Spanish Golden Age Theater: An Overview
Spanish Golden Age Theater
Medieval Theater
The dramatic texts were written in Castilian and included works like Auto de los Reyes Magos.
Renaissance Theater
Various trends emerged, including religious drama, Italianate influence, classical styles, and popular nationalist theater.
Cervantes’ Theater
- 1st Stage: Before Lope de Vega’s rise, Cervantes’ works were very successful.
- 2nd Stage: Cervantes wrote comedies and farces.
Autos Sacramentales
These plays revolved around the sacrament of the Eucharist, utilizing allegory and spectacular scenic development.
Features:
- One-act structure
- Didactic and religious themes
- Associated with the Corpus Christi feast
- Eucharistic subject matter
- Sumptuous allegorical expression
Initially performed within churches, they later transitioned to mobile stages featuring actors and musicians. Music was an essential component.
National Comedy
Created and developed by Lope de Vega and continued by playwrights like Calderon de la Barca.
Characteristics:
- Mixes tragic and comic elements
- Reflects real life
- Baroque Works: Do not respect unities of time or place, utilize changes in scene and time, and maintain unity of action.
- Drama Division: Works are divided into three acts: exposition (beginning of Act 1), rising action (rest of Act 1 and Act 2), and climax/resolution (end of Act 3).
- Decorum: Language and style adapt to social roles and situations.
- Polimetria: Use of various metrical forms.
Themes and Characters:
- Themes: Honor and virtuous actions.
- Characters: Defined by gender or social role, including the lady, gallant, powerful, funny, and servant characters.
Types of Drama
- Serious Drama: Tragedies, tragicomedies, and mystery plays.
- Comic Drama: Swashbuckling comedies, comedies of manners, and burlesque comedies.
- Shorter Works: Interludes, dances, ballads, and masques.
Lope de Vega
Considered the creator of the National Comedy.
Characteristics:
- Mixes cultured and popular elements.
- Draws inspiration from proverbs, ballads, the Bible, and mythology.
- Appeals to a wide audience.
- Diverse works: swashbuckling comedies, biblical plays, saint plays, mythological plays, tragedies, and dramas.
El caballero de Olmedo
- Based on a true story.
- Employs the theme of love and a hired killer.
- Uses premonitions through dreams, shadows, and songs.
- Considered a tragedy due to its themes of love, death, and destiny.
Tirso de Molina
Followed Lope’s model and defended the new comedy, incorporating intellectual and psychological depth.
Characteristics:
- Gives importance to the feminine condition.
- Master of comedy.
- Offers political critique in his works.
Works:
- Comedies of manners
- Biblical dramas
- Saint plays
- Tragicomedies
- Mythological comedies
- Morality plays
The Trickster of Seville
- First appearance of the Don Juan character.
- Structure: Don Juan’s deceptions and two episodes highlighting aspects of drama (double invitation and punishment).
- Don Juan represents a certain class of hidalgos, driven by sexual pleasure and vanity.
- Critiques the moral condition of Spain across all social classes.
Calderon de la Barca
Two Phases:
- 1st Phase: Works for public theaters.
- 2nd Phase: Created more complex and dramatic works for the palace and autos sacramentales.
Characteristics:
- High intellectual tone and dramatic complexity.
- Focuses on serious drama.
- Pessimistic view of human nature.
- Complex gracioso characters.
Works:
- Tragedies
- Serious comedies
- Comedies of manners
- Cape and sword plays
- Morality plays
La vida es sueño
- Segismundo, imprisoned since childhood due to a prophecy, is brought to court but reacts violently and is imprisoned again.
- Themes: Fate, free will, life as a dream, self-control, power, and justice.