“The Masked Dancer”: Ute Lemper was the firefly

“The Masked Dancer”
“It was very exhausting”: Ute Lemper exposed as a firefly

A firefly becomes a flash in the pan unintentionally: the internationally renowned actress and singer Ute Lemper was the first celebrity to drop out of the new ProSieben show “The Masked Dancer”. Quite surprisingly, the 58-year-old was exposed in the opening episode of the puzzle show, in which celebrities dance and hide their true identity under lavish disguise. “How did you convince me to do such a thing. It was an unbelievable experience, but also very exhausting. 15 kilos on the back, 20 kilos on the bottom,” said Lemper. She is very happy not to have to dance in the heavy costume again in the coming week.

Nobody had suspected that the musical performer (“Cats”, “Chicago”) and world-class chanson singer could be there. As it turned out, Lemper was dressed in a dazzling firefly costume with big eyes, sweeping wings and tooth gaps. She had to take off the dress because the dancing animal received too few votes from the audience.

Lemper then commented on her capabilities with a good dose of understatement. “I thought my dancing days were actually over,” she said. The show made her train again – including dancing in the living room. During the Christmas season, the Christmas tree almost fell over. “I’m happy, the bones weren’t cracked,” said Lemper. Her conclusion: “I still have a little inside me.”

“The Masked Dancer”: Steven Gätjen guessed Palina Rojinski

That was an understatement because the firefly performed a very elegant dance to the song “XO” by US star Beyoncé. Nobody guessed Lemper. Steven Gätjen, who sits on the show’s advice team, suspected presenter and actress Palina Rojinski was under the mask. His colleague Ruth Moschner guessed actress Maria Furtwängler and after the unveiling was done. “I’m completely in love with shock,” she said.

Lemper was born in Münster, but has lived in the USA since the 90s. As Grizabella in the musical “Cats” she celebrated her first triumphs in Vienna – at the time she was just 20. She was also internationally known for roles in “Cabaret” and “Chicago”. With a lascivious voice and a demanding program, she also became a chanson star.

Thanks to Lemper, “The Masked Dancer” came up with a surprise in the first episode – and that’s what the show idea, which is an offshoot of “The Masked Singer”, lives from. In the original, celebrities sing in opulent costumes. Above all, their voices give clues as to who might be under the mask. In the spin-off there is no singing, but dancing.

Is Jörg Pilawa in a sheep costume?

One can already say: The focus on movement makes unmasking more difficult rather than easier. This could be read off at the start of a cascade of tips of the most varied colors, which the advice team reported – including the theory that model Heidi Klum could be in a mouse costume. Also included are a dancing colored pencil, a monkey, a muscular superhero called Maximum Power, a latently stupid-looking sheep and a kind of mop that ProSieben christened Zottel.

What is new is that the guessing team now has jokers in hand. With these, certain circumstantial evidence can be examined more closely and – even more revealing – small audio snippets of the original voice of the costumed celebrity can be heard. The word “good”, for example, brought in in this way led to the strong assumption that the presenter Jörg Pilawa could dance in a sheep costume. A word had also been heard from Ute Lemper as the firefly – but this did not lead to her exposure. However, Steven Gätjen stated that it was a “sexy voice”.

There are now three more episodes planned. Like the original, the spin-off will be moderated by Matthias Opdenhövel. Although this one also knew how to surprise: he entered the stage with a beard. “The Masked Dancer” is just a new show. Even if it is just nuances.

Jonas-Erik Schmidt / DPA