Ophelia Shtruhl

Ophelia Shtruhl was born in 1940 in Fălticeni

Ophelia Shtruhl was born on September 7, 1940, in Fălticeni, in western Moldavia. Her birth name was Ophelia Strul.

At 15 she began acting at the State Jewish Theater in Bucharest. Her roles there included the mute daughter in Mother Courage and Her Children, and she also acted in films. After about 30 roles, she immigrated to Israel in 1964.

In Israel she appeared at Habima, Tzavta and other theaters, and staged one-woman shows, including Yiddish works and Brecht material. In 1971 she played the lead in The Angel Was Satan, the first Israeli horror film. In 1978 she played Stella in Eskimo Limon, a role that won her the Kinor David award for 1979.

She said the Stella role hurt her acting career, though she did not regret it. She later appeared in The Magician of Lublin and in the 1997 TV series Shemesh, and she led the Shulayim Theater troupe. In 2006 she performed a solo show about her childhood and roles. She died on April 4, 2022.