Marianne Schechtel is currently a member of the troupe at the Staatstheater Meiningen. Her repertoire there includes roles such as Eboli in Don Carlos, the title role in Carmen, Suzuki in Madama Butterfly, Dorabella in Così fan tutte, Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus as well as Dryade in Ariadne auf Naxos.

In 2020, she was awarded the Ulrich-Burkhardt-Förderpreis for outstanding young artist at the Staatstheater Meiningen. Her highly acclaimed performance as Helene Alving in the world premiere of Torstein Aagard-Nilsen's opera Gespenster (adapted from a drama by Henrik Ibsen) in 2024 earned her a nomination for the Deutsche Theaterpreis (Der Faust).

Marianne Schechtel is particularly interested in the contemporary repertoire, and has taken part in a number of premieres, including the Lieder cycle Wenn die Schatten singen, composed for her by Kaspar Querfurth. She also performed the title role in Julie by Philippe Boesmanns and Sister in Through his teeth by Luke Bedford.

Marianne Schechtel is also active on the concert stage. She recently sang Mendelssohn's Die erste Walpurgisnacht at the Konzerthaus Berlin, conducted by Alexander Lebek, and J.S. Bach's Weihnachtsoratorium at Berlin Cathedral, conducted by Christoph Hagel. Her repertoire includes the great oratorios.

Marianne Schechtel grew up in Lübeck in a German-Russian family. She was still at primary school when she took up music at the Musikhochschule in Lübeck. After gaining her Abitur, she continued her musical training at the same school, graduating in 2014 with a Bachelor's degree in Anke Eggers' singing class. She then left to do her Master's at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler in Berlin, first in the class of Thomas Quastoff and then in that of Renate Faltin. As soon as she graduated, she was engaged as a soloist in the troupe of the Staatstheater Meiningen.

She has taken part in numerous masterclasses, working with distinguished personalities such as Angelika Kirchschlager, Christa Ludwig and Francisco Araiza.

During her studies, she received various grants: from the Yehudi Menuhin Live Music Now Association in Lübeck and Berlin, the Possehl Foundation in Lübeck, the Junge Oper in Lübeck and the Richard Wagner Association in Hamburg, as well as the Jutta-Schlegel-Preis.

March 2025