Nelson Falcao Rodrigues (August 23, 1912 - December 21, 1980) was a Brazilian playwright, journalist and novelist who became the progenitor of the modern Brazilian theatre A deeply controversial writer, today he is widely regarded as Brazil's greatest playwright. His astonishing career over four decades addressed burning taboo issues in Brazilian society - race, sexual repression, incest, crime and murder, causing Rodrigues to refer to his work as 'theatre of the unpleasant'. Censored for their shocking material, many of his plays remained unperformed for decades. Restlessly inventive, he was the voice of Rio's poor, its lower-middle class, its ignored, before turning his attention to mythical themes.