Greek theater director (1908?1987)
Karolos Koun
(
Greek
:
Κ?ρολο? Κουν
; September 13, 1908 in
Bursa
? February 14, 1987 in
Athens
) was a prominent
Greek
theater director
, widely known for his lively staging of
ancient Greek
plays.
Biography
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]
Koun was born in
Bursa
,
Ottoman Empire
to a
Greek
mother and a
Polish Jewish
father. He was educated in
Ottoman Turkey
until the end of high school. He graduated from
Robert College
in
Istanbul
and then went to
Sorbonne
for his university education. As his family's economic situation worsened, he couldn't continue his education.
He had been praised all over
Europe
for his bawdy, colorful stagings of the 5th century BC political comedies of
Aristophanes
. In 1942, he founded the experimental
Art Theater
and its drama school.
[1]
Koun gave premieres in
Athens
of works by
avant-garde
European playwrights such as
Bertolt Brecht
and
Luigi Pirandello
. In 1962, Koun's production of
The Birds
by
Aristophanes
won first prize at an international festival at
Paris
. He also directed many plays by Aristophanes like
The Frogs
,
Peace (play)
,
Thesmophoriazusae
,
Lysistrata
, and
The Acharnians
.
He worked with famed actress
Melina Mercouri
. She played Blanche Dubois in
A Streetcar Named Desire
which was staged by Koun's Art Theater.
[2]
Other playwrights that Koun introduced to Greek audiences include
Jean Genet
,
Federico Garcia Lorca
and
Eugene Ionesco
. He also directed modern and classic plays like
A Midsummer Night's Dream
,
The Caucasian Chalk Circle
, The Murder of Marat, and Greek plays like The Karaghiozis almost Vizier by George Skourtis and The Babylon by Dimitris Byzantios.
Koun collaborated with famous Greeks like Manos Xatzidakis, George Bakalo, Odysseas Elytis, Giannis Tsarouxis, Rallou Manoy, Basilis Rotas, Zouzou Nikoloudi, Maria Kynigou Mikis Theodorakis. Technis Theatre managed to be one of the more successful theatres in Greece and the world.
The Birds
travelled all over the world like other theatre performances like Lysistrata, which was presented to London with
Oedipus Rex
. Koun had many students who continued the theatre after Koun's death.
He stayed politically active all his life which had a direct impact on his not having financial security in his life. His theater was responsible for training the golden generation of Greek movie actors.
Karolos Koun died on February 14, 1987, after suffering a heart attack, aged 78.
[3]
References
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External links
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