Chamizal '86

FORUM CHAMIZAL '86 JOHN J. ALLEN University of Kentucky Louise Fothergill-Payne's reaction to Xose Blanco Gil's production of La Celestina (BCom 37, 1) at the Festival de Teatro del Siglo de Oro in 1985 expresses very well my sentiments after seeing the ten productions that comprised this year's Festival: «Only when we are confronted with a live performance of a literary work are we made to realize the enormous difference between the written page and its dramatic presentation and, for that matter, the role of the reader in contrast to that of the spectator» (p. 167). I have been fortunate indeed in having seen a number of Golden Age plays performed in Madrid and in Almagro over the past few years, among them some superb productions, but none has taught me more or intrigued me more than the cumulative experience of these ten plays. Some comments on this year's productions follow . El celoso prudente Presented by La Columna de Aguascalientes (Mexico) , directed by Francisco Berverido of the Universidad Veracruzana, this Tirso play was staged in two planes of action. Don Sancho de Urrea, «el celoso pru249 250BCom, Vol. 38, No. 2 (Winter 1986) dente,» whose jealousy physically detaches him from the «main» action of the play, simply crosses and recrosses the forestage musing and muttering his monologues, totally «straight,» producing in the audience a slowly dawning realization of his self-imposed comic irrelevance that builds to a crescendo. This interpretation totally changed my concept of the play. Don Sancho's movements, superimposed upon the enredo being played out behind him began to have almost the effect of subtitles in a foreign film, and I even wondered whether there was not a reciprocal current of impotence running between Don Sancho and the pompous , foolish king, in this mildly anti-priuanza piece.«La columna» from which the company has taken its name is an extremely economical and effective «translation» of the emblematic corral stage for which the play was originally written in the 17th century. With the aid of a very carefully choreographed «Duende,» who also presented the characters with stylized gestures as they came onstage, the column (actually a somewhat squat square «tower») was rotated to create, with minimal emblematic craving, the «garden,» the «balcony,» etc., as successive scenes required, and actually opened to serve as a low balcony for one scene. La vida del Buscón A fine production of the adaptation of Quevedo's burlesque novel by Santiago Garcia was presented by the Compañía de Teatro de la Universidad de Colima (Mexico), directed by Rafael Sandoval Bustamante , and it tied in the opinion of the judges for the honor of «Best Production» among non-professional companies. The frame of the adaptation seemed to me to derive rather obviously from Wassermann Man of La Mancha: the author's descent to the hell/prison, his initial quixotic stylistic inadequacy to the new circumstances, and the character 's escape from the original authorial intentions, backed by the devils/ prisoners. The final exaltation here, however (as I recall) , was of something called «reality» or «life,» as contrasted with the Romantic idealism of Man of La Mancha. The production was excellent and the performance of Silvera Palacios as Pablos, who was judged «Best Actor,» was superb. A small young man, his quick, bird-like movements and gestures, maintained throughout, established in the very first scene the essence of the picaro, and his alternating expressions of smug selfsatisfaction and shame were a convincing version of Quevedo's Pablos. Forum251 Entremeses de mujeres en farsa picante Presented by the Teatro Real Español together with the Latin American Theatre Ensemble of New York, this series of short has and entremeses interspersed with musical interludes (simple flute or vocal solos) was an original and well-conceived complement to the usual comedia fare. It was interesting to see these early examples of the género chico, close still in their production style of Commedia dell'Arte, something we very rarely get to see. The group was not in their best form, however, having I think been quite thrown off by the loss of much of their costumes and props in an airline...