was shot in the streets around the opera house. He had been protesting against the visit to Germany by the Shah of Iran, who was attending a performance of Mozart's The Magic Flute. Past Generalmusikdirektoren (GMD, general music directors) have included Bruno Walter, Kurt Adler, Ferenc Fricsay, Lorin Maazel, Gerd Albrecht, Jesús López-Cobos, Giuseppe Sinopoli, and Christian Thielemann. In April 2001, Sinopoli died at the podium while conducting Aida, at age 54. In October 2005, Renato Palumbo was appointed GMD as of the 2006–2007 season. In October 2007, the Deutsche Oper announced the appointment of Donald Runnicles as their next Generalmusikdirektor, effective August 2009, for an initial contract of five years. Simultaneously, Palumbo and the Deutsche Oper mutually agreed to terminate his contract, effective November 2007. In November 2020, the company announced the most recent extension of Runnicles' contract as its GMD, through 2027. The current Intendant (artistic director) of the company is Dietmar Schwarz, and his current contract with the company is through 31 July 2025. The current executive director of the company is Thomas Fehrle, who is currently contracted with the company through 2027. Idomeneo controversy In September 2006, the Deutsche Oper's then-Intendantin (general manager) Kirsten Harms drew criticism after she cancelled the production of Mozart's opera Idomeneo by Hans Neuenfels, because of fears that a scene in that production featuring the severed heads of Jesus, Buddha and Muhammad would offend Muslims, and that the opera house's security might come under threat if violent protests took place. (This is a departure from the original libretto, in which there is no such scene.) Critics of the decision include German Ministers and the German Chancellor Angela Merkel. The reaction from Muslims was mixed. The leader of Germany's Islamic Council welcomed the decision, whilst a leader of Germany's Turkish community, criticising the decision, said: "This is about art, not about politics ... We should not make art dependent on religion – then we are back in the Middle Ages." At the end of October 2006, the opera house announced that performances of Mozart's opera Idomeneo would then proceed. Premieres Städtische Oper Berlin 1923: Emil von Reznicek, Carl Meinhard, Rudolf Bernauer: Holofernes 1932: Franz Schreker: Der Schmied von Gent 1932: Kurt Weill, Caspar Neher: Die Bürgschaft Städtisches Opernhaus Berlin 1952: Boris Blacher: Preußisches Märchen Deutsche Oper Berlin 1961: Giselher Klebe: Alkmene 1964: Roger Sessions, Giuseppe Antonio Borgese: Montezuma 1965: Hans Werner Henze: