Umberto Orsini

Umberto Orsini is an Italian actor who made his name in the theater, performing with Luchino Visconti's company before reaching wider audiences through RAI television dramas. Born in Novara in 1934, he trained at Rome's Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico and began his professional stage work with Milan's Compagnia dei Giovani. He earned critical praise as Nick in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, acted with Gabriele Lavia at the Teatro Eliseo, and was that theater's artistic director from 1980 to 1997. On screen, after a minor part in Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita and his film debut in Love in Rome, he broke through in Visconti's The Damned (1969), winning the Nastro d'Argento for best supporting actor. He later appeared in Visconti's Ludwig (1973) and French films including Emmanuelle 2, and was nominated for a David di Donatello for The Early Bird Catches the Worm (2008).