Articles and news related to the Brecht and Weill program

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Publication: EINPresswire
By: Andrew Gesner
Date: March 18, 2025

Musical Theatre Icon Ute Lemper releases her reimagined take of “Mack The Knife”

ROSELLE PARK, NJ, GERMANY, March 18, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ — Everybody knows the tune. But not everyone realizes the meaning that animates the song. “Mack the Knife” is one of the true standards of International pop and jazz — a song with an instantly recognizable melody, an intoxicating sway, and an undercurrent of thrilling menace. It’s also a broadside against the powers, an examination of corruption, and a warning shot directed toward the rich and powerful. Composer Kurt Weill and lyricist Bertolt Brecht were two of the original dissidents in international popular culture, and they poured their critique of manners and money-worship into The Threepenny Opera, their staggeringly influential 1928 musical. Louis Armstrong and Bobby Darin have recorded the tale of the murderous Macheath; Jim Morrison used to turn to it when he wanted to add a little extra drama to his dangerous performances. Now, it’s been cut by one of the first voices of musical theater: the incomparable Ute Lemper.

The new version of “Mack the Knife” is the introductory track on Pirate Jenny, a full-length tribute to the music of Kurt Weill that includes plenty of words by Bertold Brecht, too. The collection of groundbreaking songs gives Lemper plenty of latitude to do what she does best — dazzle audiences with her interpretive singing, nuanced understanding of character, and musical daring. In a sense, she’s carried Brecht and Weill with her throughout her career: she’s brought their incisive sensibility to all of her roles, especially her famous turn as Sally Bowles in Cabaret, a show filled with musical and lyrical allusions to The Threepenny Opera. For many longtime listeners, Pirate Jenny will sound like a homecoming.

At the same time, Lemper’s take on “Mack the Knife” is a radical one, informed by contemporary trends and current events. She reconstructs the harmonic underpinnings of the song and introduces a beat that alludes to trip-hop and experimental pop. Lemper also fully inhabits the character, emphasizing Macheath’s amorality, his restlessness, and his bloodlust. In a clip she directed herself, she takes on the role of the killer, fitting herself with reflective sunglasses and drifting through a slumbering New York City. Her Macheath sails straight past the banks and the police cars — symbols of authority — intent as she is on a mission that has taken on chilling vengeful overtones. Lemper interspersed clips from her celebrated 1990 performance of “Bouffes Du Nord.” It is, simultaneously, a reminder of her stellar history, where she’s going, and who she has always been.

More Ute Lemper at HIP Video Promo
More Ute Lemper on her website
More Ute Lemper on Instagram

Andrew Gesner
HIP Video Promo
+1 732-613-1779
info@hipvideopromo.com

Click here to read he article on EINPresswire’s site

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Publication: Crossover Media
Date: March 7,2025

Ute Lemper – ‘Mack The Knife’ from Pirate Jenny
(featured as one of the Top 10 albums for March 5, 2025 on the Crossover Media home page)
The Audiophile Society
Release Date: April 25, 2025

In honor of revolutionary composer Kurt Weill’s 125th birthday this year, acclaimed singer & actress Ute Lemper today announced her new album, Pirate Jenny, out April 25 via The Audiophile Society. Nearly 40 years after her breakthrough album Ute Lemper Sings Kurt Weill, she now presents fresh, electric reimaginings of Weill’s songs, whose critiques of societal injustices and corruption still ring true today.

Her first single “Mack the Knife” will be out on March 2nd, on Weill’s 125th birthday, followed by “Speak Low” from One Touch of Venus and “Pirate Jenny” from his work with Bertolt Brecht on The Threepenny Opera – full tracklist below. Sultry vocals and atmospheric beats are brought to life with The Audiophile Society’s immersive Mega-Dimensional Sound™, transporting longtime fans and new listeners alike to a smoky Berlin jazz club outside of time, reminiscent of Lemper’s award-winning roles as Cabaret’s Sally Bowles in Paris and Chicago’s Velma Kelly in New York and London.

“This project is about creating a new audience for Kurt Weill,” says Lemper. “By blending his timeless melodies with a groove. I’m opening the door for younger listeners who might not know his work. It’s about building a bridge between eras, where Weimar meets the club.”

Lemper will perform some of Weill’s eternal classics live at 54 Below on Tuesday, May 27, and Thursday, May 29 – tickets here.

A Billboard Crossover Artist of the Year, Lemper has reimagined icons like Marlene Dietrich (Rendezvous with Marlene is based on a three-hour phone call between Dietrich and Lemper), Edith Piaf and Jacques Brel, alongside more modern collaborations with artists like Tom Waits, Nick Cave, Elvis Costello, and Roger Waters (The Wall: Live in Berlin, 1990).

