Painters have often inspired playwrights: last winter, French audiences could see a play about French painter Jean-Baptiste Corot or even a rock-musical epic based on the life of Pablo Picasso. Now, the Panta Theatre Company is presenting a one-woman show based on the life of legendary Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, at the Theatre Dejazet .

Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) is famous for her tortured self-portraits and colorful paintings in which she expressed the physical and emotional pains she had experienced all her life through. Frida Kahlo and husband Diego Rivera (1886-1957) were a legendary couple of painters and influenced Mexican painting and even more generally, modern art.

Frida Kahlo, the play, has been written by Vero Dahureau, and is based on Kahlo's diary and correspondence. The play goes through Kahlo's life, from childhood to womanhood, from young painter to internationally acclaimed artist. Frida Kahlo also goes through the passionate and tender relationship between Kahlo and Rivera, as well as her own involvement with the Communist Party. Kahlo is portrayed by Vero Dahureau herself.

It's also interesting to note that the Musee Maillol in Paris will present the biggest exhibition ever of the paintings of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, starting June 17.

For tickets and information on Frida Kahlo, call 331 48 87 52 55. Runs until May 23. Fondation Dina Vierny - Musee Maillol, Exhibition Frida Kahlo & Diego Rivera, 61 rue de Grenelle, 75007 Paris. For more information, call 331 42 22 59 58. Runs June 17-Sept. 30.

-- By Stephane Ly-Cuong
France Correspondent