Nicolás Curiel

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Nicolás Curiel (26 April 1928 – 3 March 2021) was a Venezuelan stage director and actor. He was born in Caracas to Humberto Curiel and Carmen Acosta. He finished secondary school at Liceo Fermín Toro, where he did experimental theatre with Román Chalbaud. In 1947 he began studying at the Central University of Venezuela (UCV) and joined its theatre.

In 1949 he went to Paris to study at the Sorbonne's Faculty of Law. He became a troupe member at the Théâtre National Populaire, working with Léon Gischia and Jean Vilar, and joined the French Communist Party. Curiel returned to Venezuela and in 1956 took charge of the UCV theatre, directing it for twelve years and helping train actors such as José Ignacio Cabrujas, María Cristina Lozada, Gustavo Rodríguez, Teresa Selma, and others. In 1957 he staged a performance against the dictatorship of Marcos Pérez Jiménez.

In 2018, the Central University of Venezuela awarded him Doctor Honoris Causa. He was also named an Officier de l’ordre des arts et des lettres. Nicolás Curiel died on 3 March 2021 at the age of 92.