Sonja Richter

Sonja Richter (* 4. January 1974 in Esbjerg ) is a Danish theater - and film - Actress . From the mid-1990s, she gained recognition in her home country, both through appearances in musicals and through classical leading roles in repertoire theater . In addition, she has appeared in over 20 film and television roles, mostly dramas, since the early 2000s. She was best known to a wide audience through her first leading role in the feature film Open Hearts (2002).

Life

Training and theater work

Sonja Richter grew up in Allerup, south of her hometown in West Jutland . Even as a child she was enthusiastic about the acting profession, but due to a lack of opportunities, she was only able to pursue this passion at the secondary Aarhus Cathedral School . There Richter, who at that time had little self-confidence, appeared as a singer in bands and took part in musicals. After school she attended the musical Mellerup Efterskole for a year . Too young to apply to a drama school, she devoted herself to artistic projects with former classmates and prospective dancers. This led, among other things, to winning a playwright competition at the Svaliegen Theater in Aarhus.

In 1992 Richter co-founded the Aarhus Musical Trup, which she also chaired until 1995. The project staged musical performances at the Aarhus Concert Hall ( Musikhuset Åarhus ), including Andrew Lloyd Webber's play Tell Me On A Sunday , in which Richter took on the lead role of the talented hat designer Emma in 1994. A little later she successfully applied for a small role as a dancer in the rock musical Jesus Christ Superstar (1995) at the New Theater ( Det Ny Teater ) in Copenhagen . Also in 1995, to her own surprise, the 20-year-old was accepted at the Drama School of the Odense Theater . There she appeared in the plays Anatevka and City of Angels (both 1997). In the 1998/99 season she also successfully took the title role in Lulu - sometimes in dreams at the Odense International Music Theater . The program won the prestigious Reumert Theater Prize for Best Cabaret and was later performed at the Place Theater in London and at the Edinburgh Theater Festival.

After completing her training in 1999, Richter became a contract actress at the Odense Theater and she starred as Ophelia in Baltasar Kormákurs's production of Shakespeare's Hamlet (1999) and Bertrande in the musical Martin Guerre (2000). In 2000 Richter moved to the Royal Theater in Copenhagen as a permanent member of the ensemble, where she took on leading roles in such classical subjects as Antonius and Cleopatra , Peer Gynt (both 2001), Kabale und Liebe (2003) or Ivanhoe (2003). The title role in Alexa Thers production of Anouilh's Antigone earned her great reviews , for which she received a nomination for the Reumert Theater Prize for Best Actress. In addition to working at the Royal Theater, she was also entrusted with engagements at Copenhagen's other leading theaters, including the highly acclaimed role of a victim of abuse in Ole Bornedal's comedy Himlen (2004) on Aveny-T . At the Betty Nansen Theater she took on the title role of Hedda Gabler and the fragile Blanche in the world premiere of Per Olov Enquists Blanche og Marie (both 2006) with Ghita Nørby . Also in 2006, she was together with the theater director Jon Stephensen and film producer Vibeke Windeløv at the founding of the Aveny-T as Teater X involved. In 2009 Richter was seen freely in Staffan Valdemar Holm's version of Richard III. with Søren Sætter-Lassen , Kirsten Olesen and Birthe Neumann at Det Kongelige Teater. In 2012 she played in Katrine Wiedemann's production of Günter Grass ' Die Blechtrommel ( Bliktrommen ) at the Betty-Nansen-Theater alongside Nikolaj Lie Kaas and Frank Thiel .

Film career

In parallel to her work at the theater, the actress, who describes herself as reserved and a perfectionist, sporadically made her first appearances in films and TV series from the early 2000s. Richter paved his breakthrough as a film actress with the first leading role in Susanne Bier's feature film Open Hearts (2002). The relationship drama, staged by beer according to the rules of dogma film, focuses on the young cook Cecilie, whose fiancé (played by Nikolaj Lie Kaas ) is paraplegic in a car accident. Cast off by her boyfriend, who is trying to cope with the stroke of fate on his own, the hospital doctor and family man Niels ( Mads Mikkelsen ) takes on the insecure and traumatized Cecilie, whose wife ( Paprika Steen ) caused the accident. With Open Hearts , Richter became known to an international audience. The film was in the favor of cinema audiences and critics, who praised Bier's “balance between unsentimental melodrama and quiet humor” in the style of Andreas Dresen's Half Staircase and emphasized the play of the four main actors. Several awards followed, including the Prize of the Danish Film Academy, Robert and the Bodil , which is awarded by the Association of Danish Film Critics. Richter himself also received nominations for Denmark's most important film awards for the part of Cecilie and was hailed as an “enlightening revelation” by domestic critics .

