24 hour marathon in Barcelona
Australian creators Nat Randall and Anna Breckon have triumphed in Sydney, London and New York with the event-show The second woman, a performance 24 hours long, which is a physical and mental challenge for both the actress who stars in it and the audience, who can buy their tickets according to time slot or, for the bravest, for the entire play. At the Lliure Theatre in Barcelona we will see the actress María Hervás, who for a whole day will repeat the same scene a hundred times in a row, in front of a hundred men (actors and volunteers) who represent all spectrums of masculinity. Freely inspired by the film Opening night (John Cassavetes, 1977), the montage plays with the seams between reality and fiction, using theater and live cinema. It will be from July 6 to 7 within the program of Grec, Barcelona’s great summer festival, which this year includes names such as Angélica Liddell, Lola Arias, Baró d’Evel, Jan Lauwers and Krzysztof Warlikowski.
Calderón at his best
Summer is the high season for classical theatre. Festivals dedicated to the genre proliferate, from the two largest and oldest (Almagro and Mérida) to those that were born from the success of the first ones (Cáceres, Olmedo, Peñíscola, Niebla, Alcalá, Alcántara, Chinchilla). Together they make up a circuit around which many productions rotate. But the safe bet this year is Calderón de la Barca. The monster of the gardens, directed by Iñaki Ricarte, who has been the sensation of the last season of the National Classical Theater Company (CNTC), will be performed in Almagro from July 19 to 28. A casual, fun and imaginative show that has enchanted audiences and critics at its premiere in Madrid. Also liked Lindabridis Castle, co-production of the CNTC and Nao d’Amores directed by Ana Zamora, which will be from July 11 to 14 in Almagro, August 1 in Alcántara and August 17 in Niebla. and promises The great theatre of the world, another CNTC production directed by Lluís Homar, from 4 to 14 July in Almagro.
Greco-Latin inspiration
The Greco-Latin classics shine especially in the spaces for which they were conceived: majestic coliseums such as the Roman theater of Mérida enhance the epic dimension of the texts of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides. Among the shows that will premiere there this summer, it draws attention jellyfish, a reformulation of the myth written and directed by José María del Castillo, because it represents the return to the Spanish stage of the actress Victoria Abril after 45 years devoted to cinema. The play will be performed from July 31 to August 11 and will then also be seen at the festivals of San Javier (August 15), Sagunt a Escena (August 17 and 18), and Niebla (August 24). Other Greco-Latin proposals: Peace (Grotesque Celebration on Aristophanes), by Francisco Nieva, directed by Rakel Camacho (from July 17 to 21 in Mérida); The bingo players of Euripides, of the Girls of Cadiz (July 5 in Moraleja, July 17 in Moguer, July 18 in Punta Umbría, July 20 in Peñíscola, July 25 in Fernán Núñez and August 14 in Araia).
Ribadavia Fair
Few people know that the most important work of hydraulic engineering of the 19th century in Spain was excavated by women: two hundred stevedores who transported 58,000 baskets of stones on their heads for the construction of the Campana Dam in Ferrol. This is the story that inspires Dam, production by the Nova Galega de Danza company directed by Marta Pazos that will inaugurate the Ribadavia International Theater Festival, one of the most attractive performing arts festivals of the summer, which is held in a medieval castle surrounded by vineyards in the capital of the region Galician Ribeiro. This year’s program could not be more appealing: from July 19 to 27, among other proposals, the impressive Town, by Chilean Guillermo Calderón; the monologue In the midst of so much fire, by Alberto Conejero, or the funny Iribarne, satire based on the biography of Manuel Fraga, by Esther F. Carrodeguas.
Olite Festival
The beautiful medieval Navarrese city of Olite hosts in its fairy-tale settings a festival that was born 25 years ago focused on classical theatre, but in its latest editions it has opened up to top-notch contemporary performing arts, with a good selection of the best shows recently released in Spain. From July 19 to August 4, the opening will be carried out by the Basque company Kulunka and its multi-award-winning show forever. The next day, another highlight: Helen Keller, Wonder Woman?, of the Galician Chévere. And two shared with the Mostra de Ribadavia: Iribarne and Town.
Deltebre Dance
What began twenty years ago as workshops for dancers organized by choreographer Roberto Olivan has evolved into one of the most stimulating festivals in Catalonia. Dance and contemporary circus go hand in hand in an event that takes place among the rice fields of the Ebro Delta Natural Park, from July 8 to 21.
Dansàneu
The Pyrenees culture festival is an irresistible combination of artistic heritage (shows in Romanesque churches) with top quality proposals. This year we will be able to enjoy the music of the Menorcan Anna Ferrer, the dramatized reading of Nosaltres, the bruixes (coming soon to the Teatre Nacional de Catalunya) or a dance show with Sol Picó, Anna Hierro, Sònia Gómez and Raquel Gualtero.
International route
Avignon Festival. This year, the most prestigious contemporary theater exhibition in Europe has the Spanish language as its guest of honor. It opens this Saturday, June 29, with the new creation by Angélica Liddell and until July 21, another 11 shows will be seen in this language from Spain and Latin America.
La Veronal dances Morricone in Italy. After his pieces in Berlin and The Hague, Valencian choreographer Marcos Morau premieres on August 1 Notte Morricone in Macerata (Italy). A great show with the Aterballeto company that will take place in the city’s impressive Sferisferio, a truly luxurious stage.
Almada Festival. Just half an hour from Lisbon, this veteran festival offers a first-class international programme. From 4 to 18 July, plays by Peter Stein, Mathilde Monnier, Tiago Rodrigues, Robert Wilson, Lucinda Childs, Olivier Py and Samuel Achache will be performed. The Centro Dramático Galego will present on 14 July Manuela Rey is in the house, by Fran Nunez.
