Lydia Steier
La Monnaie/De Munt
Lydia Steier's first libretto is more than successful; her direction is also rock solid.
New Notes (06.05.2026)La Monnaie/De Munt
Lydia Steier gives Medusa back her story and focuses on the deeply human dimension of the myth.
De Standaard (07.05.2026)Kurier (May 23, 2025)Music Theatre at the Vienna - Candide
Thanks to Steier's bold directorial decisions […], Candide at the MusikTheater an der Wien is a must-see!
Bachtrack, Ben McAteer (January 2024)Representation
Worldwide general management
Contact
Season 26/27 and Highlights
BERLIN STATE OPERA
Spontini - La Vestale
PREMIERE Sept 26
OPERNHAUS ZÜRICH
Strauss - Elektra
PREMIERE Nov 22
VIENNA STATE OPERA
Berlioz - La Damnation de Faust
PREMIERE Dec 17
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OPERNHAUS ZÜRICH
Puccini - La fanciulla del west
PREMIERE Feb 25TEATR WIELKI OPERA NARODOWA
Offenbach - Les Contes d'Hoffmann
PREMIERE Jun 4
Biography
Lydia Steier is an American opera director known for her visually powerful and musically precise productions of classical and contemporary works. She works regularly at leading opera houses and festivals, including the Opéra national de Paris, the Salzburg Festival, the Berlin State Opera, and the Vienna State Opera.
In the 2026/27 season, Steier directs new productions of Richard Strauss’s Elektra at the Zurich Opera House and Berlioz’s La Damnation de Faust at the Vienna State Opera. Her production of Spontini’s La Vestale also opens the season at the Berlin State Opera. Her other productions include Puccini’s La fanciulla del West at the Zurich Opera House and Offenbach’s Les Contes d’Hoffmann at the Polish National Opera in Warsaw.
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Born in Hartford, Connecticut, Lydia Steier studied voice at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio. A Fulbright scholarship subsequently brought her to Germany, where she has since worked as an opera director.
In the 2024/25 season, she made her debut at the Vienna State Opera with Tannhäuser and continued her collaboration with the Hanover State Opera with the world premiere of Echo 72. Israel in Munich .
In recent seasons, her productions have been staged at the Opéra national de Paris (Salome, La Vestale), Oper Frankfurt (Aida, Oedipus Rex / Iolanta), the Theater an der Wien (Candide), the Semperoper Dresden (Les Troyens), the Salzburg Festival (The Magic Flute), and the Komische Oper Berlin (Giulio Cesare). Her work has also been presented in Geneva, Basel, Tokyo, and Cologne. Her latest productions include Der Rosenkavalier at the Zurich Opera House, Les Contes d’Hoffmann at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden, and the world premiere of Iain Bell’s Medusa at La Monnaie/De Munt in Brussels. Her production of Stockhausen’s Donnerstag aus Licht was named Production of the Year for the 2015/16 season in Opernwelt’s critics’ poll. In 2024, the magazine named her Director of the Year. She has also been nominated twice for the German theatre award DER FAUST.
Her early directing credits include productions in Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, Bremen, and Weimar. International engagements have taken her to Hong Kong, Dublin, and New York.
On 1 November 2026, Steier will take up the post of artistic director of the Ruhrtriennale for the 2027–2029 editions. She plans to develop the festival further, with a strong focus on openness, diversity, and interdisciplinary art forms.
2026/27
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