Today we’d like to introduce you to Chrysi Sylaidi.
Hi Chrysi, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Since I was really young, I loved working and creating with others and so I would always find the chance to participate and act in school productions, with different theatre companies, and in festivals in Athens and all-around Greece, either as a performer or a singer. However, one of the most defining moments for me, which really made me fall in love with acting, was when I was first exposed to the ancient Greek classics and more specifically when I performed the starring role of Hecuba in Euripides’s “Hecuba,” which was produced by the Ziridis Theatre Group in Athens. The show was one of the many productions I did with the established group. The experience of this production and the preparation for the role of Hecuba will stay with me I think forever. I had to overcome myself in so many ways that it was absolutely terrifying.
At one point, I remember I was even thinking of quitting. However, the love for everyone involved in the show and for the messages of the play kept me going. At the end it was a truly gratifying experience and the show went on to win 2nd place in Greece at the National Greek Theatre Competition Awards, produced by the Greek Ministry of Culture and the Greek Ministry of Education and Religious affairs. After gaining strong exposure to the Ancient Greek Theatre, I spent several years performing in modern productions in some of the biggest theatres in Athens and Greece.
In 2016, I was cast in “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller at Neo Theatro Akadimos, directed by Giorgos Kaloksilos, where I performed in the starring role of Elizabeth Proctor. I fell in love with the strength of Elizabeth’s character. Portraying such a unique, wise and iconic character that has been through so much, is a challenge for every actor. In my work I tried my best to find those qualities in me and then deliver truthfully her messages and experience through my own voice. During all that time, I satisfied my desire to study economics and politics in order to gain a better understanding of how the world works on a more practical and larger scale by getting a degree from the Athens University of Business and Economics, where I majored in Economic Theory and Politics. Simultaneously, I deepened my acting training by studying alongside the famous Italian theatre director Chiara Guidi and the Greek director Eleni Skoti at Studio Nama in Greece. My extensive work on stage and my acting studies alongside these amazing women solidified my desire to go back to school for acting. The time had come for me to travel abroad and feed my desire to collaborate with people from all over the world and expose myself to different cultures and acting techniques.
That road led me to New York where I got accepted at NYU’s Summer Conservatory for Acting at Stella Adler. After that, I also got accepted to Stella Adler’s acting program, where for three years I had the honor to challenge myself as an actor and an individual alongside a world class faculty and students from all around the world. After graduating, I began constantly acting in productions – and also occasionally produced or directed some of them. I have had the honor to work with some of the most established theatre companies in New York such as the Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre, The Greek Cultural Center, the Theatre East and the Eclipses Group Theatre New York. Overtime, I grew a strong desire for an international theatre company where I could support artists I believed in the most, especially international artists living in the US. With a lot of support TeamTheatre was born and from 2018 until today, TeamTheatre has expanded its community and has produced more than 22 plays, two successful International Festivals, numerous workshops and one short film that is in the works. Currently, I live and work in the US. I am working in different shows, projects, and films, and I am devoting time to TeamTheatre’s growth. Although this past year has certainly been difficult due to the pandemic, I am truly looking forward to all that is ahead.