Fatima Gallaire, née Bourega, (7 August 1944 – 15 September 2020) was a Franco-

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

n playwright and author of short stories, who wrote in

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

. Born in Algeria, she held degrees in French Literature from the

University of Algiers The University of Algiers 1 (), commonly called Benyoucef Benkhedda, is a public research university based in Algiers, Algeria. Founded in 1909 from the amalgamation of different French colonial educational institutions, it has become the oldes ...

, and in Cinema from

Paris 8 University Paris 8 University (), or usually the University of Vincennes in Saint-Denis or Paris 8, is a public university in the Greater Paris, France. Once part of the historic University of Paris, it is now an autonomous public institution. It is base ...

. She wrote over twenty plays, many of which have been translated and performed in languages including English, Italian, German, Spanish and Uzbek. These include ''Princesses'', translated as ''You have come back'', and ''Les Co-épouses'', translated as ''House of Wives''. She received the Arletty Prize for Drama in 1990 and the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

AMIC award in 1994.

Biography

Gallaire was born as Fatima Bourega on 7 August 1944 in

El Harrouch El Harrouch is a town and commune in Skikda Province in north-eastern Algeria. It is located on the main N3 road south of Skikda and north of Constantine. Demographics The town of El Harrouch had a population of about 48,994 people at the 2008 ...

in north-eastern Algeria. After studying French literature at the

(1963–67), she moved to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

where she studied cinema until 1970. After working for four years at the Algiers Cinémathèque, she returned to Paris in 1975 where she earned a degree in Cinema Studies at Paris 8 University,

Vincennes Vincennes (; ) is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Vincennes is famous for its castle: the Château de Vincennes. It is next to but does not include the ...

, in 1980. The following year she married a Frenchman, adopting his family name for her publications. She gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl, in 1981. In 1985, she began to write for the theatre, her ''Ah vous êtes venus...'' (later retitled ''Princesses'') being presented at the Théâtre Essaion in Paris in February 1986. In 1991, she wrote her first novel ''Le Mendigot''. Gallaire died 15 September 2020 in Paris, aged 76.

Works translated into English

* ''You have come back'' (''Princesses''), in "Plays by women: an International Anthology", ed. Francoise Kourilsky and Catherine Temerson, Ubu Repertory Theater Publications, 1988. * ''Madame Bertin's Testimony'' (''Témoignage contre un homme stérile''), in "Monologues : plays from Martinique, France, Algeria, Quebec", Ubu Repertory Theater, New York, 1995. * ''House of Wives'' (''Les Co-épouses''), in "Four Plays from North Africa", ed. Marvin Carlson, Martin E. Segal Theatre Center Publications, New York, 2008.

Awards

In 1990, she was awarded the Arletty Prize for her contributions to drama. She also received the AMIC Award from the Académie française in 1994.

References

External links

Fatima Gallaire's official site
(in French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Gallaire, Fatima 1944 births 2020 deaths Algerian dramatists and playwrights Algerian emigrants to France University of Algiers alumni 20th-century Algerian women writers 20th-century Algerian writers Algerian writers in French University of Paris alumni Algerian women dramatists and playwrights People from Skikda Province