Catalan Romantic Drama in the 19th Century: Key Features and Authors
Catalan Theatre in the 19th Century
In Catalonia, the first Romantic plays were written in Spanish. It was not until the second half of the 19th century that a great Catalan Romantic drama emerged. It was born from the influence of Romanticism during the Renaixença, breaking with neoclassical theatre, which had established very rigid regulations and did not admit any deviation. The Romantic author, who sought freedom, expressed it through the following features:
- Disappearance of the border between dramatic genres.
- Mixture of prose and verse.
- Rejection of the classic unities (of place, time, and action).
- Greater variety of situations and characters.
One of the most notable genres of this era was the Romantic drama. It is a synthesis of elements of comedy and tragedy, a form that the mandatory Neoclassicism considered completely irreconcilable.
Key Features of Romantic Drama
- Love: It’s the most important theme and is presented as an absolute passion that does not obey any law or rule. It is a love that aims at perfection and is impossible; hence, the end is always tragic.
- The Hero: The protagonist is a mysterious individual facing an unfair society or a power struggle against uneven odds. They live to achieve something that they often do not reach.
- Emotional Capacity: The dramatization uses a set of resources: scenes of intrigue and truculence, dynamism of the action, exalted passions of the characters, and impressive and spectacular scenography.
Types of Romantic Drama
- Historical Drama: Historical events shape the plot of the play, with a prominence. Sometimes, they only play a secondary part in the action, causing the outbreak.
- Rural Drama: Presents an idealization of the Catalan rural family, custodian of values and customs. It has a sentimental plot and a combination of humorous and dramatic elements.
Àngel Guimerà: A Pioneer of Catalan Theatre
Àngel Guimerà represents the fulfillment of the theatre of the Renaixença, with extensive production of indisputable literary quality. Born in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, he was a Canary Islands playwright and poet. He began his literary life in the Spanish language but soon became known for his articles in Catalan. He was announced at the Floral Games (1871) as a poet before devoting himself fully to theatre. Two years later, he won three awards and was proclaimed Master of the Gay Science.
Guimerà renewed Romantic drama with the creation of Romantic tragedy and Realist drama. These are personal and original dramatic genres that characterize his theatrical career. His career is divided into the Romantic period (1879-1890), in which he introduced realistic elements, and the period from 1890-1900, in which, without entirely abandoning the ideas of Romantic tragedy, he aesthetically modernized the genre with the introduction of realistic elements.
Romantic Tragedy
Guimerà reinterpreted the concept of historical and Romantic drama, calling his early works tragedies.
Key Features of Guimerà’s Tragedies
- Unintentionally Patriotic Historical Argument: The action takes place in a past, real or imagined. Guimerà puts forward a literary purpose, and therefore artistic. The themes and characters in the tragedies are more universal in scope.
- Idealization of Characters: The characters are always idealized, and the dramatic action revolves around their passions and their fiery feelings, often reflected in nature.
- Innovation in the Use of Verse: Guimerà wrote tragedies in verse.
His most important works are Galla Placidia, Judith of Welp, and Mar i Cel (Sea and Sky).
Realist Drama
Guimerà incorporated features of Realist drama into Romantic drama. Terra Baixa (The Lowlands) shows characteristics of Realist drama.
Key Features of Realist Drama
- Presence of social problems: the relationship between master and worker, always backing the main story, in this case, the love theme.
- Figures taken from reality, usually of modest condition.
- Use of prose and a more colloquial language.
Terra Baixa: A Masterpiece of Realist Drama
Sebastià, a despotic and ruined landowner who maintains relations with Marta, is compelled to marry a rich heiress. Sebastià marries Marta to Manelic, an innocent shepherd unaware of the situation, in order to continue seeing Marta in secret. The nobility of spirit of Manelic will dazzle Marta, unaware of the situation, and they will fight together to escape the trap that Sebastià prepares. The work, of obvious symbolism, is an ode to honesty and freedom of the individual.
The Romantic elements that linger in Realist drama are: there is an idealized vision of the world, the characters represent ideas, feelings are fiery, and the aim is to show us a passion.