Aleksander Moisiu (April 2, 1879–March 22, 1935) (aka Alexander Moissi) was a famous Albanian stage actor. He was born in Durrës on the central Adriatic coast of Albania. His father was Albanian and his mother Arbëresh, an Albanian speaker from southern Italy. April 2 is the 92nd day of the year (93rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 273 days remaining. ... 1879 (MDCCCLXXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... March 22 is the 81st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (82nd in leap years). ... 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... AKA is an initialism for Also Known As. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Durrës (Italian: Durazzo; see also different names) is the most ancient and one of the most economically important important cities of Albania. ... The Adriatic Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea separating the Apennine peninsula (Italy) from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges. ... Arbëreshë are an Albanian-speaking community living in southern Italy. ...

Early Years

After an international childhood in Durrës, Trieste and Graz, twenty-year-old Aleksander finally settled with his mother and two sisters in Vienna. It was there, with the encouragement and support of Austrian actor Josef Kainz (1858-1910), that Moisiu's career as one of great European stage actors of the early twentieth century began. The following years took him to Prague and then to Berlin, where he became a protégé of the influential director Max Reinhardt (1873-1943). Country Italy Region Friuli-Venezia Giulia Province Trieste (TS) Mayor Roberto Dipiazza (since 2001) Elevation 2 m Area 84 km² Population  - Total (as of December 31, 2004) 207,069  - Density 2,480/km² Time zone CET, UTC+1 Coordinates Gentilic Triestini Dialing code 040 Postal code 34100 Frazioni See list... The Grazer Schloßberg Clock Tower Graz [graːts] (Slovenian: Gradec IPA: /gra. ... Inhabitants according to official census figures: 1800 to 2005 Vienna in 1858 Vienna (German: Wien ) is the capital of Austria, and also one of the nine States of Austria. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Berlin is the capital city and one of the sixteen states of the Federal Republic of Germany. ... There are two Max Reinhardts: Max Reinhardt (theatre director) Max Reinhardt (publisher) This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ...

Moisiu followed the Reinhardt Ensemble to Russia in 1911 and was acclaimed in St. Petersburg by critic and dramatist Anatoliy Lunacharsky (1875-1933) for his interpretation of Œdipus. Travelling all over Europe and the Americas, his most famous rôle was Fedya in Tolstoy's Buried Alive (or The Living Corpse) - performed 1400 times by him and seen by more than one and a half million people. Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and... Coat of arms of Count Leo Tolstoy This article is about the Tolstoy family; for the famous novelist, see Leo Tolstoy. ...

Work

His repertoire of leading roles encompassed the whole spectrum of European dramaturgy, from Greek tragedy to twentieth century modernism. He was the first in Europe to interpret characters from Strindberg, Tolstoy, Chekhov, Pirandello, and Hofmannsthal. August Strindberg, photographic selfportrait Johan August Strindberg (Stockholm, January 22, 1849 - Stockholm, May 14, 1912) was a writer and playwright of Sweden. ... Coat of arms of Count Leo Tolstoy This article is about the Tolstoy family; for the famous novelist, see Leo Tolstoy. ... Anton Chekhov, Russian writer Pavel Chekov, character in Star Trek Chekhov, town in Moscow Oblast, Russia Chekhov, town in Sakhalin Oblast, Russia Chekhovo, health resort in Bashkiria, Russia This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Luigi Pirandello (June 28, 1867 – December 10, 1936) was an Italian dramatist and novelist, awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1934. ... Hugo von Hofmannsthal (February 1, 1874 - July 15, 1929), was an Austrian novelist, librettist, poet, dramatist, narrator, and essayist. ...

His interpretations in the leading roles of Hamlet, Œdipus, Faust, Dubedat (in George Bernard Shaw's The Doctor's Dilemma), and many others, were celebrated at the time, as were his voice and emotional range. Though primarily a stage actor, Moisiu also appeared in ten film productions from 1910 to 1935, of which seven were silent. The third quarto of Hamlet (1605); a straight reprint of the 2nd quarto (1604) The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is a tragedy by William Shakespeare and is one of his best-known and most-quoted plays. ... Faust (Latin Faustus) is the protagonist of a popular German tale of a pact with the Devil, assumed to be based on the figure of the German magician and alchemist Dr. Johann Georg Faust (approximately 1480–1540). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Death

Given an Albanian passport at his own request in 1934, Aleksander Moisiu died on March 22, 1935 and lies buried at the Morcote cemetery overlooking Lake Lugano in Switzerland. In his honour, the High College of Drama in Tirana, and the Professional Theatre of Durrës, Albania, are named "Aleksander Moisiu." The 60th anniversary of his death was remembered in Albania in 1995 with an "Artistic Year" dedicated to him; it was sponsored by the Aleksander Moisiu Foundation in Durrës. Lago di Lugano Lake Lugano (Italian Lago di Lugano or Ceresio) is a lake in the south-east of Switzerland, at the border between Switzerland and Italy. ...

Grave of Moissi on the cemetry of Morcote

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Quotes

"The voice and gestures of Moissi presented us with something hitherto unseen on the European stage." - Franz Kafka Kafka at the age of five Franz Kafka (IPA: ) (July 3, 1883 – June 3, 1924) was one of the major German-language novelists and short story writers of the 20th century, whose unique body of writing — much of it incomplete, and published posthumously despite his wish that it be destroyed...

"Hamlet is written for Moissi, and Moissi was uniquely born to interpret the Prince of Denmark." - Max Brod Max Brod Max Brod (May 27, 1884 – December 20, 1968) was a German-speaking Jewish author, composer, and journalist. ...

"I salute Alexander Moissi to whom I am forever grateful, as one of the most brilliant interpreters of my characters." - Luigi Pirandello Luigi Pirandello (June 28, 1867 – December 10, 1936) was an Italian dramatist, novelist, and short story writer awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1934. ...

"Man of the South, always Man of the South. In order not to be frozen he takes the sun of his country whenever he goes. Whenever you are with him you'll learn something new about life in this world." - Stefan Zweig Stefan Zweig (November 28, 1881 – February 22, 1942) was an Austrian writer. ...

External links

• Photos
• Spirit of Albania biography