“The process of rehearsal in Attis Theatre is not the performance of a dramatic concept; it is an adventure on a journey to the landscape of memory, a search for the lost keys of unity between body and speech, the word as a natural unity”.
Heiner Müller, June 1987, Berlin
Studies and initial years
Born in 1945 in Makrygialos village, in the Pieria area of Northern Greece. He was trained at Kostis Michailidis’ School of Dramatic Art (Athens, 1965-1967) under George Sevastikoglou, Leonidas Trivizas and Kostis Michailidis. Ηe completed his studies at Berliner Ensemble (Berlin, 1972-1976), while he worked as assistant director, close to Heiner Müller, who was his mentor, Manfred Wekwerth, Ruth Berghaus and Ekkehart Schall.
He served as the Director of the Drama School of the National Theater of Northern Greece (Thessaloniki, 1981-1983).
Theatre, Method and Education
He founded Attis Theatre group in 1985 in Delphi and with its natal performance, Euripides Bacchae, he radically transformed the way ancient Greek tragedy has been presented, introducing elements of extreme physicality and ritual.
Theodoros Terzopoulos creates a theatre concept with techniques of Dionysian ecstasy to reveal the invisible and the unfathomable. His approach gives prominence to the tragic dimensions, giving voice to a theatre born from the depths. It is an unusual approach that, in defiance of any academic categorisation, maintains its self-existence. He applies his method to ancient Greek tragedy, but also to heterogeneous poetic texts. Travelling for over forty years around the world, he keeps searching for human visions and their history, being a humanist who focuses on the encounter with the Other, in whom he recognises himself.
Over the past 40 years, Terzopoulos and Attis Theatre have presented 2300 performances at some of the most prestigious international festivals and theatres abroad.
Terzopoulos has conceived and established a unique acting method that consists of a sequence of physical and vocal exercises aimed at cultivating the fundamentals of acting practice. His method and approach to ancient Greek tragedy are taught in numerous Drama Academies, Institutes and Departments of Classical Studies worldwide. The director leads many workshops and lectures worldwide, while he is an Emeritus Professor of international academies and universities. Since 2013 he has been leading the annual international summer workshop “The Method of Theodoros Terzopoulos – The Return of Dionysus” for young actors and directors from all over the world.
His method and work have been thoroughly studied by eminent theatre researchers, while books have been published in Greek, English, German, Chinese, Turkish, Russian, Polish, Korean, Mandarin, Italian, French, Hungarian Georgian, Spanish and Arabic. The book of his method titled “The Return of Dionysus” was published in 2015 and ever since has been translated into 15 languages. Many conferences have been held worldwide as Honorary Tributes to Theodoros Terzopoulos in countries such as China, Poland, Italy, Russia, Colombia, Germany, Greece, Austria, Spain, the U.S.A. and Cyprus. In 2018 the European Cultural Center of Delphi with the support of Onassis Foundation organized a tribute to Theodoros Terzopoulos and his work, titled “The Return of Dionysus”.
Artistic Director of International Institutions
International Meetings of Ancient Drama in Delphi
He has served as artistic director of the International Meetings of Ancient Drama in Delphi (1985- 1989 and 1995-2004), inviting prestigious theatre figures such as Heiner Müller, Tadashi Suzuki, Marianne Mc Donald, Robert Wilson, Andrei Serban, Wole Soyinka, Min Tanaka, Yuri Liubimov, Anatoli Vasiliev, Andrzej Wajda, etc.
International Institute of Mediterranean Theatre
He has been a founding member of the International Institute of Mediterranean Theatre (comprising 22 Mediterranean countries) since 1990 and President of the brunch of International Institute of Mediterranean Theatre in Greece since 1991, organising events like the International Festival Violence and Peace in Mediterranean Theatre (Patra, 1991), Days of Theatre Education (Mytilini) and conferences.
Theatre Olympics
The Theatre Olympics were founded in 1994 in Delphi by an International Committee that was led by Theodoros Terzopoulos and included – as founding members – such luminaries as Tadashi Suzuki, Heiner Muller, Robert Wilson, Nuria Espert, Yuri Lyubimov and Tony Harrison. From 1993 to this date, he has served as the Chairman of the International Committee of Theatre Olympics. In 1995, as the Artistic Director of the 1st Theatre Olympics in Delphi (Greece), titled “Crossing Millennia”, he invited significant international performances and artists. The following editions of Theatre Olympics were in Shizuoka, Japan (“Creating hope”, 1999), Moscow, Russia (“Theatre for the People”, 2001), Istanbul, Turkey (“Beyond borders“, 2006), Seoul, South Korea (“Sarang- Love and Humanity“, 2010), Beijing, China (“Dream“, 2014), Wroclaw, Poland (“The World as a Place of Truth”, 2016), India (“The flag of friendship”, in 17 cities across India, 2018), Toga, Japan and Saint Petersburg, Russia (“Creating bridges“, 2019) and in Budapest, Hungary (“O Man, strive on, strive on, have faith; and trust!”, 2023).
