Johanna Wokalek (born 3 March 1975) is a German stage and film actress. A student of Klaus Maria Brandauer, she received critical recognition and three newcomer awards for her performance in the play ''

Rose Bernd ''Rose Bernd'' is a stage drama in five acts by Gerhart Hauptmann. It premiered on 31 October 1903 in Berlin. Characters Plot Rose Bernd speaks to a friend, Flamm, with whom she is now uncomfortable. He flirts with her: "Rosie, give me your d ...

''. Wokalek is best known for her award-winning appearances in the German films '' Hierankl'', '' Barfuss'', and ''

The Baader Meinhof Complex ''The Baader Meinhof Complex'' (german: Der Baader Meinhof Komplex, ) is a 2008 German drama film directed by Uli Edel. Written and produced by Bernd Eichinger, it stars Moritz Bleibtreu, Martina Gedeck, and Johanna Wokalek. The film is based ...

''. She received the Bambi award for her portrayal of the Red Army Faction member Gudrun Ensslin in 2008. She played the lead role in the film '' Pope Joan'' in 2009.

Early life

Wokalek was born in Freiburg, West Germany, daughter of a professor of dermatology from Mediaş, Romania. She attended the Friedrich- Gymnasium in Freiburg where she first tried acting in the school's drama group in 1991. After her

final exams A final examination, annual, exam, final interview, or simply final, is a test given to students at the end of a course of study or training. Although the term can be used in the context of physical training, it most often occurs in the a ...

in 1994 Wokalek intended to allow herself up to three applications at

drama school A drama school, stage school or theatre school is an undergraduate and/or graduate school or department at a college or university; or a free-standing institution (such as the Drama section at the Juilliard School); which specializes in the pr ...

s before choosing a different career. Her first application to study at the Max-Reinhardt-Seminar in Vienna was accepted, and she moved to the Austrian capital in 1995 to begin her four-year study as a student of Klaus Maria Brandauer. Brandauer, well known for his parts in '' Mephisto'', '' Out of Africa'' and '' Never Say Never Again'', started teaching at the seminar at the same time.

Career

1996–2002: Stage acting and first feature film

Still in her studies, 21-year-old Wokalek made her professional stage debut during the 1996 Wiener Festwochen in

Joshua Sobol Joshua Sobol ( he, יהושע סובול; born 24 August 1939), is an Israeli playwright, writer, and theatre director. Biography Joshua Sobol was born in Tel Mond. His mother's family fled the pogroms in Europe in 1922 and his father's family im ...

's play '' Alma'', directed by

Paulus Manker Paulus Manker (born 25 January 1958) is an Austrian film director and actor, as well as an author and screenplay writer. Manker is considered one of the most maverick German-speaking actors, and polarizes public opinion like scarcely no other. H ...

. Soon after, she played Polly in Brecht's ''

The Threepenny Opera ''The Threepenny Opera'' ( ) is a " play with music" by Bertolt Brecht, adapted from a translation by Elisabeth Hauptmann of John Gay's 18th-century English ballad opera, '' The Beggar's Opera'', and four ballads by François Villon, with mu ...

'' (also directed by Paulus Manker and with costumes by Vivienne Westwood), shown in Vienna's

Burgtheater The Burgtheater (literally:"Castle Theater" but alternatively translated as "(Imperial) Court Theater"), originally known as '' K.K. Theater an der Burg'', then until 1918 as the ''K.K. Hofburgtheater'', is the national theater of Austria in V ...

, one of the best-known stage theaters in the world. In 1997, during the third year of her study at the Reinhardt-Seminar, she played the maid Ilse in Max Färberböck's critically acclaimed drama '' Aimée und Jaguar'', her first feature film. In the fall of 1997 Wokalek accepted her first engagement with the

Theater Bonn Theater Bonn (also known as the Stadttheater Bonn) is the municipal theatre company of Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is an organization that produces operas, musicals, ballets, plays, and concerts. It operates several performance venu ...

and stopped attending the seminar. During the two and a half year engagement she played Leonore in

Schiller Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, and philosopher. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller developed a productive, if complicated, friends ...

