 'OKTANA' on July 14th and 15th.  To further celebrate the art of dance there will also be other exhibits during the same period, including:  a photography exhibition dedicated to Boris Bezar, a seminar for dancers and students of modern dance, and nights dedicated to choreographers with shows of their own performances.

The festival will take place at ‘Texnopolis', in Gazi, at 100 Peiraios Street, just below Omonia Square in Athens, at the ‘Keramikos' metro stop.  For more information, you may call 210 34 60 981.

For the first time in the history of Greece and Diaspora Hellenism, June 5th was declared "Diaspora Day", following a historic decision by the Greek Parliament. Relations between Greece and Diaspora Hellenism have been given new momentum through a decision by the current government to give voting rights to Greeks living abroad. 
 
The World Council of Hellenes Abroad SAE met in Athens and Thessaloniki from June 7th to the 14th, while its presiding committee already met with Mr. Karamanlis on June 4th.  The committee then met with main opposition party leader George Papandreou and other party leaders.  During the meeting, Mr. Karamanlis said "it is a great joy to see you today. The World Council of Hellenes Abroad is a stable axis of a common and national effort to support Ecumenical Hellenism.  I would therefore like to thank you for the highly significant initiatives you have taken".  The Greek prime minister also said "in recognition of the contribution of SAE, we honor Greeks of the Diaspora.  And as we have already shown we will spare no effort to further support SAE regarding the major issue of the bill on voting rights for Greeks living beyond the country's borders, I would like to stress that we have made timely preparations of a bill that has been forwarded to you, and to all parties represented in parliament.  I am aware that there are differences of opinion. And, in view of the fact that for its ratification the constitution requires a broad majority of 200 MPs, we must attain the necessary convergence of views."  He continued to say that the foreign minister and the interior minister will invite all party representatives to discuss the issue and that a final draft will be formulated from the synthesis of their views, along with the views of SAE's.  He hopes that the all this will take effect by the end of the year.  There are efforts to increase the number of ministers of state from 12 to 15 to include ministers representing the Diaspora, said Mr. Tamvakis in connection to the Greek Diaspora vote.

For further information on the Greek Diaspora, visit ‘Greek Insight'.  It's a new Greek Diaspora portal which is a unique source of online information for 5.5 million Diaspora Greeks and Philhellenes worldwide.

The Athens - Epidauro Festival is filled with music & theatre events, as every year, which are sure to leave you in awe.  Performing at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, under the Acropolis, the ancient theater of Epidauros, the Megaro Mousikis, musicians, dancers, actors, and other entertainers give their best performances to amaze visitors and locals alike.  I've been to all three venues and one is better than the other!  The Odeon of Herodes Atticus gives you the chills, as you watch an ancient Greek theater production under the Parthenon.  Epidauros theater, the largest theater in Greece, places you in a different time and age.  The Megaro Mousikis brings you to today in the modern concert halls with great acoustics. 

One of the performances this weekend is that of Stamatis Kraounakis.  Stamatis Kraounakis combines music and theatre with everything from Attic comedy to comic reviews and contemporary music theatre.  He composes basically song-roles and alternates his heroes' masks while writing fully rounded characters.  Orchestrated and conducted by Giorgos Zachariou, Stamatis Kraounakis and Eleni Ouzounidou will perform on June 27th & 28th at 9 p.m. at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus.   The Speira Speira Greek Music Theatre Company will play the role of the chorus.

On July 23rd at 9 p.m. three Greek bands, ‘Imam Baildi', ‘Trio Balkano' &  ‘World Music' will play instruments from the sax and bagpipes to bouzouki and trumpets while adding their voices to the multicultural sound of contemporary Europe: First, the atmospheric trio formed by three established musicians - Manos Achalinotopoulos, Stavros Lantsias and Yiorgos Kaloudis - who enter into a musical discourse, improvise and broaden the limits of Greek traditional music. Then there's the Trio Balkano from Thessaloniki with the virtuosic Pantelis Stoikos on trumpet and kavali and its Greek tinted, jazz-referencing approach to the Balkan brass sound. Finally, Imam Baildi, the group formed by the younger Falireas brothers which has already caused a stir with its contemporary electronic take on traditional sounds, the Greek popular music of decades past and rembetika. With acoustic instruments combined live on stage with samples and electronic sounds, yesteryear rises out of today to greet tomorrow.  Advance booking begins on July 2nd.

For more information on events taking place and bookings, please visit http://www.greekfestival.gr/show_all?lang=en

With the theme ‘Difference is Our Strength', the National Centre for Social Solidarity (E.K.K.A.) will host a concert to emphasise the integration of the Roma, refugee and immigrant populations within the Greek society.  This concert will promote equal rights for all and the development of good relations between all races and ethnicities. 

We will hear the clarinet with musician Vasilis Saleas, songs by Sarantis Saleas, and music by Roma bands from all over the world, including the band ‘Prwto Taksidi' (First Trip), which is composed of young musicians playing rock and various ballads.  ‘Lava' is a band which will play music from Albania.  ‘Al Mahabba' will play music from the Middle East, ‘Telesilia' with Balkan and Gypsy music, and many others.  The musicians will be accompanied by the ‘Melody Chamber Orchestra'. 

The concert is in cooperation with the European program ‘Progress' which is trying to promote anti-discrimination laws.  The program aims to ban discrimination on the grounds of racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation.  The second part of the program is called the Racial Equality Directive and applies to all people in the E.U. and goes beyond the traditional field of employment into areas such healthcare, education and housing. Discrimination victims have the right to make a complaint and those who discriminate face penalties, although how this is done varies from country to country.  Although laws banning discrimination are an absolute prerequisite, on their own, they are unable to achieve the goal of creating a society that is free from discrimination.  The National Centre for Social Solidarity (E.K.K.A.) is a State Organization based in Athens, under the supervision of the Ministry of Health and Social Solidarity. It was established in 2003.