Pirate Jenny isn’t just a revival—it’s a reinvention. Whether you’re a fan of cabaret, a lover of jazz, or someone who lives for groove, this album promises a fresh perspective on music that has shaped generations.

Tracklisting:

1. Moritat of Mack the Knife
2. Speak Low
3. Surabaya Johnny
4. My Ship
5. Pirate Jenny
6Le Grand Lustucru
7. Ballade vom Ertrunkenen Ma¨dchen
8. Salomon-Song
Click here to see Crossfire Media’s post online.

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Publication : Publicnow.com
By : Shorefire Media Inc
Date : 03/03/2025

Acclaimed Singer & Actress Ute Lemper Releases “Mack The Knife” from New Album Pirate Jenny, celebrating Revolutionary Composer Kurt Weill’s 125th Birthday

Out April 25

“Fierce, multilingual chanteuse Ute Lemper” – The New York Times

“She may channel the likes of Dietrich and Piaf, with a strong sense of Jean Ross, but Lemper is still very much her own woman” – The Guardian

“A chanteuse of unique range and ability across all media” – The Washington Post

“It’s about building a bridge between eras, where Weimar meets the club.”

– Ute Lemper on Pirate Jenny

March 3, 2025 – To celebrate revolutionary composerKurt Weill’s 125th birthday on March 2, acclaimed singer & actress Ute Lemper released “Mack the Knife,” the new single & video from her album Pirate Jenny , out April 25via The Audiophile Society.

Composed by Kurt Weill with the lyrics of Bertolt Brecht in 1928, the song originally appeared in The Threepenny Opera, brimming with satirical critiques of societal injustices and corruption that still resonate today. Lemper embodies the charming yet ruthless criminal Macheath, who evades justice despite his violent actions. In the video, Lemper embodies various personas – the young, the old, the jester, the murderer – running loose in New York City.

“Mack the Knife”: Watch / Listen

Since 1985, from experimental theaters in West Berlin to Carnegie Hall, Lemper has been singing the songs of Jewish composers from the Weimar era, who were banned and persecuted by Nazis. She notes that Brecht and Weill’s works remain as relevant today: “Exotic characters fight for survival, rising from the ashes of racism, disadvantage, and neglect-stories that feel strikingly contemporary.”

Lemper will release more singles from the album, including title track “Pirate Jenny” (a revolt against the ruling party of the rich) from The Threepenny Opera and “Speak Low” from One Touch of Venus – full tracklist below. Sultry vocals and atmospheric beats are brought to life with The Audiophile Society’s immersive Mega-Dimensional Sound™, transporting longtime fans and new listeners alike to a smoky Berlin jazz club outside of time, reminiscent of Lemper’s award-winning roles as Cabaret’sSally Bowles in Paris and Chicago’sVelma Kelly in New York and London.

“This project is about creating a new audience for Kurt Weill,” says Lemper.“By blending his timeless melodies with a groove. I’m opening the door for younger listeners who might not know his work. It’s about building a bridge between eras, where Weimar meets the club.”

ABillboard Crossover Artist of the Year, Lemper has reimagined icons like Marlene Dietrich (Rendezvous with Marlene is based on a three-hour phone call between Dietrich and Lemper), Edith Piaf and Jacques Brel, alongside more modern collaborations with artists likeTom Waits, Nick Cave, Elvis Costello, andRoger Waters (The Wall: Live in Berlin, 1990).

Lemper will perform some of Weill’s eternal classics live at 54 Below on Tuesday, May 27, and Thursday, May 29 – tickets here .

Track List

Mack the Knife

Lyrics: Bertolt Brecht / Music: Kurt Weill
The Threepenny Opera
English adaptation by Marc Blitzstein

Speak Low
Lyrics: Ogden Nash / Music: Kurt Weill
One Touch of Venus

Surabaya Johnny
Lyrics: Bertolt Brecht / Music: Kurt Weill
Happy End
English adaptation by Marc Blitzstein

My Ship
Lyrics: Ira Gershwin / Music: Kurt Weill
Lady in the Dark

Pirate Jenny
Lyrics: Bertolt Brecht / Music: Kurt Weill
The Threepenny Opera
English adaptation by Marc Blitzstein

Le Grand Lustucru
Lyrics: Jacques Deval / Music: Kurt Weill
Marie Galante

Ballade vom Ertrunkenen Mädchen
Lyrics: Bertolt Brecht / Music: Kurt Weill
The Flight of Lindbergh

The Salomon Song
Lyrics: Bertolt Brecht / Music: Kurt Weill
The Threepenny Opera

Photo Credit: Jim Rackete

About Ute Lemper:

Ute Lemper’s decades-long career spans stage, film, and music, with over 30 recordings. Renowned for her interpretations of Berlin Cabaret, Kurt Weill, Brecht, and chanson legends like Marlene Dietrich and Edith Piaf, she has also starred in major musicals across Broadway, the West End, Paris, and Berlin. She won the American Theater World Award and the Laurence Olivier Award for her performance asChicago’sVelma Kelly in the West End and on Broadway, the Molière Award for her performance as Cabaret’s Sally Bowles in Paris, among others, and earned Grammy nominations.