After Open Hearts , Richter got a supporting role in Mikael Colville-Andersen's romantic drama Zakka West in 2003 , while in the same year the part of a cosmetology student and former porn actress in Jannik Johansen's crime comedy Stealing Rembrandt - claws for beginners followed, in which she worked alongside Lars Brygmann , Jakob Cedergren , Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Nicolas Bro acted. In 2004 Richter followed up on the success of Open Hearts with two different film roles. In Annette K. Olesen's prison film In Your Hands , also staged according to the rules of dogma, she took on the role of a junkie alongside Ann Eleonora Jørgensen who tries to get rid of addiction with the help of a prison inmate (played by Trine Dyrholm ) . In Erik Clausen's drama Villa paranoia , on the other hand, she slipped into the "formidable" role of a desperate actress who, for lack of success, hires on a chicken farm and takes care of a bedridden, silent old man (played by Frits Helmuth ). Both the part of Marion in In Your Hands and Anna in Villa paranoia earned Richter nominations for best supporting and leading actress at the Robert and Bodil Awards in 2005. A year earlier she had already received the Shooting Star Award at the 54th Berlin Film Festival for her “strong and credible” performance in In Your Hands together with talented actors such as the Spanish Elena Anaya or the German Maria Simon .

In 2007 Richter, who is enthusiastic about the actor Jim Carrey and the director Lukas Moodysson among others, was seen performing together with Pernilla August and Jesper Christensen in Per Fly's six-hour television production . The multi-part series, which tells of the rehearsals for Shakespeare's Venus and Adonis at a Copenhagen theater from six perspectives , was a success with critics in Denmark and reached a television audience of 500,000 viewers. For the role of the theater director's ex-girlfriend, the actress was awarded the Acting Prize of the Monte Carlo International Television Festival . In the same time she acted in Hans Fabian Wullenweber's thriller Cecilie (2007) in the title role of a newlywed teacher who is plagued by eerie nightmares and visions. This earned her another nomination for Bodil for Best Actress . After supporting roles in, among others, Søren Kragh-Jacobsen's thriller What Nobody Knows , the Selma-Lagerlöf biography Selma (both 2008) and Ole Bornedal's thriller Fri os fra det onde (2009) followed in 2010 leading roles in Kristian Petri's Swedish thriller Ond tro at the side by Jonas Karlsson . As an erotically obsessed woman, Per Fly Richter in the style of a fateful affair again in his feature film Unter die Haut - Dangerous Desires (2010, alternative title: Unter die Haut ). In it she can be seen as a successful fashion photographer “K”, who, despite her husband (played by Mikael Nyqvist ) and child, has an affair with a Pole ( Marcin Dorociński ).

Richter lives in Frederiksberg and is in a relationship with the music producer Mads BB Krog. She speaks German and English and is enthusiastic about the works of William Shakespeare and JRR Tolkien , the painter Salvador Dalí and the musicians Ray Charles and Björk . In addition to working as an actress, she has also appeared sporadically in the past as a voice actress and in 2005 was selected by the Danish government to be a member of a cultural canon for the performing arts. In 2006 she advertised as a model for the Danish retail chain Matas . At the end of September 2007, Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark awarded the 33-year-old actress in recognition of her work the Crown Prince Couple Culture Prize ( "Kronprinsparrets Kulturpris" ) endowed with 500,000 Danish kroner (67,000 euros ). In 2008 she was appointed to the jury of the Gothenburg International Film Festival . In 2011 she got involved with other actors like Nikolaj Coster-Waldau , Sofie Gråbøl , Sidse Babett Knudsen , Lars Mikkelsen and Ghita Nørby for the Danish art and culture campaign "Vild med Kunst".

