Lukas Bärfuss

Lukas Bärfuss (born 30 December 1971) is a Swiss writer and playwright who writes in German. He won the Georg Büchner Prize in 2019.

Biography Born in Thun, Switzerland on 30 December 1971, Lukas Bärfuss began training as a bookseller after graduating from high school. In 1998, he co-founded the independent theater group 400asa.

Awards Bärfuss has won the Mülheimer Dramatikerpreis in 2005 for the play Der Bus (Das Zeug einer Heiligen), the Anna Seghers-Preis in 2008, the Hans Fallada Prize in 2010, The Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung praised his work, among other things, as being permeated by "a high degree of stylistic certainty and formal richness of variation" that explores "always anew and differently fundamental existential situations of modern life." The prize was awarded in Darmstadt on 2 November 2019. The Georg Büchner Prize is regarded as the most prestigious prize in German literature. Bärfuss was the fourth Swiss to win the Prize and the first Swiss winner in 25 years, the last Swiss winner being Adolf Muschg in 1994.

Memberships Bärfuss has been a member of the Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung since early summer 2015.

Works Plays

Sophokles' Ödipus (1998) Siebzehn Uhr Siebzehn (2000) 74 Sekunden (2000) Vier Frauen (2000) Die Reise von Klaus und Edith durch den Schacht zum Mittelpunkt der Erde (2001) Meienbergs Tod (2001) Vier Bilder der Liebe (2002) Die sexuellen Neurosen unserer Eltern (2003) Der Bus (Das Zeug einer Heiligen) (2005) Alices Reise in die Schweiz (2005) Die Probe (Der brave Simon Korach) (2007) Amygdala (2009) Öl (2009) Malaga (2010) Zwanzigtausend Seiten (2012) Die schwarze Halle (2013) Frau Schmitz (2016) Der Elefantengeist (2018) Julien – Rot und Schwarz (2020) Verführung (2023) Einsiedler Welttheater (2024) Sex mit Ted Cruz (2025)

Books