Dutch writer and theatre maker Paulien Cornelisse dies of cancer at 50

Paulien Cornelisse, known for her writing and theatre work, passed away from cancer at the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital in Amsterdam. Her management confirmed the death in a press release on Wednesday. On the same day she was forced to withdraw from a scheduled show at DeLaMar, which was meant to mark her return to the stage.

In the summer of 2024 she had already cancelled a theatre tour for health reasons, and she publicly announced her illness in August 2024. Cornelisse first entered the theatre scene in the early 2000s, later performing solo after an initial cabaret duo with Irene van der Aart. She earned awards such as the second place at the Leids Cabaret Festival in 2007 and the Neerlands Hoop prize for her program Dagbraken.

She also won the NS Publieksprijs in 2025 for De verwarde cavia - Terug op kantoor. Since 2018 she has been a columnist for the Volkskrant, after a decade of writing columns for one outlet.