's '' Fiesco'', and received three newcomer awards and wide critical recognition for her performance as Rose in Gerhart Hauptmann's play ''

''. Wokalek also featured in TV versions of the plays ''Alma'' (filmed 1997) and ''Rose Bernd'' (filmed 1998). In March 2000 she moved back to Vienna and became a permanent member of the Burgtheater ensemble. In her first performance she played the abused and abandoned Nina in Anton Chekhov's ''

The Seagull ''The Seagull'' ( rus, Ча́йка, r=Cháyka, links=no) is a play by Russian dramatist Anton Chekhov, written in 1895 and first produced in 1896. ''The Seagull'' is generally considered to be the first of his four major plays. It dramatises ...

'', directed by Luc Bondy, which was well received. Wokalek repeatedly performed at the

Salzburg Festival The Salzburg Festival (german: Salzburger Festspiele) is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer (for five weeks starting in late July) in the Austrian town of Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Ama ...

. In 2000 she played Ophelia in ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

'', as a guest performance with the Staatstheater Stuttgart, and in 2002 she played the leading part in the German language premiere of '' The Shape of Things''.

2002–present: Film & theatre

In 2002 Wokalek played Lene Thurner in the award-winning family drama '' Hierankl''. The modern '' Heimatfilm'', named after a district in Surberg, Germany, is the film debut of writer and director

Hans Steinbichler Hans Sebastian Steinbichler (born 1 November 1966) is a German film director and screenwriter. Biography Steinbichler grew up in Bernau am Chiemsee, Kothöd in Upper Bavaria. He got his Abitur at the Ludwig-Thoma-Gymnasium Prien am Chiemsee. T ...

. Wokalek received several awards and nominations for her first leading part in a feature film, among them the 2003

Bavarian Film Award The Bavarian Film Awards (german: Bayerischer Filmpreis) have been awarded annually since 1979 by the state government of Bavaria in Germany for “exceptional achievement in German filmmaking.” Along with the German Film Awards, these are th ...

and the 2006

Adolf Grimme Award The Grimme-Preis ("Grimme Award"; prior to 2011: Adolf-Grimme-Preis) is one of the most prestigious German television awards. It is named after the first general director of Nordwestdeutscher Rundfunk, Adolf Grimme. which is considered the most important German TV award. Wokalek starred in the 2003 TV three-parter ' by Rainer Kaufmann. In 2005 Wokalek was cast as the female lead in the romantic comedy '' Barfuss'', directed by

Til Schweiger Tilman Valentin Schweiger (; born 19 December 1963) is a German actor, voice actor and filmmaker. He runs his own production company, Barefoot Films, in Berlin. Early life Schweiger was born in Freiburg, West Germany, to two teachers. He grew ...

. The film was a local box office success. Her performance as Leila, an escapee from a mental institution, opposite actor-director Til Schweiger brought her wide public recognition. She was nominated as best German actress for her performances in ''Barfuss'', ''Hierankl'' and ''Queen of Cherries'' for the

Goldene Kamera The Goldene Kamera ("Golden Camera") is an annual German film and television award, awarded by the Funke Mediengruppe. The award show is usually held in early February in Hamburg, but has also taken place in Berlin in the past. The gold-plat ...

award in 2006, and received the Shooting Stars Award as best new German actress during the Berlinale in the same year. Wokalek played Anna in the sci-fi thriller ''Silent Resident'', which premiered at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival, and starred as the young journalist Luise Fellner in Phillip Stölzl's ''

North Face North face or Northface or The North Face may refer to: * North face (Eiger), in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland * North Face (Everest), in Himalaya, usually traversed ascending Everest from the north * North face (Fairview Dome), a climbing route ...

