Spanish Postwar Theater: Evolution and Major Movements

Spanish Theater from 1940 to the Present Day

After the Civil War, the outlook was marked by exile and the disappearance of important playwrights. The national theater triumphed, supported by the dictatorship, aiming to entertain and convey ideology. The most successful forms were:

• Humor Theater: Far from reality. Key figures include Enrique Jardiel Poncela (The Thieves are Honest People) and Miguel Mihura (Three Top Hats).
• Bourgeois Comedy: Aimed to entertain and educate a bourgeois audience. These works consist of three acts and contain stage directions and stylistic qualities in the dialogues. They feature touches of humor, tenderness, and kindness. Notable authors include Jacinto Benavente (Snow in May) and Joaquín Calvo Sotelo (The Wall).

The exiled playwrights (in Mexico and Argentina) continued their production, incorporating cutting-edge developments, such as Rafael Alberti (The Scarecrow).

The Realist Movement

With Story of a Stairway, Antonio Buero Vallejo was born into drama in 1949. His work features realistic deepening and scenographic complexity in the characters. Alfonso Sastre (Blood and Ashes) is another prominent figure of this era.

The Avant-Garde

Heirs of the theater of the absurd and the theater of cruelty, its creators included Fernando Arrabal and Francisco Nieva. They faced difficulties with public acceptance.

• Fernando Arrabal: Conceived the "Panic Stage," characterized by confusion, humor, terror, chance, and euphoria. It uses surreal language, minimal sets, and primitive characters (The Automobile Graveyard).
• Francisco Nieva: Utilized scenographic complexity, many set changes, short parts, carefully crafted language, and sequence division (Hair Storm).

The Symbolists

They created a symbolist aesthetic as opposed to the realistic one. These works contain avant-garde elements, pessimism, and resort to animal symbolism. They use aggressive language (violent scenes) and provocative elements like sexuality. José Ruibal (The Machine for Asking) is a key representative.

Heirs of Bourgeois Comedy

In the 60s, a formulation won out that repeated patterns of the past: the new bourgeois comedy or "evasion theater." This theater featured unchanging characters and stayed away from real problems. Alfonso Paso (Those Who Serve) was a central figure.

The Independent Theater

Surging in the late 60s, it was characterized by the rejection of conservative shows, a peculiar aesthetic, and attempts at self-financing. It is classified by groups like L'escola d'Art Dramàtic and the TEM (Teatro Estudio de Madrid).

The Latest Dramas

Around 1975, a number of authors attempted to address contemporary issues, including realistic, fantastic, and supernatural aesthetics. Fermín Cabal (Castles in the Air) is a notable author. In the late twentieth century, classical foreign and Spanish authors were represented, such as Valle-Inclán, Alberti, Nieva, and Lorca.