Romanian director. Ştefan Lenkisch studied theatre directing at the IATC (Institutul de Artă Teatrală şi Cinematografică Institute of Theatre Arts and Cinematography) in Bucharest. In 1952, he was invited by Margareta Niculescu to join Ţăndărică Puppet Theatre (today, Teatrul de animaţie Ţăndărică) where he dedicated himself to staging for puppets.

He created productions noted for their poetic spirit, theatrical inventiveness, and a penchant for musicals, such as Șoricelul și păpușa (The Little Mouse and the Doll, 1968). He also staged Elefănțelul curios (The Curious Little Elephant, 1963); Magellan, drumul piperului (Magellan, the Pepper Route, 1963); and, joined by Margareta Niculescu, he collaborated on the staging of Eu și material moartă (Me and Dead Matter, 1964) and Cabarettissimo (1969). He received the First Prize at the International Festival of Puppet Theatres in Bucharest in 1965 for Amnarul (The Tinderbox) based on Hans Christian Andersen. Many other productions followed, among them Peter Pan (1971) and Frații Criș (The Criş Brothers, 1977).

Ştefan Lenkisch played an instrumental role in shaping the aesthetics of the Ţăndărică Puppet Theatre. A committed and generous teacher, he invested his knowledge, culture, and experience into the training of the next generations of puppet artists. From 1961 to 1967, he taught at the Institutul de Arte Plastice (Institute of Fine Arts) in Bucharest.

With designer Mircea Nicolau, Ştefan Lenkisch produced a television series in Sweden. He was also the author of television programmes in Romania. He staged several shows at the Aarhus Teater (Aarhus Theatre) in Denmark with designers Sever Frenţiu, Dan Nemţeanu, and Mioara Buescu. As a writer, he adapted plays for the theatre and he wrote articles for various publications.

Ştefan Lenkisch enjoyed national and international professional recognition.

(See Romania.)