Rosa Valetti
Encyclopedia
Rosa Valetti born Rosa Vallentin, was a German
actress, cabaret performer and singer.
, the daughter of industrialist Felix Vallentin and sister of actor Hermann Vallentin. She played her first roles in the theatres of suburban Berlin. Inspired by the November Revolution and her meeting with political satirist Kurt Tucholsky
, Valetti began performing in cabarets. In 1920, she founded the Café Grössenwahn ("Café Megalomania"), which has been recognized as one of the most important literary and political cabarets in 1920s Berlin. Café Megalomania was frequented by Expressionist writers, and the program of sketch comedy and political songs reflected Valetti's belief in the cabaret as an instrument of political and social criticism.
The inflation of 1919 to 1923 and the subsequent collapse of the German economy forced Valetti to close Cafe Megalomania. She directed the cabaret Rakete for a time, then launched another cafe of her own, the Rampe, which hosted the works of revolutionist poet and singer Erich Weinert
. Valetti was among the founders of the floating cabaret Larifari during the late 1920s. In 1928 she performed as Mrs. Peachum in the original cast of Bertolt Brecht
's Threepenny Opera, which was staged under the direction of Erich Engel
at Berlin's Theater am Schiffbauerdamm
.
Rosa Valetti acted in film roles from 1911. Her age and sturdy mien ensured that she acted mostly in motherly roles, as in the 1925 film Die Prinzessin und der Geiger ("The Princess and the Violinist"), in which she played a 46-year-old grandmother. In Josef von Sternberg
's 1930 film Der Blaue Engel ("The Blue Angel") she plays the wife of the magician, Kiepert (Kurt Gerron
). Valetti also appears briefly in Fritz Lang
's 1931 classic M
as the proprietor of an underworld cafe.
In 1933 Valetti went into exile, performing first in Vienna
and Prague
, then in Palestine
in 1936. She married actor Ludwig Roth and had a daughter, the actress Liesel Valetti, with him.
Rosa Valetti died in Vienna December 10, 1937. She was buried at the "Urnenhain", the grave existed until 2001.
A street in Berlin's Malsdorf district is named "Rosa-Valetti-Strasse" in her honour.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
actress, cabaret performer and singer.
Biography
Rosa Valetti was born in BerlinBerlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, the daughter of industrialist Felix Vallentin and sister of actor Hermann Vallentin. She played her first roles in the theatres of suburban Berlin. Inspired by the November Revolution and her meeting with political satirist Kurt Tucholsky
Kurt Tucholsky
Kurt Tucholsky was a German-Jewish journalist, satirist and writer. He also wrote under the pseudonyms Kaspar Hauser, Peter Panter, Theobald Tiger and Ignaz Wrobel. Born in Berlin-Moabit, he moved to Paris in 1924 and then to Sweden in 1930.Tucholsky was one of the most important journalists of...
, Valetti began performing in cabarets. In 1920, she founded the Café Grössenwahn ("Café Megalomania"), which has been recognized as one of the most important literary and political cabarets in 1920s Berlin. Café Megalomania was frequented by Expressionist writers, and the program of sketch comedy and political songs reflected Valetti's belief in the cabaret as an instrument of political and social criticism.
The inflation of 1919 to 1923 and the subsequent collapse of the German economy forced Valetti to close Cafe Megalomania. She directed the cabaret Rakete for a time, then launched another cafe of her own, the Rampe, which hosted the works of revolutionist poet and singer Erich Weinert
Erich Weinert
Erich Bernhard Gustav Weinert was a German Communist writer and a member of the Communist Party of Germany .-Biography:...
. Valetti was among the founders of the floating cabaret Larifari during the late 1920s. In 1928 she performed as Mrs. Peachum in the original cast of Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht was a German poet, playwright, and theatre director.An influential theatre practitioner of the 20th century, Brecht made equally significant contributions to dramaturgy and theatrical production, the latter particularly through the seismic impact of the tours undertaken by the...
's Threepenny Opera, which was staged under the direction of Erich Engel
Erich Engel
Erich Engel was a German film and theatre director.- Biography :Engel was born in Hamburg, where later he studied at the School of Applied Arts...
at Berlin's Theater am Schiffbauerdamm
Theater am Schiffbauerdamm
The Theater am Schiffbauerdamm is a theatre building at the Schiffbauerdamm riverside in the Mitte district of Berlin, Germany, opened on November 19, 1892. Since 1954 it is home to the Berliner Ensemble theatre company, founded in 1949 by Helene Weigel and Bertolt Brecht.The original name of the...
