Hana Laszlo (‘Laslo’) is one of Israel’s most treasured actors and comedians who, in 2005, won the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival for her performance in Amos Gitai’s Free Zone. Laszlo, the child of Holocaust survivor parents, was born and raised in Jaffa. She spent her time in the IDF with the Southern Command Troupe (‘lehakat pikud darom.’) After completing her military service, she began landing a host of TV roles in several classic Israeli children’s programmes including Meathead (‘Rosh Kruv’), and No Way (‘Ma Pitom?’)
In 1981, Laszlo starred in the hit variety show, Guys and Dolls, directed by Tzedi (Zadok) Zarfati, where she met the man who would go on to become her first husband, producer Aviv Giladi. In 1985, she became a household name thanks to a series regular role in the hit comedy sketch show, Reason to Party (‘siba limsiba’), where she created the iconic character of ‘Granny Backhander’ (‘savta zapta’), and performed (in character) one of her all-time greatest hits, ‘Maryuma Yuma,’ on which she duetted with Middle Eastern pop star Jacky Mekaiten.
At the end of the eighties, Laszlo starred in two highly-acclaimed one-woman shows, Sex, Lies and Hana Laszlo, and Life According to Laszlo – both now widely considered to have had a huge impact on smashing through the glass ceiling for Israeli female comedians. In 2005, her one woman show, More Hana Laszlo, earned her an Israeli Theatre Award for Best Entertainment Act.
In 2004, Laszlo joined the cast of the cult classic telenovela, Our Song (‘ha-shir shelanu’), in the role of Naomi Shachar – the overbearing stage mother of young starlet Noa (Efrat Baumwald [‘Boimold’ – sic]) – which she played during the programme’s first three series. Between 2006-2011, she starred in all six series of the Israeli iteration of Golden Girls, playing the Blanche Deveraux character, originated by Rue McClanahan. In 2016, Laszlo played innkeeper Madame Thénardier in the Habima National Theatre’s production of Les Miserables, directed by Moshe Kepten. Next, she starred in both series of the critically acclaimed Nevsu (2017-2021) which, in 2018, won an International Emmy Award for Best Comedy Series.
Highlights of her film credits include Halfon Hill Doesn’t Answer (Assi Dayan, 1976), Save the Lifeguard (Uri Zohar, 1977), Millionaire in Trouble (Joel Silberg, 1978), Belfer (Igal [‘Yigal’] Bursztyn, 1978), Kuni Lemel in Cairo (Joel Silberg, 1983), Alila (Amos Gitai, 2003), Shiva (aka The Seven Days) (Ronit Elkabetz and Shlomi Elkabetz, 2008), and Madame Yankelova’s Fine Literature Club (Guilhad Emilio Schenker, 2017).
Highlights of her television acting and hosting credits include The Weakest Link, Once in a Lifetime, Schultz, Danny Hollywood, Chill, Rinat’s Beach, Shakshuka (‘shakshouka’), Mossad 101 (aka ‘HaMidrasha’), and Sad City Girls.
Highlights of her stage credits include Haifa Theatre’s production of Guys and Dolls, the Yiddishpiel Theatre’s Raisins and Almonds (‘Rozhinkes mit Mandelen’) and Oedipus Schmoedipus, Habima National Theatre’s The State Comptroller (aka ‘The State Controller’ – sic) and Fleischer, and Gesher Theatre’s Yakish and Puptche and Tartuffe.
