Zuzanna Szadkowski Biography

Zuzanna Szadkowski (born October 22, 1978) is a Polish American actress, best known for her performance as Dorota Kishlovsky in the CW series Gossip Girl. Szadkowski also appeared on The Sopranos, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and Guiding Light. She made her New York Stage debut in Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron's Love, Loss, and What I Wore in which she appeared in a record-breaking five all-star casts.

Szadkowski attended Barnard College in New York City and went on to earn an MFA in acting from The A.R.T. Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University/MXAT. She has worked in theater in New York City, regionally (directors Robert Woodruff, Sam Weisman, Marcus Stern), and in Warsaw and Moscow.

Early and personal life

Zuzanna Szadkowski was born on October 22, 1978, in Warsaw, Poland, and moved to the United States when she was only three. About her national identity and Polish accent she displays in Gossip Girl, she said, "I was born in Poland, so I am able to identify with her that way. The accent is modeled after people in my own family, so hopefully I am doing it justice". Szadkowski and her family moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana, where she graduated from the R. Nelson Snider High School in 1997. She attended Barnard College of Columbia University, and went on to earn a Master of Fine Arts in acting from the Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University.

Szadkowski currently resides in Downtown Brooklyn. In 2010, she partnered with Sam Weisman to open an acting school, the Sam Weisman Studio, in New York City.

Career

Szadkowski made her acting debut in 2006, portraying two characters in Law & Order: Criminal Intent season 5 episode "Watch". She would reprise these roles in the season 7 episode "Lonelyville". In 2007, Szadkowski appeared in two episodes of The Sopranos, "Soprano Home Movies" and "Kennedy and Heidi". The same year, she was cast as Dorota Kishlovsky, the Polish maid of Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester), in the CW series Gossip Girl. In 2009, the CW produced the Gossip Girl six"episode spin"off Chasing Dorota.

In 2009, Szadkowski had a small role in independent film Where Is Joel Baum?. She also appeared in three episodes of television series Guiding Light. In 2011, Szadkowski acted in short film The Pilot Season Survival Guide. She is currently working on a new film, Legacy, which will be released in 2012.

Filmography

Title	Year	Role	Notes
Law & Order: Criminal Intent	2006-07	Olga / Trina	(TV Series) 2006"07; 2 episodes
The Sopranos	2007	Elzbieta	(TV Series) 2 episodes
Gossip Girl	2007	Dorota Kishlovsky	(TV Series) 2007"2012; 52 episodes
Where Is Joel Baum?	2009	Polish Cleaning Lady
Chasing Dorota	2009	Dorota Kishlovsky	(TV Series) 6 episodes
Guiding Light	2009	Sister Angelica	(TV Series) 3 episodes
The Pilot Season Survival Guide	2011	Martha	(Short Film)
Tower Heist	2011	Polish Maid	Uncredited (deleted scene)
Legacy	2012	Joyce	(Pre"production)