MARIA  KARAPANOU

Born in Elaiohorio Kynourias – Arkadia, she lives and works in Tripoli.

She is a descendant of Konstantinos P. Karapanou who fought in the battles of Doliano, Dervenakia and Karpenisi beside the revolutionaries and leading strategists in the 1821 liberation of Greece, Theodoros Kolokotronis and Marcos Botsaris.

Maria Karapanou was involved in Greek dancing from an early age, in the beginning as a dancer in regional cultural societies, and later as an assistant and co-worker. She then acted as teacher and was responsible for the events and performances of a number of large regional organizations that were active in dance.

She has been a member on the board of associations, created dance and theatrical groups – in villages in the region of Arkadia – and has co-operated with local municipalities and organizations.

She has followed many seminars on dance (NELE and Dora Stratou) and has participated in international congresses and seminars on dance and folk culture here in Greece and abroad.  She has taken part in all the Symposiums organized in Greece by "Greek Dance Archives" and has been a member of IOV since 1998 and IOV Hellas since 2003.

In 1991 she founded and then became president and dance manager of the "Tripoli Center of Greek Dance", - an organization for the study and teaching of Greek dance-.

She is a curator of "Greek Dance Archives", responsible for Arkadia and central Peloponese. She has worked closely with Greek Dance Archives and IOV Hellas, participating in several activities and events that were supported by the enthusiastic contribution of the organization she represents, T.C.G.D.

She is involved in the research and recording of regional music and dance traditions, costumes and customs and has worked to this end in numerous communities in Arkadia, Lakonia and Messinia.  She has worked particularly on the “mavrofoustano” (black dress) of arcadia.    

With the Tripoli Center of Greek Dance she has taken part in big events in Greece and abroad and has visited many areas (Nestani, Zakynthos, Kythnos, Paros and elsewhere) for on-site research, investigation and assimilation of dance styles and local dance peculiarities.  

She has participated in the publication by digital means of material related to traditional dance and music of the region and has similarly been involved in television productions for Antena and Skai TV.