Plays

year	Play (original title)	role	stage
1994	Tell Me On A Sunday	Emma	Aarhus Musical Trup
1994	Jesus Christ superstar	dancer	Det Ny Teater
1997	Anatevka ( Spillemand på en tagryg )	Chava	Odense Teater
1997	City of Angels	Kvartet	Odense Teater
1998/1999	Lulu - sometimes in dreams	Lulu	Odense International Music Theater
1999	Hamlet	Ophelia	Odense Teater
2000	Martin Guerre	Bertrande	Odense Teater
2000	Blod, Håb and Kærlighed	Sofia	Odense Teater
2000	Aladdin	Princess Gulnare	Gladsaxe Teater
2000	Animals in Paradise ( Dyr i Paradis )	Tenna	Det Kongelige Teater
2001	Skyld and skyld	Jeanne	Det Kongelige Teater
2001	Antonius and Cleopatra ( Antonius og Cleopatra )	Octavia	Det Kongelige Teater
2001	Peer Gynt	Solvejg	Det Kongelige Teater
2002	Jesus Christ superstar	Mary Magdalene	Østre Gasværk Teater
2002	Firm	Pia	Mammutteateret
2003	Cabal and love ( Kabale og Kærlighed )	Luise	Det Kongelige Teater
2003	Ivanhoe	Lady Rowena	Det Kongelige Teater
2003/2004	Antigone	Antigone	Det Kongelige Teater
2004	Cabal and love ( Kabale og Kærlighed )	Luise	Det Kongelige Teater
2004	Heaven	Sonja / Rosa	Aveny-T
2005	limbo	Kim	Betty Nansen Teatret
2005	Indenfor Murene	Esther	Det Kongelige Teater
2005	Jorn	Mattie	Aveny-T
2006	Hedda Gabler	Hedda	Betty Nansen Teatret
2006/2007	Blanche and Marie	Blanche	Betty Nansen Teatret
2008	A dream game ( Et drømmespil )	Agnes	Betty Nansen Teatret
2009	Richard III	Lady Anne	Det Kongelige Teater
2011/2012	Fanny and Alexander	Ishmael	Det Kongelige Teater
2012	The Tin Drum ( Bliktrommen )	Agnes / Roswitha	Betty Nansen Teatret

Filmography (selection)

• 2001: Sidste weekend (short film)
• 2002: Unit One - The Specialists ( Rejseholdet , TV series, Episode Assistancemelding A-17/01 )
• 2002: Open Hearts (Elsker dig for evigt)
• 2002: Hotellet (TV series)
• 2003: Zakka West
• 2003: Stealing Rembrandt - Claws for Beginners (Rembrandt)
• 2004: In Your Hands (Forbrydelser)
• 2004: Villa paranoia
• 2005: Opbrud
• 2005: Lille Lise (short film)
• 2005: Ørnen: En krimi-odyssé (TV series)
• 2007: Alien Teacher (Vicars)
• 2007: Performances ( Forestillinger , TV series)
• 2007: Cecilie
• 2008: What nobody knows (Det som ingen ved)
• 2008: Selma (TV movie)
• 2009: Flugten
• 2009: Fri os fra det onde
• 2010: Under the Skin - Dangerous Desires (Kvinden der drønte om en mand)
• 2010: Ond tro
• 2010: Du Er (TV movie)
• 2011: Sons of Norway (Sønner av Norge)
• 2012: Commissioner Lund - The Crime ( Forbrydelsen , TV series)
• 2013: Mercy (Kvinden i buret)
• 2014: When Animals Dream (Når dyrene drømmer)
• 2014: The Homesman
• 2014: Teenland
• 2016: The day will come (Der kommer en dag)
• 2016: Follow the Money ( Bedrag , TV series)
• 2019: German lesson , film adaptation

Awards

Bodil

• 2003: Nominated for Best Actress for Open Hearts
• 2005: Nominated for Best Actress for Villa Paranoia and Best Supporting Actress for In Your Hands
• 2008: nominated for Best Actress for Cecilie
• 2014: Nominated for Best Supporting Actress for Mercy

