Born in Toulouse in 1941, Vassal studied under Charles Dullin.[2] At the age of 20, during the Algerian War, he joined the cast of Antigone, directed by Jean Vilar.[2] In 1963, his first play, Le Temps des troubadours, covered the Albigensian Crusade.[2] It was adapted for television in many shows, including L'Affaire Calas.[2]
From the 1970s to 2000, Vassal created and directed many festivals in Albi, Aigues-Mortes,[3] Carcassonne, and Lattes.[2] At the same time, he led a "militant activity of theatrical decentralization" and created the Théâtre populaire des Cévennes.[4] In some plays, such as Grappes de ma vigne, he focused on novelistic writing, which led to his publication of La Boussole in 2006.[2]
Vassal died on 13 November 2022, at the age of 81.[5]
