An ancient theater in Greece opens for its final season before undergoing a 3-year restoration

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — For visitors to Athens, the ancient Odeon of Herod Atticus is the must-see theater at the foot of the Acropolis. Artists revere it for the majestic stage where legends have performed. And for the Greek capital's residents it is the touchstone of their summer cultural calendar.

The Odeon of Herod Atticus recently opened the 70th season of the annual Athens Epidaurus Festival, a cherished annual tradition for many Greeks. But this edition marks the last before the theater that’s more than 18 centuries old shuts down for maintenance and restoration work that is expected to last at least three years.

While theater and dance grace its stage, music is its cornerstone. Renowned artists who have performed here include Luciano Pavarotti, Frank Sinatra, Coldplay, and Greece’s own Maria Callas.

Its closure will be a profound loss for spectators who have long enjoyed first-class performances under the stars in one of the world’s most iconic open-air theaters.

“When (people) think of the Athens cultural scene, everyone thinks of the festival and Herodion,” said Katerina Evangelatos, the festival’s artistic director since 2019, calling the theater by its commonly used Greek name. “It has become a synonym of the festival. It is the heart of the festival.”

When the Greek National Opera opened this season’s festival with Giacomo Puccini’s opera Turandot, it erected temporary structures behind the Roman-era odeon’s arched walls to expand available space for performers’ dressing rooms. The permanent underground facilities weren’t enough.

The production also needed more space inside the venue to accommodate the scale of the production.

To meet the opera’s scenic and casting demands, a crew constructed a wooden, balcony-like platform to partially extend over the orchestra pit.

This adaption allowed space for the large cast and complex staging, including the emblematic scene in which the emperor, Turandot’s elderly father, is ceremonially rolled out in his towering throne to watch suitors attempt to solve his daughter's riddles — at the risk of execution. The scene requires significant simultaneous on-stage presence by multiple performers.

Giorgos Koumendakis, the Greek National Opera’s artistic director, describes the Herod Atticus Odeon as “a strained, fatigued space” which still commands widespread veneration.

“People who are conscious, cultivated, educated — who understand what this space is, its historical significance, the importance of the festival, and the history of the Greek National Opera — respect it deeply and enter it almost reverently,” said Koumendakis. “It’s like entering a temple — a temple of art — and it truly has an impact. I can see it from the singers and the orchestra, too. When they come here, they genuinely want to give their all."

During previous restoration and conservation projects, the Herod Atticus Odeon had surfaces cleaned, cracks filled with grout and new seating installed. This time, the scope of the work will depend on findings from the studies still underway.

Culture Minister Lina Mendoni said that although the venue’s closing date is certain, at the end of summer, its reopening is not.

“This will depend on the problems that the studies will reveal,” she said in an interview to Greek radio station Skai last month. “What is certain is that at least three years will be needed.”

The closure of the Herod Atticus means the Athens Epidaurus Festival will need to consider alternatives for the next few years. Evangelatos reflected on the festival’s 70 years, noting that it began during Greece's turbulent postwar years of political division and economic hardship.

“It’s a miracle of survival and artistic legacy,” she said.

On the festival's opening night, the backstage area was abuzz with final preparations, with wigs styled, masks adjusted and costumes touched up.

Soprano Lise Lindstrom, who starred as Turandot, took in the gravity of the setting.

“It’s an absolutely magical atmosphere here. To be able to stand on the stage and look directly up and see the Acropolis is a little bit mind-blowing, I have to admit,” she said. “And then also to look out and see all the people sitting there and just being so absorbed into the performance. It’s very, very powerful and magical.”

All eyes were on Lindstrom as she took center stage beneath the stars — marking the start of a final season before a long intermission.

