Nadia Foskolou

Foskolou

Alumna Profiled: Nadia Foskolou
Graduated: Pierce ‘92
Lives in: Athens, Greece and New York, USA
Current Position: Theater Director


“Be the change you want to see in the world.”


NADIA FOSKOLOU (Pierce ’92) is a theater director, working in New York and Athens. She holds a BA in Theater Studies from the University of Athens (Cum Laude), an MA in Theater Studies from the Sorbonne University, a Diploma in Acting from the ‘Florent’ Acting School (Paris), and an MFA in Directing from Columbia University. She is a Fulbright, NATO, and National Bank of Greece Cultural Foundation scholar.

During 2014-15 she directed two shows running simultaneously in Athens: Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s Bremer Freedom (at Metaxourgeio Theater) and Kathrine Kressmann Taylor’s Address Unknown (at Polychoros KET), which was voted Best Short-Term Production of the Year by all4fun.gr.

New York directing credits include Nathan Wright’s Peninsula, which won an Outstanding Ensemble Award at the 2013 New York International Fringe Festival.

She is currently working to bring to Greece Hôtel Méditerranée, a new theater piece she directed at the Between the Seas Festival in New York.

Nadia loves to remind herself and others that we only have one Earth.

She is married to Sergey Trostyanskiy.


INTERVIEW

Q.: What are three enduring lessons you learned during your studies at Pierce?

  • Hard work – even if not loud – does get recognized.
  • The joy of learning.
  • The painful but so fulfilling obedience to structure: to this day, I still apply Mr. Kinnick’s short-story analysis model – which he rigidly taught us in C’ Class Gymnasium – onto the plays I direct. Ι am forever grateful to him for this.

Q.: Describe Pierce in three words.

Focus. Study. Try.

Q.: One of your favorite Pierce memories?

Winning the gold medal at the volleyball championship!

Q.: What do you miss most from your days at Pierce?

Geometry class with Mr. Tzoulakis: the quintessence of LEARNING. It is the closest I have ever come to what I imagine must have been like being an Antiquity or Renaissance scholar. I thought the Universe was revealing its secrets just to me.

Q.: Where was your favorite spot on campus?

My best friend, Georgia Strati, and I had a very specific favorite spot in the library.

Q.: Who was your favorite teacher and why?

Almost all of our teachers were great, but there were several ones who earned the title of “mentor”: Ms. Rari, Ms. Tsakopoulou, Mr. Paschalidis, Mr. Tsatalis…

Q.: Have you kept in touch with any of your classmates?

Some of my best friends in life are from Pierce.

Q.: Did having studied at Pierce help you during your university studies and beyond?

Yes. Both Pierce and Aidonopoulou (where I attended kindergarten and elementary school) helped shape my mentality towards studying and learning – something priceless, which has to be developed early on and cannot be implanted later, no matter how many degrees you may pursue.

Q.: What’s the greatest piece of advice you’ve ever received?

Show up: it’s the first step to anything.

Q.: What (or who) inspires you most?

Walking in the city.

Q.: Your motto in life?

“Be the change you want to see in the world.”


ACG Alumni: We Stay Connected!

alumni success footer