Marika Kotopouli ( el, Μαρίκα Κοτοπούλη; 3 May 1887 – 11 September 1954) was a Greek stage actress during the first half of the 20th century.

Biography

Kotopouli was born on 3 May 1887 in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...

to actor parents, Dimitrios Kotopoulis and his wife, Eleni. Marika's first stage appearance came during one of their tours, in the play "The Coachman of the Alps". She made her official debut in the Royal Theatre in 1903, before going to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

in 1906 for theatrical studies. From 1908, she had her own troupe, and theatre, the "Kotopouli Theatre". In this period she developed an intense artistic rivalry with another young actress, Cybele. The two had very devoted fans, and during the

National Schism The National Schism ( el, Εθνικός Διχασμός, Ethnikós Dichasmós), also sometimes called The Great Division, was a series of disagreements between King Constantine I and Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos regarding the forei ...

, their rivalry acquired political overtones also: whilst Cybele was favoured by the

Venizelists Venizelism ( el, Βενιζελισμός) was one of the major political movements in Greece from the 1900s until the mid-1970s. Main ideas Named after Eleftherios Venizelos, the key characteristics of Venizelism were: *Greek irredentism: T ...

, Kotopouli became a symbol of the royalist camp. In 1912 Kotopouli also had a personal love relationship with

Ion Dragoumis Ion Dragoumis (; 14 September 1878 – 31 July 1920) was a Greek diplomat, philosopher, writer and revolutionary. Biography Born in Athens, Dragoumis was the son of Stephanos Dragoumis who was foreign minister under Charilaos Trikoupis. The ...

, who became a major opponent of the Venizelists and was eventually assassinated. Kotopouli and Cybele collaborated in joint productions from 1932–1934 and again from 1950-52. She married Georgios Chelmis in 1923. Later, with Spyros Melas and Dimitris Myrat, she co-founded and participated in the "Free Scene" (Ελεύθερη Σκηνή, June 1929 to spring 1930), before embarking on a tour of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. In 1933, she played in her only movie, the Greek-Turkish production '' Bad Road'', based on a novel by Grigorios Xenopoulos. A new theatre, the ''Rex'', was built specifically for her troupe in

Panepistimiou Street Panepistimiou Street ( el, Οδός Πανεπιστημίου, "University Street", named after the University of Athens, the central building of which is on the upper corner) is a major street in Athens that has run one way for non-transit v ...

in central Athens in 1936. It still stands, as the ''Rex/Kotopouli'' theatre, and functions as a branch of the National Theatre of Greece. Her repertoire included many classic plays, both ancient Greek and modern ones, ranging from

Aeschylus Aeschylus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰσχύλος ; c. 525/524 – c. 456/455 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, and is often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Gree ...

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...

and

Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...

Death

Her final appearance was in Syros on 24 March 1953. Kotopouli died on 11 September 1954, aged 67, in her native Athens, from undisclosed causes. She received a state funeral.

Honours/legacy

* Gold Cross of the

Order of George I The Royal Order of George I ( el, Βασιλικόν Τάγμα Γεωργίου Α') is a Greek order instituted by King Constantine I in 1915. Since the monarchy's abolition in 1973, it has been considered a dynastic order of the former Greek ...

in 1921 (with the Education Ministry's Arts and Letters Prize in 1923) * Marika Kotopouli Award (founded in 1951 to honour Greek actors) * Her home in Zografou was converted into the Marika Kotopouli Museum, which opened in 1990 and features exhibitions of modern art.Marika Kotopouli Museum infosite
odysseus.culture.gr; accessed 31 March 2015.

References

*''This article incorporate
text
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kotopouli, Marika 1887 births 1954 deaths Actresses from Athens Theatre in Greece Greek stage actresses Gold crosses of the Order of George I Burials at the First Cemetery of Athens