Nicolás Dorr and His Mission As A Writer

Cuban novelist and playwright Nicolás Dorr, far from conventionalism, combines surrealism, comedy, absurdity and farce in his work, with shades of irreverence, irony and the questioning of social appearances.

This 3 February, we celebrate the 77th birthday of Nicolás Dorr Udaetadel, winner of the 2014 National Theater Prize.

At the age of 14, Nicolás established himself as Cuba’s youngest playwright with the premiere of Las pericas on April 3, 1961. The play, considered a classic of Cuban drama, opened up new creative possibilities for him on the stage and earned him national recognition.

The esteemed critic Rine Leal commented on the transcendence of this performance: «Intelligent people agree on one point: a new writer has been born, one who is different from any other in Cuba.»

Shortly before his twentieth birthday, he had already published his first book, with a preface by Osvaldo Dragún, a Uruguayan intellectual who developed a playwriting seminar that was decisive in the development of the Cuban stage, and in which Nicolás himself participated.

With more than twenty plays to his name, he was never a complacent writer. His works encompass a universe integrated into the lives of the characters, in which the impulse and the desire to create are a conscious talent and sensitivity, and support a fruitful career.

Several of his works have been adapted for television and cinema: Una casa colonial was part of the Ministry of Education’s educational program, and Las pericas was the first Cuban play to be adapted for ballet.

Dorr stressed the importance of inhabiting reality in his creations, and on more than one occasion emphasized the educational nuance of theater. With a degree in Hispanic Languages and Literature from the University of Havana, he worked as a professor for more than 40 years, during which time he lectured at academic institutions in Cuba and abroad.

He also directed the Latin American Popular Theater and the Rita Montaner Group, as well as the Martí and El Sótano Theaters, and wrote articles and essays on film and playwriting.

His most important dramatic works include La chacota, Confesión en el barrio chino, Una casa colonial, Confrontación and La sagrada familia, as well as the novels El legado del caos (2013) and Del otro lado del río (2017).

In recognition of his work, he received the Order of National Culture, the Alejo Carpentier Medal in 2002, the National Theater Prize in 2014 and the Cirilo Villaverde Novel Prize in 2017 from the Union of Cuban Writers and Artists (Uneac in Spanish).

His journey through the stages is a testimony of love and unconditional dedication to the mission that every writer has: to be a spokesman for the problems and situations of man in his constant search for happiness.