This modern building, boasting an impressive architectural design is a short distance from the Attikon multi-purpose hall with an entrance on Andreas Geroudis Street.
It was built on the ruins of the old Pafos Markideion theatre, demolished in view of the renovation and upgrading of the space.
The new Municipality Theatre with a capacity of 410 was inaugurated in 2018 by President Anastasiades and named “Markideion Municipal Theatre”, honouring its history.
It is spacious and functional, with modern equipment and areas responding to the needs of both the audience and those involved in the performances, providing a unique theatrical experience.
The theatre owes its name to Sotirakis Markides, an emblematic Pafos figure, who played a significant role in the cultural and socio-political life of the city.
The son of a wealthy family, he was born at Ktima in November 1894 and died in his hometown in 1975.
Intensely politicized, Markides was an ardent follower of Venizelos and a supporter of the Union of Cyprus with Greece, Enosis. He studied law and was one of the first Pafians to graduate from the University of Athens.
In 1912, when the 1st Balkan war broke out, he temporarily interrupted his studies to voluntarily enlist in the Greek army. Returning to his birthplace, he featured strongly in the city’s socio-political events and made a decisive contribution to the development of Cypriot theatre.
In 1918, along with his brother Costas Markides, they founded the “Youth Dance Group”, the first artistic group of Pafos, presenting the first “Pafitiki Epitheorisi” (a satirical performance) that same year.
It was such a massive success that it toured all over Cyprus. Its popularity led to major financial returns, allocated to support the Pafos Gymnasium.
Sotirakis and Kostas Markides along with a group of amateur actors, also presented other “Pafian Satires”, a milestone in local theatre history.
Today, thanks to Pafian philologist and intellectual George Hadjicosti who collected the material of Sotirakis Markides, his letters from the Balkan wars are published in a book, while his Cypriot press articles are hosted in two volumes, entitled “Sotirakis Markides, The Synagogue of Texts” (Nicosia 2014 and 2017).
Contact information:
Address: 18 Andrea Geroudi, P.K. 8010 Pafos
Phone: +357 26222286
email: info@thoc.org.cy
