Hasko Weber becomes new artistic director in Cottbus

The long-standing General Director of the Deutsches Nationaltheater and the Staatskapelle Weimar, Hasko Weber, is coming to Cottbus. Weber will take over from Stephan Märki from Switzerland for the 2025/26 season for a transitional period of one year. The Board of Trustees of the Brandenburg Cultural Foundation Cottbus-Frankfurt (Oder) made the decision at its meeting in Potsdam on Thursday, the ministry responsible announced. Weber will be appointed as the designated artistic director on Friday. The search for a long-term director is to be continued. "He is a proven expert on the German theater landscape, a distinguished arts manager and has celebrated numerous successes in the East and West," said Culture Minister Manja Schüle about Weber. This makes him a perfect fit for Cottbus: "Culture is the key to strengthening regional identity, tapping into new employment potential and developing radiance for Lusatia. To do this, we need the State Theater as a creative engine." Märki spoke of the "best possible choice". In November, it was announced that Weber (born in Dresden in 1963) would be leaving the theater in Weimar at the end of the 2024/25 season. As with Märki's departure from Cottbus, personal reasons were also given for Weber. The Cottbus theater, built in Art Nouveau style, is the only multi-genre theater (with music theater, philharmonic orchestra, drama and ballet) in Brandenburg.