The powerful and deeply humane rock musical Tick, Tick… Boom! by Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning composer and lyricist Jonathan Larson, known as the creator of the legendary production Rent, will be performed for the first time in Greece, in a new, ambitious production by the Greek National Opera Alternative Stage. The work is an autobiographical musical that serves as a hymn to youthful anxiety, never-fading dreams, and the belief that no matter what may come, life must always go on… with music. Tick, Tick… Boom! will run for nineteen performances, from the 6th of December 2025 to the 11th of January 2026, rocking the GNO Alternative Stage’s world at the SNFCC with a wild party filled with powerful moments, tight embraces, intense emotions, and unforgettable songs.

Tick, Tick… Boom! was originally produced off-Broadway in June 2001 by Victoria Leacock, Robyn Goodman, Dede Harris, Lorie Cowen Levy, and Beth Smith. It tells the moving story of a young artist just before he turns thirty, struggling between dreams, artistic ambition, and the reality of a life filled with uncertainty. Set against the backdrop of New York in the early 90s, this work captures, with humour, passion, and a disarming honesty, the fear of time passing, the need to create, and the belief that, despite all obstacles, it is worth pursuing your passion. In its Greek version, the musical will be presented at the GNO Alternative Stage, with a translation and lyrics adapted by Julia Diamantopoulou, conducted by Michalis Papapetrou, and directed by Emily Louizou.

Three actors, ten characters, fourteen songs, and a celebration piece dedicated to dreams, youth, and the struggle between romanticism and cynicism.  

Tick, Tick… Boom!: A rock portrait between passion and time
Before leaving its indelible mark with the emblematic rock musical Rent —the work that was going to change Broadway forever —ambitious New Yorker composer, lyricist, and playwright Jonathan Larson (1960-1996) wrote the work Tick, Tick… Boom! in the late 80s, as a personal musical diary of a young creator who struggles to find his place in the world of music theatre. This work captured the composer’s personal experiences —his anxiety about the passing of time and the fulfillment of his dreams —as well as the power of creation.

Tick, Tick… Boom! was initially performed in 1990 under the title Bohemian Days as a monologue by Larson himself with his piano on stage. Later, it was adapted by Larson’s friend and colleague, Victoria Leacock, and playwright David Auburn into a chamber musical for three performers, with vocal arrangements and orchestrations by Stephen Oremus. After the creator’s sudden death, just before turning thirty-six and only one day before Rent’s 1996 premiere, Tick, Tick… Boom! made its Off-Broadway debut in 2001. Although that initial production was abruptly shut down due to the blow the performing arts took after the attack on the Twin Towers, its success both within the broader American circles and internationally was enough to ensure its lasting presence. Its journey culminated in a 2021 film adaptation, directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda and starring Andrew Garfield, who received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.

At the heart of Tick, Tick… Boom! is Jon, an aspiring composer—who shares the same name as the work’s creator—struggling to complete a piece he hopes will establish his reputation: a science fiction musical called Superbia. His partner, dancer Susan, is considering leaving New York; his friend, Michael, has already left acting to pursue a more stable career in the corporate world. Our hero stands at a crossroads: should he insist on pursuing his dream of building a career in musicals or give in to the routine? Meanwhile, his 30th birthday countdown is ticking, both literally and metaphorically. Amidst the ticking clock, Jon’s youthful ambition encounters existential agony, erupting in deafening sounds.

Featuring explosive music, unforgettable songs, humour, and emotion, Tick, Tick… Boom! is a vibrant piece about life, death, and the power of art – a rock portrait of its creator, pulsating between passion and time.

Tick, Tick… Boom! at the Alternative Stage, a celebration piece
In its Greek debut, the musical Tick, Tick… Boom! will come to life at the Greek National Opera Alternative Stage as a celebration piece—a vibrant party where life, art, and time converge in a single rhythm. Set against an imaginative set featuring a large birthday cake that constantly transforms, we follow Jon, who is just one week away from turning thirty, counting down to the big moment. He suddenly feels so alone. He wishes he could be a different version of Peter Pan or the Little Prince, hoping to gain a little more time on his journey toward realizing his dreams.

The translation of both the libretto and lyrics by Julia Diamantopoulou has been a personal exploration for her. As she notes: “My journey through Tick, Tick… Boom! was an exploration of a universe where time is always present: as a rhythm, an enemy, and a catalyst. I returned to the 90s and saw the thread that connects the past with the present. Larson dares to be intimate, writing with equal parts of humour and doubt. Behind every word, frustration, and doubt, shines the inextinguishable light of a young artist who dreams of fulfilling his potential; an artist eager to become the voice of his generation while also being terrified that he might not make it in time.”

