Golden Age Drama in Contemporary Spain: The Comedia on Page, Stage and Screen

Duncan Wheeler

This is the first book dedicated to the performance and reception of sixteenth and seventeenth century national drama in contemporary Spain. It contextualises the socio-historical background to productions of works by the country’s three major Spanish baroque playwrights (Calderón de la Barca, Lope de Vega and Tirso de Molina), whilst also providing detailed, accessible and jargon-free aesthetic analyses of individual stage and screen adaptations. Plot summaries of each of the plays discussed are included, and the extensive bibliography will provide an essential resource for academics, practitioners and students alike.

See the poster for full information:  Golden Age Drama in Contemporary Spain

AHRC-funded project ‘Out of the Wings’ presents its

2010 Symposium

‘Spanish Golden Age Drama in Translation and Performance’

at Merton College, Oxford

18-19 March 2010

REGISTRATION FORM AVAILABLE HERE:

Registration and Accommodation, Catering OTW ’10

Translating and performing the works of Miguel de Cervantes, Lope de Vega, Tirso de Molina and Calderón de la Barca, and other playwrights of the Golden Age have sparked an increasing amount of interest, heightened by the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2004-5 Golden Age season. Our Symposium will be attended by both academic and theatrical practitioners working within the field of Golden Age drama, and a wider base of attendees interested in Spanish theatre in general, as well as University colleagues and students. Speakers will be drawn from the United States and Europe, representing a variety of areas of expertise in translation and performance of the comedia. Please explore our website (www.outofthewings.org) for more information on the project, and see the rest of the blog for past events.

For more information see the London Theatre Guide article here.

Specific thanks go to the Association for Hispanic Classical Theatre, particularly Ben Gunter and Susan Paun de Garcia, without whom the seminar would not have been possible.

For more information about the Association for Theatre in Higher Education see the ATHE Website or this year’s conference site, Risking Innovation.

The Case Against Preserving Meter and Rhyme in Poetic Translation: Theory or Practice?

There is a Golden Age Working Group, New Approaches to Plays from the Spanish Golden Age: Destiny, Nation Formation, & Puerto Rican Perspectives

The Working Group will divide into three teams: one working on Lo fingido verdadero, another on Fuente Ovejuna, and finally on Los melindres de Belisa. See the ASTR 2009 Call for Participants.  

Questions regarding this Session may be directed to the conveners at astr_gold_2009@yahoo.com

For general information please see the Conference Website.

La fuerza de la costumbre by Guillén de Castro

We have chosen this play, ‘Force of Habit’, because it is relatively unknown, as is its author, in the canon of comedias which are produced with some regularity. Brother and sister, separated at birth, grow up apart-Felix is brought up by his mother to speak softly, fear thunder and stitch, while Hipólita grows up with her father in a war zone, learning to wield a sword. This play asks the question: Is gender learned or innate?

El condenado por desconfiado by Tirso de Molina

The protagonist of ‘Damned for Despair’, Paulo is a hermit who lives in a cave in the wilderness as a devoted ascetic. In a nightmare, his soul is condemned, and he is plagued by the question: Will he go to Heaven or to Hell? The devil takes the form of an angel in order to trick him, kicking off a journey of faith and despair. This play has been performed in the UK but merits a fresh look with a view to future performances.

El castigo sin venganza by Lope de Vega

‘Punishment without Revenge’ is the tragedy of a noble family, in which a devoted son falls in love unexpectedly with his father’s new bride. A tale of incest, honour and revenge, this play is one of Lope’s better-known tragedies.

El conde Partinuplés by Ana Caro

In ‘Count Partinuplés’ the heroine Rosaura, Empress of Constantinople, is forced to choose a husband in order to provide an heir to the empire. Her cousin Aldora, a skilled magician, introduces her to occult ways of choosing a prince, and she chooses the Count Partinuplés of France, who is already engaged. This epic, magical play is unique in that it was written by a woman and its fantastical elements make the play a rarely-produced gem.

The Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) is an international collective of scholars, educators, and practitioners founded in 1986.  The association hosts an annual conference, where upwards of 1000 people gather to present panels, conduct demonstrations, meet world-famous theatre artists, and test-drive new ideas.

For the first time in ATHE’s history, this conference will feature a Seminar addressing the dramaturgy of the Siglo de Oro:  Strategies for Reviving Plays from the Spanish Golden Age, In Class and On Stage. Through pre-conference exchanges, in-conference discussions, and post-conference networking, this Seminar offers participants (and their auditors) extraordinary opportunities to share insights, interact with international experts, and forge new developments in the field.

The deadline for submitting an abstract is Nov 1, so if you’re interested in participating, read on!

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS:

Strategies for Reviving Plays from the Spanish Golden Age, In Class and On Stage

A Seminar for the Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) Conference on “Risking Innovation”

New York City, 8-11 August 2009

The Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) is an international collective of scholars, educators, and practitioners founded in 1986.  The association hosts an annual conference, where upwards of 1000 people gather to present panels, conduct demonstrations, meet world-famous theatre artists, and test-drive new ideas.

The 2009 conference will be held at New York’s Marriott Marquis Hotel (home of Broadway’s Marquis Theatre) in conjunction with the American Alliance for Theatre & Education (AATE).  “Risking Innovation” is the theme.  Emerging details about the conference are online at www.riskinginnovation.com, and more information about ATHE is available through www.athe.org.

For the first time in ATHE’s history, this conference will feature a Seminar addressing the dramaturgy of the Siglo de Oro:  Strategies for Reviving Plays from the Spanish Golden Age, In Class and On Stage. Through pre-conference exchanges, in-conference discussions, and post-conference networking, this Seminar offers participants (and their auditors) extraordinary opportunities to share insights, interact with international experts, and forge new developments in the field.

To participate in this Seminar, submit a 250 word abstract of your proposed contribution by November 1, using the process detailed at www.riskinginnovation.com/program.html.

This website posts the seminar’s official Call for Papers, provides information (and answers many questions) about the seminar format, and opens the link to submit abstracts.

Questions not answered at www.riskinginnovation.com/program.html should be referred to the seminar’s convener, Ben Gunter, via e-mail to athe2009sigloseminar@yahoo.com.