A Study of Staging and Scenic Effects in Two 'Comedias de Tramoyas' by Tirso de Molina

The architecture of the public playhouse was an important factor in shaping the comedia, particularly the comedia de tramoyas, which made use of a variety of scenic effects. No seventeenth-century dramatist exploited this architectonic potential more boldly than Tirso de Molina. This study compares the staging requirements of Los lagos de San Vicente, an early work, and Las quinas de Portugal, generally thought to be one of Tirso's last plays. Although the two plays call for a similar range and disposition of effects (and even share an identical opening cuadro), the later work shows greater sophistication and experimentation in its use of the performance space. This evidence would suggest that, contrary to a belief that the comedia de tramoyas represents the last gasp of a declining theatrical fashion, it continued to flourish and to explore new possibilities primarily because of an awareness of innovations taking place in the court theatre and elsewhere in the visual arts. (DLS)