Brigitte Krause (1929–2007) was a German actress who from 1948 was trained at the East German

DEFA DEFA (''Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft'') was the state-owned film studio of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) throughout the country's existence. Since 2019, DEFA's film heritage has been made accessible and licensable on the PRO ...

studios in

Berlin Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...

. While still a student, in 1949 she made her debut as Christel in

Kurt Maetzig Kurt Maetzig (25 January 1911 – 8 August 2012) was a German film director who had a significant effect on the film industry in East Germany. He was one of the most respected filmmakers of the GDR. After his retirement he lived in Wildkuhl ...

's film ''

Girls in Gingham ''Girls in Gingham'' (german: Die Buntkarierten; literally, The Checkered Ones)—sometimes called Beaverskin—is a 1949 German drama film directed by Kurt Maetzig. Plot In 1884, Guste is born as the illegitimate daughter of a maid. She marr ...

''. She went on to take roles in several other feature films but also appeared on television until the late 1980s, both in series and as an entertainer.

Biography

Born on 9 March 1929 in Berlin, in 1948 Krause joined the DEFA youth studios where she trained as a film actress and was engaged as a newcomer in 1950. In 1949, while still a student She made her debut in Maetzig's ''Girls in Gingham'' and also performed in

Wolfgang Staudte Wolfgang Staudte (9 October 1906 – 19 January 1984), born Georg Friedrich Staudte, was a German film director, script writer and actor. He was born in Saarbrücken. After 1945, Staudte also looked at German guilt in the cinema. Alongside H ...

's drama ''

Rotation Rotation, or spin, is the circular movement of an object around a '' central axis''. A two-dimensional rotating object has only one possible central axis and can rotate in either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. A three-dimensional ...

''. As part of her training as an actress, she also appeared on the stage in Altenburg and

Halle Halle may refer to: Places Germany * Halle (Saale), also called Halle an der Saale, a city in Saxony-Anhalt ** Halle (region), a former administrative region in Saxony-Anhalt ** Bezirk Halle, a former administrative division of East Germany ** Hall ...

, as well as in Berlin and

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

. After her graduation, Maetzig gave her minor roles in '' The Council of the Gods'' (1950) and '' Story of a Young Couple'' (1952). From the very beginning of experimental television broadcasting in East Germany, by East German television, Krause appeared in DFF's 1952 Christmas programme. She went on to appear frequently in the station's TV series as well as an announcer and entertainer. She was also active on East German radio, appearing for many years in the popular radio series ''Neumann, zweimal klingeln'' as well as a continuity announcer. From 1965 to 1989, she performed as a cabaret artist at East Berlin's Distel Theatre. She last performed in 1989 in the first installment of Peter Hagen's television series ''Johanna''. Krause was married to the actor

Gerd Biewer Gerd or GERD may refer to: * Gerd (given name), a list of people with the given name or nickname * Gerd (moon), a moon of Saturn * Gerd Island, South Orkney Islands, Antarctica * Gastroesophageal reflux disease, a chronic symptom of mucosal dam ...

, with whom she had a daughter Maxi Biewer, an actress. Brigitte Krause died in Berlin on 29 April 2007.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krause, Brigitte 1929 births 2007 deaths 20th-century German actresses East German actors German film actresses East German television personalities Actors from East Berlin Actresses from Berlin