International Meeting of Ancient Drama in Municipality of Sykion
In 2005 he founded the International Meetings of Ancient Drama in Municipality of Sykion, in Korinthos, Greece. The first edition was titled “Skotos emon faos”, the 2nd “Descent” (2006) and the 3rd “Revenge” (2011).
Directions
Initial year:
The Bakery by Bertolt Brecht (Thessaloniki Theatre Lab, 1977)
Mahagony by Bertold Brecht (Thessaloniki Theatre, 1977)
A happy event by Slavomir Mrozek (State Theatre of Northern Greece, 1978)
No Exit (Huis Clos) by Jean Paul Sartre (State Theatre of Northern Greece, 1980)
Yerma by Federico Garcia Lorca (State Theatre of Northern Greece, 1981)
Mother Courage by Bertolt Brecht (State Theatre of Northern Greece, 1983)
Freedom in Bremen by Reiner Werner Fassbinder (L.T.T. Theatre, Tübingen, Germany, 1988).
He supervised the productions:
Acquaintance with Brecht (Achillion Theatre, Thessaloniki, 1976)
Maria Faradouri sings Brecht (Dimitria, Thessaloniki, 1979)
Ekkehart Schall and Maria Faradouri sing Brecht (Dimitria, Thessaloniki & Berliner Ensample, 1980)
Alabama Song (Drama School of the State Theatre of Northern Greece, 1980)
Recital by Ekkehart Schall (Broadway Theatre, Athens, 1980)
Recital by Gisela May (Dimitria, Thessaloniki & Herakleion, 1981)
Passions of the Moon, an homage to Lorca with Maria Faradouri (Megaron, Athens, 1996)
Ophelia Quartet (music composition by Panagiotis Velianitis, Attis Theatre, 2013)
Aria Hamlet (music composition by Panagiotis Velianitis and installation by Jannis Kounellis, Picollo Teatro, 2015).
Performances with Attis Theatre and other productions:
Bacchae by Euripides (1986)
Medeamaterial by Heiner Müller (1988)
Quartet by Heiner Müller (1989)
Persians by Aeschylus (1990)
The Liberation of Prometheus by Heiner Müller, with Heiner Müller and Sofia Michopoulou (Berlin, 1991)
Phaidra by Marina Tsvetayeva, with Alla Demidova (Medieval Castle of Patras, 1991)
Quartet by Heiner Müller, with Alla Demidova and Dmitri Pevtsov (Taganka Theatre, Moscow, 1993)
Canon by Vassilis Vassikechayoglou (1993)
Antigone by Sophocles, with Greek and Italian actors (Teatro Olympico, Vicenza, 1994)
Promethus Bound by Aeschylus (1995)
Medeamaterial by Heiner Müller (Marinou Factory, Argos Festival,), Medeamaterial by Heiner Müller with Alla Demidova (1996)
Io = moon (Factory, Argos Festival, 1996)
Heracles by Heiner Müller (1997)
Heracles (performance based on Heiner Müller’s Heracles, Stadium of Argos, Argos Festival, 1997)
Dionysus (scenic composition based on Euripides’ Bacchae and the Pre-Colombian myth of the deity Yurupari, with Colombian actors, International Festival of Bogota, 1998)
Money (scenic composition based on plays, poems and songs by Bertolt Brecht, 1998)
Descent (scenic composition based on Euripides’ Heracles Enraged and Sophocles’ Women of Trachis, 1999)
Heracles Enraged by Euripides (with Turkish actors, production of the International Istanbul Theatre Festival, 1999)
Heracles’ Descent (scenic composition based on Euripides’ Heracles Enraged and Sophocles’ Women of Trachis, Greek and Turkish actors, a co-production of Attis Theatre and the International Istanbul Theatre Festival, 1999)
Pasca Devadis by Michelangelo Pira (co-production of Attis Theatre and Cagliari Theatre, 1999)
The Crown by Jannis Kontraphouris (2000)
Heracles Enraged Euripides (2000)
Tristia (scenic composition based on Medea’s, Electra’s and Phaidra’s monologues, with Alla Demidova, Delphi, 2000)
Hamlet, an Apprenticeship by Boris Pasternak with Alla Demidova (2001)
Bacchae by Euripides (with German actors and stage design by Jannis Kounellis, Düsseldorfer Schauspielhaus, 2001)
Lethe by Dimitris Dimitriadis (2002)
Medeamaterial by Heiner Müller (in the frames of the artistic exhibition Poisons, Technopolis, Athens, 2002)
