Fernando Arrabal was born in Melilla on August 11, 1932. In 1937, his family settled in Madrid, where Fernando was educated at the College of Sisters of the Order of St. Theresa.
At the age of 15, he tried, unsuccessfully, to enter the military academy. He has to work in the office of the factory “La Papelera espanola” and at the same time the 18-year-old boy gets acquainted with theatrical horuppes, because he showed interest in the theater from an early age.
In 1954, Fernando Arrabal moved to Paris, living in a student environment, but soon became seriously ill and spent a long time in hospital.
His first work was a comedy "Los chicos del triciclo". (Boys on a tricycle) staged in the theater in 1953, with resounding success met with criticism and brings the author the award of the city of Barcelona.
Arrabal first staged his short experimental plays in the Latin Quarter of Paris. Together with Jodorowski and Axe, he creates a "panic movement", in which a clear surreal orientation prevails, and also he manages to stage - and with success, performances based on the plays: "Car cemetery" ("Cementerio de automoviles"), "First Communion" ("La primera Comunion"), "Architect and Emperor of Assyria" ("Cementerio de automoviles"), "Equott; ("Equot); "Equot;"Equot; and "Equot;"Equot; "Equot; "Equot;"Equot;"
His comedies began to be translated into different languages and staged in many theaters in Europe. Jodorowski directed his first full-length black and white film based on the work of Fernando Arrabal "Fando and Lis". Later, Arrabal made several films based on his scripts.
In September 1967, Arrabal was accused of desecrating one of the buyers of his book, he slandered the Motherland, he was judged, but acquitted, including thanks to the support of some foreign and Spanish writers: Jose Maria Peman, Vicente Alexandra, Camilo Jose Cela, Eugene Ionescu and Samuel Beckett.
The writer interrupts his self-imposed exile and returns to Madrid on April 12, 1977 to attend the premiere of the film Cemetery of Cars directed by Victor Garcia.
To express his protest against the dictatorship of Franco, Fernando Arrabal published in 1978 a book "Letter to General Franco", which immediately causes a scandal, in Spain and abroad. His name is strongly associated with outrage.
The following year, a Letter to the Military Communists of Spain appeared, and in 1983, a Letter to Fidel Castro, where the author talks about corruption in communist Cuba.
And then in 1981 comes the final confession: Comedy Française puts his play "Tower of Babel". Given the fact that this is a lifetime production of a non-French author, it can be considered a serious success of the writer.
Arrabal’s works were staged in the cultural capitals of the world. In December 1985, Fernando Arrabal directed the production of the "Great Ceremony" ("El gran ceremonial") at the Tokyo Theatre. As a director, he works on the opera de Falli’s Short Life and Goyescami’s Enrique Granados in Brussels.
The works of the writer in New York are very successful. In 1986, the "Architect and Emperor of Assyria" (resumed production) and the "Red Madonna" (La virgen roja o una doncella para un gorila) went simultaneously (world premiere). Then in April 1990, in the same city, the premiere of the play “Love List of a Weightlifter” took place. It was directed by Tom O’Hogan, the creator and director of such famous productions as “Hair” or “Jesus Christ – Superstar”.
Among the theatrical productions of the author can be distinguished: "En la cuerda floja" ("Balada del tren fantasma") ("On a thin rope" ("ballad of a ghost train"); "Pic-nic" (1952) ("Picnic"); "El triciclo" (1953) ("Three-wheeled"); "Assor" ("Elquot; {quot;} {{quot;}}} {{quot;}}} {{quot;}}}} {{{{{{quot;}}}}}}}}}}{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{ {{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}
In addition to theater plays, Arrabal writes prose. Among other works, he published: "Baal Babilonia" ("Baal Baal of Babylon"); "Arrabal celebrando la ceremonia de la confusion" ("Arrabal conducts a ceremony of embarrassment"); "El entierro de la sardina" ("Doquot; sardines' funeral"); "Laquot; La tor herida por el raot; ("Korotot; ("Cattoott; "Kor") (19"Laamot; "Laott'sardado"); "(" extra") (19" ) " {quot; {quot;}}}}} {quot;}}}}} {quot; {quot;}}}}}} {\"Castootttt; {\"Catttttt; {\"Catt"}}}}}}}}} {{{{\"Catttt; In addition to prose, on account of the author of poems and essays, mainly political themes: "Letter to General Franco" (1978), "Letter to the military Communists of Spain" (1978) and "Thousand nine hundred and eighty-four years". Letter to Fidel Castro (1983).
The work of the writer is marked by numerous awards and awards. So in 1983, Fernando Arrabal became the winner of the Nadal Prize for the work “Book wounded by lightning”. In addition, in 1953, the writer was awarded the City of Barcelona Prize for his work “Three Wheeled Bicycle”, in 1998 for the article “The painful pleasure of crying”; the author was awarded the Mariano de Cavia Journalism Award. In different years he received the Theatre Prize of Paris, the Theatre Prize of the French Academy, as well as the Vladimir Nabokov International Prize and many other awards.
April 5, 1993 Fernando Arrabal presents to the public his new works "Character and figure" ("Genio y figura") and "Letter to José Maria Asnaru ("With a copy of Felipe Gonzalez") ("Carta a Jose Maria Aznar (conia a Felipe Gonzalez").
In April 1994, the author published the work "Monkey or on a needle" ("El mono o enganchado al caballo"), which, according to the author, appeared at the time junction between the Puritan generation and the generation of 98. Also in the same year, Arrabal presents in Madrid a new work "Doubtful Light of the Day" ("La luz dudosa del dia"), written in the form of a diary, which describes the personal experiences of the writer in the period from August to December 1992.
In February 1994, Fernando Arrabal reveals another facet of his talent, exhibiting paintings at the international contemporary art fair, and in April of the same year publishes "Letter to the King of Spain" ("Carta al Rey de Espana").
In December 1996, the writer puts in Madrid his play "Fando and the Fox" - about a strange couple making a trip to nowhere.
In November of the following year, the author publishes a two-volume book "Full Dramaturgy", in which 50 theatrical works of the author are collected. The book consists of three parts: “The First and Naive Theatre,” “The Panic Avant-Garde and Long-Term Hope,” and “I and Others” (El primer teatro ingenuo, “La vanguardia del panico a la esperanza lejana,” and “El yo y los otros.”)
In 1998, the writer lectures “On Spanish dramaturgy of the new century” and “Readings of the new century” at the summer courses of the university in Complutense.
The writer, whose plays have written more than a thousand dissertations, decides to present at 33 international film meetings in Sorrento his seventh feature film Jorge Luis Borges: Another Life of Poetry, built around the ideas of death, sleep and hell and representing a montage of three speeches of the poet and writer in the last years of his life.
Since 1958, he has been married to Lucy Morea. He now has two grown children, Leila and Samuel.
Information prepared by the documentation department of the Cervantes Institute.