Lyrical Legacy: Mikis Theodorakis Centennial Tour Brings the Spirit of Greece to China

Mikis Theodorakis 100th Anniversary China Tour

27.07- 02.08 , 2025

From July 27 to August 2, 2025, the timeless music of legendary Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis (1925–2021) resonated across China through a special concert tour titled The Lyrical Mikis Theodorakis – 100 Years Since His Birth. Organized by the Sino-Hellenic Performing Arts Alliance in collaboration with Music Path Productions, the tour featured acclaimed Greek vocalists Tania Tsanaklidou and Maria Papageorgiou alongside a live orchestra, bringing the soul of Greek music to audiences in Shanghai, Beijing, and Nanchang.

 

The concerts were held under the auspices and support of the Hellenic Ministry of Culture, the Embassy of Greece in Beijing, and the Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO), which served as the Gold Sponsor. The tour was also supported by Juneyao Airlines, which provided travel sponsorship for the Greek delegation.

Each concert venue was filled with an atmosphere of cultural reverence and artistic warmth. Over 2,000 attendees — including diplomats, cultural representatives, scholars, and lovers of Greek music — were captivated by the emotional depth and lyrical beauty of Theodorakis’ works.

The Beijing concert, held on July 30 at the National Museum of China, was particularly symbolic. The event coincided with the museum’s exhibition The Countless Aspects of Beauty in Ancient Art, organized in cooperation with Greece’s National Archaeological Museum. Together, the concert and the exhibition created a powerful dialogue between Greek and Chinese civilizations — a conversation of beauty, heritage, and harmony.

The program featured Correspondence, a suite of Theodorakis songs newly arranged by Maria Papageorgiou and inspired by her personal email exchanges with the composer. Through a blend of narration and song, the performance honored Greece’s Nobel laureates George Seferis and Odysseas Elytis, whose poetry shaped much of Theodorakis’ musical legacy.

During the performance, Tania Tsanaklidou reflected on the deep kinship between the two cultures:

“Our civilizations, though seemingly different, are deeply alike. They share a common memory of ritual, music, and ceremony. China is not a foreign land to us, but a sister from afar.”

Chinese subtitles accompanied the concert, allowing the audience to fully connect with the lyrics and the spirit of the music. The highlight came with a solo bouzouki performance — its resonant tones drawing waves of applause that filled the hall.

The tour concluded in Nanchang on August 2, where officials from the Jiangxi Provincial Foreign Affairs Office met with representatives of the Sino-Hellenic Performing Arts Alliance and GNTO. Discussions centered on expanding cultural and tourism cooperation between Jiangxi Province and Greece. “Cultural events are the best means of communication between peoples,” said Pavlos Mourmas, head of the GNTO China Office. “Through art, and especially through music, we can deepen mutual understanding and bring our societies closer together.”

The Lyrical Mikis Theodorakis tour received widespread attention from Chinese media outlets including Xinhua, China News, and Phoenix News, as well as thousands of online engagements on platforms such as Xiaohongshu. The flood of positive responses reflected not only admiration for Theodorakis’ music but also the growing friendship between Greece and China.

As a remarkable conclusion, it was announced that this cultural bridge will continue in November 2025, when a delegation of 60 artists from Nanchang will visit Athens to perform Tiangong Kaiwu Το Έπος της Κίνας during the opening of the 3rd Sino-Hellenic International Theatre Festival — symbolizing the ever-deepening ties between the two nations through art, music, and shared humanity.