Spanish Theater: Drama Evolution Before 1936
Drama Before 1936
Two main fronts in the theater prior to 1936 are:
The Theater That Wins
This stands out with:
- Bourgeois comedy: Characterized by recreating environments of the bourgeoisie and aristocracy with people of good taste, cultivated, ironic, and refined dialogue with ease and brilliance. Jacinto Benavente is the most representative, and his masterpiece, “Special Interests,” has moments of irony and drama in verse.
- Post-romantic character with modernist elements: Associated with a stale ideological traditionalism that extols noble values and ideals and the great deeds of the imperial past. The most representative is Eduardo Marquina, who reaped great success with “The Daughters of the Cid” and “In Flanders, the Sun Has Set.”
- Comic theater: Known for distinguishing itself in two genres that reach the public and are successful: comedy of manners and farce. The Álvarez Quintero brothers, Serafín and Joaquín, take to the scene a topical Andalucía with no more problems than sentimental ones, jovial and funny, where happiness and grace reign. We can highlight “The Court” or “Through Hell.” Carlos Arniches presents typical castizos characters in a poor and marginalized Madrid, where kindness and panache make poverty bearable. We highlight “Bosses.” At a lower level of quality, we put the astracán, whose creator is Pedro Muñoz Seca. These are works of pure cartoon, full of jokes, and intended to provoke laughter.
The Innovative Theater
This stands out with:
- The Theater of 98: Since the men of 98 led an interesting attempt at renewal of the Spanish scene, the figure of Valle-Inclán is the summit of 20th-century Spanish theater. Unamuno used drama to present the human conflicts that haunted him. Azorín later approached the theater with little luck in a surreal and symbolic line. Jacinto Grau is the author of a work that draws the attention of critics, and Ramón Gómez de la Serna wrote works away from the public at the time, and most were not premiered.
- Valle-Inclán: Known for his eccentric bohemian appearance with long hair, after the sonatas of his early modernists, he began a dramatic production with strange characters, violent or mad with passion, presided over by Don Juan de Montenegro. In 1920, he published dramas in which we can highlight “Bohemian Lights,” which will define the grotesque. Valle-Inclán stands out for not bowing to public taste.
- Theater from 27: Characterized by a purge of poetic drama, the incorporation of advanced formulas, and the purpose of bringing theater to the people. Pedro Salinas writes mostly in exile and highlights “The Dictator.” Miguel Hernández begins with echoes of blackfish on who you have seen and who sees you. Alejandro Casona is a playwright who rebelled with “Stranded Mermaid,” and her most important work is “The Lady of the Dawn,” written in exile.
- Federico García Lorca: The most prominent figure. The central theme of his works can be called the myth of impossible desire, or conflict between reality and desire or frustration. He performs tragic fates, passions, and sentenced to death loneliness, etc., all framed by female characters. Over time, his plays became more didactic, approaching a growing social and popular audience.