Όχι πως η σκηνοθεσία είναι λάθος· απλώς αλλάζει το σκηνικό.

Όχι πως is an idiomatic way to say Not that... or It’s not as if....

It introduces a correction or soft contrast:

• I’m not saying X is wrong
• I’m just saying Y instead

So here, the speaker is softening the statement. They are not claiming that the directing/staging is wrong; they are adding a different point.

A very similar alternative is Όχι ότι..., which you will also hear a lot.

This is a very common learner question.

• πως = that
• πώς = how

In this sentence, πως is the conjunction that:

• Όχι πως η σκηνοθεσία είναι λάθος = Not that the directing is wrong

If it were πώς, the meaning would be how, which would not fit here.

So the accent matters:

• πως = that
• πώς = how

Greek uses the definite article much more often than English.

So where English might say simply direction or staging, Greek very naturally says:

• η σκηνοθεσία

Here the article marks it as a definite, identifiable thing: the directing / the staging.

This is normal Greek usage, especially with subjects and abstract nouns.

Σκηνοθεσία means direction, directing, or staging, especially in theatre, film, or performance.

It is related to:

• σκηνοθέτης = director

So:

• ο σκηνοθέτης = the director
• η σκηνοθεσία = the directing / the direction / the staging

Depending on context, it can be literal or metaphorical.

Because λάθος is very commonly used in Greek as a predicate meaning wrong.

Literally, λάθος is a noun meaning mistake or error, but in sentences like this:

• είναι λάθος

it functions very naturally as is wrong.

So:

• η σκηνοθεσία είναι λάθος = the directing is wrong

You could also say:

• η σκηνοθεσία είναι λανθασμένη

but that sounds a bit more formal or heavier. Είναι λάθος is extremely common and natural.

That mark is the Greek άνω τελεία, often written as ·.

It works roughly like an English semicolon or sometimes a colon. It marks a pause between two closely connected parts of the sentence.

So here:

• Όχι πως η σκηνοθεσία είναι λάθος· απλώς αλλάζει το σκηνικό.

means the speaker pauses and then adds the second point.

Important: this is not the Greek question mark.
In Greek, the question mark is ;

Απλώς means simply, just, or merely.

Here it softens the second clause:

• απλώς αλλάζει το σκηνικό = it simply changes the setting / scene

It tells you that the speaker sees this as a limited effect, not as something fundamentally wrong.

Because Greek often leaves the subject pronoun unstated when it is clear from the context. This is called a pro-drop language feature.

The verb αλλάζει is third person singular, so Greek does not need to say it explicitly.

The understood subject is η σκηνοθεσία from the first clause:

• η σκηνοθεσία ... απλώς αλλάζει...

In English you must usually say it changes. In Greek, the verb ending is often enough.

Σκηνικό literally means set, scenery, or stage setting.

By extension, it can also mean:

• scene
• setting
• overall background/situation

So in this sentence it may be literal theatrical language, or it may be used figuratively.

That depends on the broader context, but the core idea is the same: something about the scene/setting is being changed.

Yes. They are related in the sense that both come from the world of theatre/stage and both are connected to σκηνή = stage or scene.

But they do not mean the same thing:

• σκηνοθεσία = directing / staging
• σκηνικό = set / scenery / setting

So one refers to how something is directed, and the other refers to the scene or set itself.

Because both words appear together, the sentence has a nice theatrical flavor, and possibly a bit of wordplay.

Greek word order is more flexible than English word order, but the version here is very natural.

• απλώς αλλάζει το σκηνικό

puts απλώς before the verb in a normal, smooth way.

You could rearrange the words for emphasis, but the nuance would shift slightly. For example:

• αλλάζει απλώς το σκηνικό
• το σκηνικό απλώς αλλάζει

These are possible in some contexts, but the original sentence sounds the most neutral and idiomatic.

So yes, Greek word order is flexible, but it is not random. The chosen order here is natural and well-balanced.