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Hans Neuenfels | |
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 Hans Neuenfels in 2006 | |
| Born | (1941-05-31)31 May 1941 |
| Died | 6 February 2022(2022-02-06) (aged 80) Berlin, Germany |
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| Spouse | Elisabeth Trissenaar |
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Hans Neuenfels (German pronunciation:[hansˈnɔʏənfɛls]; 31 May 1941 – 6 February 2022) was a German writer, poet, film producer,librettist, theatre director, opera director and theatre manager. As a director, he first focused on drama, staged at prominent houses such as the ViennaBurgtheater, and became a leading exponent of GermanRegietheater. From 1974, he turned to opera, looking for "the subliminal of the music and the interlinear of the texts", for "surprisingly new, sometimes even disturbingly ambivalent perspectives on the works".[1]
Some of his opera productions caused controversies, such as Verdi'sAida at theOper Frankfurt in 1980 where he staged the title character as a contemporary cleaning lady. In Mozart'sIdomeneo at theDeutsche Oper Berlin in 2006, hewas accused of offending Islam, and in Wagner'sLohengrin at theBayreuth Festival in 2010, he dressed the choir as laboratory rats. He received theDer Faust award for his life's achievements in 2016, and is regarded as one of the most inventive directors of his generation.[1]
Born inKrefeld,[2] Neuenfels published prose and poetry already as a young man. He was influenced by meetingMax Ernst,[3] for whom he served as secretary.[1]
He studied drama and directing at theFolkwang Hochschule in Essen from 1961 to 1964,[4] and at theMax Reinhardt Seminar in Vienna in the 1960s,[3][5] where he met his future wife, actressElisabeth Trissenaar. He worked in Heidelberg, Darmstadt, Basel, Cologne, and from 1972 at theSchauspiel Frankfurt,[6][7] where he shaped the company's theatre in codetermination (Mitbestimmungstheater) together with intendantPeter Palitzsch.[3]
In the 1970s he established himself as a leading exponent of GermanRegietheater.[8][9] Being invited to prominent venues, such as theBurgtheater,[6][10] his productions were often controversially received. He worked with well-known actors includingKlaus Maria Brandauer andAnne Bennent [de], directing KleistsPenthesilea at theSchillertheater in Berlin, with Trissenaar in the title role, and Shakespeare'sEin Sommernachtstraum withBernhard Minetti also there. At the Burgtheater, he directed Kleist'sDas Käthchen von Heilbronn, and at theSchauspielhaus Zürich Wedekind'sLulu.[6] From 1986 to 1990, Neuenfels was general manager at theVolksbühne Berlin.[7]
In 1974, the first opera directed by Neuenfels was Verdi'sIl trovatore at theStaatstheater Nürnberg. It showed already his specific view on works of the standard repertoire: "tracing the subliminal of the music and the interlinear of the texts and thus often opening surprisingly new, sometimes even disturbingly ambivalent perspectives" ("... die dem Unterschwelligen der Musik und dem Zwischenzeiligen der Texte nachspürte und so oft überraschend neue, ja zuweilen verstörend ambivalente Perspektiven auf die Werke eröffnete").[1] His opera productions were often accompanied by heated discussions and scandals. When Schreker'sDie Gezeichneten was revived at theOper Frankfurt, conducted byMichael Gielen, he staged it as "drug intoxication, with heroin syringe in the station toilet" ("Drogenrausch mit Heroinspritze auf der Bahnhofstoilette").[6] In Verdi'sAida there in 1980, he portrayed the Ethiopian slave as a cleaning woman in a contemporary setting,[1][11][12] going for what he called an archaeology of the unconscious ("Archäologie des Unbewussten"). His 1998 production of Mozart'sDie Entführung aus dem Serail at theStaatsoper Stuttgart was awarded theBavarian Theatre Prize [de].[1]
Neuenfels directed at theSalzburg Festival first in 2000, Mozart'sCosì fan tutte. ThesopranoKarita Mattila, portraying Fiordiligi, criticised him for sexually explicit interpretation and too little focus on the singers:[13][14][15] in a prologue, huge insects and background videos, some of them erotic, distracted attention from the singers, and during Fiordiligi's aria "Come scoglio", Mattila arrived onstage walking two men, in leather and chains, as if they were dogs.[16] She called that the worst experience and said she believed Neuenfels had crossed the line.[17]
When he returned to the festival forDie Fledermaus by Johann Strauss the following year, he provoked again angry reactions and resentment.[18]
In December 2003, his production of Mozart'sIdomeneo at theDeutsche Oper Berlin included a scene in which the title character staggers on stage carrying the severed heads of Neptune, Jesus and Buddha.[6][19] When the production was planned to be repeated in September 2006, then adding the head ofMuhammad,the police warned that it might present a security risk, and the opera house cancelled the performances.[20][21] Following protests that the opera house was engaging in self-censorship, its manager,Kirsten Harms, rescheduled those performances for December that year.[22]
Neuenfels directed at theBayreuth Festival first in 2010 with Wagner'sLohengrin, conducted byAndris Nelsons. This production set the opera in a laboratory and featured chorus members costumed as lab rats.[9][23] The audience reaction at the premiere ranged from enthusiastic applause to irate booing.[24] According toDer Spiegel, Neuenfels merely smiled and shrugged after taking his curtain calls.[24] The same year, he directed Simon Mayr'sMedea, a neglected opera.[1][10]
On 31 January 2016, he directed the world premiere ofMiroslav Srnka'sSouth Pole [de] commissioned by theBavarian State Opera in Munich, conducted byKirill Petrenko.[25]
While studying in Vienna, Neuenfels and Elisabeth Trissenaar met,[26][27] and married.[28] Their son,Benedict Neuenfels [de], is acinematographer.[27] They lived in Berlin[5] and owned a summer residence inAltaussee, Austria.[29] Neuenfels wrote a novel,Isaakaros, published in 1991. A collection of his essays,Wie viel Musik braucht der Mensch? was published in 2009, and an autobiography,Das Bastardbuch, in 2011.[3]
Neuenfels died fromCOVID-19[30] in Berlin on 6 February 2022, at the age of 80.[31][32]
Source:[5]
Since 2006, Neuenfels was member of theAcademy of Arts, Berlin, performing arts section.[5]
Source:[5]
