On 10 June 2008, the Israeli scholar Gad Kaynar was officially appointed “Officer of The Royal Norwegian Order of Merit” by His Majesty King Harald V. The decoration is awarded for particularly meritorious service in promoting Norwegian interests. The honour was bestowed upon Professor Kaynar for his outstanding work with translating plays by the famous Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen to the Hebrew, and for his involvement in the staging of Ibsen plays at various Israeli theatres throughout the years.
The Bestowal Ceremony was held 16 January 2009, in the Residence of the Ambassador of Norway to Israel, HE Jakken Biørn Lian. Among the guests taking part in the celebration of Professor Kaynar were family, colleagues and prominent people from the Israeli cultural and theatre society.
Short Biography
Kaynar is a Professor at the Theatre Department, Tel Aviv University, the head of the directing, writing and dramaturgy section, and the director of the University Theatre. He is also a Guest Professor at The Hebrew University in Jerusalem, as well as the Institute für Theaterwissenschaft in Munich.
Kaynar is an expert on the drama of Henrik Ibsen and has translated 6 Ibsen plays from Norwegian into Hebrew: Ghost, The Wild Duck, Little Eyolf, John Gabriel Borkman, Hedda Gabler, and The Woman From the Sea. In addition Kaynar has translated 3 Ibsen plays from German to Hebrew
Professor Kaynar has furthermore written and published extensively on topics related to theatre and dramaturgy. For the last 25 years Kaynar has been the dramaturge of Habimah, Israel’s National Theatre, The Cameri Theatre of Tel Aviv and The Jerusalem Khan Theatre. Professor Kaynar is also and actor, director and poet.