Three Hats: A Comedy by Miguel Mihura
Three Hats by Miguel Mihura
A Theatrical Revolution
Three Hats (Tres sombreros de copa) is a comedy by Miguel Mihura, written in 1932 and first performed twenty years later, in 1952, by the Teatro Español Universitario (TEU). This play represents a significant break from the previous comic theater traditions in Spain.
Themes of Freedom and Societal Critique
The work develops the theme of freedom gained and lost. It criticizes conventional society and all that dehumanizes and makes man a piece of social machinery. The action takes place in “a provincial capital of second order” in Europe. It represents a society based on prejudice and appearances, which restricts individual liberty and the ability to think and decide for oneself.
The play presents a choice between two lifestyles:
- The bourgeois life, with its decent morals, high ideals, spiritual values, and sacred feelings.
- A life free of the degrading game, represented by Paula’s perception of Dionysius and Dionysius’s perception of Paula, free from the “decent” bourgeois exploitation of Buby.
The first dialogue between Don Rosario and Dionysius is a set of topics and empty phrases that reflect the superficial environment of bourgeois education. Act Three begins with the reprimand of Don Sacramento and the list of duties of honorable people.
Protagonists and Their Dilemmas
The protagonists are two parallel characters with the same problem: they have no family, no home, and are subject to the regularity of a life that is always the same. One day, something strange happens with the lights, but they lack the strength to react out of fear. They are incapable of breaking free from an unsatisfactory individual situation and finding love in freedom. Neither dares to challenge their respective societies: the bourgeoisie (in Dionysius’s case) and the bohemian world (in Paula’s case).
Characters
- Dionysius: His name is associated with the Greek deity Dionysus. He represents enthusiasm and the desire for love, and he is a symbol of liberation or the breaking of inhibitions (a change he is experiencing). Dionysus is also the god of wine, which is relevant to the drunkenness that occurs in Act II, an important moment as Dionysius seeks to break from the world he was bound to by falling in love with Paula.
- Margarita: A typical name for a romantic heroine: the beautiful young woman in love and suffering.
- Don Rosario: Represents routine, doing everything the same way and repeatedly.
- Don Sacramento: Seeks recognition as an exemplary father and represents the family as a sacred institution of very decent people.
Symbolism
The elements of the stage space are rich in symbolism:
- The Room: A closed and protective area for Dionysius, a place of transit, rest, and dreams. Through the balcony, he glimpses the harbor, the sea, and the lights; it seems like a drawn world.
- The Telephone: Represents a notice or warning “from outside.” It’s the signal that brings Dionysius back to reality (the life he leads, his girlfriend, the wedding, etc.), breaking the “spell” of the free and magical universe he believed he would discover with Paula. This is why he tries not to pick up the phone.
- The Hats: Dionysius had bought two hats to choose which one best suited him for his wedding day. His father gives him a third, representing middle-class prestige. The three hats are reminiscent of the three struggles Don Rosario teaches his guests, like three white lights.
Incorporation of the Theater of the Absurd
Mihura incorporates elements of the theater of the absurd:
- Use of Nonverbal Elements: Objects from the circus or everyday life, such as the flea, the boot, the cornet, and the hot water bottle, are used. Everything points to a conventional society.
- Degradation of Language: The names of respectable characters (Don Rosario, Don Sacramento) have religious connotations. Humor is used to contrast the traditional provincial life, full of social conventions, with a life of freedom.
- Dreamlike Treatment: Typical of the theater of the absurd. Dionysius falls asleep to the cooing of Don Rosario’s cornet while thinking of Margarita. Paula disrupts this and lives with him a night of freedom, dreaming of becoming a juggling artist.
Structure
Miguel Mihura adheres to the rules of classical drama:
- Unity of action (the romance)
- Unity of time (one night)
- Unity of space (the room).
The action is divided into three acts:
- Act I (Introduction): Introduces the main characters and the conflict they face.
- Act II (Development): Dionysius experiences the other world that Paula introduces him to.
- Act III (Outcome): Order is restored, leaving Dionysius crushed by the system that Don Sacramento represents (“I leave here on the path of happiness, and I will go the way of fussiness.”).