Nahuatl Theatre, Vol. 3: Spanish Golden Age Drama in Mexican Translation, and: Nahuatl Theatre, Vol. 4: Nahua Christianity in Performance (review)

The two books reviewed here form part of a collection dedicated to publicizing and analyzing a little-known cultural phenomenon: the theatrical works that were composed in the Nahuatl (Aztec) language during the colonial period in New Spain. In volume 3, the editors compiled the works translated by Don Bartolomé de Alva Ixtlilxóchitl, the nahuatlato (speaker and writer of Nahuatl). Volume 4 is the compilation of seven complete writings and a fragment that were produced in the eighteenth century, dramatize Christian doctrine, and provide a moralizing message.

The son of a cacica (an Indian noblewoman with political power) and a Spaniard, Alva was born c. 1597. He was the brother of the historian Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxóchitl, and both men were descendents of the royal lineage of Nezahualcóyotl Acolmiztli, the famous ruler of the pre-Hispanic kingdom of Tetzcoco-Acolhuacan. Unusually, Bartolomé de Alva became a member of the colonial Catholic hierarchy and established contacts with the Jesuits of the college of Tepotzotlan. Especially important was his association with the Italian Horacio Carochi, who was an outstanding scholar of the Nahuatl language. In 1640–41 Alva applied himself to translating three plays by two significant authors of the Spanish theater of the Golden Age: Lope de Vega y Carpio (The Animal Prophet and the Fortunate Patricide and The Mother of the Best) and Pedro Calderón de la Barca (The Great Theater of the World). Alva, with the help of Carochi, not only translated the European religious dramas but also adapted them for indigenous audiences—a major accomplishment. The exposition of the texts conveys the nuances of the original Spanish version, the Nahuatl translation, and the corresponding English. Along with very useful introductory essays, the editors provide footnotes that clarify various aspects of the content.

Volume 4 presents two moralizing works, two plays on the Passion, and another three plays that deal with Nahuatl history. The latter show how the Christian traditions were dramatized to reinterpret the multidimensional encounter of the two cultures. Also included is a brief farcical intermezzo, a piece with a single act that was performed during theatrical intermissions. Internet sites are provided so related documents may be consulted.

This collection goes beyond extending and explaining the processes of evangelization that occurred in the center of New Spain after the seventeenth century. Additionally, there are valuable references to the morality of the period, gender roles, and native conceptions of Christianity. The effort also calls attention to the places where the theatrical pieces originated. Included is a work, without European antecedents, Colloquy of How the Fortunate Saint Helen Found the Precious and Revered Wooden Cross. According to tradition, St. Helen, mother of the Roman emperor Constantine, found this highly important relic. The play comes from a small altépetl (Indian town) of rural people from the Tlaxcala region, east of Mexico City, and was written by Manuel de Santos y Salazar. Santos y Salazar was a Tlaxcalan noble, diocesan priest, ecclesiastical judge, and recipient of a bachelor’s degree. The translations of Alva and Santos y Salazar allow readers to explore the purpose of the works and the particular audiences to whom they were directed.

Readers also can investigate the extent to which historical elements and traditional indigenous cosmovision are incorporated. From name changes of the characters (Malintzin for Irene, Colhua Tecuhtli for Alexander, and Tízoc for Vulcan in the tragicomedy of Lope de Vega) to an extensive and surprising description that St. Helen provides of the...