Biography
Wolfgang Heinz (born David Hirsch) was an Austrian and East German actor and theatre director. He began his career without formal training, working in German theatres from 1917 and joining the Deutsches Theater in Berlin in 1918. His screen debut came in 1919, with an early film role as the first mate on the Empusa in F. W. Murnau’s Nosferatu (1922).
Heinz appeared in more than 300 stage roles and directed around 80 plays. He was particularly noted for portrayals of title characters including King Lear, Galileo, Wallenstein, Nathan the Wise and Professor Mamlock. In East Germany he held senior positions, including director of the Staatliche Schauspielschule Berlin and president of the Academy of the Arts in East Berlin (1968–1974). He was married to actress Erika Pelikowsky.
