Education
He studied theatre in Leipzig and directed his first opera, Antonín Dvořák"s Rusalka, in 1958.
He studied theatre in Leipzig and directed his first opera, Antonín Dvořák"s Rusalka, in 1958.
Kupfer was a protégé of Walter Felsenstein at the Komische Oper Berlin. From 1981 to 2002, Kupfer was chief director of the Komische Opera. Since the 1970s, he has also directed productions of Richard Wagner at the Bayreuth Festival, including Der Ring des Nibelungen.
Kupfer co-wrote the libretto with composer Krzysztof Penderecki of Penderecki"s opera The Black Mask.
He directed the 1986 world premiere production in Salzburg and the United States premiere production at Santa Fe Opera in 1988.
Academy of Arts of the German Democratic Republic. Akademie der Künste Berlin. Sächsische Akademie der Künste.