View source for Neels Hansen

[[Neels Hansen]] (1936-2014). Designer and Director for theatre and opera. 

== Biography ==
 
Born on 16 April 1936 and went to school in Heidelberg in the Transvaal. He then studied at the [[University of Pretoria]] and the  [[Pretoria Teachers Training College]], with a view to becoming a teacher. However, at the age of 24 his interests shifted and he began work at the [[Johannesburg Civic Theatre]]. 

He died of cancer in November 2014 at the age of 78.

== Contribution to South African theatre and performance ==

Hansen soon became a driving force behind South African opera and musical theatre in the North of the country, both as a lecturer at the [[University of Pretoria]] and his work as designer, director and artistic director for [[PACT]] Opera. 

His early costume designs include those for   ''[[Kismet]]'' (1973) and  [[Sun City]]’s opening theatre production (1979), while his early directing projects included ''[[The Merry Widow]]'' (1983). These were soon followed by a long list of works which he staged, directed and often also designed for,  over the years. These include Britten's ''[[Peter Grimes]]'' and ''[[Death in Venice]]''; Donizetti's ''[[Don Pasquale]]'', ''[[Lucia di Lammermoor]]'', ''[[Maria Stuarda]]'', ''[[I puritani]]'' and ''[[L’elisir d’amore]]'' (for the Royal Opera of Teheran); Gounod's ''[[Faust]]''; Leoncavallo's ''[[I pagliacci]]''; Mascagni's ''[[Cavalleria rusticana]]''; Offenbach's ''[[Les contes d’Hoffmann]]''; Puccini's ''[[La bohème]]'', ''[[Madama Butterfly]]'', ''[[Tosca]]'' and  ''[[Turandot]]''; Rossini's ''[[Il barbiere di Siviglia]]''; Richard Strauss's ''[[Der Rosenkavalier]]''; Verdi's ''[[Aïda]]'', ''[[Attila]]'', ''[[Don Carlo]]'', ''[[Nabucco]]'', ''[[Otello]]'', ''[[Rigoletto]]'', ''[[La traviata]]'', and  ''[[Un ballo in maschera]]''. 

In 1999 he and the soprano [[Mimi Coertse]] founded the [[Black Tie Ensemble]] as means to help preserve the traditions of opera performance in South Africa and to create a pathway for gifted, aspiring young singers to become opera performers. This later evolved into what is now known as the [[Gauteng Opera]]. Hansen remained a patron of this till his death in 2014.

== Awards ==
He won a [[Naledi Theatre Awards|Naledi Lifetime Achiever Award]], February 2005.

In 2014 he was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the [[Kyknet Fiestas]], for his contribution to Theatre and Costume Design.

== Sources ==

[[Percy Tucker]], 1997

http://www.taadaa.co.za/Neels-Hansen-sterf-op-78

http://gautengopera.org/neels-hansen-2/

http://gautengopera.org/tribute-to-a-genius-neels-hansen/

''The Star'', 15 February 2005.



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