Gert Jonke is counted among Austria's most important authors and dramatists. He was born in 1946 in Klagenfurt. He studied German literature, history, and theory of music at the University in Vienna. Among other prizes, he has received the Ingeborg-Bachmann-Prize, the Erich-Fried-Award, and the Great Austrian State Prize for literature. Currently, he lives and works in Vienna, Klagenfurt, and Graz.