Dresden names new chief
NewsThe Semper Oper has moved swiftly to repair its management upheaval after the departure of intendant Peter Theiler and conductor Christian Thieleman.
The next intendant will be Nora Schmid, presently at Oper Graz.
A Swiss national, Schmid, 42, was formerly dramaturg at the Semper and knows the house well.
Now for the conducting vacancy…
This sounds good. I am no only hopeful, but optimistic!
Believe me: no reason at all. Her years in Graz were at best unremarkable. Her appointment is for Dresden just another step to further provincialization.
I strongly disagree with Hermann Lederer.
Nora Schmid’s six year tenure in Graz was anything but ‘unremarkable’.
Her innovative repertoire planning included Szymanowski’s masterpiece ‘Król Roger’ (for only the second time in Austria) and the Austrian premiere of Piazzolla’s fascinating tango opera ‘Maria de Buenos Aires ‘ which was imaginatively staged in the semi al fresco Schloßbergbühne auf den Kasematten.
Bernd Mottl’s hilarious production of ‘Il Viaggio a Reims’ was in all respects outstanding.
Intendantin Schmid also has the prescient ability to discern new talent and championed such artists as Oksana Lyniv, Anna Brull, Sonja Šarić, Dhasmila Kaiser and Johanni van Oostrum whose Salome, despite Florentine Klepper’s irritating production, was an absolute triumph.
In 2018 Oper Graz was nominated for best opera house in the International Opera Awards, only losing out to vastly better funded Bayerische Staatsoper.
By virtue of her affable and collegiate personality, Madame Schmid was also able to instil an extremely convivial company spirit at Oper Graz,
exemplified by the genuine bonhomie evident at each post-prima party in the mezzanine foyer.
Much of Schmid’s success was in collaboration with her extremely knowledgeable dramaturg Jörg Rieker. Whether he will also leave the languid Fluss Mur for the more exciting shores of the Elbe remains to be seen.
In any case, Graz’s loss is unquestionably Dresden’s gain.
“Now for the conducting vacancy” – Here’s a blunt and brutal guess: Oksana Lyniv (?) – She’s by the way free now, having left Graz.