Flash: Dresden sacks Serge Dorny

In one of the fastest turnarounds and frankest dismissals ever seen in the lumbering opera world, the state of Saxony has sacked Serge Dorny before he could become general manager of the Semper Oper, Dresden.

In a statement terminating his engagement with immediate effect, arts minister Sabine Schorlemer said: ‘I greatly regret we had to take this step…. Unfortunately, he was unable to establish a fruitful, trusting co-existence with the staff, both artistic and administrative. He frittered away good will in no time. To our great disappointment, he has not met the expectations that we had placed in him.’

Full statement here (auf Deutsch).

At his previous jobs with the London Philharmonic and Lyon Opera, the Belgian administrator earned a reputation for secretive and high-handed behaviour. He was due to succeed the well-liked Ulrike Hessler, who died of cancer in July 2012.

UPDATE: Dorny’s future? Second UPDATE: Dorny hits back.