Postwar Spanish Theater: An Overview
Postwar Spanish Theater
Literary Historical Context
The Spanish Civil War ushered in the Franco regime, characterized by:
- Strong political repression
- Economic autarky and government intervention
- Cultural purification and lack of freedom
- Foreign policy alignment with fascism
In 1943, Franco declared neutrality in World War II. Subsequently, the U.S., Britain, and France declared his regime illegitimate, a stance ratified by the UN. An economic blockade followed, and the failure of economic policies led to significant changes that also impacted literary production.
The Franco era (1939-1975) can be divided into two stages:
- 1939-1957: Marked by new state organization, persecution, and purges.
- 1957-1975: Characterized by a degree of liberalization and increased freedom of information. After 1975, democracy was consolidated, and Spain integrated into other European democracies.
The immediate postwar theater scene in Spain was impoverished, largely due to censorship. Traditional theater and escapism, such as high comedy or comedia benventina, continued to dominate in cinemas.
In the late 1940s, social attitudes began to emerge, reflected in the realistic and existential drama of the mid-1950s. The 1960s and early 1970s saw experimentation with new theatrical forms. Following Franco’s death and the arrival of democracy, previously banned or silenced authors gained freedom of expression in theaters.
Features
Playwrights in Exile
After the war, Republican playwrights were forced into exile, primarily to Latin America, where they continued their dramatic renovation work. Notable examples include Max Aub and Alejandro Casona.
High Comedy
Representatives of Spanish high comedy continued the pre-war dramatic line, writing a predominantly bourgeois theater that enjoyed prolonged public success. Key features of this type of theater include:
- Emphasis on well-crafted plays
- Focus on the middle class
- Humor and entertainment
- Alongside humorous works, dramas and thesis plays addressed serious moral dilemmas
- Prioritization of spiritual over moral values
- Thematic monotony despite the number of works produced
Notable authors include José María Pemán, Juan Ignacio Luca de Tena, Claudio de la Torre, Joaquín Calvo Sotelo, José López Rubio, and Edgar Neville.
Humorous Theater
Miguel Mihura and Enrique Jardiel Poncela entered the Spanish theater scene with the aim of renewing humor. Tired of slapstick and easy humor, they offered a new way of interpreting reality. Critics have identified intellectual humor and elements of the absurd in their work. Implausible situations and dialogues governed by unconventional logic characterize their comedy, which often carries a hint of bitterness. Their theater is not merely entertainment but also a critique of Spanish society and its conventions.
Miguel Mihura began writing before the war, but his recognition was delayed until the 1950s. His first work, “Three Hats,” explores the theme of freedom gained and lost. Mihura’s humor often ridicules characters and actions of immediate reality, with satire prevailing over humor.
Social Drama
Antonio Buero Vallejo and Alfonso Sastre represent milestones in postwar Spanish social and political drama. Driven by their rebellious spirit, they expressed dissatisfaction with the existing system through their writing. Sastre’s approach was more overtly political, while Buero Vallejo’s was more social. Their diverse themes, styles, and dramatic approaches converged in a cry of rebellion.
Other playwrights also reflected social concerns similar to Buero and Sastre, but their works were often not staged. These authors remained marginalized.
Features of Social Drama:
- Realistic portrayal of social injustice, exploitation, working-class conditions, and poverty
- Characters as victims of a society that exerts power through bureaucracy, religious superstition, or oppression
- Direct, un euphemistic language in contrast to the polished language of high comedy
- Violence, frustration, and a lack of happy endings, aiming to depict the harsh realities of life and denounce social injustices
Notable authors include José María Rodríguez Méndez, Carlos Muñiz, Laura Olmo, José Martín Recuerda, and Andrés Ruiz.
Antonio Buero Vallejo: With the release of “Historia de una escalera” (Story of a Staircase), Buero Vallejo initiated a theater that sought truth and aimed to awaken Spanish consciousness. Critics have categorized his work as:
- Symbolist Theater (e.g., “In the Fiery Darkness”)
- Social Criticism Theater (e.g., “Story of a Staircase,” “Today is a Holiday,” and “Skylight”)
- Historical Dramas (e.g., “A Dreamer of a People,” “Las Meninas,” and “The Sleep of Reason”)
Many of Buero Vallejo’s characters have physical or mental disabilities.
Non-Realistic Theater (1970s)
According to Ramón Ruiz, non-realistic theater of this period is characterized by:
- Internal destruction of the character
- Parabolic action and language
- Invasion of the stage by objects
This period also saw the emergence of theater as a collective spectacle, incorporating European dramatic proposals such as happenings, absurd theater, and theater of provocation. Non-realistic theater can be further divided into hermetic theater, experimental theater, and meta-theater.
Hermetic Theater: Notable examples include José Ruibal, Antonio Martínez Ballesteros, and Manuel Martínez Mediero.
Experimental Theater: This movement sought new forms of theatrical experience using available resources. It ranged from the absence of a written text to direct audience address, aiming to integrate the audience into the performance. Notable authors include Fernando Arrabal, Luis Matilla, Jerónimo López Mozo, and Diego Salvador.
Meta-theater: In the 1970s, playwrights questioned the identity of theater, the validity of traditional representation, and presented alternatives. Prominent figures in this trend include Francisco Nieva, Luis Riaza, José Martín Elizondo, Hermogenes Sainz, and Miguel Romero Esteo.
Later Years
The later years of the Franco regime and the transition to democracy saw a dispersion of trends, a decline in the avant-garde, and a return to traditional approaches. Notable authors include José Sanchis Sinisterra, José Luis Alonso de Santos, Fermín Cabal, and Fernando Fernán Gómez.
Independent Groups
In the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s, a wave of playwrights and theater companies emerged in Spain, rebelling against the commercial theater that dominated the scene. They sought to create and perform a different kind of theater.
Faced with resistance from established theaters to stage their often minority-focused and less commercially viable works, these young artists formed their own independent theater companies. The state of theater in Spain improved significantly in the late 1970s and 1980s.
By 1975, there were approximately 150 non-commercial theater groups, encompassing amateur theater, chamber theater, experimental theater, university theater, and independent theater. These groups shared several characteristics:
- Rejection of traditional staging
- Emphasis on group expression
- Striving for a unified work ethic and ideological and aesthetic consciousness
- Rejection of catering to a specific audience type
- Rejection of commercial theater constraints (e.g., fixed venues, prices, and schedules)
- Organizational capacity to select, rehearse, and perform in various locations
- Engagement in seminars and research on stage experience
Prominent independent groups include Joglars, Los Goliardos, Tábano, Los Cántaros, Lebrijano Studio Theatre, Teatro Universitario de Murcia, Teatro Fronterizo, Els Comediants, and La Fura dels Baus.