Thomas Köck

Thomas Köck, born in 1986 in Steyr, Austria, was socialized through music. He studied philosophy and literature as well as dramatic writing at the UdK (University of the Arts, Berlin), and collaborated with the theatercombinat in Vienna. Köck was the in-house playwright at the Nationaltheater Mannheim, worked on a documentary on the rebuilding of Beirut, and directed the Mexican-German co-production “Algo paso (La ultima obra).” For his theater texts, that have been translated in 15 languages, he has received several awards, including the Kleist Förderpreis in 2016 and the Mülheimer Dramatikerpreis in 2018 & 2019. Together with other authors he was also co-founder of the blog nazisundgoldmund.net dealing with the shift to the right across Europe.

In his “Klimatrilogie” (“Climate Trilogy,” 2017; the three parts titled “paradise flooded” / “Paradise starving” / “paradise playing”) he claims that neoliberalism is a modern manifestation of the 19th-century colonial mindset. The first part of the “Klimatrilogie” premiered at the Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen in Germany and garnered Köck the Kleist Prize for an emerging playwright. “Paradise” is a new formulation of the “Klimatrilogie” – enriched with new texts by the playwright and adapted by Katerina Giannopoulou and her dramaturg Grigoris Liakopoulos to touch upon Greek realities.