The much-anticipated WOW Show with Jude Kelly is set to ignite conversations about the journey toward gender equality as the opening event of the WOW – Women of the World Festival in Athens. This event will take place on February 24, 2025, at 20:30 on the Alternative Stage of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC). The festival itself runs from April 4 to 7, 2025, and is presented by the SNFCC in collaboration with The WOW Foundation and the British Council.
Jude Kelly, the celebrated founder of WOW and an award-winning theatre director, will engage in meaningful discussions with three trailblazing women—Katerina Athanasiadou, Vanessa Veneti, and Katerina Vrana —who have challenged stereotypes and defied societal norms. At the WOW Show, they will share their personal stories with the audience, each serving as a source of inspiration and hope for change.
Jude Kelly CBE is the Founder of The WOW Foundation. She founded WOW to celebrate the achievements of women and girls and confront global gender injustice. Starting as a three-day festival at London’s Southbank Centre in 2010, where Jude was Artistic Director for 12 years, the festival now takes place in 30 locations across six continents.
Photo Credit: The WOW Foundation
Jude Kelly expressed her excitement for the upcoming event:
I’m eager to come to Athens for The WOW Show. Wherever WOW unfolds, what I enjoy most is meeting local heroines and uncovering incredible stories from their communities. As we celebrate WOW’s 15th anniversary in 2025, it serves as a reminder that while we are far from achieving a gender-equal society, there is still so much to celebrate. This evening is for everyone—so grab your friends and family and join us! – Jude Kelly
Inspiring Voices – Jude Kelly will discuss with:
Katerina Athanasiadou, affectionately known as “the grandma of Kypseli,” will recount how she undertook to raise little Maria to help out her mother, Sandra, an immigrant from Ghana, focusing on the difficulties she’s facing in her struggle to adopt her and highlighting the power of female solidarity.
the girl from Ghana, she has lovingly raised.
Photo Credit: Nikos Kokkalias for Kathimerini. Read the full story here
Vanessa Veneti, transgender activist, will share with the public the story of her legal battle to have the right to communicate with her daughter and will discuss with Jude Kelly the topical issue of transgender people’s parental rights.
Photo Credit: SNFCC
Katerina Vrana, popular stand-up comedian, will talk about how she did not allow her unanticipated disability to influence her as a woman and as an artist but managed to turn it into a source of strength, tapping her sense of humor as her primary tool.
Katerina Vrana is one of Greece’s top stand-up comedians, performing in both Greek and English all over the world.
CNN included her in its list of “Female Comedians to Watch,” and in 2016, she came third in the Laugh Factory’s international competition “Funniest Person in the World.”
In April 2017, while on tour in Malaysia, Katerina Vrana fell seriously ill and nearly died. Her survival came at the cost of multiple physical impairments that affected her movement, eyesight, and speech, and she now primarily moves around in a wheelchair. She made her full-time return to the stage in 2019 with her show “Staying Alive (I Nearly Died, You Know),” which has consistently sold out in Greece since its debut. In February 2023, it sold out in every city on its European tour.
She spends most of her time between performing and rehabilitation, as she faces difficulties with her balance, movement, eyesight, and speech Photo Credit: Katerina Vrana, from The Katerina Vrana Official Website. Information Source: Content adapted from Katerina Vrana’s official website..
Admission and Accessibility
Event Venue
Alternative Stage, GNO
Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center
Event Date
Monday, February 24, 2025
Start Time
20:30
Ticket Prices
General Admission €15, Reduced €10
Concession tickets are available for eligible individuals
Simultaneous translation to and from English and interpretation in Greek Sign Language (GSL) will be provided during the event.
Tickets are available through Ticket Services.
Click here to book your tickets.
About WOW – Women of the World Athens 2025
WOW is the world’s biggest, most comprehensive festival celebrating women, girls, and non-binary people. It is taking place for the third year in Greece, at the SNFCC, from Friday, April 4, to Monday, April 7, 2025.
WOW Festivals have now taken place in more than 45 locations across the globe on six continents. The WOW Athens Festival is a chance to be part of the global movement and see world-class speakers, activists, musicians, and artists all in one place, as they come together for life-changing conversations, incredible performances, and interactive workshops.
At WOW, there’s space for discussions ranging from sex to politics, women’s rights to divorce, childlessness to career changes. It’s a chance for both the most difficult discussions and the funniest interactions that bring everyone together.
