Ballet / Dance
CLOSED REHEARSAL 2021
GNO Professional Dance School
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Description
The students of the Professional Courses for dancers and dance teachers of the Greek National Opera Professional Dance School perform choreographies by Fotis Diamantopoulos, Olia Tornaritou, Athanasia Kanellopoulou, Christos Xyrafakis, as well as by the students Konstantina Tsimeka, Ilia Koukouzeli, Anastasia Galati and Orfeas Chatzispirou.Trailer
At a glance – Synopsis
Despite the challenging circumstances caused by the pandemic and the month-long absence from the studio, we decided to organise this closed rehearsal at the Stavros Niarchos Hall of the Greek National Opera at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, giving our students the chance to experience some of the magic of having their work presented on stage.In a very short time our students took the plunge with unbounded enthusiasm, creativity and consistency, proving their talent and devotion to the art of dance. Decisive was the contribution of the School’s teachers, Fotis Diamantopoulos –in colaboration with Eleni Kladou, Vicky Isaakidou and Natassa Siouta–, Olia Tornaritou, Athanasia Kanellopoulou and Christos Xyrafakis. Moreover, the students Konstantina Tsimeka, Ilia Koukouzeli, Anastasia Galati and Orfeas Chatzispirou present their works for first time. The music compositions are of Lucas Tsolakian, Giorgos Kontovas and Ted Regklis. We wholeheartedly thank them.
Creative team – Cast
Artistic curatorYorghos Matskaris (Director of Studies of the Greek National Opera Professional Dance School)
1st year
Spyros Zikos, Despoina Karakatsani, Alexandra Karachaliou, Ilia Koukouzeli, Marievi Lefkimmiati, Marios Bozikas, Marianna Pappa, Yannis Tsakalos, Konstantina Tsimeka, Nektarios Fousteris, Pantelis Haratsidis, Despina Chrysostomou
2nd year
Pavlos-Orfeas Argyropoulos, Maria-Despina Vazaka, Anastasia Galati, Anastasia Themistokleous, Konstantina Koletta, Fotis Konstantinou, Aggeliki Michalaki, Stella Biraki, Georgia Nikolopoulou, Ciara Dajlani, Marina Padelaki, Thenia Papadopoulou, Theoni Peraki, Dimitris Stavrianopoulos, Iliana Yfanti, Eleni Fotou, Sofia Hadjigeorgiou
3rd year
Maria Violaki-Georgiladaki, Kallia Vouidaski, Katerina Devetzi, Akis Kalabokis, Sophia Koskina, Yorgos Margis, Georgia Petroleka, Sissy Tsagkada, Maria Harutyunyan, Orfeas Chatzispirou
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He studied at the Kiev Academy of Dance and at the Budapest Academy of Dance. Since 1997 he has been a member of the Greek National Opera Ballet, while in 2003 he became a Demi-soloist. He has collaborated with the dance company of the National Theatre of Northern Greece, the Ballet of the Kazan Opera (Republic of Tatarstan), he has participated in productions of the Megaron – The Athens Concert Hall, as well as in contemporary and classical dance independent productions. He has taught classical dance at the GNO Professional Dance School and at the Rallou Manou Dance School. From 2011 to 2013 he was a répétiteur at the GNO Ballet. He has choreographed and presented dance events and has worked on the choreography and movement of various theatre, opera and operetta productions for the GNO, the National Theatre of Greece, the Athens Concert Hall. Since 2017 he has been a ballet master and assistant choreographer of the Greek National Opera Ballet.
Eurydice Isaakidou Choreography (Urge)
Born in Athens, she studied with scholarship and graduated with distinction from the Niki Kontaxaki Professional Dance School. She received the diplomas of dancer and teacher from the Royal Academy of Dance, London. She has participated in various dance companies in Greece and China. She has been a member of the Ballet Studio of the Greek National Opera. Since 1996 she has been dancing with the Greek National Opera Ballet, where in 2003 she became a Demi-Soloist, in 2004 a Soloist and in 2008 a Principal Dancer. She has worked with numerous distinguished Greek and foreign choreographers. Her repertoire includes leading roles in classical and modern ballets such as Don Quixote, Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, The Snow Queen, Giselle, Eugene Onegin, The Nutcracker, Romeo and Juliet, Le Corsaire, La Fille mal gardée and Alles Walzer.
Eleni Kladou Choreography (Urge)
Born in Athens. She holds a diploma from the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD, London) and the Professional Dance School Anna Petrova. In 2013 she became a certified Pilates teacher. She has collaborated with the Hellenic Region of RAD, performing solo parts. In 1995 she participated in the production Sissy, the Authoritative Empress at the Megaron – The Athens Concert Hall, directed by Maurice Béjart and starring Sylvie Guillem. Since 1999 she has been collaborating with the GNO Corps de ballet, having taken part in a series of ballets such as La Bayadère, The Nutcracker, Raymonda, and Swan Lake, but also in opera productions such as Marathon-Salamis, Tannhäuser, etc. Since 1997 she has been teaching classical ballet at accredited dance schools and since 2007 she has been a ballet teacher at the National School of Dance. In 2015 she joined the teaching staff of the GNO Professional Dance School and to this date she remains one of its members.
Natassa Siouta Choreography (Urge)
She is a dance professor with a degree from the Niki Kontaxaki Professional Dance School. For several years, she was a leading dancer in the Kontaxaki company. She has successfully taken part in international ballet competitions, including the one at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and the one in Varna, Bulgaria. She has received diplomas in the English method of the Royal Academy of Dance and attended seminars in London on a scholarship. Her collaboration with the Greek National Opera began in 1994. In 1999, she became a permanent member of the GNO Ballet, in 2003 she advanced to Demi-Soloist and in 2004 to Principal Dancer. She has starred in the ballet productions La Bayadère, Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, Don Quixote, The Sleeping Beauty, etc. She teaches classical ballet at the Greek National Opera Professional Dance School.
