News
Dancers learn to dive for underwater performance
In what is being billed as a world first, 14 dancers have donned scuba gear for an underwater performance, complete with specially composed music, to an audience submerged to a depth of approximately 5 meters in Cape Sounion, southeast of Athens, beneath the ancient temple of Poseidon.
The performance is the brainchild of Greek choreographer Apostolia Papadamaki and French choreographer Sophie Bulbulyan, whose dance group in one of Paris’ poorest neighborhoods includes disabled dancers.
The two, who are recreational divers, met three years ago during a dive.
“We liked each other and then we started talking artistically, exchanging ideas,” Papadamaki explained. They had “the very impulsive idea one day after a fun dive: Let’s make an underwater performance. Let’s see if it’s possible. An underwater dance performance.”
It was possible – but not easy.
“This project is like going to the moon on a bike,” said Bulbulyan. “There was an enormous amount of difficulties.”
For a start, dancers – including those with mobility problems – had to learn to dive, and control their buoyancy through their breathing to the point where they can hover upside down and sideways, or rise and fall without moving a muscle. Seventy percent of the performers were dancers who became divers – all in the last year.
Then there were the logistics: diving gear, transport, financing, the vagaries of the weather and political upheaval in Greece, complete with banking restrictions and early elections.
“I’m bringing a French dance group from the poorest neighborhood in France, which has handicapped people in its group, to Greece, a country in chaos, and we’re doing something without limits,” Bulbulyan said. “It’s all that together, with crazy logistics.”
The music needed special consideration. Composer Trifonas Koutsourelis researched and tested the transmission of sound frequencies so his score could both be heard clearly and choreographed in water, where movement slows down.
It took him two and a half months. “I haven’t slept for the last three weeks at least,” he said.
For the dancers, especially the disabled, the experience was “beyond words,” said Papadamaki.
“They feel equal. For the first time they can move without a wheelchair, without the restriction of somebody having to carry them.”
Irini Kourouvani, who uses a wheelchair, has been a dancer for 15 years but was wary of the water as she needed a flotation board to swim.
She was hooked from her first dive.
“I forgot to be afraid and to get scared because I was so entranced by what I was seeing,” Kourouvani said. “I felt like I was floating in space, like I was on earth and the wind was coming and lifting me up.”
Now, she said, the deep is something “I won’t part with. Because now I carry it within me.
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Renowned anti-whaling activist Paul Watson has been released from custody in Greenland after spending five months in detention. Denmark’s Justice Ministry rejected Japan’s request for his extradition, citing insufficient guarantees that his time already served in custody would be credited against any potential sentence.
The 74-year-old Canadian-American was arrested on July 21 in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, when his ship docked to refuel. His arrest was based on a 2012 Japanese warrant related to a 2010 encounter in Antarctic waters. Japan alleged Watson obstructed operations and caused damage to a whaling research ship during efforts to disrupt illegal whaling. Watson has consistently denied these claims, maintaining his commitment to marine conservation.
Denmark, which oversees extradition matters for Greenland, concluded that while the legal conditions for extradition were met, the lack of assurances from Japan regarding time-served credit made extradition untenable.
In a video shared by his foundation, Watson expressed gratitude and relief, saying, “After five months, it’s good to be out… and good to know they’re not sending me to Japan.” He added that the most difficult part of his time in custody was being separated from his two young sons.
Watson is a pioneering figure in marine conservation, known for founding the Captain Paul Watson Foundation in 2022 after decades of activism with the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. His bold efforts to defend marine life have earned him widespread support, including from celebrities and conservationists. His work has also been featured in the acclaimed reality TV series Whale Wars.
Watson’s lawyer, Jonas Christoffersen, praised the decision, stating, “We are happy and relieved that Paul Watson is now free.” He added that Watson is eager to reunite with his family and continue his vital work.
The arrest occurred while Watson’s vessel, the M/Y John Paul DeJoria, was en route to the North Pacific with a team of 26 volunteers to intercept a Japanese whaling ship. His foundation described the arrest as politically motivated and emphasized that Watson’s actions were focused on ending illegal whaling practices.
Japan resumed commercial whaling in 2019 after leaving the International Whaling Commission, asserting that whale meat is a cultural tradition. Conservationists, however, continue to challenge these practices, highlighting their impact on marine ecosystems.
Despite the challenges, Watson remains steadfast in his mission to protect marine life and bring attention to whaling practices. His dedication to ocean conservation has made him a globally respected advocate for the environment.
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