"Dark Odyssey" starred Athan KarrasAthan Karras, iconic Greek dancer of the silver screen almost single-handedly responsible for bringing Greek folk dance to the American public, has passed on. We remember his warm, benevolent nature as much as his accomplishments in Greek and other ethnic dance and music.

Mr. Karras danced with the Parthenon Dancers, one of Greece's leading folk dance troops, which broke new ground for folk dance in North America. He went on to perform repeatedly on Broadway, television, and in Hollywood films. His starring role in the classic Dark Odyssey, one of the first Greek-American films, achieved accolades that followed him for a lifetime.

Karras was equally celebrated for his dance instruction. He taught Greek dance and culture at Loyola Marymount University, produced several major Greek Festivals at UC Berkeley and UCLA, and created various ethnic folkloric programs for the Southern California Heritage Society.

In the 1960s, which Karras had described as a time when people were yearning for roots and meaning, he opened the Intersection Folk Dance Center in Los Angeles. Quickly becoming a legendary epicenter of folk cultures and Greek music and dance, The Intersection hosted such celebrities as Telly Savalas, Omar Sharif, Marlon Brando, and Ginger Rogers.

Among other accomplishments, Mr. Karras was active with the Dora Stratou Greek Dance Theatre and Foundation, and served as an advisor and director of the California Traditional Musical Society, which honored him with the Lifetime Achievement Award. He founded and served as Director of Laografia International Greek Folklore Society, and was a lifetime member of The Hellenic University Club of Southern California, which honored him for his production of Nikos Kazantzakis' Kapetan Mihalis. He was on the Board of Directors of Anthony Shay's AMAN Folk Ensemble of Los Angeles, and was the 2001 recipient of the Athenagoras I Humanitarian Award.

Mr. Karras authored innumerable articles on Greek dance and music for major ethnic and national publications, including The Hellenic Journal, and created an array of music CDs and instructional dance videos and DVDs. His philosophy on folk dance was one based on camaraderie. To him, dance encourages imaginative and emotional expression, and creates an intersection among peoples.

When the Thessaloniki, Greece native adopted Los Angeles as his home, Athan Karras forever changed the face of folk dance and music. We in Los Angeles were fortunate to have him with us for as long as we did. His work paved new inroads into the dance and performance arts arena, opening up opportunities for which we give thanks. Though Athan Karras is deeply missed, his bright spirit still dances among us. Opa!

Mischa Geracoulis is an LA-based writer and Associate Editor of the Levantine Review.