.
Rosa Valetti acted in film roles from 1911. Her age and sturdy mien ensured that she acted mostly in motherly roles, as in the 1925 film Die Prinzessin und der Geiger ("The Princess and the Violinist"), in which she played a 46-year-old grandmother. In Josef von Sternberg
Josef von Sternberg
Josef von Sternberg — born Jonas Sternberg — was an Austrian-American film director. He is particularly noted for his distinctive mise en scène, use of lighting and soft lens, and seven-film collaboration with actress Marlene Dietrich.-Youth:Von Sternberg was born Jonas Sternberg to a Jewish...
's 1930 film Der Blaue Engel ("The Blue Angel") she plays the wife of the magician, Kiepert (Kurt Gerron
Kurt Gerron
Kurt Gerron was a German Jewish actor and film director.-Life:Born Kurt Gerson into a well-off merchant family in Berlin, he initially studied medicine but was called up for military service in World War I. Seriously wounded he qualified as a military doctor of the German Army...
). Valetti also appears briefly in Fritz Lang
Fritz Lang
Friedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang was an Austrian-American filmmaker, screenwriter, and occasional film producer and actor. One of the best known émigrés from Germany's school of Expressionism, he was dubbed the "Master of Darkness" by the British Film Institute...
's 1931 classic M
M (1931 film)
M is a 1931 German drama-thriller directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and his wife Thea von Harbou. It was Lang's first sound film, although he had directed more than a dozen films previously....
as the proprietor of an underworld cafe.
In 1933 Valetti went into exile, performing first in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
and Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, then in Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
in 1936. She married actor Ludwig Roth and had a daughter, the actress Liesel Valetti, with him.
Rosa Valetti died in Vienna December 10, 1937. She was buried at the "Urnenhain", the grave existed until 2001.
A street in Berlin's Malsdorf district is named "Rosa-Valetti-Strasse" in her honour.
Filmography
- 1911: Frau Potiphar
- 1914: Wollen sie meine Tochter heiraten?
- 1915: Das Laster
- 1918: Othello oder: Das Verhängnis eines Fürstenhauses
- 1918: Wanderratten
- 1918: Die Lachende Maske
- 1920: Die Tänzerin Barberina
- 1920: Kurfürstendamm
- 1920: Christian Wahnschaffe, 1. Teil - Weltbrand
- 1920: Die Schuld der Lavinia Morland
- 1921: Das Haus zum Mond
- 1921: Die Rote Katze
- 1922: Die Schneiderkomtess
- 1924: Steuerlos
- 1924: Zwischen Morgen und Morgen
- 1925: Die Prinzessin und der Geiger
- 1925: Die Moral der Gasse
- 1926: TartüffTartuffe (film)Tartuffe is a German silent film produced by Erich Pommer for UFA and released in 1926. It was directed by F. W. Murnau, photographed by Karl Freund and written by Carl Mayer from Molière's original play....
- 1926: Schatz, mach' Kasse
- 1926: Die Waise von Lowood
- 1927: Dr. Bessels Verwandlung
- 1927: Wie heirate ich meinen Chef?
- 1928: Spione
- 1929: Das brennende Herz
- 1929: Asphalt
- 1930: Der blaue Engel (The Blue Angel)
- 1931: Die Abenteuerin von Tunis / Treffpunkt Afrika
- 1931: M – Eine Stadt sucht einen MörderM (1931 film)M is a 1931 German drama-thriller directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and his wife Thea von Harbou. It was Lang's first sound film, although he had directed more than a dozen films previously....
- 1931: Das Ekel
- 1931: Ehe mit beschränkter Haftung
- 1931: Täter gesucht
- 1931: Wiener Wald
- 1931: Das Geheimnis der roten Katze
- 1932: Die unsichtbare Front
- 1932: Die Tänzerin von Sanssouci
- 1932: Skandal in der Parkstraße
- 1933: Moral und Liebe
- 1934: Liliom
Sources
This article and filmography were translated from the corresponding article on the German Wikipedia, with additional information as cited from:- Appignanesi, Lisa, 1976. The Cabaret. New York: Universe Books
- Eckardt, Wolf von, and Gilman, Sander L., 1975. Bertolt Brecht's Berlin: A Scrapbook of the Twenties. Garden City, New York: Anchor Press/Doubleday