THE end of the season has arrived for Cyprus’ most popular TV series and what an end it was. The long-awaited marriage between Nastazia and Socratis in Sigma’s Vourate Geitonoi was finally filmed on Sunday with massive participation from the general public.
The scriptwriter Giorgos Tsiakkas, who plays Nastazia’s on-screen husband, Socratis, staged the wedding in his own village, Alona. Nearly 4,000 people of all ages and from all over Cyprus filled the quiet streets of the village as early as noon awaiting the unique experience of taking part in filming the series’ season finale. A finale full of surprises and unexpected twists since it was the traditional Cypriot wedding that Nastazia was forever declaring she didn’t want.
Christina Pavlidou, who plays beautician Nastazia, told Politis yesterday: “It was a very touching experience, the public’s love was unbelievable. We didn’t expect such an enormous response. And Nastazia is of course very shocked herself. The fact that she gave in to having a village wedding had some surprises since they even made her ride a donkey.”
Instead of using actors to stage the wedding and reception, the script writers decided to invite the programme’s tens of thousands of viewers to participate. When Sigma advertised for people to come along to Alona to take part in the wedding, the applications started pouring in. The station received over 1,500 and more people were expected to turn up on the day.
Vasos Tsangaras, Personnel Manager, said: “The series has been so loved by the public that it has become a way of life. They want to take part in all aspects of the series, asking to visit the studio and meet the actors.
“They even treat the actors as if they are actually the characters in the series. They ask Rikkos Mappouros what he is going to do now that he has lost his apartment and Beba, his wife, why she doesn’t divorce Rikkos after everything he has put her through.”
There were 632 applications for bridesmaids, a number that surpassed all expectations. People came from all over the country from Paphos to Paralimni and everybody co-operated with the production team, patiently following instructions despite the sweltering heat.
Tsaggaras said: “We want to thank the public for their love and we promise that in the new season 2004-2005 we will give them the best script and the best images we can.”
The final episode of the series will be broadcast this Friday.
