Peter Kurth, born April 4, 1957, in Güstrow, attended Staatliche Schauspielschule Rostock from 1978 to 1981. From 1981 to 1984, he was a cast member of Theater für junge Leute in Magdeburg. He subsequently performed at Theater der Altmark in Stendal until 1988, before he went to Städtisches Theater Karl-Marx-Stadt, later Chemnitz where he stayed until 1997. From 1997 to 2000, Kurth was a cast member of Schauspiel Leipzig. Since 2000, he is a member of the cast of Hamburg"s Thalia Theater. Furthermore, Kurth is the head of academic year for acting at Schauspielschule Leipzig. In 2004, Kurth received the Rita Tanck Glaser award.

In recent years, Kurth also appeared in numerous roles in TV productions, for instance in the TV series "Tatort", "Großstadtrevier", and "Schimanski". Kurth entered the movie screen, for instance, in "Wolfsburg" and in "Gespenster" ("Ghosts"), both directed by Christian Petzold, in Nicolai Rohde"s "Zwischen Nacht und Tag" ("Between Night and Day"), or in Till Endemann"s "Kometen" ("Comets") and "Das Lächeln der Tiefseefische" ("The Smile of the Monsterfish"). In "Hallesche Kometen", directed by Susanne Irina Zacharias, he made a memorable performance as a father who is despaired about his life.