Zsolt Homonnay

One of Hungary's leading musical and operetta actors, Zsolt Homonnay owes his popularity to his exceptional singing voice and great sense of humor.

Born in 1971 in Kaposvár, Zsolt Homonnay studied at the University of Theatre and Film Arts, Department of Operetta and Musical Theatre, under the guidance of Miklós Szinetár. Even as a student, he played in several musicals and other performances.

In 1999, he landed the key role of Che Guevara in the hit musical Evita and played Jesus Christ in the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar. In 2000, Homonnay was invited to Berlin to play two roles in The Hunchback of Notre Dame: Quasimodo and Phoebus. He returned to Hungary in 2002 and now performs mostly in the Budapest Operetta Theatre.

In the nearly two decades since, he has played in a remarkable line-up of operetta masterpieces. He played leading roles in Csárdás Princess, The Kissing Lady, Countess Maritza, The Merry Widow, Victoria, My Little Brother and I, The Duchess of Chicago, A Night in Venice, Gypsy Love, Ball at the Savoy, The Yankee Princess, The Circus Princess, The Marriage Market, János Háry, and Baroness Lili. Most recently, he stars in The Magician of Orpheum, which premiered in November 2023.

At the same time, he has also sung in leading roles in Hungarian and world-famous musicals. He starred in hit productions such as The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, Romeo and Juliet, Beauty and the Beast, Miss Saigon, West Side Story, Elisabeth, Dorian Gray, Jesus Christ Superstar, Rudolf, Abigail, Evita, Jekyll & Hyde, and The Threepenny Opera. Between 2010 and 2020, he toured regularly with the Budapest Operetta Theatre with the German-language production of Disney’s popular musical, Beauty and the Beast. In addition to Hungarian and German, he has performed in English, Italian, and even a few scenes in Hebrew at the Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv.

In 2020, he graduated from the University of Arts Târgu-Mureş with a degree in theatre directing. The performance he graduated with is Gutenberg! The Musical! by Brown & King. Since then, he has directed six major operetta and musical galas, as well as Huszka’s Corporal Mária. In 2024, he will direct Wildhorn’s Carmen at the Budapest Operetta Theatre.

In addition to theatre, he has achieved remarkable success as a singer. He launched his singing career in 2005 when he founded the band Adagio with Péter Balczó and Sándor Nagy. Growing into a widely popular singers’ band, they racked up three platinum records and one gold. He released two albums with his former wife, actress Lilla Polyák.

Zsolt Homonnay’s musical sensitivity also guides his hand in writing and translating song lyrics. He wrote the lyrics of numerous Hungarian pop hits and adapted several foreign songs into Hungarian.

Starting with the academic year of 2021-2022, Homonnay has been serving as a faculty member at the University of Theatre and Film Arts. Since 2023 November, he has been working as the artistic director of the Budapest Operetta Theatre.

Awards

• Operetta Actor of the Season Prize, 2022
• Jászai Mari Prize, 2021
• Honthy Prize, 2018
• Best Musical Actor, 2012
• Male Leading Performer of the Year, 2000