Fikry El Azzouzi is a Belgian writer known for his columns in newspapers such as De Morgen and De Standaard, as well as for his novels and plays.

He made his literary debut in 2010 with the novel Het Schapenfeest, which was well received by critics. In 2014, he published Drarrie in de nacht, which became a breakthrough success. The novel was translated into multiple languages, nominated for the Gouden Uil award, became a bestseller in Germany, and was highly praised in Latin America following its Spanish translation.

Alongside his work as a novelist, El Azzouzi has written over ten plays and received multiple awards. He won the Authors’ Prize for Performing Arts for his play IJdele dagen, and in 2015 he was awarded the Ark Prize of the Free Word for both Drarrie in de nacht and the theater text Reizen Jihad.

Together with theater maker Junior Mthombeni and musician Cesar Janssens, he co-founded the collective Jr.cE.sA.r, with which he created some of the most talked-about productions in recent Flemish theater, including Malcolm X a piece widely described as a turning point in the local theater scene and a stage adaptation of Drarrie in de nacht.

With Alleen Zij, he completed the trilogy that began with Het Schapenfeest and Drarrie in de nacht. In 2019, he published his most recent novel De Beloning. In 2021, El Azzouzi was awarded the Ultima for Literature, the highest cultural award from the Flemish Community, for his literary and theatrical body of work.

In autumn 2019, he co-created Dear Winnie with Jr.cE.sA.r, a musical tribute to the inspirational power of extraordinary figures, following the legacy of Winnie Mandela. The play premiered at KVS in early 2020 and toured internationally. In 2021, the collective followed up with Who’s Tupac?, a dynamic fusion of hip-hop and theater exploring the life and myth of the iconic rapper.

In 2023, El Azzouzi wrote the play R.I.S.A. (Reckless Idiots Seeking for Absolution), a sharp and humorous homage to the revolutionary power of laughter. The premiere took place on March 14, 2023. That same year, he joined the advisory board of the Theater aan Zee festival, where, together with neuroscientist Louisa Bogaerts, he delved into the fundamental question of what still has the power to move us as human beings.