Biography
Το Νοέμβριο του 2017 ανεβάζει την επιθεώρηση δωματίου «Α-πε- λπι-σί- το» στο Θέατρο Αθηνών. Η Σοφία Φιλιππίδου, παρούσα σ' αυτό το καινούργιο εγχείρημα του Λάκη Λαζόπουλου. Οι δύο σπουδαίοι κωμικοί της γενιάς τους, βρίσκονται για πρώτη φορά μαζί στη σκηνή, στην πιο μοντέρνα επιθεώρηση που φέρει την υπογραφή σε κείμενα και σκηνοθεσία του Λάκη Λαζόπουλου.
Μακριά από τα φανταχτερά και πολύχρωμα κοστούμια άλλων εποχών, γράφει για τους νεοτρελαμένους της χώρας. Ένα αόρατο σπίτι, όπου μένουν όλοι οι κρυμμένοι και οι μόνοι της εποχής, είναι το σημείο όπου θα ξεντυθεί η ελληνική πραγματικότητα. Πιο γυμνή από ποτέ! Όλοι αυτοί που η κρίση πέταξε έξω, ξεστομίζουν τις αλήθειες μιας εποχής μέσα από διαλόγους και μονολόγους γραμμένους και ειπωμένους με χιούμορ που φτάνει στα άκρα.
Το «Α-πε- λπι-σί- το» περιοδεύει σε όλη την Ελλάδα με μεγάλη επιτυχία. Τη μουσική της παράστασης υπογράφει ο Σταμάτης Κραουνάκης.
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In October 2013 the show "Sorry I'm Greek!" is staged on 'Bretania Theatre' with altered texts,since following closely all current affairs in the country.
In May 2012 he did a big tour in Europe with the play ‘Sorry… I’m Greek!’ which he also wrote and directed it. The tour had a big success in
He also continued with the very successful live programme ‘Al Tsantiri News’ on the ALPHA TV channel. This has achieved the highest record viewer ratings ever in the history of Greek television.
In October 2011 he was in the film ‘God Loves Caviar’ (directed by Yiannis Smaragdis) which was screened internationally.
In 2009 he was ranked 83rd by the public in Skai TV's Great Greeks. In 2010, Forbes ranked Lazopoulos as the most powerful and influential celebrity in Greece.
In November 2008 after 3 years absence from the theatre he produced the ‘Struggler on the Roof’ at the Centre of Hellenic World Culture in Athens which he wrote and directed, with Hrisa Ropa as co-star. This was yet another very successful production to an audience of 100.000.
In autumn 2006 he played the role of Nikolas in the movie ‘El Greco’ (produced by Yiannis Smaragdis), screened in 2007 and proved to be a box office hit.
In the summer 2005 he played the role of Dikeopolos at the National Theatre in a performance of Aristophanes’ ‘Acharnes’, directed by Vangelis Theodoropoulos. His second appearance at the Epidauros Theatre was also hugely successful.
In November 2005 he produced the play ‘Hysteria’ by Terry Johnson at the Britannia Theatre, directed by Konstantinos Arvanitakis where he played the lead role of Freud, the father of psychoanalysis. Akis Sakellarios, Fey Xyla and Bambis Yiotopoulos were also in the cast.
In the winter of 2004 he wrote and produced the satirical review ‘Wind to Your Sails!!’ at the Britannia Theatre where he performed the lead role with co-star Jenny Botsi. The performance was a huge cultural and box office success. He was also Cultural Director of the Britannia and Athinon theatres.
In the summer of 2004 he played his debut performance in the Theatre of Epidauros in Aristophanes’ ‘Plutos’ directed by Nikos Mastorakis, with music by Stamatis Kraounakis, in the lead role of Hremilos. He played to a packed theatre for two performances and widely acclaimed. He then toured Greece participating in most of the festivals.
In the winter of 2004 he returned to the Britannia Theatre where he wrote and directed ‘Where is the Bus Going To?’ co-acting with Tasos Palantzidis.
From November 2004 and for the first time on Greek Television he presented a live satirical news bulletin ‘Al Tsantiri News’ on the ALPHA channel.
In the summer of 2003 he started filming ‘R20’ which he wrote and directed and screened at the beginning of February, 2004. He took the lead role and Basilis Haralambopoulos co-starred with him.
In 2003 he left MEGA channel and started working with ALPHA as Programme Advisor.
In February 2002 he wrote, produced and directed the play, ‘Ta Leme’ (See you around). Georgos Konstantinos was his co-star and the cast included Alexis Georgoulis and Fey Kokkinopoulou. The play ran for a second season in a revised version ‘Ta Leme 2’ where Maximos Moumouris joined the cast.
In March 2003, the play moved to Thessaloniki and proved very successful.
In the summer of 2002 he participated in the Theatrical Monologues as part of the Cultural Olympiad with a performance of ‘The Ages of Laughter’, directed by Sotiris Hatzakis.
In the summer of 2000, he started filming ‘My Best Friend’ which he wrote and directed with George Lanthimos.The cast of ‘My Best Friend’ included Lakis Lazopoulos, Antonis Kafetzopoulos, Smaragda Karydis and Vera Krouska. The film was screened at the beginning of March 2001 with record ticket sales.
