Dimitris Papaioannou (GR)

Dimitris Papaioannou was born in Athens in 1964. Gained early recognition as a painter and comics artist, before his focus shifted to the performing arts, as director, choreographer, performer, and sets designer. In 1986, he formed Edafos Dance Theatre, which was active till 2002 and set an indelible stamp on the arts scene in Greece. In 2004, Papaioannou became widely known as the creator of the ATHENS 2004 Olympic Games  Opening Ceremony. Papaioannou’s first international, travelling co-production, The Great Tamer (2017), was the first Greek production to be performed at Sadler’s Wells, London and Théâtre de la Ville, Paris and BAM, New York; followed by Since She (2018) a tribute to his inspiration Pina Bausch, and performed by her Tanztheater Wuppertal. Papaionannou’s work has been presented at numerous festivals and theatres throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, North and South America. He was nominated for Emmys in 2015; was awarded the Europe Theatre Prize in 2017; and was nominated for an Olivier Award in 2019.