The two had very devoted fans, and during the National Schism, their rivalry acquired political overtones also: whilst Cybele was favoured by the Venizelists, Kotopouli became a symbol of the royalist camp.

In 1912 Kotopouli also had a personal love relationship with Ion Dragoumis, who became a major opponent of the Venizelists and was eventually assassinated.

Later, with Spyros Melas and Dimitris Myrat, she co-founded and participated in the "Free Scene" (Ελεύθερη Σκηνή, June 1929 to spring 1930), before embarking on a tour of the United States.

In 1933, she played in her only movie, the Greek-Turkish production Bad Road, based on a novel by Grigorios Xenopoulos.

Her repertoire included many classic plays, both ancient Greek and modern ones, ranging from Aeschylus to Goethe and Ibsen.