The musical is directed by emerging director Emily Louizou, in her first collaboration with the Alternative Stage. As she remarks: “In Tick, Tick… Boom!, from the very first moment, I was touched by the main character’s spontaneity, Larson’s authentic humour, the simplicity with which he presents the crucial dilemmas that practically everyone is called upon to face in their lives, and most of all, the way he masterfully walks the line between light and darkness. Just before the lights go out, just before Jon blows out the candles on his cake tonight, I am thinking that this year’s show is also a way for me to celebrate my own 30^th birthday and pay tribute to my own idols. This is a celebratory performance about the power of friendship, the importance of a dream, and the courage to keep going even when everything around you seems so predictable and stagnant.”

The production will be conducted by Michalis Papapetrou, an experienced conductor in this genre.

The set and costumes were designed by Niki Psyhogiou. Ioli Filippakopoulou is responsible for the movement and choreography, Christos Tziogkas designed the lighting, and David Blouin created the sound design. 

The roles will be performed by three talented young actors and singers: Paris Paraskevadis as Jon, Argyris Lambrou as Michael, and Danae Vasilopoulos as Susan.  

The instrumental ensemble consists of Giannis Angelopoulos (drums), Grigoris Danis (guitar), Manos Anagnostopoulos (bass), Michalis Papapetrou and Frixos Mortzos (piano synthesizer).

In collaboration with Music Theatre International: www.mtishows.eu

Brief biographical notes
Julia Diamantopoulou
Βorn in Athens in 1982. She studied Business Administration at the Athens University of Economics and Business, Marketing at Lancaster University, and Acting at the Embros Drama School, from which she graduated in 2012. From 2017 to 2020, she was a collaborator of Sofia Vgenopoulou at Mikro Ethniko. She writes, translates, and adapts plays, and is also a lyricist. Her work has been presented at National Theatre of Greece, GNO Alternative Stage, Greek Art Theatre Karolos Koun, Neos Kosmos Theatre and others. She has collaborated with Sofia Vgenopoulou, Vasilis Mavrogeorgiou, Dimitris Bogdanos, Athina Deliadis, Thanos Tokakis, Tasos Ratzos, Emily Louizou and others, and has written lyrics for music by Nikos Kypourgos, Angelos Triantafyllou and Alexandros Drakos Ktistakis, in productions of National Theatre of Greece, Athens Epidaurus Festival and others. She has translated Stephen Sondheim’s musical Into the Woods for the GNO.

Emily Louizou
She studied English Literature at University College London (UCL) and was subsequently accepted into the Theatre Directing postgraduate programme at Birkbeck College, University of London. She has also attended, by invitation, the six-month opera-directing seminar at the Royal Opera House in London. In 2015, she founded the theatre company Collide, about which The Guardian wrote in 2022 that it is “certainly a company to watch.” In 2020, she served as Resident Director at the Royal Shakespeare Company. She has also collaborated with English Touring Opera, National Theatre and Barbican Centre. In Greece, she has directed Labor at Poreia Theatre (2022), Symptoms of Weightlessness (inspired by Aeschylus’ Eumenides) at the Little Theatre of Ancient Epidaurus (2023), and City of the Blind (based on José Saramago’s novel Blindness) at the Athens Epidaurus Festival 2025. In 2024, she was Associate Director for the Greek National Opera’s production of The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny (dir. Yannis Houvardas).
www.emilylouizou.com

Niki Psyhogiou
A costume and set designer, she combines solid theoretical and research background with the technical skills she acquired during her studies in the Department of History and Archaeology at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and in Performance Design at the University of the Arts London. She works in the field of theatre, approaching it as a space for exploring the possibilities of artistic creation through the continuous interplay between traditional and contemporary methods in costume and set design, as well as their dynamic interaction with the audience. Highlights of her career include, among others, productions such as Juditha triumphans, directed by Thanos Papakonstantinou, presented at the Greek National Opera in 2021 as part of the celebrations marking 200 years since the Greek War of Independence; Claudio Monteverdi: L’Orfeo, directed by Thanos Papakonstantinou and conducted by Markellos Chryssicos; the music theatre production The Haunted, directed by Thanos Papakonstantinou with music by Dimitris Maramis; as well as Electra at the Athens Epidaurus Festival in 2018 and Apocalypse at the Onassis Stegi in 2019, both directed by Thanos Papakonstantinou.
parisparaskevadis.com

