A group of primary school pupils from Salamina is set to bring a key figure of modern Greek history to the stage. The play "Jean Capodistrias, gloire et solitude", written by academic Ioanna Papandropoulou Bertu, will be performed on 22 March 2026 in Geneva by the Théâtre Grec de Genève, with the young cast drawn from the 1st Kapodistrian Primary School of Salamina.
The production is based on historical research and was originally developed as part of the bicentenary commemorations of the Greek War of Independence. It aims to present Kapodistrias, Greece's first governor, as a significant 19th-century European diplomat. The play explores his contribution to Swiss neutrality, his diplomatic role across Europe, and his involvement in Greece's struggle for independence and state formation.
Already staged nine times in Switzerland and six times in Greece, the play has reached audiences in cities including Geneva, Lausanne, Corfu, Patras and Athens. The play has also been published as a bilingual Greek-French book, enabling use in classrooms, educational theatre, and language-learning contexts. The parallel text format has already been used in Geneva to support both Greek and French language instruction.
Founded in 1994, the Théâtre Grec de Genève has staged ancient tragedies, contemporary theatre productions, and poetic music-theatre performances. Through its activities, the theatre promotes the Greek language, history and literature, with a particular emphasis on Greece's theatrical tradition.
