Viktor Terziyski

Viktor Terziyski graduated from the Hristo Smirnenski Vocational High School in Rakitovo, specialising in Administrative Services. While still at school, he developed a keen interest in various forms of performing and musical arts. He attended folk dance and acting classes in Bobov Dol, studied bass guitar in Dupnitsa and took acting classes in Rakitovo. From 1979 to 1981, he was the lead vocalist and bass guitarist of the Minyor pop music band at the Prosveta-1903 Community Cultural Centre in Bobov Dol.

He graduated from the National Academy of Theatre and Film Arts “Krastyo Sarafov” (NATFA) in Sofia, specialising in Acting for Drama Theatre, in the class of Professor Anastas Mihaylov. He completed his studies in 1985 and received the Sarafov Award in recognition of his outstanding academic results, talent and artistic achievements. His graduation roles were Kutsar in Albena and Tartuffe in Tartuffe.

His professional career began at the Racho Stoyanov Drama Theatre in Gabrovo, where he worked from 1985 to 1988. His roles there included Moksi in Chimi by Boris Aprilov, the White Horse in Where Are You Going, Little Horse? by Rada Moskova, Karabas-Barabas in Pinocchio, based on the work by Carlo Collodi, and Ivan Garvanov in The Thessaloniki Conspirators by Georgi Danailov.

In 1988, he joined the acting company of the Musical Dramatic Theatre “Konstantin Kisimov” in Veliko Tarnovo. Apart from a brief interruption, his professional career has remained closely connected with the theatre ever since. His work spans dramatic productions, opera, operetta and musical theatre.

Performances at the Musical Dramatic Theatre “Konstantin Kisimov”:

• Kardan in The Deer Kingdom
• Stoyan in The Kingdom of Women
• Roman Lekapenos in Tsar Simeon
• Bobby in Between Two Chairs
• The Businessman in We, the Bulgarians
• Action in West Side Story
• Ronnie in The Murdering Window
• Williams in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
• The Student in When Roses Dance
• Everything Is Fine with You
• A Tale of Right and Wrong
• Pavel Kerekov in The Mother-in-Law
• The Bulgarian Inventor in The Third Bulgarian Kingdom and a Half
• Senebirski in Albena
• Andrey II and Theodore Komnenos in John, Son of Asen
• Drago in The Glory of the Asen Dynasty
• Bozhan in The Geraks
• Pavel in We Are Not Like Them
• Prodanov in Grasshoppers
• Djemal Bey in The Thessaloniki Conspirators

His roles in the theatre’s musical productions include:

• Marquis d’Aubigny in La Traviata
• Feri Bácsi and General Ronsdorf in various productions of The Csárdás Princess
• Paul in A Merry Weekend
• Calchas in La Belle Hélène
• Baltov, Bozdunganski and Kvasnikov in various productions of Office Seekers
• Baron Zeta in The Merry Widow
• Grandpa Liben in Bulgarians of Old Times
• Prince Populescu in Countess Maritza
• Frank in Die Fledermaus
• Zsupán in The Gypsy Baron
• Danko Garvanov in The Fortune-Teller
• Sabi in I Took You, Radke, I Took You
• Hadzhi Kosta in The Misunderstood Civilisation
• Emperor Joseph II in Amadeus
• The Wolf in Frosko, Bosko and Chiponosko
• Chorbadzhi Petko in The Four Twins

As a guest performer, he appeared as Baron Zeta in The Merry Widow, in a production by the Theatre Music Production Centre in Varna. At the Sofia Opera and Ballet, he performed in the opera Tsar Kaloyan, appearing in the interlude The Coronation as Cardinal Leo.

His artistic career also includes film and television appearances. He acted in The Neighbour, directed by Adela Peeva; the French production The Last Ruler of the Balkans, directed by Michel Favart; and the television series Stolen Life.

He has participated in numerous historical reenactments and documentary projects in Veliko Tarnovo dedicated to Bulgaria’s Independence, the Tarnovo Constitution, Patriarch Evtimiy and Ivaylo, as well as in the documentary film A Photograph 100 Years Later. He is also a member of the St. Ivan Rilski church choir, with which he has undertaken international tours.

Beyond the repertory theatre, he has performed in a number of independent productions, including Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune, The Butterfly Hunter, Retro, A Maiden Under Lock and Key, Anna Bijou, Marriage, The Bus and A Small World – Big Mischief, as well as productions by the Piero children’s theatre company.

Alongside his acting career, Viktor Terziyski has developed an active career as a director and theatre educator. For three seasons, he worked with the theatre company of the Napredak-Elena-1863 Community Cultural Centre in Elena, directing Balkan Syndrome, The Hunters’ Village and Intimate Therapy.

In 2016, he founded the Dionysius Art Workshop, where he trains children, young people and adults with an interest in theatre. His directing credits include Chiropractors, On the Splits, Bacillus Bulgaricus, The Hunters’ Village, The Dragon’s Wedding, Pygmalion, The Bus, Wedding Night, A Small World – Big Mischief, Dinner Without Clothes and The Minister’s Wife, as well as the children’s and youth productions Chimi, The Scarlet Flower and Clever Peter. He also works on educational and cultural projects organised by the Municipality of Veliko Tarnovo and the national programme “Together in the Arts and Sports”.

He has received numerous awards and distinctions since his school years, including the Sarafov Award from NATFA, special awards for theatre productions and honours at amateur theatre festivals.

In 2024, he was nominated for the national Icarus Award in the Best Supporting Actor category for his portrayal of Emperor Joseph II in Amadeus, a production of the Musical Dramatic Theatre “Konstantin Kisimov”.

Alongside theatre, Viktor Terziyski has turned one of his long-standing hobbies into a second profession: crafting traditional Bulgarian folk wind instruments. Over 35 years, he has made more than 1,000 kaval flutes, duduks, dvoyankas, tsafaras and frulas in a variety of keys. His instruments have reached musicians and Bulgarian folk music enthusiasts around the world.