"Faust" by Goethe

Georg (or for some Johann) Faust was most probably an actual person who lived in Germany. According to some sources, he must have been born between 1460-70 and died between 1536-39. He was a kind of a “magician”, in other words an astrologist, a peddler, possibly a charlatan, and an opportunist. During his lifetime, he provided his contemporaries with plenty of material for popular stories. A few decades after his death, legends were created around the strange conditions of his death; according to a chronicle, he was strangled by the devil. Indeed, in 1535 or 1537 Luther refers to Faust as someone who had made a pact with the devil. Throughout the 16th century the legend of Faust was one of the most popular ones. Stories, ballads, puppet theater and parodies were written; engravings, etchings, and woodcut illustrations depicted a man selling his soul to the devil.

Faust and his legend proved most influential – directly or indirectly – in human thought and art. Among the legend’s important adaptations is the tragedy of “Doctor Faustus” (1604) by Christopher Marlowe. Two hundred years later, Goethe wrote “Faust”, a work of a lifetime and cornerstone of modern European thought. Hector Berlioz composed the symphony “La damnation de Faust“ (1828) and Charles Gounod composed the opera “Faust” (1859), to mention just a few of the numerous musical transformations of the myth. In the twentieth century it suffices to just note just two versions of the legend: “Mefisto – A Novel of a Career” by Klaus Mann and “Doctor Faustus” (1947), written by his father, Thomas Mann. It is estimated that there have been more than 200 filmic renditions of the story of Faust, the more recent one being the award-winning Russian film by Alexander Sokurov, “Faust” (2011, “Golden Lion” at the 68 Venice International Film Festival).

In Greece, “Faust” was first staged by a professional theater company in 1904 at the Royal Theatre (later named National) by the director Thomas Oeconomo. [AP1] The text was translated by Konstantinos Chantzopoulos (Estia publications). Edmondos Fürst performed Faust, Nikolaos Zanos played the role of Mephistopheles, and Marika Kotopouli the role of Margarita.

Michael Marmarinos’ production uses the Greek verse translation of Goethe’s “Faust” by the well-known translator, writer, and screenplay writer Petros Markaris who also wrote the introduction and commentary; a bilingual edition, it is published by Gavrilidis Publishing. The translation is an achievement in itself, since Goethe’s work consists of a total of 12.111 verses. Markaris began his translation in June 1997 at the request of Nikos Kourkoulos who wanted to stage Goethe at the National Theatre. The work was completed in 2000. It was admittedly a “ferocious endeavor”, he noted. Yet it was entirely worth it, if one judges from the end result. Markaris’ translation was finally used by the National Theatre after the death of Nikos Kourkoulos. The production of “Faust” was staged in 2009, co-directed by Yiorgos Gallos, Vasilis Mavrogeorgiou, Argyris Xafis, Blitz theater group (Giorgos Valaιs, Aggeliki Papoulia, Christos Passalis), and Argyro Chioti, all of whom were also in charge of dramaturgy.

The Dramaturg of Marmarinos’ production was Armin Kerber from Germany. One of the most accomplished dramaturgs in Europe, he has worked in numerous European theaters such as Theater Neumarkt (Zürich), Stadttheater (Bern), Stadsteater Upsala, and Nederlands Danse Theater (Hague). A university professor, Kerber also collaborates with the cultural magazine for contemporary performing arts "DU-Magazine". In 2012 he collaborated with the National Theatre of Greece as a dramaturg for the production of “Orpheus Descending”, directed by the Swiss director Barbara Weber.

Sunday 19 January

After performance talk with Michael Marmarinos