Henning Baum was born in Essen in 1972. In 1979 he began attending the Waldorf school there. There he also played his first theatre roles and discovered his passion for acting. In 1992 he graduated from the Waldorf school after obtaining his Abitur and performed alternative civilian service in order to train as a paramedic. From 1994 to 1997 he studied acting at the Westphalian Theatre School in Bochum. During this time he also first performed at the Schauspielhaus Bochum.