MARIA KECHAGIOGLOU (Actor, Acting teacher)
Award-winning actress Maria Kechagioglou is one of the most important contemporary stage actresses in Greece today. Born in Didymoteicho, Greece, she has performed worldwide, including in Athens, Paris, Plovdiv, Avignon, Lisbon, and New York. She has been directed by a variety of Greek as well as foreign directors, including Lefteris Vogiantzis, Yiannis Chouvardas, and Olivier Py. She has taken on classical leading roles such as Clytemnestra in Euripides’ Electra and Tamora in Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus. An extremely versatile actress and vital collaborator, she has performed in modern works, which include Jon Foss’ Beautiful, Pasolini’s Calderón, Ödön von Horváth’s Sladek, and Vassilis Vassilikos’ Ζ. She has also made her mark in film, starring in Greek feature films as well as award-winning independent short films presented in film festivals in Greece and abroad. Kechagioglou is a founding member of the renowned Kanigunda Theatre Company, a non-hierarchical collective that focuses on open collaboration. In 2008, she was awarded the “Marika Kotopouli” award, a yearly award presented to Greek actresses by a respected panel of artists and state representatives in recognition of outstanding achievement in stage performance. Kechagioglou graduated from the School of Philosophy and the Department of Philology of the University of Ioannina, Greece, and studied acting at the National Theatre of Greece Drama School. A strong believer in the importance of education, she has been teaching acting at the National Theatre of Greece Drama School and at various collaborative art spaces in Athens since 2007.
Kechagioglou has collaborated with Frintzila on a variety of productions, and is excited to have joined the faculty of Attiko Sxoleio - Ancient Greek Drama Summer School. As part of the third season in July 2015, she taught a master class that focused on Aeschylus’ The Libation Bearers. In July 2016, she taught a workshop, on Euripides’ The Bacchae where participants explored the dual nature of Dionysus.
For more detailed information on the workshop please press here.