Spectators wait for Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" premiere by the Greek National Opera athe Odeon of Herodes Atticus under the ancient Acropolis hill during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Sunday, June 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Performer Denia Mimerini of the Greek National Opera plays at Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens, Greece, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Performers of the Greek National Opera play Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens, Greece, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

People walk outside the Odeon of Herodes Atticus during Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" performance by the Greek National Opera part of the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Performers and musicians take part in Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" dress rehearsal by the Greek National Opera at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Friday, May 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Performers take part in Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" dress rehearsal by the Greek National Opera at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Friday, May 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Ushers help spectators taking their seats at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus ahead of Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" dress rehearsal during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Friday, May 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Dancers Anastasia Valsamaki, left, and Antonia Oikonomou, right, prepare ahead of Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" performance by the Greek National Opera during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens, Greece, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Tenor Nikos Stefanou gets his make-up ahead of Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" performance during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens, Greece, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Performers of the Greek National Opera Denia Mimerini, center, and Nikos Egglezos, left, prepare ahead of Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens, Greece, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

The two harpists of the Greek National Opera Ersilia Mikrou, left, and Anna Dermani watch the spectators taking their seats at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus ahead of Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" dress rehearsal during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Friday, May 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Greek National Opera musician Neoklis Aravantinos plays his bass trombone ahead of Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" premiere during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens, Greece, Sunday, June 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Spectators wait to enter the Odeon of Herodes Atticus for Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" premiere by the Greek National Opera during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Sunday, June 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Artistic Director Katerina Evangelatos of Athens Epidaurus Festival poses in Athens, Greece, Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Greek National Opera's Artistic Director, Giorgos Koumendakis poses ahead of the dress rehearsal of Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" by the Greek National Opera during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Friday, May 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Tourists watch the ushers as they prepare the Odeon of Herodes Atticus ahead of the dress rehearsal of Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" by the Greek National Opera during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Friday, May 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Dancers warm up at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus ahead of the dress rehearsal of Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" by the Greek National Opera under the ancient Acropolis hill during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Friday, May 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Ushers prepare the Odeon of Herodes Atticus ahead of the dress rehearsal of Giacomo Puccini's "Turandot" by the Greek National Opera under the ancient Acropolis hill during the 70th Athens Epidaurus Festival in Athens, Greece, Friday, May 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo blocked a shot by LeBron James and stole the ball from him on consecutive possessions in the final minute, and the Milwaukee Bucks blew a fourth-quarter lead before rallying for a 105-101 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night.

Kevin Porter Jr. scored 22 points, and he hit two free throws to break a tie after Antetokounmpo blocked a driving layup attempt by James with 39 seconds left.

Antetokounmpo then knocked the ball out of James' hands from behind with 2 seconds left, and Porter hit two more free throws to seal Milwaukee's fifth win in seven games — its first over a team with a winning record since Dec. 11. Antetokounmpo finished with 21 points in his lowest-scoring effort since returning from his right calf strain.

Luka Doncic had 24 points and nine assists on 8-of-25 shooting for the Lakers. He had his lowest-scoring performance since Christmas, and he fouled out on Porter's 3-point attempt with 16.2 seconds to play.

James had 26 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds, but Antetokoumpo got the best of the top scorer in NBA history at crunch time. Los Angeles has lost six of 10.

Milwaukee surged to a double-digit lead in the first half even with Antetokounmpo on a minutes restriction in his injury return. Doncic scored 12 points in the third quarter but also committed four fouls in the period, including his fifth of the game.

Los Angeles abruptly erased its deficit by going on a 17-4 run to open the fourth, with James putting the Lakers ahead when he stole the ball from Antetokounmpo for a layup with 6:02 left. Milwaukee missed nine of its first 12 shots in the period, but Porter's layup tied it with two minutes left.

Lakers starters Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura remain sidelined by injury, but Hachimura (calf) might return early next week from his six-game absence, coach JJ Redick said.

Bucks: At Denver on Sunday.

Lakers: At Sacramento on Monday.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

Los Angeles Lakers guard Marcus Smart, left, tries to shoot as Milwaukee Bucks guard Gary Trent Jr. defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic, left, and Milwaukee Bucks guard Kevin Porter Jr. go after a loose ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)