During an interview on a Queens radio show, while promoting his theater play With Over Two Pieces of Luggage, Alex Malaos stated: “Greek community theater is a blessing in disguise. Sure, I didn’t come all the way from Cyprus to do Greek shows. But on my way to pursuing the dream towards bigger and better, Greek theater gave me the opportunity to hone my craft, it allowed me to keep on being creative, to experiment, to try different things, new things! They say that when you strive towards a goal, you should be able to let loose and relax every now and then, learn to let go for the sake of recharging, and redirect your energy towards some leisure time. My leisure time was sports and Greek theater. And I was dedicated to my leisure time because it fulfilled me.”
Alex became known within New York’s Greek community theater scene, with a string of traditional Cypriot, ancient Greek, contemporary plays, children’s theater and his own original works. From Aristophanes’ The Frogs and Lysistrata, to more contemporary classics like A Cuckoo Family, to the children’s mythological swashbuckling tale of Ulysses Sinbad, and to the successful and extended run of his autobiographical piece With Over Two Pieces of Luggage.
Alex was also responsible for the revival of the traditional Greek theater art form of Shadow Theater known as Karagiozis, which is Greek shadow puppets, an art of entertainment dating back hundreds of years. As master puppeteer, he took the puppet act to Greek schools, churches, parks and international art and cultural festivals in the tri-state area. The goal was to entertain adults with a nostalgic touch, breathing life into very familiar and memorable characters, and to entertain young children by taking traditional stories and modernizing them with contemporary and pop-culture references. Through this began the evolution of Karagiozis and, consequently, of culture and education, as the younger audiences learned to appreciate an art form which was enjoyed by their great grandparents many years ago.