About

Stavroula Kounadea makes performance art and theatre and has a particular interest in self-identity, personal mythologies, awkwardness and discomfort, magic and popular culture. Stavroula often uses physical transformations and vocal manipulations in her work, sometimes to the extent of assuming the identity of fictional characters or using aliases. She has created work under the name Alison Vane and given talks as Dr. Misha Maglev.

Her diverse practice ranges from repertoire theatre, film and TV to devised theatre and performance art. Even though her roots are in contemporary theatre and performance, Stavroula has always flirted with music and sound. She’s been a vocalist for noise band Elapse-O and fronted the avant-rock music collective Nonstop Tango. Key collaborators have included sound artists Ray Lee and Felicity Ford. Stavroula is also one half of Readymade Theatre with Austin Sherlaw-Johnson. 

She founded and ran the artist-led platform for new work Playground (funded by ACE and Oxford City Council) occurring every two months for 5 years (2012 – 2017) at the Old Fire Station in Oxford and was the Festival Manager for the sound art and experimental music festival Audiograft until 2018. In 2019 she started the artistic exchange society Postcard Club which is still taking place monthly.

Stavroula is an Associate Lecturer in Art and Music at Oxford Brookes University.

2020

• Cow, Cabaret Melancholique, The Horse Hospital, London

2019

• Sphere Guardian in Congregation (by Ray Lee), touring to outdoor festivals nationwide
• Played Roula in feature film Ioanna by German director Albrecht Hirche (in post-production)
• Cow, CARU Anniversary Event, OVADA Warehouse, Oxford
• It’s a Good Day, Cabaret Melancholique, Peckham Liberal Club, London

2018

• Ethometric Museum (by Ray Lee), Ugly Duck, London
• Ethometric Museum (by Ray Lee), Junction, Goole
• Screams & Strings, Holywell Music Room, Audiograft festival, Oxford
• John Cage and Teeny Duchamp Play Chess in Front of a Live Audience, Pegasus Theatre, Oxford
• John Cage and Teeny Duchamp Play Chess in Front of a Live Audience, Brunswick Club, BEEF, Bristol
• For Swimmers & Sailors, Freshly Scratched, Battersea Arts Centre, London
• For Swimmers & Sailors, Where is the Art? (annual CARU show), OVADA, Oxford

2017

• Ethometric Museum (by Ray Lee), The Shed, Charlbury
• Fulfilled Existence (Readymade Theatre), Fringe Arts Bath

2016

• Directed STATIC written by Russell Anderson for Re:conception Theatre
• Performed poetry with composer Martin Hackett at the DADA Centenary, Albion Beatnik, Oxford

2015

• John Cage and Teeny Duchamp Play Chess in Front of a Live Audience, Old Fire Station, Oxford Fringe Festival, Oxford
• John Cage and Teeny Duchamp Play Chess in Front of a Live Audience, O3 Gallery, Oxford
• Nonstop Tango, The Bullingdon, Oxford
• Nonstop Tango, Klub Kakofanney, The Wheatsheaf, Oxford
• Nonstop Tango (with James Attlee), Fusion Arts, Oxford

2014

• Dr Misha Maglev: How to be a Love Magnet, “Of Art of Culture of” CARU conference, Headington Hill Hall, Oxford
• Ethometric Museum, Science Museum, London
• Ethometric Museum, If Wet…, Quakers Meeting House, Worcester
• John Cage and Teeny Duchamp Play Chess in Front of a Live Audience, Fringe Arts Bath
• Nonstop Tango, The Bullingdon, Oxford
• Nonstop Tango, Refracted Cabaret, The Wheatsheaf, Oxford

2013

• Ethometric Museum, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
• We’ve Come a Long Way, Jam Factory, Oxford
• We’ve Come a Long Way, Oxford City Centre, Oxford Pride Parade
• Nonstop Tango, Old Fire Station, Oxford
• Nonstop Tango, Drama Studio, Oxford Brookes University
• Nonstop Tango, Klub Kakofanney, The Wheatsheaf, Oxford
• Nonstop Tango, The Cape of Good Hope, Oxford

2012

• Towards an Excellent Finish (collaboration with Felicity Ford), Audiograft festival, Oxford
• Ethometric Museum, Battersea Arts Centre, London
• Ethometric Museum, Gravity Fields Festival, Grantham
• Ethometric Museum, Natural Science Society, Bournemouth Arts Festival
• Ethometric Museum, Alms House, Corsham Festival
• Ethometric Museum, Tesla Museum, Belgrade, Serbia (supported by the British Council)

2011

• Mixtape Consultancy (collaboration with Felicity Ford), Editions of You, Oxford Castle, commissioned by OCM
• Dr Misha Maglev: How to be a Love Magnet, Stammtisch, OVADA, Oxford
• Ethometric Museum, Museum of the History of Science, Oxford
• Ethometric Museum, BEAM sound art festival, Brunel University, London
• Ethometric Museum, Cellar of Mason’s Lodge, Hill Street Theatre, Edinburgh
• Ethometric Museum, South Hill Park Arts Centre, Bracknell

2010

• Dr Misha Maglev: How to be a Love Magnet, Jam Factory, Oxford Pride Festival
• Cow, 15 Minutes Factory, Queen of Hoxton, London
• Electric (by Ray Lee), One-On-One festival, Battersea Arts Centre, London. 

2009

• Dr Misha Maglev: How to be a Love Magnet, Testing Grounds, South Hill Park Arts Centre, Bracknell, funded by ACE South East
• Effable: Three Acts of Love (video), Love is Awesome, Gallery 10, Reading
• Effable: Three Acts of Love,
  (video), Inspiration, Jam Factory, Oxford
• Cow, Death in the Metropolis, Bow Road Warehouse Unit, London

2008

• Cow, Obsessions, Modern Art Oxford, Oxford
• Cow, International Women’s Festival, Contact Theatre, Manchester

2007

• Project MetaMap01, mixed media installation, ‘Stimulus/Response’, ProjektraumSonnensegel, Vienna,  Austria
• Performance art for noise band Elapse-O, various venues nationwide.

2006

• Simply Acquired Character, performance/installation, Richard Hamilton Building, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford.

2005

• Fresh Minds, Random Characters festival, Bios, Athens, Greece

2004

• Der Mann von Oben, Devised theatre, dir.Albrecht Hirche, Ruhrtriennale, Muelheim a. d. Ruhr, Germany
• Actress (Lina) in Cleaning Days, by G. Bakolas, Theatro Technis, London
• Starring role (Liana) in popular TV comedy series Seven Deadly Mothers–in–law, Mega Channel, Greece
• Underwater Dancer in BATT.LOW, short film,dir. / chor. S. Potamianos / M. Nestora, Video Dance Festival, Athens, Greece

2002

• Actress (multiple characters) in Woyzeck (G. Buchner), dir. A. Brouskou, Poreia Theatre, Athens, Greece
• Dancer in Ta Agoria Den Klaine, music video for musician Mikael Delta, dir: M. Koupa

2001

• Actress (multiple characters) in Kleftis I Prgmatikotita, feature film nominated for International Fantasy Film Award at Fantasporto International FilmFestival, Portugal; dir. Antoinetta Aggelidis