Ulrike Schumann, born in Dresden, studied dramaturgy at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater »Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy« in Leipzig. Engagements at the Theater Bonn, where she took over as head of opera dramaturgy in 2010, and as head music theatre dramaturg at the Theater Osnabrück followed. She was also engaged as guest dramaturge at the Schwetzingen SWR Festival in 2011 and for »Polifemo« in 2012/13 as part of the baroque festival »Winter in Schwetzingen«. At the beginning of the 2018/19 season, she took over the opera direction of the Heidelberg Theatre and Orchestra together with Thomas Böckstiegel.
Ulrike Schumann wrote libretti and scenic texts for Ludger Vollmer's cantata »Clara!«, a commissioned work for the 200th birthday of Clara Schumann in 2019, for the semi-staged performance of Beethoven's »Fidelio« (monologue Rocco) at the Theater Heidelberg, for Reinhard Keiser's »Ulysses« (winter in Schwetzingen 2022/23) and for Karola Obermüller's music theatre »Gerade sein und Mensch werden: Sophie Scholl« (premiere 2021).
Ulrike Schumann has been invited to speak on many occasions and has received teaching assignments for dramaturgy at the University of Koblenz/Landau, the University of Bonn and the University of Osnabrück. In 2006 she was a scholarship holder of the Richard Wagner Association Bonn/Siegburg.