Alf Poss 1936-2003

Alf Poss' father was an architect and knew Hans Gugelot, who lived with the Poss family in Ulm for a time. After graduating, Alf Poss worked as a journalist for the "Ulmer Zeitung" newspaper until 1968. In 1969, he moved to Munich with his then wife Marlies Poss (née Matthies, she had studied product design at the HfG). There he worked as a freelance writer and wrote prose, radio plays and theatre plays. He became known for his action theatre play "Zwei Hühner werden geschlachtet" [Two chickens are slaughtered], which was published by Suhrkamp. The performance of the play involved the actual slaughter of two chickens, which led to protests from animal rights activists and an article in Der Spiegel (Spiegel No. 45, 1969, p. 224f). At times he lived in Rabat, Morocco and in Tübingen with his second wife.

Author information from Suhrkamp Verlag on "Hinausgeschwommen" [Swom Out]

Alf Poss describes his new work as "action prose", and the word does indeed turn into action here. It constantly makes scenes in front of the reader, transforming him into a kind of co-player who participates directly in the speeches and counter-speeches, in the leaps of thought and breaks in the situation. At first glance, what builds up from commonplace phrases, magazine jargon and jet-set slang has a polemical, linguistic and socio-critical dimension: a dry slinging of everyday jargon. But the longer you let this prose sink in, the further you go along, the more you realise that a second, larger dimension is opening up, one that has a hallucinatory, even exhilarating character. In the end, you know you have "swum out" with the author.

Alf Poss, born in Ulm in 1936, now lives in Munich. He studied philosophy at New York University, then journalism at the Hochschule für Gestaltung in Ulm. In 1964, he took part in the Literary Colloquium in Berlin organised by Walter Höllerer. His first play Zwei Hühner werden geschlachtet was published in 1969 by edition suhrkamp.

 

Theatre plays

"Zwei Hühner werden geschlachtet" [Two chickens are slaughtered]. Published by Suhrkamp in 1969. World premiere: Studiobühne Erlangen, Experimenta 4, Frankfurt 03.06.1971, Director: Claus Just

 

"Wie ein Auto funktionierte – Ein Ritual für zwei Spielerinnen und vier Spieler" [How a car worked - A ritual for two female and four male players]. Published in 1971 by Verlag der Autoren. World premiere: Ulm Theatre 17.06.1972, directed by Volker K. Bauer

 

Radio play

"Besuch aus London" [Visit from London] (1979, Radio Play of the Month of the German Academy of Performing Arts)

 

Translation

Georg Bernard Shaw "Die Millionärin" [The Millionaire], Suhrkamp, 1991

 

Prose

"Hinausgeschwommen" [Swom Out], Suhrkamp, 1970

 

 

1969 Advancement Award of the Suhrkamp Verlag

 

1972 and 1973 scholarship holder of the German Academy at the Villa Massimo, Rome.

 

1975 Writer in Residence, University of Iowa, USA

 

PEN Club member