Theater and Politics

The National Theater, founded in Thessaloniki during the Occupation (1941-1944), is the only theater in the whole of Europe occupied at the time which was state-funded and created in order to operate in the local language. Based on documentation that comes to light for the first time, including articles from the city's collaborator newspapers and the theater's own archives, the book presents the performances and their reception based on critiques written then. At the same time, the author points out the political procedure involved which led to the theater's establishment as well as it becoming a center for a informal resistance towards the occupier through its performances and the artistic choices of its administration. It is noteworthy that the memory of this theater influenced the outlook of those in the art world and their activities in the city for the next decade, which later led to the foundation of the National Theatre of Northern Greece in 1961.