The concert will be held at "Texnopolis" in Gazi at 8.30 p.m. on Saturday, June 21st.  The Metro stop is "Keramikos" and buses- 035, 049, 811, 815, 914, B18, 731, 031 all stop at "Palea Agora" from Omonia square.

For three days, July 19th - 21st, the city of Athens will rock, shake and swing you wherever you are with music from various bands!  There will be music playing loudly in over 18 parts of the city and, like always, during these days, admission will be free to all concerts.  This tradition was started in France in 1982 when Paris held its first Music Day, and has now spread to 22 countries throughout Europe.  It must also be noted that any musical band in Europe has the chance to participate during these days.

The European Music Day will celebrate music and the summer solstice for three days this year, including the longest day of the year, July 21st.  Music lovers, like myself, await anxiously for these days to hear over 150 artists from Greece and abroad.  Diverse types of music will be playing, so it's time to explore your interests and hear a wide variety of beats.  Technopolis, one of the large cultural centers of Athens, will host musicians from Athens, Volos, Yiannitsa, Thessaloniki, Ioannina, Katerini, Lamia, Livadia, Preveza, Serres, Trikala, Astipalea, Zakynthos, Kalabaka, Kozani, Skopelos, Syros and Hania.  These Greek bands are sure to make us dance until the morning hours the entire long weekend!  So...if you want to learn some Greek dancing, be sure to stop by Technopolis. 

Besides the traditional Greek music, there will be classical, jazz, modern, electric, ethnic, and rock in this festival that is sure to make locals and guests in Athens sway to the notes.  The schedule at the Monastiraki is as follows:  Thursday, June 19th, 7 p.m. Indie with 'Palindrome', 'Tango with Lions', 'Le Page', 'Me of Curse', 'Spectralfire',  Friday, June 20th, 7 p.m., Pop, with 'Menta Matteus', 'Eden James', 'Jane Doe', Saturday, June 21st, 8 p.m., Indie, with '24hours', 'Monovine', and 'Cinecod'.  These bands are playing at 'Kinky Kong' in Monastiraki, metro stop ‘Monastiraki', on 6 - 8 Avramiotou Street.  For more events taking place during these days at the central squares of Kotzia, Mavili, Syntagma, Klathmonos, and many others, please go to http://www.musicday.gr/home.php?lang=1. 

Thanks to the pressure put on Greece from the European Union, there are no laws which prohibit someone from being homosexual, bi-sexual or lesbian.  In comparison with the rest of Europe, Greece is less accepting of the gay community, even though historically, Greece and surrounding territories had thriving gay cultures.  In Ancient Greece it was common for unmarried men to have lovers before marriage, but with Christianity and the occupation of Islamic Turks, the tolerance decreased.  Today, Greece is considered ‘progressive', but people still hide their preference from their families.  Being ‘open' about one's homosexuality within the family is not common.  From the time AIDS hit, in the 1980's, people started acknowledging homosexuality more.  And just last week, the first two homosexual weddings took place on the island of Tilos.

Athens, and in particular Gazi, is the center of gay life in Greece, except for the summertime, when Mykonos is filled with homosexuals from all over the world.  The city of Athens has many gay bars and they are usually more authentic than those in the Greek islands.  Yesterday there was a Gay Pride parade at Klafthmonos Square to celebrate the 4th Athens Pride Festival 2008.   This year Athens Pride Festival was more dynamic than ever before!  There were a series of pre-Pride and parallel events and parties.  The parade and party had great talent from Greece and abroad with music, dance numbers, drag shows, well-known DJs and lots more!

Hopefully these events will help society take a look beyond the conservative church, and recognize that homosexuals should have equal rights with heterosexuals.

Sunday Immigrants' School is organizing its 2nd feast on Sunday, June 8th, at the Open Theatre, Ioanninon Street, on Kolonos Hill.  The feast will include open meetings, projections, happenings, an antiracist photo and book exhibition, music and delicious cuisine.  There will also be a big antiracist concert where various artists from many different countries, including Greece, will participate.  Immigrants and Greeks will celebrate together and everyone is invited to join this very special event of solidarity and common struggle for rights.

The Sunday Immigrants' School was organized by immigrants and Greek who are in support of anti-racism.  The purpose is to teach the Greek language to all immigrants and refugees.  Greek language lessons at the school are free of charge.  The teachers are Greek educators, students of the Pedagogy School of the University of Athens and other volunteers who are willing to help out with the important issue of legalization and equal rights for all.  The school has been in function for 2.5 years and has had over 900 immigrant students. 

The Program for this Sunday begins at 18:00 with open meetings about racist violence, the antiracist movement and immigrant workers' rights.  The antiracist concert will begin at 19:30 with "KALI" Musical Group & Amzed Khan (Pakistan - India), Kurdish Cultural Centre's Group "DOEL", Cultural Centre's Group (Bangladesh), Fundracar, Stathis Drogosis, Christos Thiveos, "Stories for Percussion Instruments" of Vassilis Vassilatos, Percussion Instruments Group - E.M.P.

The general entrance fee is 6 Euros and you may access it with bus 57 from Dafni Station - Skouze Hill, at the Kallipoleos bus station.  For more information, please call 210-3306286, 5130373, or 6974363037.

See you there!