20th Century Spanish Theater: Innovators, Styles, and Valle-Inclán's Legacy

The Evolution of 20th Century Spanish Theater

Facing the neo-romantic drama, cultivated by Echegaray and other playwrights of his school, a new theater emerged, aiming to reflect a real, everyday world in which viewers could see themselves. The 1936 Spanish Civil War implied a radical break in Spanish literary and theatrical production.

Federico García Lorca, along with Ramón del Valle-Inclán, are considered the great innovators of contemporary Spanish theater. Lorca's "La Barraca" was launched to represent classics throughout Spain, fostering quality theater.

Spanish Theater Styles (Early 20th Century to 1936)

In the period from the beginning of the century until 1936, Spanish theater offered diverse forms:

• Bourgeois Comedy

  Characterized by hilarious situations set in upper-class society. Many of these works continued to be performed after the war. Jacinto Benavente is the central figure of this type of theater.

• Modernist Verse Theater

  Features lavish, unrealistic sets. The historical theme is dominant, though not exclusive. Vestiges of this theater can be found in the works of the Machado brothers. Its main representative is Eduardo Marquina. This style influenced Valle-Inclán and Lorca.

• Castizo Popular Theater (Género Chico)

  Represented by the "género chico," which includes sketches, one, two, or three-act comedies, and operettas. Notable figures include the brothers Álvarez Quintero and Carlos Arniches.

• Innovative Theater

  Sought to renew theatrical techniques and language, but achieved little success in its time. This line of theater was pursued by authors such as Unamuno, Valle-Inclán, Ramón Gómez de la Serna, Lorca, Alberti, Salinas, and Poncela.

Ramón del Valle-Inclán: A Theatrical Innovator

Three geographical areas significantly influenced Valle-Inclán's works:

• Galicia: His homeland, which inspired settings of misery, death, and cruelty.
• Mexico: Where he developed political and literary activities.
• Madrid: Where he attended literary gatherings at the "Café de Madrid."

Valle-Inclán's Key Works and Innovations

His Comedias Bárbaras began to renew theatrical forms. He created new spaces; theatrical environments were no longer bourgeois but the Galician countryside, dominated by misery, death, and cruelty, presented with a new dramatic language. His works are characterized by the use of symbol and metaphor.

Valle-Inclán also used puppet theater as a way to carry out his innovative theatrical experiments. He wrote a series of works for children.

The Esperpento: Valle-Inclán's Legacy

The Esperpento cycle features works in which Valle-Inclán presents a distorted reality where the tragic and the grotesque are mixed, resulting in the esperpento – the most appropriate way to reflect the tragic reality of the moment. Works in this cycle include: Luces de Bohemia and La hija del Capitán.

Valle-Inclán was a key figure in incorporating innovations from European avant-garde movements, especially Expressionism. The Esperpento is Valle-Inclán's most outstanding contribution to theater. More than a new dramatic form, it is an aesthetic and a new vision of reality, using caricature, degradation, and dehumanization as artistic resources.