Biography

His most recent production in March 2013 was WERTHER by Jules Massenet at the Salzburger Landestheater. In September 2012 COSI FAN TUTTE was premiered at the Opéra National de Lorraine. Also in 2012 Jim Lucassen directed ORFEO ED EURIDICE in Frankfurt and UN BALLO IN MASCHERA in St. Gallen, 2 productions for which Lucassen also designed the sets. In November 2011 he revived RIGOLETTO at the Badisches Staatsoper in Karlsruhe and in October 2011 he revived RUSALKA at the Opéra National de Montpellier, a production for which Lucassen also designed the sets. RUSALKA was originally produced for the Opéra National de Lorraine and will be performed at the Oper Frankfurt in September 2013. In 2010 Jim Lucassen directed a production of ARIANNA by Benedetto Marcello at the Salzburger Landestheater. In 2009 Lucassen made his German debut with RIGOLETTO at Theater Heidelberg.

2008 Jim Lucassen was nominated for the Ring Award, International Regie Contest in Graz, Austria. As part of his nomination he presented his concept for Rigoletto at the Opera House of Graz, the Komische Oper Berlin and at the Austrian Cultural Forum in New York.

In the Netherlands, Jim Lucassen has staged numerous music theatre productions, often creating the set designs as well. They include: La Princesse Jaune by Camille Saint-Saëns, O=O+W=W, world premiere by Maarten Jense, die Zauberflöte by Mozart, Orfeo ed Euridice by Gluck, Siren Song by Jonathan Dove, La Colombe by Charles Gounod, Confessions of a Soprano with music by Cole Porter and Benjamin Britten, Le Bal Masqué with music by Poulenc, Sauget, Françaix, Mignon by Ambroise Thomas.

Jim Lucassen worked as an assistant director and revival director at De Nederlandse Opera, Opéra National de Paris and De Nationale Reisopera collaborating with stage directors such as Robert Carsen, Peter Sellars, Harry Kupfer and Ursel & Karl-Ernst Hermann.

Jim Lucassen studied sociology of culture, art history, and theatre at the University of Amsterdam, Humboldt Universität Berlin and at the Institute for Archaeology and Arabic Studies in Cairo. Opera in East Berlin during the building of the Berlin Wall was the subject of his master’s degree thesis. During his studies Jim Lucassen served as a staff member for the educational department of the Muziek Theater Amsterdam. He also worked for Dutch National Radio producing and presenting radio programmes.

Jim Lucassen currently lives in Amsterdam.