Ursula Ratasepp (born 17 June 1982) is an

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

n stage, film and television actress.

Early life and education

Ursula Ratasepp was born in

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

in 1982. She is the older sister of actress

Katariina Ratasepp Katariina Libe (née Ratasepp; born 26 November 1986) is an Estonian actress. In 2012, Ratasepp graduated from the Drama School at Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre, which was supervised by Elmo Nüganen. She is primarily known for her role ...

(born 1986). She studied drama at the

Vanalinnastuudio Vanalinnastuudio (literally 'Old Town Studio') was a theatre in Tallinn, Estonia. The theatre was established in 1980. At the beginning, it operated at Estonian State Philharmony (nowadays Eesti Kontsert). The founder and artistical leader was Ein ...

until 2001, then studied psychology at the

University of Tartu The University of Tartu (UT; et, Tartu Ülikool; la, Universitas Tartuensis) is a university in the city of Tartu in Estonia. It is the national university of Estonia. It is the only classical university in the country, and also its biggest ...

until 2002. She then enrolled at the EMA Higher Drama School (now, the

Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre The Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre (''Eesti Muusika- ja Teatriakadeemia'') began as a mixed choir of the Estonia Society Musical Department (EMD) on the eve of World War I. The assembly of the Estonia Society created the Tallinn Higher Musi ...

) in Tallinn, graduating in 2006. Among her graduating classmates were

Inga Salurand Inga Salurand (born 1 August 1983) is an Estonian stage, film, and television actress whose career began in the mid-2000s. Early life and education Inga Salurand was born and raised in Tartu, where she attended primary and secondary schools. In ...

Risto Kübar Risto Kübar (born 4 December 1983) is an Estonian stage, voice and film actor. Early life and studies Risto Kübar was born in the small borough of Kose. His older brother is sidecar motorcross racer Silver Kübar. He attended Kose Secondary S ...

, Mari-Liis Lill, Laura Peterson,

Lauri Lagle Lauri Lagle (born 12 February 1981) is an Estonian stage and film actor, screenwriter, stage producer, director and playwright. Early life Lauri Lagle was born in Tallinn, where he attended school. He graduated from the Estonian Academy of Music ...

, Britta Vahur, and

Sergo Vares Sergo Vares (born on 14 September 1982 in Rakvere) is an Estonian actor. Vares graduated from Rakvere Gymnasium in 2001. In 2002, he enrolled at the University of Tartu to study journalism, but left to study acting at the Estonian Academy of Musi ...

. In 2014, she received her bachelor's degree in psychology from the

Stage career

Following her graduation from the EMA Higher Drama School in 2006, Ratasepp became engaged as a stage actress at the

Tallinn City Theatre Tallinn City Theatre ( et, Tallinna Linnateater) is a repertory theatre located in the medieval old town of Tallinn, Estonia. Tallinn City Theatre was established in 1965 as Estonian SSR State Youth Theatre. In 1992, after the reindependence of ...

, where she is still currently employed. She made her stage debut at the theatre in a small role in the

Jaan Tätte Jaan Tätte (born 24 March 1964 in Viljandi Viljandi (, german: Fellin, sv, Fellin) is a town and municipality in southern Estonia with a population of 17,407 in 2019. It is the capital of Viljandi County and is geographically located betw ...

-penned ''Kaev'' the year she joined the theatre. Some of her more memorable roles at the Tallinn City Theatre include those in works by such authors and playwrights as

Luigi Pirandello Luigi Pirandello (; 28 June 1867 – 10 December 1936) was an Italian dramatist, novelist, poet, and short story writer whose greatest contributions were his plays. He was awarded the 1934 Nobel Prize in Literature for "his almost magical power ...

William Butler Yeats William Butler Yeats (13 June 186528 January 1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival and became a pillar of the Irish liter ...

, Nicholas Wright, A. H. Tammsaare,

Carlo Gozzi __NOTOC__ Carlo, Count Gozzi (; 13 December 1720 – 4 April 1806) was an Italian ( Venetian) playwright and champion of Commedia dell'arte. Early life Gozzi was born and died in Venice; he came from a family of minor Venetian aristocracy, the T ...

, and

J. B. Priestley John Boynton Priestley (; 13 September 1894 – 14 August 1984) was an English novelist, playwright, screenwriter, broadcaster and social commentator. His Yorkshire background is reflected in much of his fiction, notably in ''The Good Compa ...

. Ratasepp has also performed at various other theatres throughout Estonia, including the

Estonian Drama Theatre The Estonian Drama Theatre ( et, Eesti Draamateater) is a theatre in Tallinn, Estonia. It has the role of a national theatre for Estonia. The Estonia Theatre is located next door. History The building that houses the Estonian Drama Theatre was or ...

in Tallinn, the

Theatre NO99 Theatre NO99 was a theatre in Tallinn, Estonia that began to operate in February 2005. It was a state-owned repertoire theatre that has its own building with two theatre halls in central Tallinn. The theatre closed in 2019. The theatre's name ...

in Tallinn, the

Endla Theatre Endla ( et, Endla teater) is a professional theatre in city of Pärnu, Estonia. The theatre was opened in 1911. The first performance was "Libahunt" ("Werewolf") by Estonian writer August Kitzberg. The Estonian Declaration of Independence was p ...

Pärnu Pärnu () is the fourth largest city in Estonia. Situated in southwest Estonia, Pärnu is located south of the Estonian capital, Tallinn, and west of Estonia's second largest city, Tartu. The city sits off the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet o ...

, and the

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after the Northern European country's political and financial capital, Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 91,407 (as of 2021). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of ...

