Katja Bürkle studied acting at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Stuttgart from 1997 to 2001. She received her first permanent contract at the Staatstheater Stuttgart in 2000. From 2008 to 2017, she was an ensemble member at the Münchner Kammerspiele, where she appeared in numerous award-winning productions, including the world premiere of Elfriede Jelinek's RECHNITZ, directed by Jossi Wieler. She has worked with René Pollesch, Karin Henkel, Julien Gosselin, Johan Simons, Lola Arías, Roger Vontobel, Sebastian Nübling, Gob Squad, Kristian Smeds and Tian Gebing. After a season at Residenztheater München, she has been working as a freelance actress since 2018, with engagements at Volksbühne Berlin, Deutsches Theater Berlin, Wiener Burgtheater and Salzburger Festspiele, among others.
In 2018, she won Best Actress at the 36th Fadrj International Theatre Festival in Tehran for her performance in HAMLET, directed by Christopher Rüping, and was nominated for the FAUST Prize for her portrayal of Franz Moor in Ulrich Rasche's production of DIE RÄUBER.
Katja Bürkle regularly performs in front of the camera: in 2023, Ayse Polat's drama IM TOTEN WINKEL premiered at the Berlinale, with Bürkle in the lead role as a documentary filmmaker. The film won numerous awards in 2024, including the German Film Award for Best Screenplay, Best Director and the Bronze Award for Best Film.
She recently appeared in the award-winning ARD series ODERBRUCH, directed by Christian Alvart and Adolfo Komerer.
Katja Bürkle also works as a narrator for audio books, radio productions and documentaries.