Film and televisionליא קניג

Lia Koenig

Lia Koenig is an Israeli stage and film actress, often called the First Lady of Israeli Theatre, who received the Israel Prize in 1987.

born 1929Lead roles at HabimaYiddish theater performancesIsrael Prize for theater

Born: 30 November 1929, Łódź
Occupation: stage actor, film actor, actor

Lia Koenig was born in 1929 in Łódź

Koenig was born Lea Kamien on 30 November 1929 in Łódź, Poland, to the Yiddish actors Dina Koenig and Oskar Józef Kamien. During the Holocaust she and her mother fled to Soviet Uzbekistan. Her father stayed with his troupe in Poland and died in 1942.

After the war the family settled in Romania. Against her mother's wishes, she studied acting at the arts academy in Bucharest and performed at the city's Jewish Theatre, including the role of Anne Frank.

In 1961 she moved to Israel with her husband, actor and director Zvi Stolper. She learned Hebrew at an ulpan, joined Habima, and first appeared on the Hebrew stage in 1962. She went on to play many lead roles, including Mother Courage and Claire Zachanassian.

She also acted in films such as Katz and Carasso and in television series, and kept performing in Yiddish. She was married to Stolper until his death in 1998. She lives in Givatayim and speaks 7 languages.