Costa Kerdemelidis, former owner of New Zealand’s Greek party restaurant Santorini, has turned the devastation of losing his business in the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes into a musical.
According to Stuff, the restaurant was known for people dancing on barrels, smashing plates and watching Kerdemelides play bouzouki since it opened in 1993.
“It is quite strange because we had the restaurant and I felt like I would always be there playing music until I died,” Kerdemelides said.
“Then the earthquake struck and the restaurant went down. I didn’t have the will to start again at that stage.”
73-year-old Kerdemelides said instead of re-opening the business he decided to write songs and tell the story of the restaurant.
“There are so many things that happened in that restaurant and I met so many people and felt there was a story to write,” he told Stuff.
The musical, called Breaking Plates, is about a Greek family who move to NZ and open a restaurant in Christchurch. It opens at The Piano Christchurch on Friday and runs until March 11.
Source: Stuff
