Theatre

Written by award-winning poet, novelist and playwright Tom Petsinis, this powerful play moves seamlessly between Thessaloniki (often called Salonika) during the German occupation and Melbourne some fifty years later. Thessaloniki was for centuries a multicultural city and home to large numbers of Christians, Muslims and Jews, the latter driven there from Spain in the 15th century.

When nightclub partners Dimitri and Leon both fall in love with new singer Rosa, jealousy and betrayal surface against the backdrop of oppression and persecution by the Nazis. All three manage to survive the war, emigrate to Melbourne, and rebuild their lives. Years later, reunited through their grandchildren, they are forced to strip back their present identities and confront the events of the past in Salonika.

A gripping exploration of youth and old age, love and jealousy, guilt and redemption, the play also resonates with the life-affirming power of music: original English lyrics set to melodies drawn from Greek Rebetika and Jewish Sephardic traditions.