Robert

• 2003: Nominated for Best Actress for Open Hearts
• 2005: Nominated for Best Actress for Villa Paranoia and Best Supporting Actress for In Your Hands
• 2014: nominated for Best Actress for Mercy

Further

• 2001: Actor Award of the Monte Carlo International Television Festival for Performances
• 2003: Actor Award of the Noir Film Festival for Stealing Rembrandt (Napapijiri Award)
• 2004: Danish “ Shooting Star ” at the Berlin International Film Festival
• 2004: Nomination for the Reumert for Antigone ( Best Actress in a Play)
• 2007: Kronprinsparrets Kulturpris (cultural award of the Danish crown prince couple)

Web links

• Official website (Danish and English)
• Profile in the Dansk film database (Danish)
• Profile at lindbergmanagement.com (English; Microsoft Word document)
• Sonja Richter in the All Movie Guide (English)
• Sonja Richter in the Internet Movie Database (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Morten Duerr: Det er aldrig godt nok. In: Børsen. August 29, 2002.
2. ↑ Nina Oerum: Erfaren i art and theater: benhaard branch. In: Politiken . January 26, 2003, p. 6.
3. ↑ ^{a b c} Profile ( Memento of the original from March 5, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at lindbergmanagement.com (English; Microsoft Word document; accessed on May 4, 2009). 
4. ↑ ^{a b} Christina Zemanova Ekelund: Blomster er kun smukke, fordi de visner. In: Politiken. December 12, 2003, p. 3.
5. ↑ Lovende scene career. In: Politiken. January 4, 2004, p. 3.
6. ↑ Profile on the Shooting Star website of European Film Promotion (English; accessed on May 4, 2009).
7. ↑ Lars Wredstroem: history fleet praestationer i banal. In: Børsen. September 21, 2004.
8. ↑ Rasmus Stroeyer: Teaterkamp: Slagkraftige team soeger Teater X. In: policies. August 21, 2006, p. 2.
9. ↑ Henrik Lyding: Bliktrommen (Betty Nansen Teatret)  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at kpn.dk, February 24, 2012 (accessed March 11, 2012).  
10. ↑ Morten Duerr: Det er aldrig godt nok. In: Børsen. August 29, 2002.
11. ^ Rolf-Rüdiger Hamacher: Open Hearts. In: film service . 26/2002.
12. ↑ Questions of elevation. In: Süddeutsche Zeitung. January 10, 2003, No. 7, p. 14.
13. ↑ Michael Enggaard: Susanne Bier i stjerneregn at jp.dk, September 6, 2002 (Danish; accessed May 5, 2009).
14. ↑ Per Calum: Villa paranoia at jp.dk, March 12, 2004 (Danish; accessed May 5, 2009).
15. ↑ Kim Foss: Forbrydelser at jp.dk, January 22, 2004 (Danish; accessed May 5, 2009).
16. ↑ Profile ( memento from August 1, 2010 in the web archive archive.today ) at dr.dk (Danish; accessed May 4, 2009).
17. ↑ Holger True: TV event on the big screen. In: Hamburger Abendblatt . October 2, 2007, p. 9.
18. ↑ Erik Jensen: Det lille hak i huden. In: Politiken & Politiken Weekly. January 21, 2010 (accessed via LexisNexis Wirtschaft ).
19. ^ Profile in the Dansk film database (Danish; accessed on May 4, 2009).
20. ↑ Karina B. Larsen: Tips fra en skuespiller. In: Børsen. September 13, 2002, Culture.
21. ↑ Michael Enggaard: Kanon med gavmildt islæt at jp.dk, April 22, 2005 (Danish; accessed May 5, 2009).
22. ↑ Kristina E. Young: Modellerne skiftes ud med de kendte. In: Politiken. May 14, 2006, p. 5.
23. ↑ Henrik Palle: Noter: culture. In: Politiken. September 24, 2007, p. 2.
24. ↑ Now there is a desire for art and culture ( Memento of the original from December 15, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at kpn.dk, October 12, 2011 (accessed March 11, 2012).