The exhibition will feature original posters of films Melina starred in, alongside photographs of her appearances at award ceremonies, and her struggle against the Greek dictatorship.
The Melina Mercouri exhibition.
Visitors will get to see the original costumes used in theatre productions, her correspondence with famous figures and her personal dressing room.
Rabbitohs NRL coach, Jason Demetriou, has called for an investigation into the alleged racial abuse against player Latrell Mitchell during Thursday night’s match at Penrith’s BlueBet Stadium in Sydney.
According to the Sydney Morning Herald, a young fan allegedly directed racial abuse toward Mitchell during half-time. The security staff and police attended minutes after.
The fan allegedly fled the scene after being ejected, leaving his father to deal with the authorities.
Latrell Mitchell at BlueBet Stadium on Thursday night. Photo: Sydney Morning Herald.
Mitchell’s coach, Mr Demetriou, has responded to the alleged incident on Friday morning and said: “It’s not the first time we’ve come here as a club and our players have been racially abused.”
“It’s not what our game is about. We have to stamp it out completely. Life bans, anyone who makes racial abuse, get them out of the game. We don’t want their support. It has to end.”
Mr Demetriou said he will work with the NRL to investigate the matter further.
Tasmania’s Ten Days on the Island arts festival will feature an adaptation of the ancient Greek play, Women of Troy.
The adaptation is heavily interweaved with the experiences of former detainee Behrouz Boochani, who tried to seek refuge in Australia but was detained for nearly seven years on Manus island.
The Kurdish-Iranian revisits his refugee journey and writes a series of poems to be transformed into songs for the play.
“It was quite difficult emotionally because I had to go through that experience that I had and also all of the stories that I witnessed, the stories that I heard in that context,” Boochani told ABC News.
A new production of the ancient play features actors from around Australia and New Zealand. Photo: ABC News / Maren Preuss.
Women of Troy is an ancient Greek tragedy by Euripides set in the aftermath of the war between the people of Melos and Troy.
The play is from the survivor’s perspective, particularly on the women who were passive victims of the war.
“There are more refugees than ever in the world — as we know, there’s atrocities against women and children happening every day, as we speak now — so it really is about reminding people about that, putting humanity and faces within that are in our voice,” actor and producer Marta Dusseldorp said.
The Women Of Troy’s seven-performance season runs from 8 to 12 March at Hobart’s Theatre Royal.
According to a travel report by The Australian, the Paspaley’s bought and opened The Wall Street Hotel in August 2022 and since then, it has become the “anchor for the now-booming area.”
Lounge on Pearl, the hotel lobby’s cocktail bar. Photo: The Australian
The hotel stands at the corner of Wall and Pearl streets, the lobby includes the sale of their pearl jewellery and down the street is New York’s main public ferry hub where people can travel to Coney Island and Brooklyn for AUD$4.
On display around the hotel are Indigenous artworks from the APY Art Centre Collective and photos of Australia’s pearling heritage.
A suite at The Wall Street hotel.
Featuring warm and earthy tones signifying Broome and the beach, the 180 room hotel brings an Australian accent to the financial neighbourhood, “once desperately short of charm.”
Cypriot Foreign Minister, Constantine Kombos, has paid his first official visit to Greece and met with his Greek counterpart, Nikos Dendias, to discuss the Cyprus issue.
During a joint press conference, Dendias said: “We continue our undivided support for the just and viable resolution of the Cyprus issue, based on the United Nations Security Council resolutions.”
Είχα διευρυμένες συνομιλίες με τον ΥΠΕΞ Κύπρου @ckombos σήμερα, οι οποίες εστίασαν στις άριστες σχέσεις 🇬🇷-🇨🇾, στο Κυπριακό & σε ευρύ φάσμα θεμάτων, μεταξύ άλλων σε ενεργειακό, συνεργασία σε ΕΕ & διεθνείς οργανισμούς, εξελίξεις στην Αν. Μεσόγειο & το Αιγαίο, διεθνή ζητήματα. pic.twitter.com/qD6hXHNpmC
According to AMNA, the two officials also spoke about efforts to deter the upgrade of the pseudo-state internationally, reviewing actions that could be taken with the European Union, the United States, and strategic and regional partners.
In his statements, Kombos made it clear Cyrpus “will never accept divisionary solutions or two-country solutions.”
A railway inspector and two more stationmasters have been charged in connection with Greece’s deadliest train crash at Tempi last week that killed 57 people and injured dozens.
The stationmasters had allegedly ended their work shifts early on the night of the incident, despite traffic being unusually heavy after Greece’s Carnival celebrations. The supervisor has been accused of placing an inexperienced stationmaster on duty at the time of the crash.
According to Ekathimerini, all three are being charged with endangering transport safety and multiple counts of negligent homicide and bodily harm.
