Marcel Leemann, born in Zurich in 1969, began his career as a carpenter before training as a dancer in Zurich, Stuttgart, and Budapest at the age of 18. As a member of renowned ensembles, including the Semperoper Dresden, the Lucerne Theatre, and the Bern Theatres, he gained extensive stage experience as a dancer.

Subsequently, Leemann established himself as a freelance choreographer, dancer, and theatre director, as well as a dance and theatre educator. With his own ensemble, the "Marcel Leemann Physical Dance Theatre," he toured regularly both in Switzerland and internationally, producing original dance works.

In addition, he created choreographies and directed productions in the fields of dance, musical theatre, opera, operetta, and theatre at renowned theatres in Switzerland and abroad. His career has included engagements at the Lucerne Theatre, the Bern Theatres, the St. Gallen Theatre, the Oldenburg State Theatre, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Magdeburg Theatre, the Karlsruhe State Theatre, and the United Stages of Bolzano. Leemann was deeply committed to working with young people and, in collaboration with the Young Stage Bern, where he was co-director, and his label "Youngster and Sprungbrett" (Youngster and Springboard), created numerous dance and theatre pieces for and with young people.

As director of the Physical Days Bern festival, Leemann consistently brought emerging dance teachers and choreographers to Bern, thus significantly shaping the city's dance scene.

Since September 2023, Marcel Leemann has been co-director of dance at the Tyrolean State Theatre in Innsbruck.