For the queer play “Die kleinen Meerjungraun” Kim de l’Horizon is awarded the Mülheimer Dramatikpreis 2026. The decision was made by the jury of the competition for German-language contemporary drama on Saturday evening during a public session in Mülheim an der Ruhr.
The play also won the audience prize of the competition. The jurors particularly praised the piece’s vivid language and its many successful wordplays, which premiered in Bern.
“Die kleinen Meerjungraun” tells, drawing on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale tradition, a story about longing, love, and the social pressure to conform. The play is described in a statement from Theatertage as a plea against normative thinking and for a path toward queer self-emancipation.
De l’Horizon — the name is a pseudonym — hails from Switzerland and writes poetry, prose, and theater texts. The debut novel “Blutbuch” by the nonbinary author, translated into 17 languages, won the Swiss Book Prize and the German Book Prize in 2022.
In total seven new German-language plays for adults and five for children were nominated for the competition. Both prizes are endowed with 15,000 euros each. The audience prize carries an additional 5,000 euros.
The children’s play competition was won by Düsseldorf-based author Simone Saftig with her piece “herzkopfüber,” which deals with a mother facing cancer and how to cope with the illness.
All nominated plays were performed during Theatertage. The awards will be presented at the start of the next Theatertage in 2027.
