Maria Olon Tsaroucha

Maria Olon Tsaroucha is an Actor, Director, Writer, and Founder of Perceptual Acting and Directing (PAD) theory and method. She is Greek by origin, living in Astoria, New York. She is a free minded woman, a Researcher and Futurist.

She is the author of the book “The Universal Actor, Infinite lives, Infinite characters, Infinite frames”, that refers to the development and maturation of the actor and any man in all fields, giving a new approach on the evolution of Method acting through self-knowledge, emotional freedom therapy, philosophical placements, NLP (neuro-linguistic programming), the value ethical system based on the concept of ethos in the analysis of *Odyssey*, all the way through the theory of *quantum physics*.

This book inspires and re-introduces the concept of *frames*, aspiring to give new tools to the art of the actor and the director, releasing him from creative and existential fears but also for one involved in all kinds of interrelationship business.

Maria studies the philosophical systems that exclude any kind of injustice or punishment and concentrate on knowledge of self, kindness, and love. She is a mother of a son and a daughter.

She has created Perceptual acting and directing (PAD), her own new theory and method of teaching young actors and coaching professional actors. PAD is a new theory and action system with exercises, a foundation for every artist interested in acting. The need to create a new theory arose from the fact that acting methods only teach how “to act on stage” and not “who the person is who is acting on stage”. The new PAD theory comes to fill this enormous gap of “Who Am I”.

She has participated, performed and coached actors in full-length films and in Greek television.

Her work captures her need to understand humans. Maria works with actors of diverse learning abilities and has a strong desire to make a substantial difference and evolution in actor’s consciousness.

Maria has studied Sociology, Creative Writing, and Philosophy of Literature for eight years at the Center of Creative Writing and Conflict Resolution in Greece founded by Christiana Labrinidis. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree of Arts in Sociology from Deree College in Athens, Greece and is an honored graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, USA.

She has worked extensively on Shakespearean women and on the Stanislavski Method at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Arts in London. She has studied acting and directing for the cinema with Michael Ilienko, Dean of the Film University in Kiev, Ukraine.

At the age of 13 she wrote her first book First Steps, First Thoughts, and was awarded as the Youngest Greek Writer by famous Greek writers Antonis Samarakis and Kostas Tahtsis. In 2011, her book Translucent Vacant Head was published by Heridanos, one of the oldest and most famous Greek publishers. A story of how humans have to recognize and accept both their male and female part and also how someone should get rid of the skins of family, society, and personal affairs in order to find one’s self and get free.

In 2003 Maria created Magic Room Theater, a team of artists that work together on projects, ideas, and songs under her direction. Their work includes plays such as This is a Duck, A Suspicion on Stage, Reunion, Lola’s Cabaret, It’s a Wonder Full World, and Maria in Abundance.

The performances at Magic Room Theatre stand out as products of art due to the combination of creativity between play, the choice of music, and realistic performances. These performances combine theatre, musical, stand-up comedy, and live music performance.

While in New York, Maria acted in AADA theatres and in Greece she has acted in plays such as Lunchbrake; Trainspotting; Sakura the Musical; Summer Bet; Mala, The Music of the Wind; Adam and Eve; Bug; The Night Porter; La Nonna; The Missing One; and An Indifferent Life.

Maria has also adapted and directed Elena Ferrante’s novel The Days of Abandonment and has also directed, with remarkable acknowledgement from critics, the hugely successful play IRAQ — 9 parts of desire. She also directed Anthimos Ananiadis, a well-known Greek actor who lives and works in Los Angeles, in Dorian Gray Frames.

Upon returning from New York she became and remains a member of the NAMA art team, as a director and actor, at the Epi Kolono theatre, and has extensively worked on organically truthful acting.

Maria is a member of the Association of Greek Physicists representing, as an artist, the promotion of the vision of Science and Art and taking part in conferences and symposia both within and outside Greece. She has also contributed to the organization of numerous events by Consulat De Cote D’ Ivoire and Tango Acropolis Festivals as an artistic director.

Her idea of The Olon Knowing thyself network will use the power of Technology and Art in order to give people massive exposure to anti-war images and through that to subconsciously dig deep into the strongest and most truthful Value of all and that is Love. The goal: is to fight War in Eastern Countries and to help the Vulnerable Groups in ethical, psychological, and economical ways! But most importantly, to raise a massive collective powerful consciousness of the Human Rights!

This idea came out of her deepest want to help the Vulnerable Groups of Women and Children at War after she had directed IRAQ — 9 parts of desire, a play written by an American-Iraqi woman talking about the madness and the loss of war without taking sides.

Watch her Show Reel. Watch and listen to Maria at TedX talking about Knowing thyself — the eternal process. View the list of videos including Maria. Watch Maria performing on one of her shows.

Visit her Homepage and her LinkedIn profile. Follow her on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter.