Juan de Matos Fragoso facts for kids
Juan de Matos Fragoso (born around 1608 – died 1689?) was a Spanish playwright with Portuguese family roots. He was born in a town called Alvito in Portugal, around the year 1608.
After finishing his studies and earning a law degree from the University of Evora, he moved to Madrid, Spain. There, he met another important writer, Juan Pérez de Montalbán. This meeting helped Juan de Matos Fragoso get started in the world of theater.
Becoming a Popular Playwright
Juan de Matos Fragoso quickly became very good at writing plays that audiences loved. He knew just what people wanted to see on stage. Because he was so skilled at pleasing the public, many other talented writers wanted to work with him. They often asked him to help them write their own plays.
His first play that was printed was called La defensa de la Fè y Principe prodigioso, which came out in 1651. By 1658, twelve more of his plays had been published.
His Plays and Legacy
Juan de Matos Fragoso passed away on January 4, 1689. Even after his death, his plays remained very popular for a long time.
However, when people read his plays today, they might not find them as exciting. His writing style, which focused a lot on fancy words and complicated ideas about honor, can seem a bit boring or hard to believe now. In some of his plays, like La venganza en el despeño and Á lo que obliga un agravio, he actually rewrote older plays by another famous Spanish writer named Lope de Vega. He was very clever at changing these old stories to make them new, even if they weren't completely original.
See also
In Spanish: Juan de Matos Fragoso para niños
