Walter Puchner (born 1947) is an Austrian writer, critic and

university professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a 'person who professes'. Professors ...

theatre studies Theatre studies (sometimes referred to as theatrology or dramatics) is the study of theatrical performance in relation to its literary, physical, psychological, sociological, and historical contexts. It is an interdisciplinary field which also enco ...

. He has made significant work on the theatrology of

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

, the greater area of the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

, the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

, and

Byzantium Byzantium () or Byzantion () was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium'' continued to be used as a n ...

, on

folkloristics Folklore studies (also known as folkloristics, tradition studies or folk life studies in the UK) is the academic discipline devoted to the study of folklore. This term, along with its synonyms, gained currency in the 1950s to distinguish the ac ...

but also on a variety of other subjects concerning the culture of the area with more than 80 books and numerous studies and critiques.

Biography

He was born on 12 May 1947 in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. He studied in the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

, from which he obtained a doctorate of philosophy in 1972. In 1977 he was proclaimed

Privatdozent ''Privatdozent'' (for men) or ''Privatdozentin'' (for women), abbreviated PD, P.D. or Priv.-Doz., is an academic title conferred at some European universities, especially in German-speaking countries, to someone who holds certain formal qualifi ...

of the University of Vienna and since then he resides in Greece, since he married the pediatrician Ariadne Malamitse. He then went on to teaching in the philosophical school of the

University of Crete The University of Crete (UoC; Greek: Πανεπιστήμιο Κρήτης) is a multi-disciplinary, research-oriented institution in Crete, Greece, located in the cities of Rethymno (official seat) and Heraklion. There are 16 main undergraduate ...

of which he also became president in 1987 while he was also teaching in the

University of Graz The University of Graz (, formerly: ''Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz'') is a public university, public research university located in Graz, Austria. It is the largest and oldest university in Styria, as well as the second-largest and second-old ...

. He started teaching in the

University of Athens The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; , ''Ethnikó kai Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the University of Athens (UoA), is a public university in Athens, Greece, with various campuses alo ...

from 1989, and is now an emeritus there. He has taught in many universities as a visitor, in some as a senior visiting scholar of the US branch of the Alexander S. Onassis Foundation (Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation (USA)).

Awards and honours

Puchner has received awards and honours in the country of his origin, Austria, as well as in Greece. * Since 17 May 1994 he is an honorary member of the

Austrian Academy of Sciences The Austrian Academy of Sciences (; ÖAW) is a legal entity under the special protection of the Republic of Austria. According to the statutes of the Academy its mission is to promote the sciences and humanities in every respect and in every fi ...

(Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften). * In 1995 the Academy of Athens awarded Puchner with the award of the institute of Kostas and Elene Ourane for his book "Ανιχνεύοντας τη θεατρική παράδοση" ("Detecting the theatrical tradition"). * In 2000 he received the Award of Panagiotis Photeas for socio-political thinking essay for his work "Ο μίτος της Αριάδνης" ("Ariadne's thread"). * In 2001 he received the

Austrian Decoration for Science and Art The Austrian Decoration for Science and Art () is a state decoration of the Republic of Austria and forms part of the Orders, decorations, and medals of Austria, Austrian national honours system. History The "Austrian Decoration for Science a ...

(Österreichisches Ehrenzeichen für Wissenschaft und Kunst). * In his honour was publish a book in 2007 titles "Στέφανος. Τιμητική προσφορά για τον Βάλτερ Πούχνερ" ("Stephen. Honorary contribution for Walter Puchner"), where it is mentioned that he is the theatrologist with most studies in the Greek area, covering a huge thematical area geographically and chronologically (Cretan, Septinsular, Aegean religious but also modern theatre, in the Danubian Principalities, from the

Enlightenment Enlightenment or enlighten may refer to: Age of Enlightenment * Age of Enlightenment, period in Western intellectual history from the late 17th to late 18th century, centered in France but also encompassing (alphabetically by country or culture): ...

to the 20th century. It also mentions the subjects published on the folklore, comparative philology and culture of the entirety of the Balkans. * In 2008 Puchner received the Great Award of Theatre of the Union of Thearticians – Musical Critics for his books "Τα Σούτσεια. Μελέτες στην ελληνική ρομαντική δραματουργία 1830-1850" and "Συμπτώσεις και αναγκαιότητες. Δέκα θεατρολογικά μελετήματα".

References

Living people 1947 births Greek male writers Austrian theatre critics Austrian male writers Academic staff of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens {{Austria-bio-stub