Leka Kruta (1927-2011)
Actor of the Theater`s Estrada of Vlore. “Merited Artist”. Order “Naim Frashëri i Arë” / “Honorary Citizen” of Vlora One of the pioneers of Albanian humor and undoubtedly the legend of that Vlora.
He was born on September 19, 1927 in Vlore. He became active at a young age with the amateur theater movement of the city. He is one of the founding actors of Estrade in Vlore, in 1953, where he continued until he retired in 1985.
Also, Leka Kruta was a member of the city’s music band for 40 years during the period 1947-1995. The history of the Vlora Professional Variety Troupe is closely related to Kruta, who, along with other well-known actors such as Myqerrem Ferra, Qiriako Sava, etc., have created a whole gallery of characters and an extraordinary archive of themes. 
Leka Kruta’s artistic life began in 1944, when he, together with Gaq Vishin (director of Vlora’s Estrada, for many years), gave performances for the citizens in the “Ali Demi” cinema hall, during breaks of parts of the movie. He continued to play as an amateur actor in the city’s Estrada troupe and from 1955, when the professional troupe was created, he became a member of it. 
The actor has performed around 800 roles in 150 stage and theater premieres, mostly in short comedy pieces such as “skeces”, monologues, couplets, parodies, pantomimes and dialogues. Quite successful in the “skeces-pantones “Two painters (the first painter); “Where are you going, Mr. Hitler” (Hitler); “Don Quixote” (parodist); “Raj Kapoor”; “Take off your watch to save your hand”; “Washing machine technician” etc.
The delineation of many roles and characters was related to everyday life. The barber was another one of the best pantomimes, which he staged and which appeared more than 200 times in all the halls of Albania.
In the 70s of the last century, he also made the sketch “Zenepja”, when, together with Myqerrem Ferra and Agron Hamon, they became protagonists of some scenes that happened daily with those painters, who before doing the work “asked to eat and drink”, in those families where they went to perform a service.
The interpretation of the fascist dictator Hitler, or the Italian soldier, have been well received by art lovers, while together with Estrada’s troupe, he has toured in different cities of the country. In addition to his roles with Estrada’s troupe, Leka Kruta has performed in a number of feature films, where his personality is prominent (to mention the role of a ballist in the part “Weapons” in the first Albanian triptych “When it dawned a day”).
Leka Kruta stood out for his spontaneous, organic and explained humor, achieving a high rhythm on stage and a lively plastic with energy and full of temperament. His skills as a parodist and pantomimist are well known by the public of the time. He used a lot of comic details in re-drawing the role, he had an expressive gesticulation and a warm voice.
For his values in artistic creativity for more than 40 years, Leka Kruta has been awarded the title “Merited Artist”, while the President of the Republic, Bamir Topi, has awarded him the Order “Naim Frashëri i Artë”. Also, the municipal council of Vlora has given him the title “Citizen of Honor”.
He passed away at the age of 84 on March 21, 2011.
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Albanian cinematography in activity since 2013
Reference: “Encyclopedia, Theater and Albanian Cinematography” – Toena 2009 / Papagjoni, J / p. 247.
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