**Theogony by Hesiod**

The play "Theogony" based on Hesiod marks the debut of the troupe of the ancient theater, in memory of the emblematic researcher, translator, and lecturer on ancient Greco-Roman culture, Ognian Radev. Radev imparted his knowledge of ancient theater not only to the students of the Classical High School but also to the students of NATFA and NBU, and practically through the legendary troupe for ancient theater, from which many Bulgarian artists launched their careers.

With respect and homage to the tradition of teaching and creating ancient theater in Bulgaria, established by Ognian Radev, it was decided that the text to be worked on would address the great questions about the origins, the creation of the world, the gods, language, humanity, and time.

Hesiod’s text, from the same era as Homer, is not intended for the stage, being epic in nature. This was the second reason it was chosen. In addition to its thematic alignment with the questions and topics that intrigue us at the beginning of the journey of the "Ognian Radev" ancient theater, the team embarked on a series of texts to be dramatized for the first time.
Thus, utilizing the beautiful translation that preserves the ancient rhythm in poetic meter by Stanka Nedyalkova, transitions were staged from Chaos to the emergence of several generations of gods, elements, heroes, phenomena, and the Memory (Mnema) of them.

The stage space was specially selected and adapted for the performance. The play was presented three times to several hundred people among the ruins of ancient Serdica, in the heart of Sofia, in the "Serdica" complex near Largo.
A special pre-Christmas edition was realized with the support of the Rectorate of Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski." In this way, the epic was transformed into drama. Archaeological ruins in the city center and neoclassical marble interiors at the university became the stage, and the creation of the world according to the ancient Greeks came to life again in 2022 in Sofia.
Our partners in this endeavor to bring antiquity to life in theatrical form were the Regional Historical Museum of Sofia and the ancient complex "Serdica."

Special thanks to the team that worked on "Theogony" as part of the "Ognian Radev" ancient theater:

- Director: Boyan Kracholov
- Acting preparation: Bilyana Georgieva, Galya Kostadinova, Ina Dobreva
- Costumes and set design: Ina Dobreva and Katya Petrova
- Visual identity and graphic design: Tsveta Dobreva
- Lighting: Vladislav Vasilev
- Photography: Tsveta Dobreva, Violeta Apostolova, Dimitar Krumov
- Video: Todor Radev and team
- Cultural context and organization: Yana Koleva and Radoslav Iliev

Cast: Dona Desova, Ekaterina Grigorova, Elena Vasileva, Elitsa Dimitrova, Emma Emilova, Yoan Zlatanov, Yoana Dimova, Kalina Georgieva, Katerina Asenova, Kristiana Ivanova, Maria Kumanova, Maria Hristova, Miroslav Burzashki, Nadezhda Rakhova, Nikola Subev, Nia Borislavova, Nora Radenkova, Stefan Radev, Filip Denolyubov, Preslav Bonchev.