Philoctetes by Sophokles (Theatre Academy of Berlin, 2003)
Rockabye by Samuel Beckett (2003)
Triptych by Samuel Beckett (2003)
Epigonoi (scenic composition based on fragments from lost tragedies by Aeschylus, 2003)
Persians by Aeschylus (with young directors from countries of the ex-Soviet Union, Meyerhold Centre, Moscow, 2003)
Ajax the madness (composition based on Ajax by Sophocles (2004)
The Last Mask – fallimento by Kostas Logaras (2006)
Jenin by Etel Adnan (2006)
Persians by Aeschylus (with Greek and Turkish actors, a co-production of Attis Theatre, International Istanbul Theatre Festival, Festival of Athens – Epidaurus and Theatre Olympics, Byzantine Church of St. Irene in Istanbul and Epidaurus, 2006)
Oedipus Rex by Sophocles (with Russian actors, Alexandrinksy Theatre, St. Petersburg, 2006)
Kassandra by Marios Pontikas (2007)
Eremos by Carlo Michelstaedter (2007)
Mademoiselle Julie by August Strindberg (2008)
Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus (with Chinese actors, Central Drama Academy of Beijing, 2008)
Ajax by Sophocles (2008)
Dancer by Erich Arendt (2009)
Mauser by Heiner Müller (2009)
Jocasta by Jannis Kontraphouris, Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus (with Greek, Turkish and German actors and stage design by Jannis Kounellis , co-production of Attis Theatre, Istanbul Cultural Capital of Europe 2010, Essen Cultural Capital of Europe 2010 and Athens Festival, 2010)
Alarme, (scenic composition based on the correspondence between Queen Elisabeth A and Maria Stewart, 2010)
Antigone by Sophocles (with Chinese actors, Central Drama Academy of Beijing, 2011)
Mauser by Heiner Muller (with Polish actors, Grotowski Institute, Wroclaw, 2012)
Amor by Thanasis Alevras (2013)
Endgame by Samuel Beckett (with Russian actors, Alexandrinsky Theatre, Saint Petersburg, 2014)
Nosferatu, modern opera by Dmitri Kourliandski (with Russian and Greek artists and stage design by Jannis Kounellis, Perm Tchaikovsky Opera and Ballet Theatre, 2014)
Bacchae by Euripides (with Russian actors, Stanislavsky Theatre, Moscow, 2015)
Antigone by Sophocles (with American and Greek actors. Wilma Theater, Philadelphia, USA, 2015)
Agamemnon by Aeschylus (with Chinese actors, Central Drama Academy of Beijing, 2016)
Bacchae by Euripides (with Taiwanese actors, National Theatre and Concert Hall, Taipei, 2016)
Encore (based on a poem by Thomas Tsalapatis (2016)
Mother Courage by Bertold Brecht (with Russian actors, Alexandrinsky Theatre, Saint Petersburg, 2017)
Troyan Women by Euripides (with actors from Greece and the divided cities Nicosia, Mostar, Jerusalem, production of Pafos Cultural Capital of Europe, Pafos Ancient Odeon, 2017)
Yerma by Federico Garcia Lorca (with Taiwanese actors, National Theatre and Concert Hall, Taipei, 2018)
Nora by Henrik Ibsen,
Io and Prometheus by Etel Adnan,
Mauser by Heiner Muller (with Russian actors, Alexandrinsky Theatre, Saint Petersburg, 2020)
Exodus (stage composition based on monologues from Medea, Alcestes, Antigone and oracles of Pytheia), Delphi, 2020
Bacchae by Euripides (with Hungarian actors, National Theatre of Budapest, 2022)
Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett with Italian actors, production Emilia Romagna Teatro/ Teatro Nationalle, Fondazione Teatro di Napoli Bellini (Italy, 2023)
Requiem (fragments of sounds, words, images, 2023)
Mother Courage by B. Brecht with Hungarian actors, production of the National theatre of Hungary (Budapest, 2024)
Oresteia by Aeschylus production of the National Theatre of Greece (Epidaurus, 2024)
Awards (selection)
Lorca Award (for the performance Bacchae by Euripides), Barcelona, Spain, 1986.
Stanislavski Award for best direction (for the performance Quartet by Heiner Muller), Moscow, 1993.
