Toward a National Heterotopia: Ancient Theaters and the Cultural Politics of Performance in Modern Greece.

The article discusses the cultural politics at play in the twentieth-century reception of Greek tragedy in modern Greece, focussing on the use of ancient theatres as performance spaces. It argues that the imaginary power of ancient theatres can be understood through the Foucauldian notion of heterotopia. They are idealised spaces in which the narrative of modern Greek continuity with antiquity has been projected, enacted and performed. Starting with the early conceptualisations of ancient theatres as sacred spaces, the main part of the article examines the emergence of ancient drama festivals in the post-war and the effectiveness of festivals in reinforcing dominant discourses about antiquity.