A piezo actuator has a stack element and at least one further stack element, wherein each of the stack elements has stacked piezoceramic layers and electrode layers arranged between the piezoceramic layers, each of the electrode layers extends to at least one of at least two lateral surface sections of the stack element which have external metallizations on them, and are connected to the electrode layers such that adjacently stacked electrode layers can have different electrical potentials applied to them indirectly via the external metallizations, the stack elements are arranged above one another to form a monolithic total stack, and connected to one another by at least one connecting layer. The following steps are provided: a) provision of the total stack and b) production of a load-relieving crack in the connecting layer. An electrical connector in the form of a wire can be fitted on the relevant external metallization regions.