Johan Simons the Opéra Bastille in 2006 and Mozart's Il Seraglio at the De Nederlandse Opera in 2008. Simons was artistic director of the Münchner Kammerspiele since 2010. He is the director of the Ruhrtriennale from 2015 to 2017. Simon raised concerns by directing a play in Austria called "Die Neger" ("The Negroes") using blackface against protests and accusations of racism in 2015 Johan Simons Johan Simons (born 1 September 1946) is a Dutch theatre director. Simons received his education at the Rotterdam Dance Academy and the Maastricht Academy of Dramatic Arts. He also taught directing in Maastricht for a number of
Donald Shanks (bass-baritone) "Norma" with Dame Joan Sutherland, "La bohème" with Luciano Pavarotti, and Banquo in "Macbeth" with Sherrill Milnes. Other roles he became associated with were Zaccharia in "Nabucco", Rocco in "Fidelio", Osmin in "The Abduction from the Seraglio", Boris in "Boris Godunov", Timur in "Turandot", Ramphis in "Aida", Pistol in "Falstaff", Kekal in "The Bartered Bride", Baron Ochs in "Der Rosenkavalier", Nourabad in "The Pearl Fishers", the Commendatore in "Don Giovanni", and a major role in Leoš Janáček's "The Cunning Little Vixen". He created the role of The Maestro in Alan John's 1995 opera "The Eighth Wonder" at the Sydney Opera