Literature · Religion · Military · 1600–1681
Born: 17 January 1600 · Died: 25 May 1681 · Age at death: 81
Pedro Calderón de la Barca died aged 81. He was born on 17 January 1600 and died on 25 May 1681.
Dramatist of the Spanish Golden Age known for Life Is a Dream
Did you know?After a successful career in the theatre, he was ordained as a priest and spent his later years writing religious plays for the church.
Pedro Calderón de la Barca brought Spain's Golden Age of theatre to its peak. His plays mixed poetry with philosophy. In Life Is a Dream, a prince wonders whether reality can be trusted. The question still holds audiences today. He also wrote short religious plays for festivals. Later he became a priest. Writers of the Romantic era rediscovered him. Today his work is staged across the Spanish-speaking world. Its themes of fate, honour and free will still feel fresh to modern directors.
Pedro Calderón de la Barca y Henao (UK:, US:; Spanish:; 17 January 1600 – 25 May 1681) was a Spanish dramatist, poet, and writer. He is known as one of the most distinguished poets and writers of the Spanish Golden Age, especially for the many verse dramas he wrote for the theatre.
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Profile
Spanish playwright, born 1600
Pedro Calderón de la Barca was born in Madrid on 17 January 1600.
He wrote Life Is a Dream.
He was a court dramatist under Philip IV.
He became a priest in 1651.
Career highlights
Did you know?He wrote around 120 plays.
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