Eugène Ionesco

Eugène Ionesco

Eugène Ionesco (born Eugen Ionescu, 26 November 1909 – 28 March 1994) was a Romanian-French playwright who wrote mostly in French, and was one of the foremost figures of the French avant-garde theatre in the 20th century. Ionesco instigated a revolution in ideas and techniques of drama, beginning with his "anti play", The Bald Soprano which contributed to the beginnings of what is known as the Theatre of the Absurd, which includes a number of plays that, following the ideas of the philosopher Albert Camus, explore concepts of absurdism. He was made a member of the Académie française in 1970, and was awarded the 1970 Austrian State Prize for European Literature, and the 1973 Jerusalem Prize. Ionesco was born in Slatina, Romania, to a Romanian father belonging to the Orthodox Christian church and a mother of French and Romanian heritage, whose faith was Protestant (the faith into which her father was born and to which her originally Greek Orthodox Christian mother had converted). Eugène was baptized into the Orthodox Christian faith. Many sources cite his birthdate as 1912, this error being due to vanity on the part of Ionesco himself, who wanted the year of his birth to coincide with that of when his idol, Romanian playwright Caragiale, died. He spent most of his childhood in France and, while there, had an experience he claimed affected his perception of the world more significantly than any other. As Deborah B. Gaensbauer describes in Eugène Ionesco Revisited, "Walking in summer sunshine in a white-washed provincial village under an intense blue sky, [Ionesco] was profoundly altered by the light." He was struck very suddenly with a feeling of intense luminosity, the feeling of floating off the ground and an overwhelming feeling of well-being. When he "floated" back to the ground and the "light" left him, he saw that the real world in comparison was full of decay, corruption and meaningless repetitive action. This also coincided with the revelation that death takes everyone in the end. Much of his later work, reflecting this new perception, demonstrates a disgust for the tangible world, a distrust of communication, and the subtle sense that a better world lies just beyond our reach. Echoes of this experience can also be seen in references and themes in many of his important works: characters pining for an unattainable "city of lights" (The Killer, The Chairs) or perceiving a world beyond (A Stroll in the Air); characters granted the ability to fly (A Stroll in the Air, Amédée, Victims of Duty); the banality of the world which often leads to depression (the Bérenger character); ecstatic revelations of beauty within a pessimistic framework (Amédée, The Chairs, the Bérenger character); and the inevitability of death (Exit the King). He returned to Romania with his father and mother in 1925 after his parents divorced. There he attended Saint Sava National College, after which he studied French Literature at the University of Bucharest from 1928 to 1933 and qualified as a teacher of French. While there he met Emil Cioran and Mircea Eliade, and the three became lifelong friends. ... Source: Article "Eugène Ionesco" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

  • Title: Eugène Ionesco
  • Popularity: 1.539
  • Known For: Writing
  • Birthday: 1909-11-26
  • Place of Birth: Slatina, Romania
  • Homepage:
  • Also Known As: Eugen Ionescu, Eugene Ionesco
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Eugène Ionesco Movies

  • 1970
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    Schlamm

    Schlamm

    1 1970 HD

    In his country house, a man lets himself get stuck in a suicidal lethargy. Eugène Ionesco, alone on screen, interprets the character of his...

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  • 2021
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    When Night Meets Dawn

    When Night Meets Dawn

    6 2021 HD

    A teenage boy goes looking for his new friend on the hot streets of an eerie city. As the blue night falls, a sensual journey begins. Nature around...

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  • 2009
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    Lucifer et moi

    Lucifer et moi

    1 2009 HD

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  • 1959
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    Monsieur Tête

    Monsieur Tête

    6.1 1959 HD

    Monsieur Tête, an ordinary bureaucrat, rebels against the world and the ideas of the people around him. Because of his marginal behavior, his...

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  • 1968
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    Françoise et Udo...

    Françoise et Udo...

    1 1968 HD

    This is the story of a meeting between a man and a woman. In a train, an Austrian singer and a French teacher exchange on their past, their...

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  • 1974
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    Ariane

    Ariane

    1 1974 HD

    A dreamlike adaptation of the legend of Ariadne and the Minotaur.

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  • 1989
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    Tales for children under three

    Tales for children under three

    1 1989 HD

    These tales for children under three years of Eugène Ionesco are illustrated by drawings of children. The presence of the storyteller is...

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  • 1987
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    Eugène Ionesco, voix and silences

    Eugène Ionesco, voix and silences

    1 1987 HD

    An evocation of the work of the playwright and writer Eugène Ionesco through a series of interviews, footage shot in his studio and extracts...

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  • 2003
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    The Battle for 'I Am Curious-Yellow'

    The Battle for 'I Am Curious-Yellow'

    1 2003 HD

    A documentary about the film, I am Curious-Yellow (1967), and how it made it into the USA and changed film in USA forever by breaking the USA...

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  • 1981
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    Le Roi des cons

    Le Roi des cons

    4.4 1981 HD

    Georges Le Roi lives odd jobs and shares his life between two girlfriends. One day, he falls in love with Sophie and records a message of love. The...

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  • 1962
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    La colère

    La colère

    1 1962 HD

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  • 1962
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    La colère

    La colère

    1 1962 HD

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  • 1964
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    Rhinoceros

    Rhinoceros

    5.571 1964 HD

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  • 1974
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    Rhinoceros

    Rhinoceros

    5.4 1974 HD

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  • 1962
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    Stolarna

    Stolarna

    1 1962 HD

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  • 2022
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    As Cadeiras

    As Cadeiras

    1 2022 HD

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  • 1959
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    Monsieur Tête

    Monsieur Tête

    6.1 1959 HD

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  • 1968
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    Amédée ou comment s'en débarrasser

    Amédée ou comment s'en débarrasser

    10 1968 HD

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  • 1993
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    Replacing Dogs with Mixing

    Replacing Dogs with Mixing

    1 1993 HD

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  • 2001
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    I’m Going Home

    I’m Going Home

    6.9 2001 HD

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  • 2010
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    Josette and her Daddy

    Josette and her Daddy

    1 2010 HD

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  • 1962
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    The Seven Deadly Sins

    The Seven Deadly Sins

    5.6 1962 HD

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  • 1991
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    La Cantatrice chauve

    La Cantatrice chauve

    7 1991 HD

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  • 2009
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    Rhinocéros

    Rhinocéros

    1 2009 HD

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  • 1970
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    Exit the King

    Exit the King

    1 1970 HD

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  • 1978
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    Le roi se meurt

    Le roi se meurt

    1 1978 HD

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  • 1965
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    Studio III - Aus Kunst und Wissenschaft

    Studio III - Aus Kunst und Wissenschaft

    1 1965 HD

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  • 1972
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    Midi trente

    Midi trente

    6 1972 HD

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  • 1956
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    Cinépanorama

    Cinépanorama

    8 1956 HD

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  • 1975
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    Apostrophes

    Apostrophes

    8.5 1975 HD

    Apostrophes was a live, weekly, literary, prime-time, talk show on French television created and hosted by Bernard Pivot. It ran for fifteen years...

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  • 1976
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    30 millions d'amis

    30 millions d'amis

    5.8 1976 HD

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