The willingness of German dramatists to break with the conventional theatrical approach is often associated with ideological commitment. Bertolt Brecht's dramatic techniques, for example, are intended to promote dialectical materialism. Tankred Dorst, however, is a modern playwright free of any urge to pontificate, to teach his audience correct modes of thought; he admits that he shares the general bewilderment. For Dorst a play is a product of collaboration among the writer, the actors, and the director. Since 1971 most of Dorst's dramas have been coauthored by Ursula Ehler, his companion for more than twenty years.

Dorst did not come from a family with a theatrical or artistic background. He was born on 19 December 1925 to Max Dorst, a moderately prosperous factory owner, and Elizabeth Lettermann Dorst in the village of Oberlind, Thuringia. Many of Dorst's coarser characters speak the dialect of the region. After World War II Dorst's birthplace lay...