The Seventeenth Annual International Siglo De Oro Theater Festival, Chamizal National Memorial, El Paso, Texas March 11-12, 1992

THE SEVENTEENTH ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL SIGLO DE ORO THEATER FESTIVAL, CHAMIZAL NATIONAL MEMORIAL, EL PASO, TEXAS MARCH 11-12, 1992 MATTHEW D. STROUD Trinity University The seventeenth Annual International Siglo De Oro Theater Festival took place at the Chamizal National Memorial in El Paso, Texas, March 11-21. Sponsored as always by the National Park Service in cooperation with the City of Juárez, the festival focused this year on the quincentenary of Columbus's first voyage to the Americas and the subsequent encounter of two great cultures , and carried the subtitle, "España-América '92." Eight theatrical companies from three continents presented works by authors on both sides of the Atlantic. As in past years, a panel of three judges awarded prices in several categories . César Oliva, professor at the University of Murcia, Ignacio Sotelo, professor at both the Escuela Nacional de Arte Teatral of the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, and I were honored to have been asked to serve. For the awards, the productions were divided into two categories, one for fully professional companies (A), and one for companies whose productions demonstrate professional quality but whose members are primarily students or younger actors, directors, and technicians (B). Overall, the judges were impressed with the quality of the festival and were in remarkable agreement regarding the recipients of the awards. In Category A, Tiempo Común of Caracas, with its inspired theatricalization of poetic texts, primarily by San Juan de la Cruz, once again walked away with the lion's share of the awards: 187 188BCom, Vol. 44, No. 1 (Summer 1992) Best Overall Production Best Director: Hugo Márquez Mellazzi Best Supporting Actress: Marisol Matheus Honorable Mention for Music: Hugo Márquez Honorable Mention for Lighting: Paul Roney The Compañía Francisco Portes of Madrid was unable to mount a fully staged production this year. Instead, Francisco Portes and Julia Trujillo presented a tour de force recital of texts by Lope, Calderón, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, Vélez de Guevara, and others. For their efforts, they garnered the following awards: Best Actor: Francisco Portes Best Actress: Julia Trujillo Repertorio Español presented Calderón's El alcalde de Zalamea with its usual high standards. The awards presented to Repertorio Español include the following : Best Supporting Actor: Rolando Gómez Honorable Mention for Set Design Perhaps the most imaginative production was that by Grupo de Teatro Tarumba, from Mexico City, which impressed the audience with a mixture of native dance and music on the one hand and the loa to Sor Juana Inés' s El divino Narciso on the other. As a result, the judges felt the need to create a special category for its Vision y alegoría de la conquista, which in all was granted the following awards: Best Syncretic Concept Relating to the Celebration of 1992 Honorable Mention for Dance Spectacle In Category B, one production clearly shone above the rest. Los locos de Valencia, presented by Teatro Corral of Mexico City. Despite its length (at three hours plus intermissions), this masterful presentation of Lope's complete text won the following awards: Best Overall Production Best Director: Juan Moran Best Actor: Marcos Garcia Forum189 Best Actress: Margarita González Best Supporting Actor: Gonzalo Blanco Honorable Mention of Costuming: Marcela Zorrilla Universiteatro of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Nuevo León presented Lope's La dama boba, enhanced by the addition of a character who recited the "Arte nuevo de hacer comedias en este tiempo," an entremés between the first two acts, and a dance between acts two and three. The production won one award: Best Supporting Actress: Monica Muruato The final award was a special Honorable Mention given to the technical crew at the Chamizal Theater for their effective, successful stage management for all eight Festival productions. In addition to those productions already mentioned, Bohío Puertorrique- ño, from Río Piedras, presented El mejor alcalde, el rey, by Lope de Vega, directed by Ernesto Concepción, and Compañía Centro de Arte DramáticoAsociaci ón Civil, from Mexico City, presented Siempre ayuda la verdad, by Juan...