Graz Opera Director Ulrich Lenz's Contract Not Extended; Marlene Hahn to Succeed

Ulrich Lenz, the German director of Graz Opera, will not have his five-year contract extended beyond the 2027/28 season. The decision was announced by Bernhard Rinner, CEO of Bühnen Graz, at a press conference in Graz. Marlene Hahn, a German music dramaturgist from Leipzig Opera, has been presented as Lenz's successor. Hahn previously worked at Graz Opera as a music dramaturgist from 2015 to 2022. The jury, which included Helga Rabl-Stadler and Rinner, unanimously proposed Hahn to the supervisory board. Lenz, who joined Graz Opera in 2023, had a reserved start but saw audience-acclaimed productions like "Wozzek" and "Der Rosenkavalier" in the past season. Despite this, the opera received 26 applications for the directorship, ten from women and sixteen from men. Hahn's appointment is effective from the 2028/29 season. Rinner expressed pleasant surprise at the quality of applicants, noting Hahn's experience as artistic director of the Augsburg Opera Ball could be beneficial for Graz's "Opernredoute." Hahn, born in 1985, studied art history and Germanistik at the University of Augsburg before her initial tenure in Graz and subsequent move to Leipzig Opera.

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We were more than surprised by the quality of the application.