Great Theatre Award (for the performance Persians by Aeschylus), Brazil, 1994.
Award for Best Direction (for the performance Antigone by Sophocles), Festival of Nations, Seoul, 1994.
Award for Best Direction (for the performance Dionysus), Bogota, Colombia, 1998.
Award for Best Direction (for the performance Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus), New Delhi, India, 2000.
Honorary Theatre Prize by the Union of Theatre Critics, Athens, Greece, 2006.
Honorary Theatre Award, Istanbul, Turkey, 2006.
Award for Best Performance (for the performance Promethues Bound by Aeschylus), Beijing, 2008.
Award for Best Direction (for the performance Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus), Beijing, 2008.
Award for Best Performance (for the performance Ajax by Sophocles), Merida, Spain, 2008.
Award for Best Direction (for the performance Mauser by Heiner Müller), Audience Awards, Athens, Greece, 2010.
Four Awards for Best Performance, Best Direction, Best Assemble Acting and Best Production (for the performance Antigone by Sophocles), Beijing, China, 2011.
Best solo performance (for the performance Eremos), Moscow, 2011.
Best solo performance (for the performance Jocasta), Moscow 2012.
Granting of the supreme Indian title Shi by the President Ram Nath Kovind, Mumbai, 2018
Named Cultural Forum Ambassador by the Minister of Culture of Russia Vladimir Medinsky, Saint Petersburg, 2018
Awards for Best Performance, Best Direction (for the performance Mother Courage) and Best Female Actress Magnolia Award (for Elena Nemzer), Shanghai 2019.
Award for Best Performance (for the performance Prometheus Bound), Modern Drama Valley Theatre, Shanghai, 2019
Award for Lifetime Achievement, Cairo International Theater Festival, 2019
Figaro National Theatre Award for the contribution to the development of world theatre, Saint Petersburg, 2020
International Theatre Award Yuri Liubimov, International Theatre Institute ITI and Yuri Liubimov Foundation, 2020
International Audience Award Zvezda Teatrala for the category «Best Performance directed by non-Russian director in Russia» for the staging of Mauser in Alexandrisnky Theatre, 2020.
Award of ΜΙΤΕΜ Festival for the performance Ajax, the madness, Budapest, 2021
Award of ΜΙΤΕΜ Festival for the performance Amor, Budapest, 2022
L’ ombre di Dionisos Award, Naxos Archaeological Park, Sicely, 2022
Mikhail Tumanishvili Award, GIFT Festival, Tbilisi, 2022
Star at the Sibiu Walk of Fame, Sibiu, Romania, 2024
Grand Theatre Award of the Hellenic Association of Theatre Critics and Performing Arts, Greece, 2024
Tribute Conferences (selection)
Tribute to Theodoros Terzopoulos, Bogota, Colombia, 1998
Tribute to Theodoros Terzopoulos, Greek Cultural Year in China, 2008 (organized by the Central Drama Academy of Beijing and the Greek Embassy in Beijing)
Tribute to Theodoros Terzopoulos, Wroclaw, Poland, 2009 (organized by Grotowski Institute)
Tribute to Theodoros Terzopoulos, Modena, Italy, 2009 (organized by Emilia Romagna Teatro and VIE Festival)
Tribute to Theodoros Terzopoulos, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 2009 (organized by Alexandrinsky Theatre and International Alexandrinsky Festival)
“Dionysus in Exile”, Two-days Tribute conference, Berlin, Germany, 2011, (organized by Freie Universitat and Udk)
Tribute to Theodoros Terzopoulos, Athens, Greece 2012 (organized by the Drama Faculty of Athens University)
“New Realism and the Return of Dionysus”, Athens, Greece, 2016 (organized by Goethe Intstitute, Theater der Zeit editions and Attis Theatre)
“The Return of Dionysus”- The Method of Theodoros Terzopoulos, in the frames of the 7thTheatre Olympics in Wroclaw (organized by Grotowski Institute, 7thTheatre Olympics and Wroclaw Cultural Capital of Europe 2016)
“The Return of Dionysus”, 4-days Honorary Tribute in Delphi, Greece, 2018 (organized by the European Cultural Center of Delphi with the support of Onassis Foundation)
“The return of Dionysus”, conference, organised by the International Festival Art Carnuntum, Carnuntum, Austria, 2021
“Dioniso e il Corpo: Theodoros Terzopoulos”, Piccolo Teatro in the frame of Presente Indicativo, 2022
“Homage to Theodoros Terzopoulos”, organised by Rialto Theatre and the Faculty of Fine and Applied Artts of Cyprus University of Technology, in collaboration with Cyprus ITI, 2023
