MUSIC, WORDS & MOVEMENT
3-5 OCTOBER 2025
HYDRA ISLAND GREECE
Australian guitarist, composer, producer, and musical director returns to Hydra to present a live listening session of his latest album ‘Like The Night Itself’.
Hydra’s father-and-son musicians Yiannis and Panagiotis Gavalas share their deep love and knowledge of Hydra’s traditional music.
Sonic artist returns to Hydra with her immersive approach integrating sound, voice, video, and spatial interventions.
Celebrate Hydra’s rich poetry heritage, with local poet Yiannis Gavalas and American poet John L. Holgerson.
Exquisite choreography and dancing by the Hydriot performers behind the international one-week festival.
Special performance by Hydra’s longstanding non-profit organization, showcasing their talented musicians and dedication to keeping tradition alive.
Discover Josh Hickey’s pop-up bookstore on the first floor of the Hydra Historical Archive and Museum, featuring Greek and foreign books, new and used.
Experience a beat like you never have before with the transcendent percussion of this Athens-based performer.
A musical tribute to the prolific and legendary composer and former Minister of State.
KYRAN DANIEL
AUSTRALIAN GUITARIST, COMPOSER & PRODUCER
Joining us for a special eight-day music residency is ArtCinema Music Patron Kyran Daniel - guitarist, composer, producer, and musical director. Kyran’s career began on the world stage, performing alongside Australian Grammy Winner Tommy Emmanuel. His debut album, Per Se, became a landmark in the acoustic guitar world, leading to his full-scholarship to the prestigious Berklee College of Music, where he studied under some of the foremost professors in contemporary songwriting and production.
Following Berklee, Kyran built a stellar reputation as a songwriter and producer for leading Australian artists including G Flip, Gretta Ray, and Kingswood. His wide-ranging musical sensibility and exceptional artistry quickly cemented his place among Australia’s most sought-after studio talents.
Now based in Rome, Kyran returns to Hydra for a special residency and will join us over the ArtCinema weekend as our honoured guest. A celebrated artist whose work bridges sound, storytelling, and place, Kyran will present a live listening session of his latest album ‘Like The Night Itself’ - an intimate performance not to be missed, made all the more poignant as he recorded a significant portion of this album at Hydra’s Old Carpet Factory recording studios just two years ago.
LIVE LISTENING SESSION:
World-acclaimed Australian musician Kyran Daniels. Daniels, a celebrated artist whose work bridges sound, storytelling, and place, will present a live listening session of his latest album, Like The Night Itself. This intimate performance is not to be missed, made all the more poignant as a significant portion of the album was recorded at Hydra’s Old Carpet Factory just two years ago.
ALEKOS ROUPAS
GREEK PERCUSSIONIST
Alekos Roupas is an Athens-based percussionist skilled in a wide range of traditional Greek, Mediterranean, Latin, Brazilian, and West African percussion instruments. From a young age, Alekos was immersed in Greek traditional percussion and participated in folk dance festivals while studying drums at the Municipal Conservatory of Ioannina. He graduated from the Philippos Nakas Conservatory’s traditional and modern percussion department, studying under Peter Kourtis.
Alekos has attended masterclasses with renowned artists such as Alex Acuña, Eguie Castrillo, Richie Gajate Garcia, and Misirli Ahmet. He has collaborated with numerous music producers across genres and performed worldwide alongside top musicians, composers, and singers. Notably, he recently worked with Gloria Gaynor in concert in Athens. Alekos is a member of the percussion ensemble Drumvoice and has taught multi-percussion seminars at the Philippos Nakas Conservatory since 2011.
JULIJA CASTELLUCCI
MACEDONIAN MUSIC PERFORMANCE ARTIST
Julija Castelucci returns to ArtCinema as a sonic patron. She is a conceptual and performance artist whose work spans the fields of time-based and spatial art through sonic, visual, and written forms. Her immersive approach integrates sound, voice, video, and spatial interventions. The veracity of her vocal expression stems from the distinctive timbre and frequency of her voice, through which she creates abstract emotional drawings, establishing communication with the audience in a continuous search for situational context. She explores the sculptural and emotional dimensions of sound, shaping situations as entities with singular contexts, compact structures, and ephemeral existence.
YIANNIS AND PANAGIOTIS GAVALAS
ArtCinema is honoured to present father-and-son musicians Yiannis and Panagiotis Gavalas, whose deep knowledge of Hydra’s traditional music has inspired much of this year’s creativity.
