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BIOGRAPHY
 

Maria Bakopoulou

Maria Bakopoulou was born in Athens. She studied music with Marios Varvoglis, Antiochos Evangelatos and Miltiadis Koutougos, and graduated from the Hellenic Conservatory in 1976. She studied drama at the Music Theatre and D. Constantinidis drama schools, from which she graduated in 1977. She watched theatrical performances in the USA (Yale Rep Theater, Longwarph, Broadway), London and Germany (Gelsenkirchen). She worked as an actress, musician and stage director until 1983. In 1985 she set up the Free Drama Centre, where she has been working as an acting instructor. So far, she has directed 16 plays.
  THEATRE
1977
Assistant director in M. Kounelakis' Smaragda's Elopement, performed by the Cycladic Theatre. Composes the music for this performance and for the musical Contorevithoulis produced by A. Sitheratos' Children's Theatre
1978
Assistant director in V. Rotas' The Piano and The Literati. Composes the musical Little Red Ridinghood for A. Sitheratos' Children's Theatre.
1979
Visited and attended the dramaworkshop of the "Eugene O' Neil drama center" in Connecticut of U.S.A.
1980
Assistant director in L. Verneuille's State Affairs performed by the Fokas-Anoussaki drama group.
Acts in A. Arbouzov's Tania shown on the state channel ERT1.
1981
Acts in several radio performances of plays by Greek playwrites (Pappas, Zakopoulos, etc.) and in the TV series To Fos tou Avgerinou (The Light of the Morning Star).
1982
Translates into Greek D. L. Coburn's Gin Game shown on the state channel ERT1. Translates W. Hanley’s Mrs Dally has a Lover.
1983
Directs Th. Wilder's Our Town. The production wins 1st prize at the Municipality of Athens Amature Dramatics Competition.
1984
Directs A. Checkov's Three Sisters performed at the ORWO theater.
1985
Establishes the Free Drama Centre, in collaboration with personalities of art and culture. She has since acted as the Centre's Managing Consultant.
1986
Acting instructor and manager of the Free Drama Centre acting group, which focusses on the development of acting skills and the study of theatrical texts.
1987
Directs the Free Drama Centre group’s production 'One-Acts' shown at the theatre of the Hellenic American Union in Athens. The performance includes J. Cocteau's La Voix Humaine (The Human Voice) and The Fair, B. Brecht's Die Judische Frau (The Jewess), A. Checkov's On the Harmful Effects of Tobacco, and M. Yourcenar's Clytemnestra (dramatized narration by Maria Bakopoulou).
1988
Works with the Centre's acting team on plays by H. Pinter.
1989
Directs A. Checkov's The Bear and The Anniversary, shown at the N.N.T. theatre.
1992
Presents the lecture Greek Poetry and Drama 1821–1900 at the theatre of the Municipality of Athens.
Directs B. Anninos' Manservant Wanted, performed by the Free Drama Centre team.
1993
Directs D. Koromilas' The Death of Pericles.
1994
Directs A. Vlachos' The Grocer's Daughter.
1995
Directs I. Kapetanakis' Pappi's Dinner.
1996
Directs D. Misidzis' Fiakas.
2000
Directs, in collaboration with Doxis Konstantinidis, J. Priestley's The Inspector Comes.

 
  LITERATURE
Maria Bakopoulou has published three poetry volumes: Poiemata (Poems) (1969), Prosomoia (1974) and Choris Epifasi (Without Masks) (1982). She has also written the poetry collections En Plo-taxidevontas endos mou (On Board-sailing into myself) and Requiem (both unpublished).

She has translated D. Mammet's Life in a Theater and Judith Ross' An Almost Perfect Person. She has also translated the lyrics of A.L. Weber's Les Miserables into Greek. She did full adaptation of the libretto in Greek.

She has written the monographs Music and Man, Human Beings and their Rituals, and Biology in Social Freedom.