Kurt Weill

Kurt Weill was a German-American composer, conductor, and pedagogue whose avant-garde operatic works redefined musical theatre in the twentieth century. A Berlin University of the Arts graduate, he collaborated with librettist Bertolt Brecht on landmark productions including *The Threepenny Opera* and *Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny*, establishing a distinctive idiom blending popular music with modernist technique. His later Broadway work *Street Scene* earned the Tony Award for Best Original Score, while his contributions to film scoring and theatrical innovation were recognized with the Drama Desk Award and National Medal of Science. Weill's career spanned Germany and the United States until his death in 1950.