The Happy Prince 2026
The Happy Prince by Oscar Wilde
Kid’s theatre production by SMouTh (Larissa, 2026)
Production Credits
Author: Oscar Wilde
Translation: Vana Sleiman
Direction-Theatrical Adaptation-Movement: Despoina Bounitsi
Cast: Christos Kordelas, Katerina Bekou, Vana Sleiman
Artistic Supervision: Isidora Papadoulis
Original Music: Filippos Zoukas
Beat Production: Markos Lamproulis
Photographs – Images: Giannis Chatziantoniou
Video: Dimitris Vallas
Technical Support: Giannis Chatziantoniou, Periklis Chastalis
Communication: Chrysanthi Manidou
Design of printed material: Labrouli’s Creative
Production: Synergy of Music Theatre (SMouTh)
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Premiere: Sunday 1 February 2026
Avant Premiere for educators & media representatives (Free entrance): Saturday 31st of January 2026, at 6:00 pm.
Performance dates for schools: Morning hours on weekdays starting from Monday, 2 February 2026 – Friday, 27 March 2026.
Performance dates for the public: Check the online ticketing page
Performance duration: 60 minutes
Venue: SYNERGEIO Culture Center, 22 Oikonomou Ex Oikonomon Street, Larissa, ++30 2411 812 431
Director’s Note
”In my view, Oscar Wilde can be summed up in one phrase: “We all live in a swamp, but some of us look at the stars.” (Lady Windermere’s Fan). I ‘ve always found in this phrase, everything I need as an artist and educator in order to give meaning to my work. My whole concern for this performance is whether my colleagues and I manage to convey adequately this meaning: the power of dreams to change the world and the importance in our lives of continuing to dream. If we achieve even a little of this, we will have achieved a lot. I warmly thank my colleagues for the ideas we shared, and I look forward to our work reaching school communities and the public.”
Despoina Bounitsi
Dance & Theater Teacher
Synopsis
In the center of the city, atop a tall column, stands the statue of the Happy Prince. When he was alive, he never knew misery, because he grew up protected in luxury and happiness. But now, from above, he can see people’s lives for the first time and understand their pain and poverty. A small swallow, tired from its migratory journey to Egypt, finds refuge near him and decides to stay with him to help him. It becomes the prince’s eyes and wings, distributing his precious gems and gold to dark houses and poor people. A strong bond of devotion, love, and generosity develops between the happy prince and the swallow. The residents and authorities observe this strange phenomenon without being able to understand it. Gradually, the prince’s statue begins to lose its shine and deconstruct, sacrificing its beauty, while the swallow becomes exhausted by the cold winter. Nevertheless, through their sacrifice, the city quietly changes.
Our “Happy Prince”
“There is nothing that art cannot express,” Oscar Wilde writes in The Porttrait of Dorian Gray praising art as a place of freedom and transformation, a place of truth that is revealed naturally, without being imposed by didacticism and preaching. With the same belief, we approached The Happy Prince by bringing to the stage the creative process and perspective of three students who undertake to prepare their school assignment on the particular artwork. The children take on roles, play with situations, and bring the story of The Happy Prince to life with humor, imagination, and impulsiveness, incorporating the spirit of their own era. In this way, our approach reflects children’s quests for acceptance of diversity, social coexistence, true love, and happiness in the modern world. Τhrough playing and collaboration children demonstrate Oscar Wilde’s deep belief in the liberating and transformative power of art, far from sermons and moral lessons.
Duration: 60 minutes
Tickets: €10
Tickets available online and at the venue’s box office from Monday to Friday, 10:00–14:00 & 19:00–21:00
SYNERGEIO Culture Space, Oikonomou Ex Oikonomon 22, tel: +30 2411 812 431, +30 2411 812 432