Born on 16 October 1954 in East Germany, Corinna Harfouch is one of the most recognized German actresses. Whether in film, television or theatre, she captivates audiences with her versatility, depth and passion. She has been honored several times for her performances, by the German Film Awards, the German Actor Award, the Bavarian Film Prize and the Berlinale. She worked for a time as a nurse before starting her acting career at the age of 23. Her first husband was a Syrian scientist named Nabil Harfouch, with whom she had a daughter. In 1985, she married Michael Gwisdek with whom she had two sons, Johannes and Robert, the musician Johannes Gwisdek and the actor Robert Gwisdek, but she kept the family name of her first husband. Her career in television and film began in the 1980s. By the end of 2019, Corinna Harfouch had appeared in no less than 109 films and TV productions. In the early 1990s she worked on all the stages in Berlin. Her performance as Magda Goebbels in “Downfall” directed by Oliver Hirschbegel (2004) also earned her critical acclaim and another nomination at the German Film Awards. Lara, the toxic mother of a pianist and classical composer in Jan-Ole Gerster’s eponymous film, earned her the same treatment in 2019. Corinna Harfouch has continued to perform on all the major German-speaking stages. Her appearance with Ulrich Matthes in Edward Albee’s play “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? directed by Jürgen Gosch was a highlight of her career. Since 2008, Corinna has also performed regularly at the Deutsches Theater, notably in the classical tragedy “Phaedra”, directed by Stephan Kimming, and in the adaptation of Ingmar Bergman’s “Persona”, directed by Anna Bergmann.