Paris Paraskevadis
Born in Athens. He is an actor and singer. He graduated from the Drama School of the National Theatre of Greece and the Royal Academy of Music in London (MA Musical Theatre, LRAM). He was awarded scholarships from the Alexander S. Onassis Foundation and the National Bank of Greece Cultural Foundation. He has partaken in masterclasses with Marina Abramović, Daniel Bowling, John Caird, Mary Hammond, Patti LuPone, Claude-Michel Schönberg, Imelda Staunton, Natalie Weiss. He has appeared in stage and television productions and performed in music venues. Also, his voice features in various dubbed projects in Greek. Stage credits include City of Angels by Cy Coleman (dir. Bruce Guthrie, 2019), The Phantom of the Opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber (dir. Stephen Barlow, 2020), Oedipus at Colonus by Sophocles (dir. Giorgos Skevas, 2023), The Last Five Years by Jason Robert Brown (dir. Dimitris Dimopoulos, conductor Michalis Papapetrou, 2023/24), The Bull who Played the Bagpipes by Eugene Trivizas with music by Dimitris Papadimitriou (dir. Konstantinos Rigos, 2024/25).
parisparaskevadis.com

Argyris Lambrou
Actor and singer. He was born in Kozani. He studied philology at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. In 2023, he graduated from the Drama School of the National Theatre of Northern Greece and received a diploma in voice from the Municipal Conservatory of Ambelokipi in Thessaloniki. For the past two years, he has been living and working as an actor in Athens. He has collaborated with major theatre stages in the city, such as the Tzeni Karezi Theatre in the children’s production The Tree Child by Michelle Riml, co-directed by Tzeni Kollia and Michalis Sionas, and the Gloria Theatre, where he worked with director Yiannis Kakleas in the play The Government Inspector by Nikolai Gogol. Finally, he participated in the production for children and teenagers The Glass Mountains and the Bone Plains, adapted by Andri Theodotou and directed by Dimitris Degaitis, as part of the cultural programme “All of Greece, One Culture”.

Danae Vasilopoulos
Actress, dancer, and singer who recently graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama with a focus on Musical Theatre from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts Department of Drama’s New Studio on Broadway as well as a Bachelor in Psychology from New York University’s College of Arts and Sciences. Born in Seattle (Washington, USA) and raised in Vrilissia (Greece), she began her career in Greece as Annie (Annie, 2013), directed by Themis Marsellou, and went on to perform in The Sound of Music, Fiddler on the Roof, Billy Elliot, and Romeo and Juliet. She received the Best Actress Award at DOC LA Documentary Film Festival for her work in the independent film Few Hours in Athens (dir. Aris Papargyropoulos). She is currently based in New York and Athens, and this is her first professional show since graduating. Danae is especially grateful to bring her New York experiences back home.

Fully accessible performances
The performances of the musical TICK, TICK… BOOM! will be fully accessible on the 10th & 11th of January 2026, providing an inclusive audiovisual experience for all audiences. In this context, there will be designated seats for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing and use Greek Sign Language, places for those who rely on captions (CAPS) covering the entire audio channel, as well as seats for individuals who are blind or have limited access to the visual channel of communication and use the audio description (AD) service. Guide dogs for the visually impaired will also be permitted.
Audience members who wish to use the accessibility services are requested to purchase their tickets at the GNO Box Office, over the phone at 2130885700, or via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. document.getElementById('cloakc0c83d376dfdefbfb86c4fbe074e54d1').innerHTML = ''; var prefix = 'ma' + 'il' + 'to'; var path = 'hr' + 'ef' + '='; var addyc0c83d376dfdefbfb86c4fbe074e54d1 = 'boxoffice' + '@'; addyc0c83d376dfdefbfb86c4fbe074e54d1 = addyc0c83d376dfdefbfb86c4fbe074e54d1 + 'nationalopera' + '.' + 'gr'; var addy_textc0c83d376dfdefbfb86c4fbe074e54d1 = 'boxoffice' + '@' + 'nationalopera' + '.' + 'gr';document.getElementById('cloakc0c83d376dfdefbfb86c4fbe074e54d1').innerHTML += ''+addy_textc0c83d376dfdefbfb86c4fbe074e54d1+''; .
The full accessibility services for this production are included in the accessibility initiative cycle Altogether at the Opera, implemented with the support of Alpha Bank, as part of its Corporate Responsibility Initiative Culture for All.

The production “TICK, TICK… BOOM!” is part of the GNO Alternative Stage’s unit of programming titled “CYCLE OF THEMATIC CONCERTS”, which falls under the ACT “FESTIVAL EVENTS OF THE GNO ALTERNATIVE STAGE 2024-2025” » (MIS 6002467) with code 2024ΕΠ08570049 (Priority: “Fostering regional social cohesion through the enhancement of mechanisms and infrastructure to support employment, education, health care and socioeconomic inclusion” of the programme “Attica 2021-2027) and is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and National Resources.