Biography: Born in 1925, he moved from Greece to England in 1966 to protest the Greek government. Volanakis translated Jean Genet’s plays, American plays and others into Greek for directors suh as Carolos Koun. He worked for American and British universities, translating and directing classical Greek plays such as Aristophanes’ comedies. He became the associate director of the Oxford Playhouse, and made his U.S. debut with his staging of Euripides’ Bacchae in 1968 at New York City’s Lyceum Theater. His work at Circle in the Square included the English translation of Euripides’ Iphigeneia at Aulis in 1967 and direction of Euripides’ Medea in 1973. Upon his return to Greece, he served as the general manager of the Northern State Theater from 1975 to 1978, and staged Oedipus Rex at the Vivian Beaumont in 1984 with the Greek National Theater.
Trivia:
He translated Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot and Aristophanes’ Lysistrata at the Athens Festival.
His productions at the Oxford Playhouse included Jean Genet's The Maids (1963-4) and The Balcony (1967), and Jean Giraudoux's Madwoman of Chaillot.