Joaquín Abati
Joaquín Abatí y Díaz (29 June 1865, in Madrid – 30 July 1936) was a Spanish writer and Zarzuela Librettist. Education and career. Joaquín Abatí was born to an Italian father and a Spanish mother. He studied law and, though licensed, he never practised. He published a book entitled "Respuestas a los Temas de Derecho Administrativo" (Responses to Issues of Administrative Law), intended to help those who had to deal with these issues. Curiously, he never managed to practise any of the principles although the book was helpful to many of those who had used his book. For this  reason he decided to leave the legal profession and devote himself to literature, that appealed to him more. Artistic career. Abatí's first play was the comic sketch "Entre doctores" (Among doctors), which premiered at the Teatro Lara in 1892. This was followed by works from simple monologues, humorous in nature, such as " El Conde Sisebuto" (The Sisebuto Count) and "Las cien doncellas" (The hundred maidens) to pieces with three or more acts, some in collaboration with Carlos Arniches. He was a prolific author and achieved successes and produced more than 120 titles, resulting in him being regarded as a  writer of the highest rank in his time. His works include "El debut de la chica" (The girl's debut), "La conquista de México" (The Conquest of Mexico), Doña Juanita (written in collaboration with Francisco Flores Garcia), "Genio y figura" (1910), "No te ofendas" (No offense), "Beatriz" (1920) (both with Carlos Arniches), "España nueva" (New Spain), "El Conde de Lavapies" (The Count of Lavapies) and "La Viuda alegre" (The Merry Widow). He excelled in his role as author of operettas, a field in which he collaborated with other authors such as Carlos Arniches and Antonio Paso. Several of his plays  were intended as operetta booklets, such as "Los amarillos" (The yellow ones), a one-act piece, "La corte de Risalia" (The Risalia Court) in two acts, "La mujer artificial" (The artificial woman), "La mulata" (The mulatto woman) and his most famous work, "El asombro de Damasco" (The wonder of Damascus), which he wrote in collaboration with Antonio Cano Paso and to which Maestro Pablo Luna put music and premiered it in 1916. Legal career. Abatí returned to practising law and became professor at the Real Academia de Jurisprudencia y Legislación. Joaquín Abatí died in Madrid in 1936. References. The Biography.(2018 ). "Biography of Joaquin Abati y Diaz (1865-1936)", Retrieved from: <nowiki>https://thebiography.us/en/abati-y-diaz-joaquin</nowiki>