Download

Maria Irene Fornes

  • Birth

    Birth
    She was born in Havana, Cuba in 1930.
  • Cuban Revolution of 1933

    Cuban Revolution of 1933
    It was a revolt from sergeants and enlisted men who united with student activists in the Directorio Estudiantil Universitario, which was a group that was from the Universidad de Habana.
  • Immigration

    Immigration
    Fores at age 15 moved to New York City with her sister Margarita and her mami Carmen
  • Period: to

    Growth of NYC

    During the 1950s NYC saw a boom in architecture, cultural, and musical.
  • Period: to

    Fomers (Fornes x Sohmers)

    In 1954, Fornes got together with Harriet Sohmers and moved to Paris where she planned to study painting. Fornés saw the production of "Waiting for Gagot" by Samuel Beckett which inspired her. She moved back to NYC after breaking up with her girlfriend in 1957.
  • Period: to

    Civil Rights Movement

    During the 1960s there was a movement to fight for the right of Black Americans to be equally valued as a white persons
  • Period: to

    Sonés (Sontag x Fornés)

    Fornés entered into a relationship with Susan Sontag when she moved back to New York.
  • First Piece

    First Piece
    Fornés wrote her first piece titled "La Vuida", which mean "The Widow" but it wasnt considered her first because it was never published.
  • Period: to

    Feminist Movement

    During this time, there was an uproar for equality for women. They were fighting for equal rights in the workspace as in pay and recognition.
  • Second Piece

    Second Piece
    The Successful Life of 3 premiers which is about a playfully examines the intersecting lives and relationships of two men and the woman they sometimes share. Its characters are nameless archetypes; He, She and 3, who careen through ten episodic vaudevillian scenes.
  • First Award

    First Award
    Fornes won her first Obie Award for her work in The Successful Life of 3.
  • Period: to

    Fellowship with Yale

    She taught playwrighting at Yale for two years.
  • Fellowship with Boston University Tanglewood

    Fellowship with Boston University Tanglewood
    Fornes moved to Boston University Tanglewood and became teacher there and taught theatre.
  • Guggenheim Fellowship

    Guggenheim Fellowship
    She was given the Guggenheim Fellowship Category: Creative Arts, Field of Study: Drama and Performance Artto to advance and expand her own playwrighting abilities.
  • Rockefeller Foundation Grant

    Rockefeller Foundation Grant
    She was awarded the Rockefeller Foundation grant which went toward workshops for playwrights at universities and theaters both in the US and abroad.
  • Fefu and Her Friends

    Fefu and Her Friends
    Fefu and Her Friends. The play is a milestone in her career, breaking from traditional theatrical structures. It uses unconventional staging, and its portrayal of women in a non-linear narrative challenged social norms and expectations. This play became one of her most significant contributions to the American theater
  • Another Obie Award

    Another Obie Award
    Fornes was awarded another Obie award for directing on Eyes on the harem.
  • Eyes on the Harem

    Eyes on the Harem
    It explores the lives of women within a Turkish harem, focusing on the power dynamics, social restrictions, and psychological complexities experienced by the female inhabitants under the watchful eyes of the men in power
  • Period: to

    8 More Obie Awards

    Maria Irene Fornes went on to receive 8 more Obie Awards for her work.
  • September 11th attacks

    September 11th attacks
    On September 11th, 4 planes were hijacked and crashed in to the world trade centers, the pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania.
  • MACHA

    MACHA
    She was the first Recipient of the Mujeres (Women) Advancing Culture, History, and Art (MACHA) Award for Outstanding Achievement in Mentoring Latina Writers
  • Alzheimers

    Alzheimers
    In 2005, Fornes was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. It is a brain disorder that causes a gradual decline in memory, thinking, and behavior.
  • The Rest I Make Up

    The Rest I Make Up
    Due to her medical situation she did stop writing but she made a documentary with Michelle Memran about the memories she does have
  • Descanso

    Descanso
    Maria Irene Fornes died at age 88 in Manhattan, New York, NY in Amsterdam Nursing Home.