<Project Plzeň 2015 has already had its fifth director, and it will be led by Jiří Suchánek>

Jiří Suchánek

Plzeň - The company Plzeň 2015, which is preparing the European Capital of Culture (EHMK) project for the city of Plzeň in 2015, has a new, fifth director. Jiří Suchánek, who emerged from a closed selection process, will take on the role. The board of the non-profit organization announced him in July after no candidates were selected in the previous selection process. Suchánek has experience coordinating activities for the Czech pavilion at the EXPO 2010 in Shanghai and is currently the director of one of the largest corporate foundations in the Czech Republic, said Martin Baxa (ODS), the mayor and chairman of the company's board, today.
    The selection committee approached four individuals. They decided today between two candidates, Marek Pokorný, former director of the Moravian Gallery in Brno, and Jiří Suchánek. "Both candidates were of high quality. In the end, we unanimously agreed to choose Jiří Suchánek. I am convinced that he will manage the project and successfully lead the company to fulfill the prestigious title of Plzeň - European Capital of Culture 2015," Baxa stated.
    Suchánek was appointed as director effective November 15, and he will be introduced to the position on November 18. He will replace the current director Jiří Sulženko, who was appointed to the position from August until the board finds a new director. Sulženko is also the program director of the project.
    Today, the board selected the company's fifth director, responsible for fulfilling the EHMK project in 2015. The first director was Milan Svoboda in 2011; after his resignation, he was succeeded by Tomáš Froyda, the director of the Alfa Theatre, who stepped down last autumn to prioritize the theatre. From January, the management of the project was temporarily entrusted to Erich Beneš, director of the Coordination Unit for European Projects of the city of Plzeň, and from August to Sulženko, who has also been the program director of the project since June.