Angelique Rockas

Angelique Rockas (born in Boksburg, South Africa) is an actress, producer and activist. Rockas founded Internationalist Theatre in the UK with patron Athol Fugard. The company featured multi-racial and multi-national productions of great European classics starting in 1981.The Stage Editorial April 1981Practitioner Focus: Angelique Rockas https://www.dramaandtheatre.co.uk/practical/article/practitioner-focus-angelique-rockas  Drama and Theatre October 2021Profile http://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceArchive/110078562 "a historic example of theatre work addressing representation in the most valuable manner"Drama and Theatre Oct 2021
https://archive.today/20211016134435/https://www.dramaandtheatre.co.uk/opinion/article/editorial-autumn-term-2-2021-22  As an actress Rockas played roles that challenged casting cliches.

Career
Stage
"Rockas attracted admiration as an actress for her strong interpretation of roles". BFI archive profile http://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceArchive/110078562:Medea (play) with Theatro Technishttps://ia802802.us.archive.org/25/items/timesreviewofmedeajpg/The%20Times%20review%20of%20Medea%20by%20Ned%20Chaillet%2021%20Jan%201982%20Times%20Dogital%20archive%20Gale.png 'Miss Julie' with her own company Internationalist Theatre. Other key performances are: Emma in The Camp by Griselda Gambaro and Annabella in 'Tis Pity She`s a Whore' which was also Rockas`s first theatre production under the banner of 'New Theatre' directed by Declan Donnellan  ,and now listed as one of the major productions of Tis Pity for the decade of the 1980`s in the 20th century  

Further stage roles include Carmen in 'The Balcony' , Yvette in 'Mother Courage ' , https://archive.org/details/CityLImitsReviewOfMotherCourageByJuliaPascal Miriam in 'In the Bar of a Tokyo Hotel' ,  Lady Macbeth , Tatiana in Gorky`s 'Enemies'. 

Work at London`s Theatro Technis under the name of Angeliki : Io in 'Prometheus Bound', Myrrhine in 'Lysistrata', Paphlagoonia in the adaptation of Aristophanes 'The Knights' 'Oh Democracy', 'Dowry with 2 White Doves',https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/search/results?basicsearch=angelique%20rockas&retrievecountrycounts=false and Kyproula in 'The National Engagement', all directed by George Eugeniou.

At the British Library
     Angelique Rockas British Library archive at Western Manuscripts


The National Archives (United Kingdom)
  Angelique Rockas

Film and Television 
She played Ms Ortiki in Thodoros  Maragos https://greekreporter.com/2024/04/02/teacher-arcadia-rethinking-modern-greece/?utm_source=MadMimi&utm_medium=email&utm_content=GreekReporter+Daily+News%3A+Domestic+Violence%3A+Men+Are+Victims+Too&utm_campaign=20240402_m180432022_GreekReporter+Daily+News+Simple&utm_term=Read+More  TV Film 'Emmones Idees' on Greek television ERT.

Films: 
 'OH BABYLON' directed by Costas Ferris roles of Nereida, and party reveller 
 The Witches (1990 movie) directed by Nicolas Roeg , role of Henrietta,
 Outland (movie)  directed by Peter Hyams, role of Maintenance Woman.


Prelude 
As stated in the British Library archives Rockas first production was  Ford`s `Tis Pity She's a Whore ` under the name of New Theatre in 1980 and was  a prelude to her creating Internationalist Theatre.  Declan Donnellan was commissioned to direct the play. "it is something of a triumph. Naked passion is as raw under a three piece suit as draped in Renaissance brocades".https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/search/results?basicsearch=the%20stage%20tis%20pity%20she%60s%20a%20whore%201980%20ann%20morley%20priestman&retrievecountrycounts=false She herself portrayed  Annabella as a sinister teenager and not the compliant passive beauty. The Stage, Ann Morley Priestman  Various accents from a Scottish, American and South African cast mixed seamlessly in this production as a start to the challenge of contemporary  theatre mores  Cast List 

