Barcelona’s arts scene is mourning Manel Dueso, whose presence on stage and in poetry circles was impossible to ignore. He died at 73 after a long struggle with colon cancer, leaving behind a body of work that resists easy labels. Raw emotion and sharp intellect made him a singular figure in Catalan culture.
Spanish media outlets including ARA and RTVE report that Dueso died in Barcelona on Tuesday, 9 September 2026, after a lengthy illness. El Nacional reports that he died at the Hospital de Sant Pau, a loss felt across Catalonia’s cultural life. The Lapislàtzuli publishing house, which had released several of his works, first announced his death; ARA, RTVE and El Nacional later confirmed the news. RTVE reports that his final poetry collection was titled 'Som cavalls d’escuma en camps de menta'.
Dueso was known for his commanding stage presence and a voice that could shift from biting irony to deep vulnerability. He never settled into a single role, working as an actor and director while also writing, though he always said poetry was his real home. His hands and features were as memorable as his performances, distinctive and unmistakably human.
Audiences remember him as Agustín Solano in Ñaque o de piojos and for roles in TV3 series such as Nissaga de poder, La Riera and Laberint d’ombres. As a director, he tackled works from Shakespeare and Molière to Genet and Connor MacPherson. His own plays, Sara y Simon, Matem els homes and Pensem. (Pausa.) A la merda!, often pushed actors and audiences alike. He drew inspiration from Beckett, Ionesco and Edward Bond, yet his voice remained his own.
His film work included Salvador, Eva and Operación Malaya. He also directed actors for Manel Huerga and played Torquemada in Isabel. Those who worked with Dueso, at the Institut del Teatre or in rehearsal rooms, describe a man whose gruffness concealed deep empathy and pain. Conversations with him could linger, as though some of his experience stayed with you.
Personal tragedy shaped much of Dueso’s outlook. His father’s suicide haunted him and became a recurring theme in his writing. His father, from rural Aragón, had struggled to care for a tetraplegic son. Dueso’s play Mata’m, published in 2023, explores despair and friendship and appeared alongside a collection of poems, Assaig de petits comiats. Together, the works reflect his continuing effort to understand mortality and loss.
Even as illness and a serious fall limited him, Dueso kept working. The Teatre Nacional de Catalunya staged his black comedy Jambo Bwana in its Sala Petita, a sign of his continued relevance. He often voiced frustration with what he saw as the conservatism of contemporary theatre, insisting that art should provoke and unsettle. He admired poets including Antonina Canyelles, Rimbaud, Baudelaire and Gil de Biedma, and wanted to work with people driven by real passion.
In his final months, Dueso’s clarity and courage endured. He saw language as a weapon against suffering and believed poetry should stay with us to the end. His last published works, along with memories shared by colleagues such as Francesc Orella and Àurea Màrquez, keep his influence alive in Catalan culture.
Dueso’s death comes as Catalonia mourns several other major cultural figures, as reported earlier. His refusal to conform and readiness to face pain directly, rooted in his belief in the power of art, set a standard few can match. His absence will be felt in theatres and poetry readings, as well as in the wider debate over creating without compromise. He leaves a challenge: risk discomfort and keep the language of the stage alive, even when it embraces contradiction.
