Tirso de Molina

Tirso de Molina (pseudonym of Fray Gabriel Téllez, 1579–1648) was a Spanish Baroque dramatist, poet, and Roman Catholic friar of the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy. A disciple of Lope de Vega, he wrote an estimated three to four hundred plays, distinguished by their psychological acuity, especially in complex female roles, and rapid comic dialogue.

Tirso achieved immortality through his play El burlador de Sevilla y convidado de piedra ('The Trickster of Seville and the Stone Guest', c. 1630), which introduced the legendary figure of Don Juan Tenorio to world literature. The play explores theological themes of divine justice and delayed repentance, culminating in the terrifying scene where the statue of the murdered Commander drags Don Juan to hell.