Ute Lemper

Ute Lemper has made a significant impact in theater, film, concert performances, and as a recording artist with over 30 albums across a 30-year career. She is widely recognized for her interpretations of Berlin Cabaret Songs, the works of Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht, and the chansons of Marlene Dietrich, Édith Piaf, and others. She gained international recognition for her portrayal of Sally Bowles in Paris, Lola Lola in *The Blue Angel* (1930) in a Berlin production directed by Peter Zadek, and Velma Kelly on Broadway and in London's West End. Her career began with a role in *Cats* in Vienna, followed by a performance as Peter Pan in Berlin, before appearing in plays by Rainer Werner Fassbinder and Jérôme Savary in Stuttgart. In Paris, she received the prestigious Molière Award, in London the Laurence Olivier Award, and in the U.S., the Theatre World Award for her stage performances.

Fluent in German, French, and English, Lemper has toured globally with her one-woman shows, including *The Bukowski Project*, *The 9 Secrets*, and *Rendezvous with Marlene*. Her Grammy-nominated album *Paris Days/Berlin Nights*, released in 2012, was a major success. Maurice Béjart created a ballet specifically for her, and Michael Nyman composed a song cycle for her to record. Born in Münster, Germany, she studied at the Max Reinhardt Seminary Drama School in Vienna and completed dance training in Cologne. She first gained fame in Germany through the television series *Das Erbe der Guldenburgs* (1987), a German adaptation of American soap operas such as *Dynasty* and *Dallas*, where she played Peggy Brinkley, a rock singer in love with Alexander von Guldenburg (Jochen Horst).

Her first major film role was in *L'Autrichienne* (1990), directed by Pierre Granier-Deferre. Though not a commercial success at the time, the film later developed a cult following, with Lemper's performance receiving particular praise. She also appeared as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in *Not Mozart: Letters, Riddles and Writs* (1991), as Ceres in *Prospero's Books* (1991), and as a model in *Jean Galmot, aventurier* (1990). Robert Altman cast her in a small but notable role in *Ready to Wear* (1994), during which she was nine months pregnant with her first child. She later appeared in *Smoke Wrings* (1996) alongside Daniel Craig and in *Bogus* (1996) with Whoopi Goldberg and Gérard Depardieu, directed by Norman Jewison. In Germany, she provided the singing voices for Ariel in *The Little Mermaid* (1989) and Esmeralda in *The Hunchback of Notre Dame* (1996). She gradually shifted focus away from film, delivering notable performances in lesser-known films such as *Wild Games* (1997) and *Aurélien* (2003) before semi-retiring from the medium.

Lemper now dedicates herself full-time to music, songwriting, and stage performance. She married Todd Turkisher in 2011 and is the mother of four children. She has lived in New York City since 1998.