Juraj Kukura

Juraj Kukura (born 15 March 1947, in Prešov) is a Slovak actor. Kukura studied acting at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava (VŠMU). In 1985, when he emigrated to West Germany, his films were banned in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic until Communist rule ended during the Velvet Revolution of 1989. Thanks to his charismatic personality he usually portrayed strong, leading characters. In 2004, he received DOSKY Award for performing Martin in The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? by Edward Albee. In 2003 he became managing director of Arena Theatre. In October 2017, Kukura was awarded the Medal of Merit by the Czech president Miloš Zeman. In 2020 he won a Crystal Wing Awards in the 'Theater and Audiovisual Arts' category. In January 2025, Kukura was awarded Pribina Cross, 1st class for extraordinary contributions to development of culture in Slovakia by the president of Slovakia Peter Pellegrini. Kukura has two children. His son Philipp Kukura is a professor of chemistry at the University of Oxford.