Editorial Note

During the week of November 25–29, 2013, the Association for Hispanic Classical Theater and Out of the Wings joined forces to co-sponsor a symposium in Bath, England, entitled “The Comedia: Translation and Performance.” The symposium was planned to take advantage of a fall season of Spanish comedias held at the Ustinov Studio of the Theatre Royal, Bath. Curated by Laurence Boswell, the Artistic Director of the Studio and a leading proponent of Golden Age theater in the English-speaking world, the special season consisted of three works, all performed in newly commissioned translations: Lope de Vega’s A Lady of Little Sense, translated by David Johnston and directed by Laurence Boswell; Lope’s Punishment without Revenge, translated by Meredith Oakes and directed by Laurence Boswell; and Tirso de Molina’s Don Gil of the Green Breeches, translated by Sean O’Brien and directed by Mehmet Ergen. The plays, credits for which are given below, were performed on successive nights during the symposium, and each was accorded an enthusiastic reception, as had been the case throughout the season.

Day-time hours during the conference were devoted to papers focused on one or more of the plays being performed that week, round-tables, and informal discussions with the actors and creative teams of various productions. Out of these sessions, as well as out of the performances themselves, emerged the essays contained in this special issue of the Bulletin of the Comediantes, planned as a companion to a special issue of Comedia Performance. By design, the essays contained herein deal with matters of translation and adaptation, while those found in the companion issue of the Comedia Performance deal with aspects of staging and performance. All in greater or lesser degree have to do with at least one of the works put on during the week of the symposium.

The guest editors of the two special issues are the same as the organizers of the conference itself. They are: David Johnston (Queen’s University Belfast), Donald R. Larson (The Ohio State University), Susan Paun de García (Denison University), and Jonathan Thacker (Merton College, University of Oxford). It is their pleasure on this occasion to give sincere thanks to all who have contributed to the two special issues, as well as to all those—some fifty-five individuals, representing a half-dozen different countries—who attended the symposium. They would also like to express their gratitude to Laurence Boswell, not only for curating the Golden Age season but also for the support he gave during the planning and execution of the conference; to Frances Macadam, Administrator of the Ustinov Studio; to the acting company of the Spanish season; to the directors, designers, composers, and choreographers of the season; and, finally, to the entire staff of the Theatre Royal, Bath. Thanks are also due to the Embassy of Spain, Office for Cultural and Scientific Affairs for its support of the conference, and to Edward H. Friedman, editor of the Bulletin of the Comediantes, and Barbara Mujica, editor of Comedia Performance, for affording us the opportunity to make known some of the many fruits of the conference.

Following are the actors and principal members of the creative units of the 2013 Spanish Golden Age Season at the Ustinov Studio, Theatre Royal, Bath:

• A Lady of Little Sense

Liseo	Simon Scardifield
Turin/Duardo	Chris Andrew Mellon
Leandro/Feniso/Pedro	Doug Rao
Otavio	William Hoyland
Miseno/Rufino/Dance Master	Jim Bywater
Nise	Katie Lightfoot
Celia	Annie Hemingway
Finea	Frances McNamee
Clara	Hedydd Dylan
Laurencio	Nick Barber
Director	Laurence Boswell
Set and Costume Designer	Mark Bailey
Lighting Designer	Ben Ormerod
Sound Designer and Composer	Jon Nicholls
Choreographer and Movement Director	Lucy Collingford

• Punishment without Revenge

Ricardo/Rutillio	Chris Andrew Mellon
Febo	Jim Bywater
Duke	William Hoyland
Cintia	Hedydd Dylan
Federico	Nick Barber
Batin	Simon Scardifield
Cassandra	Frances McNamee
Lucrecia	Annie Hemingway
Carlos	Doug Rao
Aurora	Katie Lightfoot
Director	Laurence Boswell
Set and Costume Designer	Mark Bailey
Lighting Designer	Ben Ormerod
Sound Designer and Composer	Jon Nicholls
Choreographer and Movement Director	Lucy Collingford

• Don Gil of the Green Breeches

Donna Juana	Hedydd Dylan
Don Martin	Doug Rao...