Àngel Guimerà: Life, Works, and Catalan Theater

Àngel Guimerà: A Biography

Early Life and Influences

Born in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands, in 1845, Àngel Guimerà’s mother was of humble Canarian origin, while his father was a Catalan merchant. At the age of eight, the family relocated to El Vendrell, Catalonia. This move required young Guimerà to learn Catalan and adapt to a new culture. He began writing Spanish poetry at fourteen, expressing a longing for his birthplace. Eventually, he embraced Catalan language and culture, becoming involved in the Renaixença (Catalan literary revival). He joined literary circles in Barcelona and co-founded the magazine La Renaixença in 1871, which he later directed. Guimerà’s long and difficult courtship with Maria Rubio ended shortly after his poetic success, and he remained unmarried.

Poet and Playwright

Thanks to his financial stability, Guimerà dedicated himself to his literary pursuits. He gained recognition as a poet, achieving significant success in the Floral Games of 1877, winning the Natural Flower, the Viola, and the Englantina, and being proclaimed Mestre en Gai Saber. His poetry, rooted in Romanticism, explored diverse themes and styles. His intimate lyricism addressed personal subjects like childhood memories and familial love. He also employed an epic style in narrative poems about Catalan and European history. His popular poems, such as “Les fulles seques,” “La sardana de les monges,” and “La Santa Espina,” resonated with patriotic themes.

We are and will be the splinter of the Holy Catalan people, whether you want it or not, there is no land more conceited, under the guise of the sun.

Catalan Activism

Àngel Guimerà actively participated in Catalan politics, defending national rights and language. In 1895, he collaborated on a memorial to Alfonso XII and was elected president of the Ateneu Barcelonès, delivering his inaugural address in Catalan. He died in Barcelona in 1924.

Themes and Characters in his Plays

Guimerà’s plays often feature recurring themes and characters reflecting his personal struggles and worldview. The battle between good and evil is central, often culminating in tragic outcomes. His characters, frequently marginalized or newcomers, mirror his own complex feelings about his illegitimacy. Love, a powerful force in his works, is portrayed with intense passion, reflecting his own unfulfilled desires. He also explores the transformation of marginalized characters and the dynamics of power relations in human interactions, marked by selfishness. His settings often contrast idyllic rural environments with the harsh realities of social conflict.

Guimerà’s Theatrical Legacy

Shifting his focus from poetry to theater, Guimerà sought to revitalize Catalan theater, then dominated by Frederic Soler. Inspired by European trends, he aimed to revive tragedy as a form of theater grounded in historical reality, following the model of Schiller’s synthesis of Shakespearean and French classicism. His dramatic works can be divided into three phases:

• First Phase (1879-1890): Romantic Tragedy. Marked by innovations like the use of decasyllabic verse, Guimerà’s early tragedies, set in the past, gradually moved closer to contemporary themes. Mar i cel stands out as a representative work of this period.
• Second Phase (1890-1900): Realism within Romantic Drama. This period, his literary peak, saw the integration of realistic elements, such as colloquial language and social themes, within his romantic framework. His trilogy—Maria Rosa, Terra baixa, and La filla del mar—exemplifies this balance.
• Third Phase (1900-1924): New Aesthetic Trends. Guimerà experimented with new styles to appeal to evolving audience tastes, but did not achieve the same level of success as in his earlier periods.

European Romantic Theater

Romantic playwrights rejected the rigid rules of neoclassical theater. Romantic drama emerged, characterized by the expression of romantic sensibilities. It combined contrasting elements: tragic and comic, verse and prose, grandiloquent and simple tones, supernatural and realistic events. It broke with the classical unities of time, space, and sometimes action.

Key aspects of romantic drama include:

• Complex love plots with obstacles and dramatic endings.
• Dynamic action in mysterious settings.
• Intense emotions enhanced by spectacular scenery and dramatic effects.
• Passionate, melancholic heroes with unhappy fates.
• Themes of love and freedom.

Two main themes developed within romantic drama:

• Melodrama: Simplified characters, good versus evil, bombastic declamation, and predictable plots.
• Historical drama: Set in the past, often medieval, with characters and plots based on historical events.

Beginnings of Contemporary Catalan Drama

Catalan theatrical tradition in the Modern Age was rooted in popular comic and religious genres. The rise of theater-going audiences in the 19th century led to the creation of theater companies and the emergence of dedicated playwrights. Romantic drama gained popularity, initially performed in Spanish due to language laws, and later in Catalan. Frederic Soler (Serafí Pitarra) and Àngel Guimerà were key figures in 19th-century Catalan theater.

Frederic Soler (Serafí Pitarra)

Frederic Soler’s theatrical work can be divided into two phases:

• First phase (until 1866): Comedies parodying romantic dramas, known as gatades.
• Second phase (from 1866): Romantic dramas, including historical dramas and contemporary plays, often using melodrama and customs to appeal to the public.

Soler consolidated the Catalan theater scene, while Guimerà was tasked with renewing the tradition.