Bernard-Marie Koltès (1948 – 1989) was a French playwright and director. Koltès's work, based in real-life problems, expresses the tragedy of being alone and of death. His writing style accents the dramatic tension and the lyricism of his plays. Koltes is most famous for his plays The Night Just Before the Forests (La Nuit juste avant les Forêts, 1976), Sallinger (1977) and In the Solitude of Cotton Fields (Dans la Solitude des Champs de Coton, 1986).