Lead Donor of the GNO
Major sponsor
The Greek National Opera is getting ready to welcome its little friends with Isadora Duck, a highly successful musical suitable for the whole family, written and directed by Stella Michalidou, with music composed by Kostas Vomvolos. From 6 December 2025 to 4 January 2026, the Stavros Niarchos Hall will be transformed into a peculiar swan lake, where a small duck is trying to carve out her own path in dance.
Following the great success of its first presentation at the Alternative Stage, Isadora Duck is returning in a new version for the main stage. This production offers both an ideal and entertaining introduction to the art of dance for children and adults, while also exploring concepts such as inclusion, acceptance, the power to forgive, and the power to recognise the uniqueness of the Other.
With clear references to a pioneering figure in modern dance, the barefoot dancer Isadora Duncan, as well as classical fairy tales, such as Hans Christian Andersen's The Ugly Duckling, the heroine of the show, the petite duck Isadora Duck, with her uniquely beautiful blue feathers, lives in Swan Lake, struggling to make her dream of becoming a ballerina come true.
Passion and the desire to dance are at the heart of this performance, which communicates important values in a simple yet effective manner, offering audiences a tender, yet at once cruel, self-awareness adventure through music, dance, and humour.
My wings may be small and my legs crooked, but my soul never stops dancing, sings the play's heroine, Isadora Duck, a tiny duck living in Swan Lake and dreaming of becoming a ballerina, even though she is the last one in her class. When her teacher, Mr Coup-de-Pied, kicks her out of class, Isadora wanders desperately until she slowly comes to believe in herself and discovers her own unique dance. A free dance, in perfect harmony with nature, without the restrictions imposed by classical ballet. A dance that allows her to express her true feelings, that helps her to overcome fear, loneliness, and difficulties.
The musical Isadora Duck emerged from the pages of a fairy tale of the same name written by actress and choreographer Stella Michailidou, who is also responsible for the text and stage direction of the show. As the author, also known for her stories and plays for children and young audiences, notes: A play on the names 'Isadora Duncan' and 'Isadora Duck' inspired this work. But the lives of the great American dancer and choreographer, Isadora Duncan, and our heroine were very different. Duck and Duncan meet only in their passion for dance, in their longing to communicate more deeply and meaningfully with the world and themselves, to say things that words struggle to convey. They both learn by observing nature, recognising that everything dances even though it may seem motionless.
The music was composed by Kostas Vomvolos, who has led the band Primavera en Salonico since 1994 and is also a member of the band Chimerini Kolymvites. Regarding the diverse elements making up Isadora Duck's musical universe, Kostas Vomvolos notes: The music highlights the educational character of children's contact with very different musical genres, some of which are very familiar while others are completely unknown to these ages. The blending of such diverse elements could also be described as a kind of contribution from music to the acceptance of diversity and the highly-discussed inclusion. In essence, however, the main function of cliches in this performance-at times through a necessary redefinition of their context-is that they help us narrate, as amusingly as possible, how serious a game life is.
Kenny McLellan designed the impressive stage set and costumes, and Fotis Diamantopoulos is responsible for the movement. Christos Tziogkas designed the lighting, and Babis Venetopoulos created the video projections.
Isadora is portrayed by Lydia Stefou (6 at 12.00, 7, 21, 28 Dec. 2025 / 4 Jan. 2026) and Io Latousaki (6 at 17.00, 14, 24 Dec. 2025 / 3 Jan. 2026). The roles of the Teacher - Narrator, Ms Hoity-Toity, and Miss Papov are performed by Margarita Syngeniotou, and the role of Mr Coup-de-Pied by Marios Sarantidis.
The cast also includes actors Georgia Kyriazi, Rafaela Tsobanoudi, Matina Kaiafa; dancers Iliana Yfanti, Ioanna Loupeti, Anna-Maria Markopoulou, Myrsini Petroutsou, Eleni Fotou, Natalia Martini, and Maritina Katsimbraki; and breakdancer Christos Ntentis (Onel).
