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= Hanns-Dietrich Schmidt =

Hanns-Dietrich Schmidt (*1955 in Düsseldorf) is a German dramaturge and professor of dramaturgy and practical theater work. Furthermore, he has been working as a consultant for cultural capitals in the international area since 2011.

He studied theater, art history and philosophy at the University of Cologne from 1974-1979.

Theatre Activities
Schmidt began his first activities in the field of dramaturgy and assistant directing during his studies from 1975-1978 under the direction of theater and television director Hansgünther Heyme at Schauspiel Köln, where he finally became dramaturg in 1979. In the same year until 1985, he began working as a dramaturge at the Württemberg State Theate r in Stuttgart. For the next three years he held the position of chief dramaturge at Schauspiel Essen until his appointment as professor of dramaturgy and practical theater work at the Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen. He is still active as such today.

In addition to his work as dramaturg and programmer for the Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen, he has also been a guest dramaturg in Berlin, Bochum, Bremen, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Lausanne, Luxembourg, Madrid, Mannheim, Maribor, Tashkent, Tel Aviv, Timisoara and Zurich.

In collaboration with various directors, Schmidt was also involved in several film and television productions in addition to his theater productions.

List of leading directors:

- Hansgünther Heyme

- Günter Krämer

- Herbert König

- Paul Schalich

- Peter Eschberg

- Peter Kühn

- Inge Andersen

- Lisa Nielebock

- Brian Michaels

- Achim Lenz

- Jakob Arnold

Activities in Higher Education
In the course of his professorship, Schmidt held various positions: first as a lecturer, from 1994 as Vice Dean of Department 3, and from 1996 to 2000 as Prorector. In the years between 2009 and 2021, he worked as Prorector for International Affairs and Events.

Furthermore, Schmidt held seminar in his areas of expertise (drama, ancient theater, Shakespeare, etc.) both in the national and international sectors.

Folkwang Shakespeare Festival
As co-founder of the Folkwang Shakespeare Festival, Hanns-Dietrich Schmidt provided several ideas and concepts. Among them:

- 2001 in cooperation with the Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen: "Verlorene Liebesmüh" (involved: Folkwang, Seattle, Tashkent, Tel Aviv)

- 2004 in cooperation with Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen: "Was ihr wollt" (involved: Amsterdam, Folkwang, New York)

- 2006 in cooperation with Schauspiel Essen: "Comedy of Errors" (involved: Brno, Folkwang, New York)

- 2008 in cooperation with Schauspiel Essen: "The Tempest" (involved: Folkwang, Glasgow, New York)

- 2010 in cooperation with Schauspiel Essen: "Richard III. (involved: Folkwang, Glasgow, Sibiu)

- 2011 Folkwang University of the Arts "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (involved: Folkwang, New York, Ramallah, Shanghai, Sibiu)

- 2013 Folkwang University of the Arts "Romeo and Juliet" (involved: Folkwang, Kraków, Ramallah, Shanghai, Sibiu)

- 2016 Folkwang University of the Arts "Much Ado About Nothing" (involved: Folkwang, Durban, Kraków, Melbourne)

- 2018 Folkwang University of the Arts "The Taming of the Shrew" (involved: Folkwang, Durban, Helsinki, Ramallah)

Consultancy Activities
Under Schmidt's participation, the application and conception of the European Capital of Culture "Essen for the Ruhr Area 2010" took place from 2003. After the nomination of Essen and the Ruhr region, he finally served as Commissioner for International Relations in the Capital of Culture team from 2007 to 2011 and since 2001 he has acted as a consultant for cultural capitals. Among them:

- Pafos 2017/Cyprus

- Plovdiv 2019/Bulgaria

- Kaunas 2022/Lithuania

- Esch 2022/Luxembourg

- Veszprém 2023/Hungary

- Tartu 2024/Estonia

- Nova Gorica 2025/Slovenia

- Oulu 2026/Guinea

Publications:
Hanns-Dietrich Schmidt has contributed to various publications, including: edited volumes on the history of the Ruhrfestspiele, Schiller’s works for the theatre, as well as to one on Daniel Casper von Lohenstein and Baroque drama. In addition he has written numerous articles for reference books (theatre guides), professional journals, and magazines.

= Works (selection): = - Dramatisation of Homer’s "The Iliad" (Düsseldorf 1988, also a script for Bayerischer Rundfunk [Bavarian Broadcasting]), and the "Odyssey" (Bremen/Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen 1993)

- Revised versions of all of Baroque dramatist Daniel Casper von Lohenstein’s theatre plays ("Epicharis" Cologne 1978; "Sophonisbe" Berlin Festwochen (Berlin Festival)/Essen 1985; "Cleopatra" Essen 1986; "Ibrahim Bassa"/"Ibrahim Sultan" Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen/Luxembourg 2002; "Agrippina")

- Conceived, authored, and provided the dramaturgy for "Sternstunde I" for the 750th anniversary of the founding of Berlin at the Großer Stern, Berlin, 1987

- Conceived, authored, and provided the dramaturgy for the project "Nathan an der Mauer" after Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, Berlin Festwochen, 1987

- "Theater! Arbeit! Heyme - Der Schauspieler, Regisseur und Intendant Hansgünther Heyme"

Weblinks

 * Folkwang Universität der Künste
 * Folkwang Shakespeare-Festival
 * Kulturhauptstadt Europas RUHR.2010 (Bewerbung als "Essen für das Ruhrgebiet 2010")