Her global tours feature diverse projects, including Rendezvous with Marlene, Songs for Eternity, and tributes to Piazzolla and Brecht. She has composed music inspired by Bukowski, Neruda, and Coelho and released a bestselling autobiography in 2023. She released her self-penned and contemporaryalbum Time Traveler just last year. Singing in five languages, she continues to perform worldwide. A longtime New York resident, she lives there with her family and four children.

About The Audiophile Society:

The Audiophile Society is the brainchild of composer, pianist, and audio pioneer David Chesky. The new label will focus on bringing even more realistic three-dimensional recordings to market with their Mega-Dimensional Sound™, The Audiophile Society’s name for their unique two-channel 3D audio that can play on all existing two-channel stereo while showcasing emerging artists working in a multitude of genres. The ultimate goal of The Audiophile Society is to change the way you hear music.

Read the original article on public now.com here.

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Publication : BroadwayWorld
By :
Date : Mar. 03, 2025

Photo by: Jim Rackete

To celebrate revolutionary composer Kurt Weill’s 125th birthday on March 2, acclaimed singer & actress Ute Lemper has released “Mack the Knife,” the new single from her album Pirate Jenny, out April 25 via The Audiophile Society.

Composed by Kurt Weill with the lyrics of Bertolt Brecht in 1928, the song originally appeared in The Threepenny Opera, brimming with satirical critiques of societal injustices and corruption that still resonate today. Lemper embodies the charming yet ruthless criminal Macheath, who evades justice despite his violent actions. In the video, Lemper embodies various personas – the young, the old, the jester, the murderer – running loose in New York City.

Since 1985, from experimental theaters in West Berlin to Carnegie Hall, Lemper has been singing the songs of Jewish composers from the Weimar era, who were banned and persecuted by Nazis. She notes that Brecht and Weill’s works remain as relevant today: “Exotic characters fight for survival, rising from the ashes of racism, disadvantage, and neglect—stories that feel strikingly contemporary.”

Lemper will release more singles from the album, including title track “Pirate Jenny” (a revolt against the ruling party of the rich) from The Threepenny Opera and “Speak Low” from One Touch of Venus – full tracklist below. Sultry vocals and atmospheric beats are brought to life with The Audiophile Society’s immersive Mega-Dimensional Sound™, transporting longtime fans and new listeners alike to a smoky Berlin jazz club outside of time, reminiscent of Lemper’s award-winning roles as Cabaret’s Sally Bowles in Paris and Chicago’s Velma Kelly in New York and London.

“This project is about creating a new audience for Kurt Weill,” says Lemper. “By blending his timeless melodies with a groove. I’m opening the door for younger listeners who might not know his work. It’s about building a bridge between eras, where Weimar meets the club.”

A Billboard Crossover Artist of the Year, Lemper has reimagined icons like Marlene Dietrich (Rendezvous with Marlene is based on a three-hour phone call between Dietrich and Lemper), Edith Piaf and Jacques Brel, alongside more modern collaborations with artists like Tom Waits, Nick Cave, Elvis Costello, and Roger Waters (The Wall: Live in Berlin, 1990).

Lemper will perform some of Weill’s eternal classics live at 54 Below on Tuesday, May 27, and Thursday, May 29 – tickets here.

About Ute Lemper:

Ute Lemper’s decades-long career spans stage, film, and music, with over 30 recordings. Renowned for her interpretations of Berlin Cabaret, Kurt Weill, Brecht, and chanson legends like Marlene Dietrich and Edith Piaf, she has also starred in major musicals across Broadway, the West End, Paris, and Berlin. She won the American Theater World Award and the Laurence Olivier Award for her performance as Chicago’s Velma Kelly in the West End and on Broadway, the Molière Award for her performance as Cabaret’s Sally Bowles in Paris, among others, and earned Grammy nominations.

Her global tours feature diverse projects, including Rendezvous with Marlene, Songs for Eternity, and tributes to Piazzolla and Brecht. She has composed music inspired by Bukowski, Neruda, and Coelho and released a bestselling autobiography in 2023. She released her self-penned and contemporary album Time Traveler just last year. Singing in five languages, she continues to perform worldwide. A longtime New York resident, she lives there with her family and four children.

Read the original article online and listen to the new single here.