''. Wokalek was cast as the Red Army Faction terrorist Gudrun Ensslin in Uli Edel's 2008 film

, an adaptation of the non-fiction book of the same name by Stefan Aust. Her performance in the film was awarded with a nomination for the 2009 German Film Awards and a Bambi award as best German actress. The film was chosen as Germany's submission to the 81st Academy Awards for

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

, and was also nominated

for the 66th Golden Globe Awards. In the summer of 2008 she replaced Franka Potente as Johanna von Ingelheim, the titular role in Sönke Wortmann's '' Pope Joan''. The adaptation of American novelist Donna Woolfolk Cross' book of the same name is the first time Wokalek has to carry a large-scale production by herself. Wokalek, who had to

tonsure Tonsure () is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word ' (meaning "clipping" or "shearing") and referred to a specific practice i ...

her hair for the role, stars alongside David Wenham and

John Goodman John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He gained national fame for his role as the family patriarch Dan Conner in the ABC comedy series '' Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018), for which he received a Golden Globe Award, ...

. The film was released on 22 October 2009. Wokalek continues to star in plays in the Burgtheater, including the title role in Andrea Breth's 2003 production of ''

Emilia Galotti ''Emilia Galotti'' () is a play in five acts by Gotthold Ephraim Lessing (1729–1781), which premiered on 8 March 1772 in Brunswick ("Braunschweig" in German). The work is a classic example of German '' bürgerliches Trauerspiel'' (bourgeois ...

'', and Queen Margaret in

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

The War of the Roses The Wars of the Roses (1455–1487), known at the time and for more than a century after as the Civil Wars, were a series of civil wars fought over control of the English throne in the mid-to-late fifteenth century. These wars were fought bet ...

'' in 2008, directed by Stephan Kimmig. On 28 July 2014 Wokalek made her operatic debut (in a speaking role with a small bit of singing) in the world premiere of

Marc-André Dalbavie Marc-André Dalbavie (born 10 February 1961 at Neuilly-sur-Seine, France) is a French composer.Anne Sédès, "Marc-André Dalbavie", ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' He had his first music lessons at age 6.Charlotte Salomon'' given at the

. Wokalek has also appeared in

Lars Kraume Lars Kraume (born 24 February 1973) is an Italian-born German film director, screenwriter and producer. He has directed 35 films since 1996. Biography Born in Abruzzo, Italy, to German parents. Career Kraume has directed numerous television produ ...

’s ''Die kommenden Tage'' (''

The Coming Days ''The Coming Days'' (german: Die kommenden Tage) is a 2010 German drama film with a dystopian vision of the near future directed by Lars Kraume. It is set in the time period from 2012 to 2020, which the film portrays as an era of increasing socia ...

'') and

Sherry Hormann Sherry Hormann (born 20 April 1960) is a German-American film director. Hormann is best known for her movies ''Guys and Balls'' (2004), '' Desert Flower'' (2009) and '' 3096 Days'' (2013). Hormann was born in the United States, but moved to Germa ...

’s comedy ''Anleitung zum Unglücklichsein'' (') (2012). In 2017 she took part in

Matthias Glasner Matthias Glasner (born 20 January 1965) is a German film director. He directed more than twenty films since 1987. Selected filmography *'' The Meds'' (1995) *''Sexy Sadie'' (1996) *''Fandango'' (2000) *''High Score'' (2001, TV film) *''Tatort: Fl ...

’s two-part drama for German television, ''Landgericht'', and in Jan Speckenbach’s cinema release, ''Freedom'', which was shown at the Locarno Festival. ''Landgericht'' was awarded a Grimme Prize in 2018. In 2019 Wokalek plays Ditte Nansen in Christina Schwochow’s remake of the novel ''

The German Lesson ''The German Lesson'' (original title: ') is a novel by the German writer Siegfried Lenz, published in 1968 in Germany. The English translation by Ernst Kaiser and Eithne Wilkins, titled ''The German Lesson'', was first published in London by ...

'' by Siegfried Lenz. In Jonas Alexander Arnby’s drama ''Suicide Tourist'' she is seen as Linda. In 2019 Wokalek returns to the Burgtheater as Frau John in Gerhard Hauptmann's drama '' The rats,'' directed by Andrea Beth. In the same year Wokalek appears on stage with the

Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch Philippine "Pina" Bausch (27 July 1940 – 30 June 2009) was a German dancer and choreographer who was a significant contributor to a neo-expressionist dance tradition now known as . Bausch's approach was noted for a stylized blend of dance mov ...

in the reproduction of Macbeth ''Er nimmt sie an die Hand und führt sie in das Schloß, die anderen folgen''. The successful collaboration continues in 2020 with '' The seven deadly sins''. ''Ein Tanzabend von Pina Bausch''.

