OPEN CALL to participate in Co-OPERAtive the intercultural opera hub for teenagers | GNO Learning & Participation

November 2025 – May 2026

Age group: 14 to 18 years old
Workshops start on: 24 November 2025
Workshop days & times: Mondays, 17.30-20.30
Performance date: Sunday 31 May 2026 ∙ Alternative Stage of the Greek National Opera at the SNFCC
Applications can be submitted by 19 October 2025 exclusively via the form you will find here

The Learning & Participation Department of the Greek National Opera invites teenagers aged 14 to 18 from various schools and neighbourhoods in Attica to participate in the sixth cycle of the intercultural opera hub Co-OPERAtive, with the goal of creating and presenting a music theatre performance in May 2026 at the GNO Alternative Stage in the SNFCC. Applications can be submitted by 19 October 2025 exclusively via the form you will find here.

Each year, the educational programme Co-OPERAtive hosts a group of 30 young individuals of diverse nationalities, including Athenians and asylum-seeking minors, in a series of weekly workshops led by distinguished artists from the fields of music, theatre, and dance. Co-OPERAtive provides participants with a space for artistic expression, freedom, and collaboration, where music, speech, and movement, as well as the mundane and the imaginary, intertwine creatively. During the workshops that run from November to May, participants develop a shared artistic language and co-create a music theatre piece that reflects their voices and the enchantment of magical realism, guided by experienced art professionals.

During this year’s cycle, the creative team (director, musician, choreographer) will draw inspiration from short novels by Gabriel García Márquez – typical examples of magical realism. Magical realism, which reflects a peculiar balance between the mundane and the imaginary, can serve as fertile ground for music theatre, as it allows speech, music, and movement to meet in a multilevel scenic universe. The images emerging from Márquez’s writings can generate rich sound and physical metaphors, giving music an intrinsic and integral role in the storytelling process.

Some of the themes that will inspire the workshops include the presence of the imaginary in everyday life and the way it sparks dreams and fantasies; the question, “What would happen if the incredible suddenly invaded our lives?”; the power of collective imagination; the experience of Otherness, both as a challenge and as an object of admiration and a perspective for change through our encounter with the bizarre; and the coexistence of the earthly with the transcendental. These themes resonate with the reality of a multicultural group of young people eager to engage in games of imagination, musical experimentation, and collective storytelling, illuminating both Márquez’s world and their own, uncharted, imaginary world.

Furthermore, participants will have the chance to attend dress rehearsals and opera, music theatre, and ballet performances, discuss with GNO professionals, get acquainted with all the stages of an opera production process, and ultimately, present their own piece at the GNO Alternative Stage.

Participation in the programme does not require specialised music, theatre, or dance knowledge. However, any prior amateur or professional experience with the aforementioned art forms will be taken into consideration during the application evaluation process. What’s most important is the applicants’ enthusiasm to participate in the programme, their interest, and availability on the days when the workshops, rehearsals, and final performance will be held.

This year’s artistic team of animators and trainers will consist of Nikos Galenianos (composition, music coach), Sofia Vgenopoulou (direction, acting coach), Julia Diamantopoulou (text, dramaturgy), Pavlos Thanopoulos (sets, costumes), Eleni Zachopoulou (theatre workshop leader), and Antigone Gyra (choreography, dance workshop leader).

Workshops start on: 24 November 2025

Workshop days & times: Mondays, 17.30-20.30

Final rehearsals: 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 May 2026, 16:00-21:00: Alternative Stage of the Greek National Opera at the SNFCC

Performance date: Sunday 31 May 2026 ∙ Alternative Stage of the Greek National Opera at the SNFCC

Terms & conditions

• Applying to participate in the GNO Learning & Participation Department’s workshop Co-OPERAtive does not guarantee acceptance. All applications will be evaluated by the GNO Learning & Participation Department, which will ensure the intercultural and inter-artistic character of the group.
• The GNO Learning & Participation Department is not obliged to justify the acceptance or rejection of any application.
• Participation in the Co-OPERAtive programme is
• Participation in the workshop requires the full attendance of participants throughout the entire duration of the programme.
• All applicants will be personally notified of their acceptance or rejection via email.
• Any questions about the application process must be sent exclusively via email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with the subject “Co-OPERAtive—Question.”

PARTICIPATION AND ATTENDANCE POLICY

• Participation in the programme does not require specialised music, theatre, or dance knowledge. However, any prior amateur or professional experience with the aforementioned art forms will be taken into consideration during the application evaluation process.
• A key requirement for participation is the applicants’ ability to commit to the entire duration of the programme, as well as their motivation and personal interest. Each applicant’s personal statement in the application form (question No. 14) is of decisive importance for the final selection of participants, as it allows us to understand what motivates each individual to participate, how they see themselves within a group, and what they hope to gain from this experience
• Participant attendance is MANDATORY at all scheduled meetings, unless it is impossible due to serious reasons, in which case the teaching staff must be promptly notified.
• The maximum number of absences allowed is three (3) in total during the entire duration of the programme. If this maximum limit is exceeded, each case will be assessed individually, and the teaching staff will decide, at their absolute discretion, whether the individual in question may continue participating in the programme or not.

Workshops start on 24 November 2025

Workshop days & times: Mondays, 17.30-20.30

Final rehearsals: 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 May 2026, 16:00-21:00: Alternative Stage of the Greek National Opera at the SNFCC

Performance date: Sunday, 31 May 2026 ∙ Alternative Stage of the Greek National Opera at the SNFCC

Artistic team of animators - trainers:  Nikos Galenianos (composition, music coach), Sofia Vgenopoulou (direction, acting coach), Julia Diamantopoulou (text, dramaturgy), Pavlos Thanopoulos (sets, costumes), Eleni Zachopoulou (theatre workshop leader), Antigone Gyra (choreography, dance workshop leader)

Please confirm your participation by 7 November 2025.
Information: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 213 088 5752 / 213 088 5755 (Monday – Friday, 10.00– 18.00)

GNO Learning & Participation Lead Donor