Lea Koenig (or Lia Koenig; Hebrew: ליא קניג; born Lea Kamien; 30 November 1929) is an Israeli actress,[1] nicknamed The First Lady of Israeli Theatre.[2]

Lea Koenig
Koenig circa 1999 or 2000
Born
Lea Kamien

(1929-11-30) 30 November 1929 (age 94)
NationalityIsraeli
Alma materBucharest National University of Arts
OccupationActress
Years active1948–present
SpouseZvi Hirshl Stolper

Biography

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Lea Koenig was born in 1929 in Łódź, Poland, to a secular Jewish family of Ashkenazi Jewish descent. Her parents were the Yiddish actors Dina and Józef Kamień.[1] She spent her childhood in Poland, then in Tashkent, in the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic. Her father was murdered in the Holocaust. In the end of the 1940s, Lea Koenig with her mother emigrated to Romania, where she began studying at National University of Arts in Bucharest and debuted at Jewish Theatre.[3] In 1961, she emigrated to Israel.

Primarily acting in Hebrew, Koenig performs in Israel and all over the world also in Yiddish theaters.[4] She speaks English, Hebrew, German, Polish, Romanian, Russian and Yiddish.

Awards and honors

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Official website; Parents (hebrew) Archived 2011-07-13 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Shalom - “I.B. SINGER’S WARSAW” OF WARSAW JEWISH CULTURAL FESTIVAL Archived 2012-03-15 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ Biography in hebrew Archived 2011-07-13 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Biography Archived 2011-07-13 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ "Israel Prize Official Site - Recipients in 1987 (in Hebrew)". Retrieved 2009-07-03.