Renita Kramer – Signed Studio Portrait, Deutsches Theater München, 1939 Folies Bergère / London Palladium speciality dancer – Varieté‑Festspiele – Baumgarten reopening

A large‑format original 1939 sepia studio portrait of Renita Kramer, the international speciality dancer whose expressive and costume‑driven acts appeared in major European revue houses including the London Palladium, London Hippodrome (Folies Bergère), and the Deutsches Theater, Munich. Boldly signed in ink:

“To Claude all best wishes! Renita Kramer Munchen 1939 Deutsches Theater”

This photograph was produced in the first weeks after the theatre’s grand reopening on 14 July 1939, following the complete auditorium redesign by architect Paul Baumgarten (senior). The reopening formed part of the Münchener Festsommer and the Nazi‑era Tag der Deutschen Kunst festival, during which the theatre launched its Varieté‑Festspiele – a prestige programme mixing international speciality acts, modern dance, and revue spectacle.

Kramer’s career extended far beyond Munich. A contemporary newspaper clipping shows her performing a novelty ostrich act at the London Hippodrome, billed as “Renita Kramer of Estonia,” a typical stage‑nationality flourish used in 1930s variety. Her speciality routines at the London Palladium (1934–35) directly influenced the later half‑and‑half act of performer José Street, who adopted elements of Kramer’s style. Around 1938–39, José and her husband Lee Street even took over Kramer’s contract when Kramer was briefly suspected of being a German spy — a common suspicion for touring German performers in the tense pre‑war climate. This confirms Kramer’s position within the international revue circuit, and aligns precisely with her documented appearances at the Folies Bergère and the Deutsches Theater during the 1939 Varieté‑Festspiele.

Her public profile at this moment is further confirmed by her front‑cover appearance in PIC Magazine (13 June 1939), demonstrating her status as a promotable performer within European variety.

Large‑format studio print: 150 × 160 mm. Substantially larger than the usual postcard‑sized dance portraits of the period, indicating professional publicity use (lobby display / press distribution).

A historically significant piece from the 1939 Varieté‑Festspiele period, tied directly to the Baumgarten redesign and Kramer’s international speciality‑dance career.

A fine addition to any collection of German theatre, Folies Bergère, Ausdruckstanz, or pre‑war variety ephemera.

Provenance: 

One of c.2,500+ items once from the collection or dealer stock of Winifred A Myers (Autographs) Ltd, St Martins Lane, London, evidenced by the quantity of Myers pre-printed envelopes and paper folders and the general ‘presentation’ of the items, many having Myers identification notes in pencil. 

Winifred Alice Myers (1909 – 1985) served as ABA (Antiquarian Booksellers Assoc) president, 1950-1952. See the ABA website for an extended article on Myers. Myers left her business, in 1985, to Ruth Shepherd, who traded from home until 2004. 

Renita Kramer (c.1910s – after 1962) was an Estonian‑billed speciality dancer who worked major European revue houses including the London Palladium (1934–35), the Folies Bergère at the London Hippodrome, and the Deutsches Theater München during its 1939 Varieté‑Festspiele reopening. Known for expressive, costume‑driven novelty acts (including her celebrated ostrich routine), she toured widely across Europe and later held small film roles in The Tars (1934), She Knows Y’Know (1956), and Det gamla marknadstältet (1962).