Summer Theatre.

Film and television

Ratasepp made her television debut as Kaisa on the TV3 television drama series ''Kodu keset linna'' in 2005, a character she would play until leaving the series in 2006. From 2006 until 2007, she appeared in several episodes of the

Eesti Televisioon Eesti Televisioon (ETV) ( en, Estonian Television) is an Estonian free-to-air television channel owned and operated by Estonian Public Broadcasting. It made its first broadcast on 19 July 1955. History Eesti Televisioon (''Estonian Televisi ...

(ETV) crime drama series ''

Ohtlik lend ''Ohtlik lend'' (English: ''Dangerous Flight'') is an Estonian television crime series. In the series, detective Andres (Marko Matvere) and his colleague Rita (Elisabet Reinsalu) solve crime cases. In the first series, the activities take place in ...

'' in the role of Kaja. In 2010, she played the role of the Prime Minister's secretary in the ETV political satire series ''Riigimehed''. She has also appeared on several episodes of the popular TV3 comedy-crime series ''

Kättemaksukontor ''Kättemaksukontor'' (English: ''Revenge Office'') is an Estonian comedy-crime television series. In the series, a group of women have the organization called "Kättemaksukontor". This organization helps to solve murder cases for the police. The ...

''. In 2016, she joined the cast of the popular

Kanal 2 Kanal 2 is a privately owned Estonian television channel. Its literal name in English is "Channel 2". The channel was established by Ilmar Taska. The channel began broadcasting on 1 October 1993. History The channel started broadcasting on O ...

crime series ''Siberi võmm'' as the character Eeva Lindeman. In 2017, she a played a central role of Brita in the Kanal 2 drama-mystery series ''Nukumaja'', and in 2020, she appeared as the character Rita Laikmaa on the ETV drama series ''Reetur''. Ratasepp made her film debut as a voice extra in the feature-length Heiki Ernits- and Janno Põldma-directed 2006 animated children's film '' Leiutajateküla Lotte'' (English: ''Lotte from Gadgetville''). In 2013, she had a starring role as the title character Kertu in the

Ilmar Raag Ilmar Raag (born 21 May 1968 in Kuressaare) is an Estonian media executive, actor, screenwriter and film director, best known for his socio-critical film '' The Class''. He has served as CEO of Estonian Television from 2002 to 2005. He is a we ...

-directed romantic-drama '' Kertu'', opposite actor

Mait Malmsten Mait Malmsten (born 6 September 1972 in Viljandi) is an Estonian actor. Malmsten comes from a family of actors. His father is actor Rein Malmsten. His paternal grandparents were actors Franz Malmsten and Eva Meil. His great-uncle was actor Hugo ...

. The film was retitled ''Love Is Blind'' in English-language markets. In 2011, she appeared as a nurse in the Mart Kivastik-directed drama '' Üks mu sõber''. In 2015, she had another starring role as Kadri in the

Klaus Härö Klaus Härö (born 31 March 1971 in Porvoo, Finland) is a Finnish film director. In 2004, he won Finland's State Prize for Art. Härö grew up in a Swedish-speaking Finnish family. He studied directing and attended screen writing seminars at the ...

-directed period drama '' Vehkleja'' (English: ''The Fencer''), which was adapted from the life story of Endel Nelis, and co-stars

Märt Avandi Märt Avandi (born 26 February 1981) is an Estonian actor and comedian. Biography He is known in Estonia for his performances in TV show '' Tujurikkuja'' (2008–2015) with Ott Sepp, that made them household names in Estonia. Avandi has worked a ...

as a fencer and instructor wanted by the Soviet

secret police Secret police (or political police) are intelligence, security or police agencies that engage in covert operations against a government's political, religious, or social opponents and dissidents. Secret police organizations are characteristic of a ...

who eventually has to make a life-altering decision. ''Vehkleja'' won several awards, including Best Film at Finland's 2016

Jussi Awards The Jussi Awards are Finland's premier film industry prizes, awarded annually to recognize the achievements of directors, actors, and writers. History The first Jussi Awards ceremony was held on 16 November 1944 at the Restaurant Adlon in Hels ...

, and was nominated for Best Motion Picture at the

73rd Golden Globe Awards The 73rd Golden Globe Awards honored the best in 2015 in film, film and 2015 in American television, American television of 2015. It was broadcast live on January 10, 2016, from The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California beginning at 5:00&nbs ...

in 2016.

Personal life

Ursula Ratasepp married Estonian Theatre Festival CEO and theatre manager and director Kaarel Oja in 2010. The couple have two children: a daughter, Elo-Mirt, and son Jaakob Eik. They currently reside in Tallinn. Her father-in-law is actor

Tõnu Oja Tõnu Oja (born 4 July 1958 in Tallinn) is an Estonian actor. In 1980 he graduated from Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre. Since 2003 he has worked at the Estonian Drama Theatre. He has also played in films. His elder brother is actor and dir ...

, and her brother-in-law is actor

Pääru Oja Pääru Oja (born 16 May 1989) is an Estonian stage, film, voice, and television actor. Early life and education Pääru Oja was born in Tallinn, the youngest of two sons. His father is actor Tõnu Oja and his older brother is Estonian Theatre F ...

.Õhtuleht
''Paar: Ursula Ratasepp ja Kaarel Oja'' 7 July 2011. Retrieved 4 February 2017.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ratasepp, Ursula 1982 births Living people Estonian stage actresses Estonian film actresses Estonian television actresses Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre alumni University of Tartu alumni Actresses from Tallinn 21st-century Estonian actresses