In recognition of her inspired contribution to Israeli culture as a virtuoso stage and screen actress whose vivacious portrayal of a myriad of unforgettable characters has enthralled audiences for over five decades in its celebration of the human spirit; of her prodigious dramatic talent, which combines profound artistic sensitivity with rigorous performing skills; and of her singular role in breathing life into Yiddish theater as part of the cultural patrimony of the Jewish people and the State of Israel.
An acclaimed stage and screen actress, Lia Koenig’s extraordinary portrayal of significant and complex roles combines a supreme comic ability with a sensitive dramatic power, enriching Israeli culture for over 50 years.
She was born in Lodz, Poland, in 1929 to actors Joseph Kamien and Dinah Koenig. During World War II, the family fled to the Soviet Union, settling in Bucharest after the war. There, Lia studied at the National Academy of Arts. She began acting at age 17 with the Bucharest Yiddish State Theater, her talent quickly shining in notable roles such as Molière The Imaginary Invalid, Sholem Aleichem's Tevye the Dairyman, and Alexander Ostrovsky’s The Storm. Her title role in The Diary of Anne Frank in 1957 won her an award from the Romanian Ministry of Culture.
In 1950, she married Zvi Stolper (1922-1998), a renowned actor, poet, and playwright. The couple immigrated to Israel in 1961 and soon, thanks to her rare talent and firm determination, Lia launched a new career phase in her adopted language, as Eva in Bertolt Brecht’s Mr. Puntila and His Man Matti (1962) in Habima Theater. A leading role shortly ensued, playing Eve in Aaron Megged’s Genesis (1962), for which she was awarded the Joseph Klausner Prize.
Koenig’s charismatic and dramatic presence and highly skilled performance range, which can quickly shift from cabaret to earnest representation of a wide variety of characters, set her course to become the “first lady of Israeli theater”. Graced with warmth, humanity, and inexhaustible energy, Koenig has never been identified with a single character, although she was associated with roles of dominant elderly women from relatively early in her career. Over the years, she has appeared in more than a hundred plays in Habima and other theatres, including the title role in Brecht’s Mother Courage (1975); Naomi in Allen Ginsberg’s Kadish (1976); Tsirel Horowitz in A Simple Story, adapted from S.Y. Agnon’s novel (1979); Mirele and Mahlah in Jacob Gordin’s Mirele Efros (1987); Lyubov Andreyevna in Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard (1988); Leviva Popukh in Hanoch Levin’s The Labor of Life (1989); Claire Zachanassian in Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s The Visit of the Old Lady (1994); and “Woman A” in Edward Albee’s Three Tall Women (1997). In 1999, Hillel Mittelpunkt wrote The Tourist’s Guide to Warsaw especially for her, basing the leading character on her vital personality and dramatic capability.
Throughout her career, Koenig also performed in the Yiddish theater, in plays which her husband wrote and directed, among them, Stars with No Heaven, which Stolper dedicated to Yiddish writers. She continues with these performances in tribute to her parents, her husband, and the rich Yiddish culture.
Her achievements were recognized by various accolades, including the Israel Prize (1987), the Rosenblum Actor's Award (1997), the Theatre Lifetime Achievement Award (1998), honorary doctorates from Tel Aviv University (2008), Bar-Ilan University (2012), and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (2013) and the EMET Prize for Art and Culture (2012).