The Greek National Opera Will Bring its Tour to Crete
The GNO tour will visit six municipalities on the island – Chania, Rethymno, Anogeia, Heraklion, Siteia, and Ierapetra.
The Greek National Opera is continuing its artistic outreach journey across Greece with a grand tour of Crete. The GNO tour will visit six municipalities on the island – Chania, Rethymno, Anogeia, Heraklion, Siteia, and Ierapetra –, presenting a diverse programme of events that includes concerts, shadow puppet opera, operettas, musicals for young audiences, music theatre performances, and documentary screenings. From 7 to 31 May 2026, the Crete tour will feature a total of 56 performances across 29 different sites, ranging from theatres, churches, and mosques to Venetian walls, squares, parks, pedestrian streets, and cinemas, bringing music and opera to every corner of the island. The goal of this new major tour, which is the continuation of the GNO’s extensive tour programme that began in July 2025, is to offer Cretan audiences the possibility to explore the fascinating world of opera, an art form that is open, without limits and barriers. The “The GNO Tours Greece” programme is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) to enhance the Greek National Opera’s artistic outreach. The Crete tour is carried out with the support of the Ministry of Culture and in collaboration with local municipalities, as part of a memorandum of understanding.
The GNO tour to Crete features two unique tribute concerts dedicated to the remarkable work of Mikis Theodorakis. The great concert 100 Years of Mikis Theodorakis, arranged by Yannis Belonis and conducted by Stathis Soulis, featuring Pantelis Thalassinoa, Niki Grana, a ten-member instrumental ensemble with soloists from the GNO Orchestra, and local choirs, will be presented in Chania (10/5), Rethymno (12/5), Anogeia (13/5), Ierapetra (15/5), Siteia (17/5), and Heraklion (18/5). Meanwhile, Mikis Theodorakis’ work Asikiko Poulaki, with lyrics by Michalis Ganas, will be brought to life in a unique concert, arranged, adapted, and conducted by Andreas Katsigiannis, and featuring Yannis Dionysiou and the Estoudiantina Neas Ionias, Magnesia orchestra. Asikiko Poulaki will be presented in Chania (18/5), Rethymno (19/5), Anogeia (20/5), Ierapetra (21/5), and Siteia (22/5).
The programme also includes three extraordinary music-centered productions: The concert I Don’t Have Much To Tell You…, with Zacharias Karounis, which will be presented in Rethymno (8/5), Anogeia (9/5), Ierapetra (10/5), Siteia (11/5), Chania (12/5), and Heraklion (13/5); the music-theatre documentary-performance Rodinos - The Legendary Lyrist, directed by Giannis Bletas, and based on his research and text, which will visit Chania (14/5), Heraklion (15/5), Rethymno (16/5), Anogeia (17/5), and Ierapetra (23/5); and the musical performance The Crossroads of the World by the esteemed musicians’ ensemble Alcedo Folk Group, which will be presented in Chania (17/5), Rethymno (18/5), Anogeia (19/5), Ierapetra (20/5), and Siteia (21/5).
A legendary operetta and a unique opera recital will add a taste of the art of opera to the tour programme. Theophrastos Sakellaridis’ successful operetta I Want to See the Pope!, directed by Natasha Triantafylli and featuring an excellent cast of opera singers and musicians, will be presented in Siteia (19/5), Ierapetra (21/5), and Chania (23/5). GNO established soloists Vassiliki Karayanni, Yannis Christopoulos, and Dionysios Sourbis, accompanied by the distinguished pianist Sofia Tamvakopoulou, will take audiences on a distinctive musical journey through the world of opera singing in a special recital that will take place in Rethymno (8/5), Siteia (10/5), Ierapetra (12/5), and Chania (14/5).
Two successful GNO productions for young audiences will also be presented on Crete: the shadow-puppet opera Karagiozis as Rigoletto, written by Dimitris Dimopoulos and Alexandros Melissinos, will be performed in Chania (7/5), Rethymno (9/5), Anogeia (11/5), Ierapetra (12/5), and Siteia (14/5), while Nikos Kypourgos’ musical Silence, the King Is Listening, with a libretto by Thomas Moschopoulos and stage direction by Theo Abazis, will visit Chania (7/5), Ierapetra (9/5), Siteia (10/5), Anogeia (12/5), and Rethymno (13/5).
Finally, the documentary about Maria Callas’ relationship with Greece, Mary, Marianna, Maria: The Unsung Greek Years of Callas, based on a concept, research, and script by Vasilis Louras, and directed by Michalis Asthenidis and Vasilis Louras, will be screened in Anogeia (15/5), Siteia (20/5), Ierapetra (24/5), Rethymno (25/5), and Chania (31/5).
Giorgos Koumendakis, the Artistic Director of the Greek National Opera, notes: “This grand tour of the Greek National Opera to Crete carries the special weight of a homecoming to the principles and values of the Cretan land. Through this programme of 56 unique events to be presented throughout the month of May at 29 different sites in Chania, Rethymno, Anogeia, Heraklion, Siteia, and Ierapetra, we attempt to blend the art of opera with the music born of Crete. From Mikis Theodorakis, lyre players, Byzantine songs, and operatic excerpts to music theatre performances for children, our operatic version of Karagiozis, operettas, and the documentary about Maria Callas, the GNO’s presence on Crete aims to present the art of music in all its forms, free of limits or stereotypes.
I would like to thank the Stavros Niarchos Foundation for its encouragement and decisive support for our tour programme. I also extend my deep gratitude to the Minister of Culture, Lina Mendoni, for her support and assistance with every new project undertaken by the GNO, as well as to the Regional Governor, the local Mayors, and all the Cretan organizations that have invited us and embraced our Company with incredible warmth. I am also thankful to CrediaBank and ANEK Lines for their support for this programme.
Admission to all performances will be free for the audience, as part of the “The GNO Tours Greece” programme, which is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) to enhance the Greek National Opera’s artistic outreach.
Videos
