Maxi Obexer, born in Brixen (South Tyrol, Italy) in 1970, is the author of essays and plays for theater and radio.
Her political works have won numerous awards, including the 2016 Robert Geisendörfer and Eurodram Prizes for Illegal Helpers, and the 2017 Potsdamer Theater Prize for Gehen und Bleiben [Leaving and Staying].
Her most widely produced play is Das Geisterschiff (The Ghost Ship), which deals with would-be immigrants crossing the Mediterranean. In 2011, Obexer published her first novel, Wenn gefährliche Hunde lachen (When Dangerous Dogs Laugh), a critically acclaimed work that tells the story of a young Nigerian woman who hopes to find a better life in Europe. Her second novel, Europas Längster Sommer [“Europe’s longest summer”] appeared in 2017.
In 2014, Maxi founded the Neue Institut für Dramatisches Schreiben, Nids. Her plays have been produced in many cities, including Basel, Jena, Freiburg, and Stuttgart, and she has held residencies at the Literarisches Colloquium in Berlin and the Akademie Schloss Solitude. Obexer lives in Berlin. m-obexer.de (2018)