Rosa Valetti, born Rosa Alice Vallentin, was the daughter of industrialist Felix Vallentin and his wife Bertha. Her brother, Hermann Vallentin, was an actor who emigrated to Mandatory Palestine.
Rosa Valetti began her career on the Berlin stage, later moving to Paris, Brussels, and Vienna. During World War I, she worked with her first husband, Ludwig Roth, at the Residenz-Theater in Berlin. She also worked as a director and actress in numerous theaters.
A meeting with Kurt Tucholsky led to an opportunity to work in cabaret, initially at "Schall und Rauch." Valetti produced her own cabaret shows, including "Café Grössenwahn" in 1920, "Die Rampe" in 1922, and "Comedia Valetti" in 1923.
Valetti performed in many cabarets across Europe and appeared in the premiere of "Die Dreigroschenoper" ("The Three Penny Opera"). Throughout her career, she acted in over 40 films, including the 1930 film "Der Blaue Engel" ("The Blue Angel") alongside Marlene Dietrich.
In 1933, Valetti left Nazi Germany for Vienna, where she worked at the Theater an der Josefstadt until 1935. She made guest appearances in Prague, Czechoslovakia, before returning to Berlin in 1934 and eventually moving to Palestine in 1936.
Tragically, Valetti died in Vienna in 1937. Her only child, daughter Elisabeth, also an actress known as Lisl Valetti, emigrated to the United States.
