Maria Litto (1919–1996) was a German ballet dancer, choreographer and film actress. In 1970, she pioneered dance programming on German television.

Early life

Born in Ovenhausen,

Höxter Höxter () is a town in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on the left bank of the river Weser, 52 km north of Kassel in the centre of the Weser Uplands. The main town's population is around 15,000, and with outlying centres, about 30,0 ...

, on 9 September 1919, Litto attended the town's primary and secondary schools. From the age of 16, she received training in ballet at the ''Tanzschule Carus'' in

Holzminden Holzminden (; nds, Holtsminne) is a town in southern Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Holzminden. It is located on the river Weser, which at this point forms the border with the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Histor ...

and, when 18, at the Folkwangschule in Essen. She completed her training at the Wuppertal Municipal Theatre.

Career

She joined the Berlin Opera ballet in 1941, first becoming a solo dancer and then, in 1944,

prima ballerina A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on ye ...

. In 1948, she performed in

Werner Egk Werner Egk (, 17 May 1901 – 10 July 1983), born Werner Joseph Mayer, was a German composer. Early career He was born in the Swabian town of Auchsesheim, today part of Donauwörth, Germany. His family, of Catholic peasant stock, moved to A ...

's ballet ''Abraxas''. Thereafter she danced in various films including ''

Third from the Right ''Third from the Right'' (german: Die Dritte von rechts) is a 1950 West German musical crime film directed by Géza von Cziffra and starring Vera Molnar, Robert Lindner and Peter van Eyck. It was made by the Hamburg-based company Real Film at t ...

'', '' Melody of Fate'', ''

Maya of the Seven Veils ''Maya of the Seven Veils'' or ''The Veiled Lady'' (german: Die verschleierte Maja) is a 1951 West German musical film directed by Géza von Cziffra and starring Maria Litto, Willy Fritsch and Rudolf Platte.Bock & Bergfelder p. 225 It was shot ...

'' and, taking the lead role, in '' Queen of the Arena''. In 1953, she starred in the musical ''Die Blume von Hawaii'' ('' The Flower of Hawaii'') where she played Priness Lia a fictionalised version of Liliuokalani. In November 1954, she was contracted by the

Hamburg Opera The Hamburg State Opera (in German: Staatsoper Hamburg) is a German opera company based in Hamburg. Its theatre is near the square of Gänsemarkt. Since 2015, the current ''Intendant'' of the company is Georges Delnon, and the current ''Gener ...

. After performing in ''Hamlet'', in 1955 she starred as the snake in Werner Egk's '' Irische Legende'' 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 ...

. Among her subsequent successes were ''Der Engel von Montparnasse'' and ''Formender Willie''. She also performed in the musical '' Fanny'' at Hamburg's Thalia Theater. In the 1960s, she devoted more time to choreography together with her husband Heinz Schmiedel. In 1970 she played the lead in the television series ''Tournee – Ein Ballett tanzt um die Welt'', pioneering dance programming on German television. The couple continued to appear in television productions until her husband's sudden death in December 1978. Completely devastated, she withdrew from further appearances. Maria Litto died in Hamburg on 25 October 1996.

Film and television

From 1942 to 1971, Maria Litto appeared in a considerable number of films and television productions. She was also active as a television choreographer until 1979.

Selected filmography

* '' Love Me'' (1942) * '' Love Premiere'' (1943) * '' Beloved Darling'' (1943) * ''

Nora Nora, NORA, or Norah may refer to: * Nora (name), a feminine given name People with the surname * Arlind Nora (born 1980), Albanian footballer * Pierre Nora (born 1931), French historian Places Australia * Norah Head, New South Wales, headlan ...

'' (1944) * ''

'' (1950) * '' Melody of Fate'' (1950) * '' Professor Nachtfalter'' (1951) * ''

'' (1951) * '' Queen of the Arena'' (1952) * '' Dunja'' (1955) * ''

Three Days Confined to Barracks ''Three Days Confined to Barracks'' (German: ''Drei Tage Mittelarrest'') is a 1930 German comedy film directed by Carl Boese and starring Max Adalbert, Ida Wüst, and Gretl Theimer. The film is a farce set around a military barracks. It was a m ...

'' (1955) * ''

Three Birch Trees on the Heath ''Three Birch Trees on the Heath'' (German: ''Drei Birken auf der Heide'') is a 1956 West German drama film directed by Ulrich Erfurth and starring Margit Saad, Sonja Sutter and Helmuth Schneider. It was one of 54 heimatfilm produced that year, a ...

'' (1956) * ' (1957) * '' I Learned That in Paris'' (1960) * '' The Gorilla of Soho'' (1968) * ''

The Man with the Glass Eye ''The Man with the Glass Eye'' (German: ''Der Mann mit dem Glasauge'') is a 1969 West German crime film directed by Alfred Vohrer and starring Horst Tappert, Karin Hübner and Hubert von Meyerinck. It is part of Rialto Film's long-running serie ...

'' (1969)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Litto, Maria 1919 births German ballerinas People from Höxter German women choreographers Prima ballerinas 1996 deaths 20th-century German ballet dancers