Olia Tornaritou Choreography (Thread of Light)
She is a graduate, with honours, from the Anna Petrova Professional Dance School in Athens and the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance in New York. She had danced with Analysis Dance Company in New York from 1996 until 2000, and in 1999 she was selected to perform the reconstruction of Panorama with the Martha Graham Dance Company during the winter season at the Joyce Theater in New York. From 2000 until today she has taught the Martha Graham technique at the Duncan Dance Research Center, at the Municipal School of Dance in Limassol, at Mari Chatzimichali Professional Dance School and at the studio DAN.C.CE until today. Since September 2000 she has been teaching the Martha Graham technique at the State School of Dance and from 2019 she belongs to the teaching faculty of the Professional Dance School of the Greek National Opera in Athens.
Giorgos Kontovas Music (Thread of Light)
Βorn in Athens, he graduated from the Philippos Nakas Conservatory with diplomas in piano (with distinction and 1st Prize with Valery Sagaidachny) and in advanced theory (harmony) (with Minas Alexiadis). He continued his piano studies in Munich (Germany) with Prof. Bianca Bodalia at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München and graduated in 2004 acquiring his piano soloist diploma. In 2005 he completed his postgraduate diploma (soloist) at Richard Strauss Conservatory (with Prof. Yasuko Matsuda). He has performed in Greece (Odeon of Herodes Atticus, Megaron – The Athens Concert Hall, Pallas Theatre, Thessaloniki, Creta, Corfu, Xanthi, Cephalonia, etc), Cyprus, Germany and Israel. He records, improvises and composes music for classical and contemporary dance. He has worked as a pianist-accompanist in the entrance and final examinations for the Professional Dance Schools issued by the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports. Additionally, he has collaborated with the majority of the professional and amateur dance schools in Athens. He, also, owns a Bachelor’s Degree as well as a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Glamorgan (Wales).
Athanasia Kanellopoulou Choreography (Hope)
She was born in Athens and studied on scholarship at the Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance (London). In 2000 she received a scholarship from the Martha Graham School in New York. She has also studied Spanish Language and Civilisation at the Hellenic Open University and traditional music (Constantinopolitan lute). For 18 consecutive years she lived abroad and collaborated with many contemporary dance companies, such as Les Ballets C de la B / Koen Augustijnen, Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch, Jasmin Vardimon Company, Alexandra Waierstall, Gregor Zöllig / Osnabrück dance theater, In jung Jun / Blue Elephant, Guy Weizman, Rami Levy, etc. Since 2008 she has choreographed a total of 18 works, many of which have been presented in Europe, the Middle East, N. Africa, etc. She teaches at companies and academies of dance all over the world. From 2017 to this date she has been teaching at the GNO Professional Dance School. In 2018 she founded the Athanasia Kanellopoulou Performing Arts company as a platform of artistic research and exchange.
Ted Regklis Music (Hope)
Composer and sound artist, he was born in 1986 in Chania, Crete. He has composed music for films, theatre and video games. In 2018 he wrote original music for the Greek National Opera’s ballet production Swan Lake that was choreographed by Konstantinos Rigos. In 2019 his music was used in the international trailer of the Oscar-winning film Parasite. In 2020 he composed the music for the Greek National Theatre’s performance S’ esas pou me akoute (To you listening to me) directed by Alexandros Avranas.
Christos Xyrafakis Choreography (Flowers)
He was born in 1989 in Agrinio. He graduated from the National School of Dance in 2013 and, as a scholar of the Onassis Foundation, he did postgraduate studies in choreography at SEAD and attended the intensive educational programme Ex-In on the Flying Low & Passing through techniques, which was directed by David Zabrano. He graduated from the Department of Mathematics of the University of Athens. As a dancer he participated in the main cast of the performance The Thread choreographed by Russell Maliphant. He has also collaborated with different choreographers and directors in Greece and abroad, such as Jukstapoz, Claudio Bernardo’s As Palavras, Konstantinos Rigos, the Hellenic Dance Company and Olatz de Andrés. In 2017 he apprenticed with Dimitris Papaioannou on the production of The Great Tamer, and in 2018 he co-created with Andi Xhuma the production Ok, that’s you.. for the Young Choreographers Festival at Onassis Stegi. He is a member of the teaching staff of the Greek National Opera Professional Dance School and Aktina Dance School, where he teaches contemporary dance.
Lucas Tsolakian Music (Flowers)
Composer, musician, visual artist, web designer and computer programmer, he was born in Brazil. He studied music at the Music and Drama Conservatory of São Paulo and informatics at the Energy Policy and Development Centre (KEPA) Institute in Athens and the Greenwich College in London. In 1986 he settled in Athens, where he started working as a musician with the National School of Dance, the GNO, the Rallou Manou Dance School, etc. In 1993 he joined Apurimac, a groundbreaking Greek band of Latin music, with which he released the album Mana gi (Mother Earth) in 1998 in collaboration with Haris Katsimichas, Pantelis Thalassinos and Daphne Panourgia. His sound sculptures and installations have been presented at the International Electronic Music Festival of São Paulo, the Athens Video Art Festival and Pixeldance (Thessaloniki), as well as in synergy with companies such as RootlessRoot, Proxima Dance Company, etc.