Similar charges were levelled on Sunday against the stationmaster who stands accused of making the fatal point switch that saw the passenger train and freight train put on the same track at Tempi.
News of the indictments filtered through as the Greece’s Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, held his first cabinet meeting since a period of national mourning.
“I want to reiterate a public apology on behalf of those who ruled the country over the years, and mainly personally,” Mitsotakis said during the meeting. “I assume responsibility.”
Θέλω να επαναλάβω τη δημόσια συγγνώμη μου στο όνομα όλων όσοι κυβέρνησαν τη χώρα εδώ και χρόνια, αλλά κυρίως προσωπικά. Αναλαμβάνω κατά συνέπεια την ευθύνη. Και δεν μπορούμε, δεν θέλουμε, δεν πρέπει να κρυφτούμε πίσω από μία σειρά ανθρώπινων σφαλμάτων.
— Prime Minister GR (@PrimeministerGR) March 9, 2023
He said that more than 270 million euros would be invested in railway reform by the end of August.
The crash has stirred protests against a political system which has repeatedly ignored calls by railway unions and EU officials to install digital safety systems and hire more staff.
On Wednesday, tens of thousands rallied outside Parliament in Athens, the northern city of Thessaloniki and other cities across Greece in the largest street demonstrations the conservative government has faced since being elected in 2019.
General elections that had been expected to take place in April have, in the face of the uproar, been rescheduled for May.
To celebrate International Women’s Day this year, Violet Roumeliotis AM, Sophie Cotsis MP and Effy Alexakis inspired crowds during a special ‘Speaker Series’ on Wednesday at Ashfield Town Hall in Sydney, New South Wales.
(L-R) Sophie Cotsis, Effy Alexakis, Violet Roumeliotis, Alexandra Luxford. Photo: The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.
The event started with emcee and panel moderator, Randwick City Councillor Alexandra Luxford, introducing a number of speakers to the stage including Inner West Councillor Zoi Tsardoulias.
Zoi Tsardoulias and Alexandra Luxford. Photo: The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.
Ms Roumeliotis, Ms Cotsis and Ms Alexakis also spoke briefly to introduce themselves before the panel discussion commenced. Effy introduced herself via a slideshow of photographs she has taken documenting Greek Australian women and migrants.
The panel. Photo: The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.
The panel discussion then began with each speaker discussing their struggles as children of migrants, their leadership challenges and the need to balance family life with the workforce.
Audience. Photo: The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.Others in the audience. Photo: The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.
Ms Cotsis stressed that she didn’t have Greek women in Parliament to look up to as role models, before referencing the influence of Victorian MP Maria Vamvakinou and former Victorian Health Minister, Jenny Mikakos.
Ms Alexakis said she’s proud to receive feedback on her renowned photographs and described how people say her work has “popularised Greek Australian history.”
Attendees. Photo: The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.(L-R) Effy Alexakis and Marina Efthimiou. Photo: The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.
Ms Roumeliotis spoke about her role as CEO of Settlement Services International and encouraged females to support each other to achieve their full potential.
Violet Roumeliotis.
At the conclusion of the panel, Ms Roumeliotis, Ms Cotsis and Ms Alexakis were presented with flowers and the Chair of the Greek Festival, Nia Karteris, thanked them in her speech for taking part in the event.
Nia Karteris. Photo: The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.Other attendees. Photo: The Greek Herald / Andriana Simos.
Victoria’s oldest ethnic club, Club Tivoli, has known many periods of change and transformation.
With its first president formally inducted in 1860, the now 162-year-old Club has known everything from a youthful General Sir John Monash socialising with members, to countless celebrations of other migrant cultures – including Greek nights, Italian nights and salsa dancing.
The Club has also always been home to Victorians who identified with their Germanic heritage, providing hearty meals and beverages with a distinctly Deutsch flavour in an attempt for members to keep their language skills and Old World culture alive.
Today, Club Tivoli is in the process of embracing its single largest and most significant transformation with the help of Greek Australian chef, Anthony Abazis; Redevelopment Manager of German Indian heritage, Richard Altreith; the current Club president, Dieter Schwab; and Club manager, Tanya Kabisch.
(L to R) Club President – Dieter Schwab; Redevelopment Manager – Richard Altreith; Hospitality Manager & Chef – Anthony Abazis; Club Manager – Tanya Kabisch.
Speaking with The Greek Herald, Mr Abazis shares how he’s very excited with the transformation and looks forward to bringing a Greek influence to the Club.
“We’re very much community based. We want to make sure we are serving the local community,” Mr Abazis says.
“We’re trying to create not so much a German club in itself but more of an ethnic club which welcomes all backgrounds.