Film and television credits

Audiobooks

* 2006: Johanna Wokalek reads ''

Franziska Linkerhand ''Franziska Linkerhand'' is a 1974 novel by Brigitte Reimann Brigitte Reimann (born 21 July 1933, Burg bei Magdeburg, d. 22 February 1973, East Berlin) was a German writer who is best known for her posthumously published novel '' Franziska Li ...

'' by Brigitte Reimann. * 2008: '' Gretel Adorno'' ''–

Walter Benjamin Walter Bendix Schönflies Benjamin (; ; 15 July 1892 – 26 September 1940) was a German Jewish philosopher, cultural critic and essayist. An eclectic thinker, combining elements of German idealism, Romanticism, Western Marxism, and Jewish ...

'': ''Briefwechsel.'' * 2009: ''Herzzeit: Briefwechsel.''

Ingeborg Bachmann Ingeborg Bachmann (25 June 1926 – 17 October 1973) was an Austrian poet and author. Biography Bachmann was born in Klagenfurt, in the Austrian state of Carinthia, the daughter of Olga (née Haas) and Matthias Bachmann, a schoolteacher. Her f ...

–

Paul Celan Paul Celan (; ; 23 November 1920 – c. 20 April 1970) was a Romanian-born German-language poet and translator. He was born as Paul Antschel to a Jewish family in Cernăuți (German: Czernowitz), in the then Kingdom of Romania (now Chernivtsi, ...

. * 2009: ''Die Päpstin: das Hörspiel zum Film.'' * 2019: Johanna Wokalek reads ''Laufen'' by Isabel Bogdan. * 2020: ''Nelly B.s. Herz'' by

Aris Fioretos Aris Fioretos (born 6 February 1960 in Gothenburg) is a Swedish writer of Greek and Austrian extraction. Biography Aris Fioretos was born in Gothenburg. His Greek father was a professor of medicine, his Austrian mother ran a gallery. At hom ...

Awards

* (1999), best new German stage actor/actress in ''Rose Bernd'' * Förderpreis des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen für junge Künstlerinnen und Künstler (1999) for ''Rose Bernd'' * Nachwuchsschauspielerin des Jahres (1999), best new actor/actress in ''Rose Bernd'' * Nestroy Theatre Prize (2002), best new actor/actress * Förderpreis Deutscher Film (2003), best actress in ''Hierankl'' *

(2003), best actress in a German film in ''Hierankl'' * Shooting Stars Award (2006), announced by

European Film Promotion European Film Promotion (EFP) is an international promotion organisation and a unique network of 38 national film promotion institutes who represent films and talent from their respective territories. Under the EFP flag, the members team up on ini ...

, best new German actor/actress in ''Barfuss'' and ''Hierankl'' *

Josef Bierbichler Josef Bierbichler (born 26 April 1948) is a German actor. Filmography * 1976: '' Heart of Glass'' – director: Werner Herzog * 1976: ''Die Atlantikschwimmer'' * 1977: '' Bierkampf'' – director: Herbert Achternbusch * 1977: ''Servus Bayern'' ...

and

Peter Simonischek Peter Simonischek (born 6 August 1946) is an Austrian actor. He is a celebrated stage performer and has been a regular ensemble member of the Burgtheater since 1999. He often appears at the Salzburg Festival and has played the title role in the p ...

* Bambi (2008), best German actress in ''The Baader Meinhof Complex'' * DIVA (2009), best actress of the year 2008 * German Film Awards (2009), nominated as best actress for her performance in ''The Baader Meinhof Complex'' * Grimme Prize (2018) for ''Landgericht''

References

External links

* *
Johanna Wokalek
on filmportal.de {{DEFAULTSORT:Wokalek, Johanna 1975 births Living people German film actresses German stage actresses German people of Romanian descent Actors from Freiburg im Breisgau 20th-century German actresses 21st-century German actresses