TO KAPLANI TIS VITRINAS (WILDCAT UNDER GLASS) by Alki Zei
The legendary “To Kaplani tis Vitrinas” (“Wildcat under glass”) by Alki Zei goes on tour throughout Greece.
A milestone for children’s literature, it has been translated into 22 languages and published in 39 foreign editions, receiving numerous international awards. Having recently marked 60 years since its first launch, it sets off on tour to tell its fascinating story that has captivated whole generations of readers. The story of human towards the conquest of freedom. A production of KOLOSSAION PRODUCTIONS.
Summer. The magical season for children. Sea, play, exploration and endless nights with magical stories under the stars. A group of children in Lamagari, Samos, will live an adventure that will change their lives forever.
As the nation is forced into a fascist dictatorship on 4th August 1936, the children take part in secret missions to help Melia and Mirto’s cousin, Nikos, a university student at risk of imprisonment. Nikos is hiding at Milos until he can escape to civil-war Spain and fight for democracy. However, no matter how hard things are, the children have by their side the wildcat that’s locked inside a glass cabinet in the living room of Melia and Mirto’s home. The Kaplani (as tigers are called in Samos) has the ability to come to life through Nikos’ stories. When necessary, it joins the children’s difficult missions in its own magical way, helping and protecting the children.
“To Kaplani tis Vitrinas” is a story about the fascinating path that all living creatures, humans and animals, follow to live as they are made by nature: Free.
And for this to happen, there must be democracy, even if we need to fight for it. So that, if someone asks “Are you happy or sad?”, we can answer “Happy” before we go to bed every night.
A few words about Alki Zei
The ambassador of Greek children’s literature, Alki Zei, was born in Athens and spent her early childhood years in Samos, where her mother came from. When she started school, her family settled in Marousi and then in Athens. She studied at the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Athens, the Drama School of the Athens Conservatory and the Moscow Film Institute. Writing came into her life in her high school years. She wrote puppet plays, short stories and novellas, which were published in various literary magazines. Alongside writing, she actively fought for freedom, social justice and democracy, participating in the left-wing movement since the years of the German occupation in Greece. Fighting for this cause defined her personal life. From 1952 to 1964 she lived in the Soviet Union as a political refugee together with her husband, playwright Giorgos Sevastikoglou. At first they lived in Tashkent and later in Moscow, where their two children were born. They returned to Greece in 1964, only to flee again in 1967 to Paris, where they remained until the mid-1970s due to the dictatorship. Alki Zei’s straightforward style of writing, linguistic integrity, critical attitude towards people and situations, humour and penetrating look at events, are the characteristics of her works that have captivated Greek and foreign readers alike. Achille’s fiancée, Wildcat Under Glass and Petros’ War are among the classic best sellers of contemporary Greek literature. With the exception of Achille’s fiancée, Alki’s books mainly address children and adolescents, but are always a great read for adults as well. Dealing with every-day, universal issues, Alki’s books are inspired by her personal experiences, weaving their plot alongside historical events. “If I chose to write for children, it is because I wanted to capture the important things my generation experienced, which I fear will be forgotten when we are gone”, she notes. Alki Zei is an ambassador of contemporary Greek literature abroad, as all of her work has been translated and published in many countries around the world.
Director’s note
Alki Zei wrote stories whose magical element was the gaze of the children themselves; that secret garden that few adults manage to know where it is with such honesty, love and courage. And Alki Zei seems to have known very well how to open this invisible door and get inside the souls and thoughts of children. Perhaps because she herself lived guided by her personal truth, tenderness and boundless humour that followed her even in the hardest times of her life. Elements that the brave and tireless soul of children has in abundance, in what we all once had. Our childhood. In Alki’s books there is a world that children recognise immediately and spontaneously, because it is their own world. In her stories, imagination is not just a place to escape but also a way to create reality. A world where people can coexist no matter how different they are. By always testifying, through her characters, that nothing is a given. That things are not always easy, ideal and happy. At the same time, this unique viewpoint also gives the perspective that, within yourself, you can always find the strength to believe in something better for your life and to have the right to dream about it. Without being didactic; without hiding the truth. I think this is what gives her works this timeless dynamic, creating an open dialogue with children to this day. This vast magical world; when we were children, we all knew that everything was possible there. This great world. Our childhood. And our only homeland.
Dimitra Larentzaki
Note from Alki Zei’s son, Petros Sevastikoglou
With Alki we never stopped travelling. Ten years ago we went on a trip that was somewhat different to our previous ones. We visited Samos island to film a documentary about Alki’s life. “The Great Walk of Alki”, which never stopped, returned to Vathi, Lamagari, where Alki spent her early childhood years. These years left such an imprint on her soul, as alive as the wildcat in the glass cabinet, which was the starting point for her first novel. The wildcat of the book was there, inside its glass cabinet, at the Museum of Natural History. Even though many years had passed and the wildcat was evidently worn down, when Alki saw it, she leaned over and said to it: “My wildcat, it all started with you.” Alki didn’t spend her life yearning for the past. Even when she told stories about the old days, it was in order to speak to young and old in the present. Just like Alki, in our performance we have tried to tell the children of today this story from the past, with great love and with everything that Alki has left open to tell the audience herself through the wildcat.
Petros Sevastikoglou
Artistic and production credits:
Adaptation – Direction – Lyrics: Dimitra Larentzaki
Set design: Katerina Papageorgiou
Costume: Maria Kavalioti
Music: Kostas Vomvolos
Choreography – Movement: Pashalia Akritidou
Lighting design: Trifon Kehagias
Video: Petros Sevastikoglou
Video animation: Babis Venetopoulos
Masks: Olympia Sideridou
Assistant director: Angelos Kourepis
Construction of the wildcat: Alexandros Konstantinidis
Photography: Giorgos Nakis
Trailer: Panagiotis Kountouras
Poster artwork: Moutzoura & Konstantinos Georgantas
Set construction: KOLOSSAION PRODUCTIONS
Executive producer: Maria Prodromou
Production: KOLOSSAION PRODUCTIONS
Cast (in alphabetical order):
Sofia Mpletsou: Stamatina / Pipitsa
Viktoria Papadopoulou: Mirto
Pavlina Papadopoulou: Melia
Andreas Papaioannou: cousin Nikos / the Dutch Consul
Thanos Poumakis: Nolis / the Prefect
Maria Prodromou: aunt Despina / author
Kornilia Prokopiou: Artemi / wildcat / the Prefect’s wife
Stamatis Stamoglou: grandfather / the Despot
Admission:
General admission: EUR 13
Pre-sale starts on 23rd June 2025 at www.ticketservices.gr. From 23rd July 2025 tickets will also be available for sale at the theatre box office.