“A perfect example is the way our kitchen is set up. Me being a Greek Australian has so much Greek influence on our menu. The second chef who is Italian brings a whole wealth of knowledge to the table with his cuisine.
“So it’s not strictly speaking German cuisine, we’re more like international.”
Anthony (front).
This ambitious plan to entirely refresh the Club’s identity will not only see the Club rooms completely rebuilt with state-of-the-art facilities and a three level underground carpark, but several floors of boutique apartments will also crest the proposed redevelopment.
The jewel in the crown will be a restaurant sitting atop these apartment floors, with its location perfectly situated for diners to drink in the views of the CBD skyline, the Port of Melbourne and The Dandenongs.
“We’re always evolving and pushing forward,” Mr Abazis concludes.
“I’m pretty skilled at my craft but I’m very excited. With this new building and state-of-the-art facilities that we’re putting in, it’s just going to be mind blowing.”
The Greek Orthodox Community of South Australia (GOCSA) celebrated International Women’s Day 2023 (IWD) on Wednesday, March 8 with over 100 people packing into Olympic Hall to hear the inspirational stories of Adriana Christopoulos and Argyro Vourdoumpa.
The 23rd annual IWD event started at 7pm with a music performance by Meraki Ensemble before Anastasia Mavrides, Member of the Administrative Council and Assistant Coordinator of the GOCSA Dance Academy, kick started official proceedings as emcee.
Official guests and GOCSA Committee.Guests in attendance.
GOCSA General Secretary, Smaro Skordas, gave a welcome to the event and stressed how the success of a society is closely tied with the status of women.
“If we want to succeed as a nation, we must start with the education, liberation and empowerment of our girls,” she said.
From there, Irene Pnevmatikos MLC, representing the SA Minister for Tourism and Multicultural Affairs, gave a speech and stressed that many women do not enjoy the same privileges men do in the workplace or any other sector.
Argyro Vourdoumpa (centre) with her daughter and Irene Pnevmatikos MLC.
Ms Pnevmatikos said the state government has established the South Australian Gender Pay Gap Taskforce, which she is chairing. This brings experts from government, business and industries to provide expert advice to the Government and recommend specific actions that can be taken to address the gender pay gap.
Following these speeches, it was time for the guest speakers to address the crowd.
Ms Christopoulos, who is Chair of the South Australian Multicultural Commission, spoke first and said that in order to achieve equity, it requires equal paths of education, opportunity, encouragement and hard work.
Next to speak was Ms Vourdoumpa, the former Editor at The Greek Herald. In her address, she stressed that Australian women of Greek heritage are incredibly resilient and resourceful, but they need support across sectors to achieve their full potential in Australia.
Ms Vourdoumpa also encouraged women to keep asking the hard questions and use their “superpowers” to create and embrace equity.
Argyro (centre) with two ladies from GOCSA’s Greek Women’s Society.
“My superpower is storytelling,” she added.
“Throughout my career, I have used it to create more cracks in glass ceilings by telling the stories of Australia’s Greek diaspora from a more female-focused and multicultural perspective and showing my peers in Greece that when there is will, there is a way.”
At the conclusion of these official proceedings, there was a Question and Answer section. Awards were also presented to Georgina Vlachos and Panagiota Stamatopoulos for their long-standing volunteering with GOCSA.
Dr Lygeros was brought to Australia by a local Greek man in Melbourne named Kon Antoniadis. He is known for his exceptional intellectual giftedness having an IQ level of 189 on the scale of Stanford–Binet.
During his visit on Wednesday, Dr Lygeros gave a lecture focused on the topic of Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and energy.
Dr Lygeros stressed the importance of Cyprus sharing its EEZ borders with Egypt, Israel and Lebanon, whilst explaining also that the Turkish side will not be able to prevent Cyprus from taking maximum advantage of the energy resources.
The topic was discussed in detail for an hour and a half, with the crowed interacting through asking various questions.
Afterwards, Dr Lygeros spoke to The Greek Herald about his impressions of the Greek and Cypriot community during his visit to Australia.
“I really enjoyed it. It was very well organised. It allows me to come close with the people here. I see that they have concerns also for Greek and Cypriot topics. I like that because they mostly see the topic ethnically and from the other side, because they have the Greek Australian element,” he said whilst highlighting the importance of the community creating a bond with Greece.
“I believe that it is good to look at things geopolitically and to be prepared and have an alliance that is activated.”
He added that Greeks and Cypriots here in Australia can help “Australians” get a better understanding of Greek issues and offer a way of thinking which is important for the future and Australia.
Dr Lygeros then told The Greek Herald about the importance of Greek language being used as a tool here in Australia for the development of the brain.
“It is important that Greek language is not presented only as a language of minority but as a tool of developing the brain, something that interests the whole Australia,” he said.
All photos copyright: The Greek Herald / Giorgos Psomiadis
