Thorleifur Örn Arnarsson

Icelandic director Thorleifur Örn Arnarsson initially studied acting at the Iceland Academy of Arts, after which he worked as director in Iceland, Helsinki and Sydney. He subsequently studied directing at the Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts in Berlin. In 2011, he won the renowned nachtkritik-Theatertreffen for his production "Peer Gynt" in Lucerne, which he adapted for the Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden in 2014. He staged "Romeo and Juliet" in Mainz and "The Nibelungen" at Theater Bonn, making his music theatre directing debut at Theater Augsburg with Strauss' "Die Fledermaus" in 2012. This was followed by "Lohengrin" and "La Bohème", the latter production forming part of the Wiesbaden repertoire since 2014. Further productions here include "La voix humaine" (Poulenc) with Julia Migenes, as well as the dramas "Die Dreigroschenoper" and "Mutter Courage".

Arnarsson regularly works at the National Theatre in Reykjavi. His production "Njála", based on motifs from Icelandic mythology, won the Icelandic Griman Prize, among others. In 2015, he was involved in the opening of the Trier Theatre, and in 2017 he staged "Siegfried" as part of the "Ring" cycle at the Karlsruhe State Theatre and directed "Hamlet" at Schauspiel Hannover in the same year. In 2018, he won the "FAUST" theatre prize for his production "Die Edda". This was followed by "Die Räuber" at Theater Basel and "Im Irrgarten des Wissens", a production featuring his own text, at Theater Dortmund. Arnarsson became director of drama at the Volksbühne Berlin in 2019/20.