Papaioannou, once back in Athens, created "The Last Song of Richard Strauss" in collaboration with the visual artist Nikos Alexiou in 1990, the first in a series of critical successes for the Edafos Dance Theatre company. "The Last Song" was incorporated into the 1991 trilogy "The Songs", which was selected to represent Greece the following year at both the 6th Biennial from Young Artists of Europe and the Mediterranean in Valencia and at the Seville Expo '92. "The Songs" was also seen by the then Greek Minister for Culture Melina Mercouri, who secured regular state funding for the company.