During the summer of 1999 he made his first feature film «Fovou tous Ellines» (Fear the Greeks) in Crete and Australia. This was the first Greek-Australian co-production, directed by John Tatoulis, with screenplay by Tom Galbraith. It was screened in January 2000 with great success.
At the Thessaloniki Cultural Capital of Europe Festivities in 1997 he presented the play «The Sunday of the Shoes” with scenery and costumes by Dionysis Fotopoulos and music by Thanos Mikroutsikos. The play moved to his own theatre ‘Ivi’ in Athens in 1998 with performances until May 1999 and represented a crucial landmark in his career.
In 1997, WALT DISNEY PRODUCTIONS asked him to take on a Greek adaptation of the animated film «Hercules», voicing for heroes Phil and Panic. ROY DISNEY honoured him with the prize for the better adaptation in Europe.
In October 1997 he participated in a major event for children with cancer in Madison Square Garden, Manhattan. He was acclaimed by 25,000 thousand diaspora Greeks together with George Dalaras, Eleftheria Arvanitakis and Vassilis Papakonstantinou.
On the 29th June 1996 he was the narrator of the dramatic poem «Enoch Arden» by Alfred Tennyson, at the Nauplion Festival. The Festival Art Director, John Vakarelis, played the piano.
The 1994 he appeared in the TV movie «The Girl with the Suitcases« (ANT1), directed by Nikos Nikolaidis.
He appeared as Guest Star in the film «Kavafis» by John Smaragdis.
In the summer of 1993 he played the role of Keith Mack in «The Threepenny Opera» directed by Jules Dassin at the Athenaeum Theatre with Kazakos, Zouni and Karabeti.
He then started to write for television as well as directing and himself performing over 15 different roles in the most successful Greek television series «Deka Mikroi Mitsoi « (Ten Little Jimmies). In the same year he appeared at the Athens Concert Hall, in alternating performances with Dimitris Horn, in Prokofiev’s «Peter and the Wolf» with the Camerata Orchestra directed by A. Murat.
In 1991 he wrote, directed and played in «I Have Something to Tell You» at the Veaki Theatre. He then toured Greece with the play «Epitelous Monoi» (Alone At Last). The same play was performed in 1994 at the New York City Center Hall (9.000 spectators).
He then staged 40 performances of ‘Alone at Last’ at the PALLAS cinema and then took it on tour throughout Greece achieving record ticket sales.
His main triumph came with the play «There Was This Small Boat» which he wrote and directed himself (1990), with costumes by Dionysis Fotopoulos and music by Thanos Mikroutsikos. The play ran for two years in the same theatre and was then aired on television (MEGA CHANNEL).
At the beginning of 1989, he directed the play “Hellas katopin Aortis” (Greece After the Event) at the Lambeti Theatre.
During 1988 he fulfilled national military service obligations in the Army.
In late 1988 he presented the play “Diary of a Madman” by Gogol, directed by Minos Volanakis, at the Poreia Theatre.
In the summer of 1987 he produced the play «What the Japanese guy saw’’ at Athenaeum Theatre, along with Anna Panagiotopoulou, under the direction of Andreas Voutsinas, with music by Stamatis Kraounakis.
He was arrested with Anna Panagiotopoulou and tried for gross disrespect of the office of the President of the Hellenic Republic.
He was cleared of all charges.
During the winter of 1986, he toured Greece presenting extracts from his own plays with huge success and record ticket sales.
In the summer of 1986, in a free translation of, «Lysistrata» by Aristophanes, he performed in all major theatres of Greece and in the Herod of Attica Theatre in Athens in the lead role. Directed by Andreas Voutsinas, with music and lyrics by Stamatis Kraounakis and Lina Nikolakopoulou, the play was a huge success and remains a landmark in Greek Theatre.
In 1984 he played in the film by John Smaragdis «Siga i Patrida Koimate» (Quiet, the Nation Sleeps).
In 1983, together with Pantelis Voulgaris, he wrote the TV series «Apomahi», (The Veterans).
He left the Free Theatre in 1982, and until 1986 wrote four satirical reviews with the author Yiannis Xanthoulis: «To PASOK tis Chaidos», (The Pasok of Heidi), «Tou PASOK tous to Chava», (Pasok revisited) «Mia sto Kastri kai mia sto Petalo» ( A Blow to the Head and a Blow to the Foot) and «Charatsi apo ton Andrea ton Apatsi» (A Scalping from Andreas the Apache). All four plays were also staged in Thessaloniki with unprecedented success.
In the summer of 1981 he performed with the Free Theatre (S. Fasoulis, A. Panayotopoulou), in the plays «Tis Ellados to Kagelo» (Greece in a Mess) at the Smaroula Theatre and «Allagi kai Pano Tourla» (Change for what it’s Worth) at the Vembo Theatre.
In 1980, apart from playwriting, he also acted with the Thessaly Theatre in the play “Hereta mou ton Platano”, (Here’s to You Too, Mate), jointly written with other playwriters.
While still at University, in 1979, he wrote his first script, «Kati Trehi sta Gyftika» (Much Ado About Nothing) which was presented at the Thessaly Theatre.
