Profile

Petros Zavrakas is the Executive Director of the festival and, since 2012, the longest-standing member of the Berlin-based Greek theater group ithAKT. As an actor he has been on stage across more than a decade of the ensemble’s work – from its debut Migronauten (2012) to the twenty-five-strong Antigone – A ski tragedy (2025). Beyond ithAKT, he has performed in further productions, including the youth theater project Unser Lied: Die Aufführung and Ja, aber…, and has occasionally supported various productions behind the scenes with graphics and online promotion. He is also a co-founder of the organisation artakti e.V.

As a disabled artist, Petros uses his artistic practice to bring disability into focus and to advocate for the rights of disabled people to inclusion and accessibility – not only in everyday social life, but also in the theater itself, for audiences and disabled performers alike. Making performances accessible is a central concern of his work, and one he pursues hands-on. This commitment is reflected in Ja, aber… (directed by Elena Sokratous, Berlin 2023), a performance by, with and for disabled and non-disabled people, which he helped shape not only as a performer but as a co-creator.

Away from the stage, Petros is a software engineer who leads development teams, and he brings that same instinct for structure, mentoring, and calm coordination to running the festival. As Executive Director he holds the whole operation together: aligning artists and partners, keeping productions on track, and turning a shared creative vision into a festival that actually happens.