Yiannis Gavalas - a former shipping captain, marine teacher, and poet - has long been a devoted guardian of Hydra’s musical heritage. He has championed traditional gatherings for decades, including the Almond Festival, where musicians perform the island’s cherished songs. Yiannis also vividly recalls Sophia Loren’s arrival in 1956 for the filming of Boy on a Dolphin, and is known for his moving rendition of “Τι είναι αυτό που το λένε αγάπη” (What Is This That They Call Love?). Born on Hydra, he served in the merchant marines before teaching at the island’s School for Merchant Captains. A prolific author, he has published seven books, with his latest celebrating Hydra’s achievements.
Panagiotis Gavalas, a beloved local pharmacist and accomplished bouzouki player, continues the family’s rich musical tradition.
HYDRA POET & MUSICIANS
POETS & WRITERS BREAKFASTS
FEATURING LIVE READINGS
We will celebrate Hydra’s rich poetry and literary heritage with a Poet’s Breakfast, co-hosted by local poet Yiannis Gavalas and American poet John L. Holgerson. For the past 30 years, Holgerson has spent at least a month or two each year in Hydra, inspired by Leonard Cohen, writing poetry and reflecting. He returns to Hydra as an ArtCinema Poet Patron to co-host the breakfast, which will be accompanied by a Colombian festival film from Cannes exploring the life of a poet. The breakfast and screening will invite both local and international guests to participate at the famous Pirate Bar, long celebrated as a gathering place for Hydra’s poets.
YIANNIS GAVALAS
Yiannis Gavalas, born in Hydra, is a retired merchant marine captain who now devotes his time to writing prose and verse, as well as singing and playing guitar. A distinguished member of the Greek Writers’ Union, he has published seven poetry collections, including Marine Vibrations (1995), Marine Disturbance (1999), and most recently Hydriot Achievements (2024). His works can also be explored at Hydra’s Historical Archives Museum.
We eagerly await his next poetry collection, set to be published in 2025, promising yet another brilliant contribution to Greek literature and culture.
Photo Credit: Issey Gladston
JOHN L. HOLGERSON
For the past 30 years, John L. Holgerson has resided for at least a month or two each year in Hydra, inspired by Leonard Cohen, writing poetry and reflecting. He returns to Hydra as an ArtCinema Poet Patron to co-host the Poetry Breakfast and a surprise festival film about the life of a poet.
His third and most recent poetry collection, Convictions of the Heart, includes a heartfelt tribute to Hydra and reflections on other places and people. John’s other two poetry collections are Broken Borders and Unnecessary Tattoo. He continues to write and publish poetry.
Born in Taunton, Massachusetts, John studied poetry and law at the University of Notre Dame. Inspired by criminal law professor Robert Blakey and civil rights lawyer William Kunstler, he joined the Massachusetts Defenders Committee after graduation. As a trial and appellate attorney, John handled serious felony cases and argued before Massachusetts’ highest courts. These experiences shape his novel-in- progress, The Privilege.
You can visit John’s website HERE
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MICHAEL CACOYANNIS & MIKIS THEODORAKIS
We honor legendary composer Mikis Theodorakis by inviting composers to analyze and recompose 5-minute scenes from Michael Cacoyannis’ Electra and Zorba the Greek.
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TRADITIONAL GREEK DANCE
On the morning of Saturday, October 4th, ArtCinema will host a Greek traditional dancing workshop for those who plan to take part in that evening’s festivities at the BOY ON A DOLPHIN tribute night.
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BOUZOUKI WORKSHOP
This intimate gathering will transport audiences back to simpler times by bringing together local bouzouki players in a picturesque setting to discuss the history of early 20th century instrument and play traditional Greek songs designed especially for its strings.
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PERCUSSION WORKSHOP
At ArtCinema’s popular community event, Cinema & Souvlaki Night, legendary percussionist Alekos Roupas will lead a percussion workshop using unconventional percussive tools. Guests are encouraged to bring their rhythm and creative spirits to experience something truly unique, fun and community-minded.
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MUSIC PERFORMANCE
Inspired by Hugo Friedhofer’s Academy Award nominated film score and Takis Morakis’ composition of “What Is This Thing Called Love?”
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TRADITIONAL GREEK DANCE
Inspired by Boy On A Dolphin’s Greek choreographer Yianni Fleury
