The “Athens & Epidaurus Festival” will include 87 performances in a reduced but more targeted programme than last year’s, organizers noted on Monday and will show commissioned works by Greek artists at the “Peiraios 260 venue”.

The annual Greek Festival includes performances and events mostly focused at Irodio (Herod Atticus theatre) in Athens and the theatre of Ancient Epidaurus. The Athens & Epidaurus Festival will open at Irodio with Verdi’s “Nabucco” on June 1 and conclude with a performance of Bizet’s “Carmen” by the National Greek Opera on July 31.

The Peiraios 260 venue will host modern Greek and international theatre performances, including Chekhov’s “Three Sisters” by Russian director Timofei Kulyabin. It will open on June 1 with a performance of “The Pursuit of Happiness” by the US-based Nature Theatre of Oklahoma.

Artistic director Vangelis Theodoropoulos mentioned during the programme’s presentation at the National Museum of Contemporary Art that “this year’s Athens Festival schedule focused on bringing a classic repertoire to the Irodio and internationally renowned musicians”.

The Athens & Epidaurus Festival schedule was first presented in November 2017. The schedule also includes Italian orchestra Il Pomo d’ Oro specializing in baroque and classical music, Moscow’s Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra, British violinist Nigel Kennedy, American actor Bill Murray and rock musician Sting.

More details about the Athens & Epidaurus Festival are available at www.greekfestival.gr.