Angelique Rockas

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Angelique Rockas
Occupation Actress
Years active 1978-present

Angelique Rockas is a South African Greek actress based in London. With her company Internationalist Theatre (initially called New Internationalist Theatre) she was an instigator of multi-racial and multi-national theatre productions in the London of the 1980`s , starting with The Balcony by Jean Genet.[1] In a letter of support Athol Fugard endorses the formation of `internationalist theatre`.[2] Madeleine Jay of the BBC French Service in her broadcast review of The Balcony affirms the value of an internationalist theatre.[3] Michelene Wandor in her preview for Time Out of the company`s performance of Griselda Gambaro`s `The Camp` describes the company`s `internationalist casting policy `as an `exciting risk`.[4] Interviews with Rockas in print and online about the founding of Internationalist Theatre were published in Eleftherotypia, [5] The National Herald, [6] Vogue Mexico,[7] Dagens Nyheter,[8] The South African,[9] Hellenism.net, [10] and The GreekReporter. [11]

As an actress Rockas first came to the public`s attention for her portrayal of the roles of Emma in Griselda Gambaro`s 'The Camp ', `encarna magistralmente el dificil papel de Emma`; [12] Euripides`s Medea; Ned Chaillet of The Times is struck by the wrath of Medea erupting in `the dangerous passions of Angelique Rockas`, and Rosemary Say of The Sunday Telegraph lauds Rockas` performance as `fiercely agile`,[13] and in Strindberg`s Miss Julie;for Jo Stanley of The Morning Star Rockas`s portrayal of Miss Julie impresses not only for the `huge dimensions of the character ` suggested, but also `Ms Rockas` performance adds profundity and power .. most original performance`. .[14]

Film roles include Henrietta in The Witches directed by Nicolas Roeg , and Nereida in 'Oh Babylon! ' directed by Costas Ferris.[15]

Work on TV in the Greek language includes the lead role, Ms Ortiki in Thodoros Maragos`s Emmones Idees Greek Ert 1 TV series 1989 with Vangelis Mourikis as Socratis.

[16]

Formative years in South Africa

Angelique was educated at St Dominic's Catholic School for Girls, Boksburg, South Africa. After matriculating she continued her studies at the University of Witwatersrand, studying for majors in English Literature and Politics. Her political studies were cut short when the local apartheid government MP, having seen a photograph of her on the front page of The Star newspaper at the picket line of a Wits University anti-apartheid protest, telephoned her parents and expressed his surprise to find out that their daughter was against the government. In her third year at Wits Rockas participated in a March 25th Greek Independence Day Poetry Celebration with George Bizos the Greek South African lawyer who was Mandela`s defence attorney and would in the future be one of the constitutional lawyers of SA`s new Constitution. Her contact with Bizos would inspire her to continue the fight against apartheid in her own way. In later years from London Angelique would send Bizos a book on EU law for his Legal Resources Centre , which Bizos warmly welcomed. [17]

Having completed an honours degree in English Literature and majoring in philosophy, Rockas went on to do an acting course at the Drama School of the University of Cape Town, obtained an Equity card for a South African Broadcasting Corporation short on The Wasteland by T. S. Elliot, then left South Africa for the United Kingdom.

London and Theatro Technis

Work as an actress in London, UK started under the direction of George Eugeniou at Theatro Technis. Apart from participating in Greek classics like Medea and playing IO in Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus (both these Theatro Technis productions are listed on Wikipedia).[18] Angelique also performed under the name of Angeliki Rockas, in dual language productions (Greek/English) based on improvisations about issues that touched the Greek Cypriot community. The plays included 'Dowry with Two White Doves', 'Afrodite Unbound', 'A Revolutionary Nicknamed Roosevelt', 'Ethnikos Aravonas', Greek language only performances in 'Kato apo tis Keratsies', and ' Don Kamillo'.[19]

Rockas first venture into production was setting up New Theatre in November 1980 to stage a production of 'Tis Pity She's a Whore by John Ford in which she played the part of Annabella . She finances the production and enlists Declan Donnellan to direct the play without a sub-plot and in modern dress to be performed at London`s Half Moon Theatre and Theatre Space. Apart from positive feedback from Lindsay Anderson,[20] this production is also included on Wikipedia under Notable performances under 'Tis Pity She's a Whore. [21]

Internationalist Theatre

In April 1981 Internationalist Theatre is born to create a theatre company for actors living in London from a multi-racial or multi-national background, of various accents, performing drama classics as well as contemporary works not especially written for multi-racial and multi-national casts, so aptly described by Ann Morey the BBC Latin American (now BBC Mundo) broadcaster as `transcending racial and cultural barriers`.[22]

Internationalist Theatre productions include: The Balcony by Jean Genet, June 1981; the British premiere of 'The Camp ' by Griselda Gambaro, Oct 1981 ; Mother Courage and Her Children by Bertholt Brecht, March 1982 ; the British premiere of the English language performance of Liola by Luigi Pirandello, July 1982 ; the British premiere of In the Bar of a Tokyo Hotel by Tennessee Williams, May 1993 ; Miss Julie by August Strindberg, January 1994 ; and `Enemies` by Maxim Gorky, a production with Ann Pennington`s Richard Steel Theatre, March 1985.[23]

Rockas`s work as an actress in Internationalist Theatre productions also include: Carmen(Balcony), [24] Yvette(Mother Courage),[25] Miriam (Bar of Tokyo Hotel),[26] and Tatiana(Enemies),.[27]

For critical response to the company`s productions, all listed individually on Wikipedia either under the dramatists`s name or the title of the play, refer to Internationalist Theatre Wikipedia entry.

Coda

Rockas now works on her own film projects with Contemptus Mundi Films. She has resumed her activism campaigning for Greece, Women's rights, and anti-war, via the groups she created and curates on LinkedIn and her Twitter account.

References

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External links

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