Productions of Internationalist Theatre 
The company was first named New Internationalist Theatre then changed to Internationalist TheatrePractitioner focus: Angelique Rockas | Drama And Theatre https://www.dramaandtheatre.co.uk/practical/article/practitioner-focus-angelique-rockas "This is a historic example of theatre work addressing representation in the most valuable manner". Editorial by Sarah Lambie https://www.dramaandtheatre.co.uk/opinion/article/editorial-autumn-term-2-2021-22 ...
In May 1982 at London`s Theatre Space Internationalist Theatre staged a multi-racial production Perfomers list at 
Bertolt-Brecht-Archiv ,Akademie der Künste, Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder , Internationalist Theatre  of `Mother Courage and Her Children` by Bertolt Brecht
", , whose attack on the practice of war could not— with South Atlantic news filling the front pages— have been more topical.."  Drama:The Quarterly Theatre Review, Issues 139-154, pg 32 , 1982 "The cast ..is made of experienced actors from all over the world and perhaps their very cosmopolitanism helps to bring new textures to a familiar dish ."  Richard Ingham, Where to go, May 13 , 1982 Breaking racial casting barriers: Why  is a Pakistani actor playing the role of the Pastor ? was the question posed by Time Out Magazine critic Malcolm Hay  Time Out, May 1982, Review of Mother Courage by Malcolm Hay
In October 1981 Internationalist Theatre mounted a multi-racial staging of 'The Camp' by Griselda Gambaro Review by Spare Rib
In July 1982 in London`s Bloomsbury Theatre  Fabio Perselli directed the first English language performance of 'Liola' by Luigi Pirandello.  https://archive.org/details/daily-telegraph-deceit-in-a-sicilian-village-harold-atkins
 Press File Liola https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/search/results/1950-01-01/1999-12-31?basicsearch=bloomsbury%20internationalist%20liola%20%20stage%20july%20%201982&exactsearch=false&retrievecountrycounts=false&newspapertitle=the%2Bstagewith Internationalist Theatre`s multi-racial cast <https://theatricalia.com/play/e20/liola/production/wb5 Press release by the director Fabio Perselli "It opened with a satiety of womens` gossip. some of it not very easy to follow with the various accents of the New Internationalist Theatre. But it picked up wonderfully. The pleasures of the performance with its occasional songs based on ballads and tarantellas , lay in the village vitality, the lusty folk element. .and the children romped about deliciously. A very  good evening of an unusual kind."
In June 1981 Internationalist Theatre revived 'The Balcony' by Jean Genet in London`s Theatre Space with a multi-racial cast . The Stage Editorial    Ellen Thomas played Irma and Angelique Rockas Carmen   The Stage, Taylormade Theatre , Ann Morley-Priestman , pg 12 , 23 JUly 1981  
 In January 1984 the  Internationalist Theatre`s production  of August Strindberg`s 'Miss Julie'  was characterized by the disruption of ethnic preconceptions with a "small,dark" Angelique Rockas depicting the title part  in a performance of great depth Press File: Miss Julie  https://archive.org/details/profoundconflictreviewbyjostanleyinmorningstarofmissjulie2feb1984_202001 
 In March 1983 Internationalist Theatre presented a multi-ethnic  UK premiere of Tennessee Williams` 'In the Bar of a Tokyo Hotel' at London`s New End Theatre .Press File: In The Bar of a Tokyo Hotel https://archive.org/details/southafricangovdigestlindsayandersononrockasperformance_202001
 In March 1985 Ann Pennington directed a multi-national production of Maxim Gorky`s 'Enemies' in association with Internationalist Theatre , in London. One critic saw a parallel between the workers uprising in Enemies and the Miners Strike that had been running in the UK since 1984 " it is about the miners strike " UK miners' strike (1984–85). BBC Russian Service, review of 'Enemies' by Zinovi Zinik, March 1985 https://archive.org/details/bbcrussianservicereviewgorkyenemiespage1a_202002 Gorky`s "pseudo-populism" is done away with in this production by the actors speaking "without distinctive accents and consequently without populist sentiment" .Designed by Paul Brown , the cast included Madlena Nedeva, Nick Ellsworth, Angelique Rockas and Marilyn Flynn 

Personal life
Rockas is a Greek Orthodox Christian.Hellenism.net Interview https://quotepark.com/authors/angelique-rockas/quotes-about-christ/ She continues her activism on several internet websites where she counteracts attacks on Christianity,  offers free online education material ,  defends womens`, Palestinian and Greek rights  see Wikidata  and  https://esat.sun.ac.za/index.php/Angelique_Rockas  

 References 

 Other websites 

Angelique Rockas on IMDB
 Angelique Rockas: bold theatre pioneer | The South African
Angelique Rockas and Internationalist Theatre  London Theatre Archive 
 Angelique Rockas on Pinterest
Vogue Mexico Interview with Angelique Rockas 
The South African Interview with Angelique Rockas
 The Complete Unpublished Extract Of Angelique Rockas` South African Journey Used As Basis For Interview With The South African"
UK National Portrait Gallery  - Angelique Rockas 

Category:Actors from London
Category:British movie actors
Category:British stage actors
Category:Greek actors
Category:Living people
Category:South African actors