You are not here (The Crete Trilogy, #3)

Pol (Polychronis) Koutsakis was born in 1974, in Chania, Crete, Greece. For his full-length play “The rotation system” he won the National Award for best Greek play in 2007 and for his play “When he was happy” he won the National Award for second best Greek play in 2005 by the Greek Ministry of Culture. Τhe three annual awards by the Greek Ministry of Culture are the highest distinction for a play in Greece, and Pol became in 2005 the youngest playwright to ever receive one of the three prizes. His full-length play “Without You” was staged in May 2008 in Athens, by the “Amore” theatre (the most reputable theatre in Greece after the National Theatre). For the same play, Pol was awarded, in November 2007, the second prize in the annual international play competition “Plays for the 21st century”, sponsored by the Playwrights Theater, in Dallas, Texas. For the same play he was also named Octoberʼs 2005 “ONE TO WATCH” writer, by the Stage Right Theatre Company, based in Liverpool, UK, who characterized the play as “an extremely assured and skillful piece of work, which has echoes of both Pinter and Mamet”. Stage Right Theatre Company also presented Polʼs monologue “The bet” and two of his poems in a dramatized form, in the “Theatre in the Rough” festival in Southport, Merseyside, England, in February 2006. His one-act play “Bogey” was presented in 2003 in the UK by the Rowntree Players theatre group. Three of these performances took place in theatre festivals (one of them the All England Drama Festival) and Martyn Hunter, the actor playing the part of “Bogey” won the best actor award in all of them (in the All England Drama Festival he shared the award with actor Graham Smith, playing the other part in the play). His one-act play “Naughty Cats” was staged in August 2007 in the Strawberry One-Act Festival in New York. His one-act play “By the Pool” had its premiere in the same festival in July 2008. He is also the author of the play “Cretiis”, which premiered in Chania, Greece in 2001 as a co-production of the Municipal and Regional Theatre of Crete and the Municipality of Chania. Pol is the author of 14 books:  A time for heroes (novel, Patakis Editions, Greece, October 2013).  When he was happy (novel, Patakis Editions, Greece, March 2013, currently in its 3rd edition).  For all time (play, published in the three-play collection Grist for the mill, One Act Play Depot Editions, Canada, 2012).  Sacred Way Blues (novel, Patakis Editions, Greece, November 2010).  Jack (play, published in the three-play collection Left Cold, One Act Play Depot Editions, Canada, 2010).  The one that got away (novel, Minoas Editions, Greece, September 2007)  Ripvan (play, One Act Play Depot Editions, Canada, 2007).  Time Acrobats (novel, Minoas Editions, Greece, 2005, 2nd print 2005)  Naughty Cats (play, published in the three-play collection Ah, here comes Godot now, One Act Play Depot Editions, Canada, 2005).  Only One (play, One Act Play Depot Editions, Canada, 2004).  Bogey (play, One Act Play Depot Editions, Canada, 2002).  Not this time, baby (novel, Enalios Editions, Greece, 2000, 2nd print 2001).  The myth-maker (poems, Gavriilidis Editions, Greece, 2000).  To burn a flag (novel, Modern Times Editions, Greece, 1998). His novel Time Acrobats, was characterized as “an explosive, eternal love story” and as the “masterpiece of the year” by critics in Greece. Four of his poems were included in the Anthology of the Greek Poetic Generation of the 90ʼs titled: “The geometry of an unseen generation”, Mandragoras Editions, Greece, 2003. Four other poems of his were included in the “Anthology of Cretan Poetry 1950-2007”, Taksideftis Editions, Greece, 2007, and three more poems were published in the LA-based online literary magazine “Stellaʼs Literary Bistro”. His story “The bet”won the 3rd prize in the 2010 flash fiction contest of the same magazine. His web site, containing the latest information on his work, is www.polychronis.com