Birte Schrein was born in Lübeck (Germany) and grew up in Heidenheim an der Brenz on the Swabian Alp. She studied German and history at the University of Graz and acting at the Mozarteum University of Performing Arts and Music in Salzburg. She has been a permanent ensemble member at the Theater Bonn since 1995. Guest engagements have taken her to the Salzburg Festival, Schauspiel Frankfurt, Staatstheater Wiesbaden and the Goethe Institute in Santiago de Chile.

Birte Schrein has worked for several years with well-known US playwright Neil LaBute, who wrote several plays for her that premiered in Bonn to international acclaim, including »Helter Skelter« and »The Great War«. On several occasions she collaborated with her husband, the playwright Lothar Kittstein, for the Theater Bonn – among others, the plays »Böses Mädchen« and »Schatten::Frau«, where she starred as Hannelore Kohl. Together they have translated several plays from English into German (Richard Dresser, Jenny Schwartz, Neil LaBute).

Birte Schrein has been awarded the NRW Young Actress Award and the Bonn Theater Prize Thespis, among other prizes. In addition to her engagement, she has been active for many years as an acting lecturer and coach for children and young adults.

Starting in October 2023, she will be seen again in Bonn – among other roles – as Amanda in »Glass Menagerie« by Tennessee Williams. She is also known for appearances in radio plays and features as well as on television, such as »Mord mit Aussicht«. Starting in September, she will be seen in the Netflix series »Liebes Kind«, based on the novel of the same name by Romy Hausmann.