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It definitely hasn’t been easy. The financial crisis in Greece that started around 2010 affected all aspects of life and all industries, especially the arts back home. Even older, well-established and famous actors in Greece often don’t earn enough to have a respectable lifestyle. However, I was lucky enough to have a lot of support throughout. I also worked hard in all kinds of jobs. At one point I was working as radio host, producer, and DJ. After moving to the US, even though I had an idea of the difficulties that the move would entail, it was harder than I could have imagined. New York is one of the most expensive places in the world, that is no secret. It is incredibly difficult for international students to come, and comfortably live here, and that is something that I don’t think is talked about enough. We constantly have to find ways to sustain ourselves while studying full time and there are many limitations to what we can actually do. In any case, through hard work, persistence, sacrifices, and thankfully a lot of support from my family both in Greece and in the US, I kept pushing and will keep pushing forward. At the end of the day, the biggest drive is the need to connect, to create and to communicate through art. That is what makes everything worth fighting for. Especially now that we are – knock on wood – moving slowly out of the pandemic and people are in desperate need for the arts and the healing that they provide.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am an actress, producer, director and writer. I am also a founder and one of the Artistic Directors of TeamTheatre LLC, as well as a resident artist at the Greek Cultural Center in New York. I consider myself both a dramatic and a comedic actress, however, for the longest time I kept being cast in dramatic lead roles both in Greece and in the US. For the past several years though, there has been a shift in my interest and need as a performer, and I have been working in plenty of farcical, comedic, and many types of experimental shows. That exploration was mostly encouraged and supported during my time at Adler where I was cast in all types of characters, from dramatic ones such as Hermione in “The Winter’s Tale” to comedic ones such as the fool, Costard in Love’s Labour’s Lost”. I have also starred in TeamTheatre’s sold-out Off-off-Broadway production of “Golden Girl By The Sea,” for which I won a BroadwayWorld Award Nomination for Performer of the Decade in 2020. I have also starred in several other TeamTheatre productions such as the critically acclaimed “Almost, Maine” and the Off-Broadway production of “The Sun Tries Dating,” which won Best Play Award 2018 at the Manhattan Repertory Theatre after competing among hundreds of other participants. Some of my past NYC acting credits include: The Story of Kemal –Time Zone Free (Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre), Madam C – The Dead Can Zoom (Theatre East), Marya Antonova – Government Inspector (Eclipses Group Theatre New York), Aggeliki- Goodnight Margaret/Kalinichta Margarita (Cyprus New York Productions Inc.), Hermione – The Winter’s Tale, Pope Joan – Top Girls, Nora – Escape from Happiness, Costard – Love’s Labors Lost (Stella Adler). Greek credits include: Elizabeth Proctor – The Crucible (Akadimos Theatro), Madam Ubi- Ubi Roi (Theatro Poli). Notable film credits include the award-winning web series Stephie With A Why (2020), critically acclaimed film Through My Eyes (2020), and Miss Violence (2013). Recently my work was featured in the show DEAR by Madeline Conway, where I starred in the role of the Woman. It was a futuristic and abstract play that commented very poignantly on the global circumstances we are all experiencing during the pandemic and more specifically on the human need for connection. The show was officially selected to be a part of the Fun Fast Fest Festival 2021 and was a finalist.
Currently, my work can be found in my collaboration with Eclipses Group Theatre New York on another successful show called “Shelter in Love.” “Shelter in Love” is an impressive piece highlighting the creativity of talented artists who explore the effects of prolonged social isolation on love and artistic expression. “Shelter in Love” hosts two short films I wrote, produced, directed and starred in, “Distance” and “The Healing of Time” as well as an audio play I co-wrote, co-produced and starred in called “The Tarte Sisters.” All these projects are available for streaming on Eclipses Group Theatre’s official website and after the summer they will be brought together to create a live-staged rendition at the LaGuardia Performing Arts Center. Moreover, in the works for two upcoming short films called “Related,” co-written by Aldy Fourcade and myself, and “The Sams” written by Adam Martin. I am also in the middle of post-production for the film “Bad Juju” written by Dorothea Gloria which I directed, and I can’t wait to share with the world. Finally, as a producer, I have worked in numerous TeamTheatre’s productions including “The Sabbath Elevator,” which was presented at the Fun Fast Feb Festival in 2020, “Almost, Maine”, “No Friends” and others. In the summer of 2020 I also collaborated with Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre and New York Theatre Salon in the production of the Global Forms Theatre Festival and the show “Time Zone Free.”
Contact Info:
- Email: chrysisylaidi@gmail.com
- Website: www.chrysisylaidi.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chrysisylaidi
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