Biografia
Samuel Itzhak Finzi, born on January 20, 1966, in Plovdiv, graduated in acting from the National Academy for Theatre and Film Art in Sofia, Bulgaria, under Professor Dimitrina Gyurova in 1992. He further specialized at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute in New York in 1994. Finzi made his debut as Leopold in "Tutor" by B. Brecht and Y. Lenz at the Bulgarian Army Theatre in 1989. Since then, he has lived and worked in Germany.
Between 1989 and 2003, he performed at venues such as Hebbel Theater Berlin, Schauspielhaus Düsseldorf, Schauspielhaus Cologne, and Thalia Theater Hamburg. From 2003 to 2006, he appeared at the Volksbühne Berlin, and in 2006, at the Deutsches Theater. His roles include Cosimo and others in "Hermafroditus" directed by Ivan Stanev; a collage of characters in "Performance and Punishment" by Ivan Stanev; Author and Kalfa in "Leons and Lena" and "Woyzeck" by G. Büchner; Treplyov, multiple characters, and Bortzov in "The Seagull," "Swan Songs," and "The Big Time" by Chekhov; Herria in "Caligula" by A. Camus; Man in "One Month Dachau" by Sorokin; Firs and Charlotte in "The Cherry Orchard" by A. Chekhov; Cortes in "Personal Corner" by Yang; Rosenstock in "Wide Side" by A. Schnitzler; a collage of characters in "Germany 3" by H. Müller; several roles in "Powder Keg" by D. Dukovski; Ivanov in "Ivanov" by Chekhov; Alburi and others in "Battle of the Negro and Dogs" by Koltès; Platonov in "Platonov" by Chekhov; Messenger and Xerxes in "The Persians" by Aeschylus; and Volpone in "Volpone" by B. Jonson, among others.
Finzi has also appeared in Bulgarian and German films and on the pop music stage. He is a recipient of national German awards. Known as Sancho among friends, he is a prominent figure in the German theater scene, starring in numerous feature films including "The Camp" directed by Georgi Djulgerov, "Pieces of Love" by Ivan Tscherkelov, and the Oscar-nominated Austrian film "Testament." He is beloved by German audiences for his memorable performances in works by renowned playwrights.
Finzi collaborated extensively with Dimitar Gochev, a celebrated European theater director. In 2015, he was named Best Actor in Germany following a poll by the magazine "Theater heute," voted on by 42 critics and journalists. Many recognized him as a favorite of the German-speaking theater world for his portrayal of Vladimir in Beckett's "Waiting for Godot," directed by fellow Bulgarian Ivan Panteleev, performed at Berlin’s Deutsches Theater.
Samuel Finzi is married to Sorrel Athina Jardine, and they have one child.
