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Chapter 10. “Unveiling” Romeo and Juliet in Spain

Translation, performance and censorship
  • Elena Bandín Fuertes
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<i>Romeo and Juliet</i> in European Culture
This chapter is in the book <i>Romeo and Juliet</i> in European Culture

Abstract

This paper surveys the reception of Romeo and Juliet in Franco’s Spain by showing the evolution of the tragedy on the Spanish stages. Thanks to the censorship material kept at the Archivo General de la Administración, I have carried out an analysis of different productions that reveals that Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is not a stable entity but a web of translations, adaptations and appropriations reflecting the political, social and cultural forces at work at the time. Besides, this work brings to light how the performance of the play evolved from a poetic and chaste love story during the first years of the dictatorship to a more sexual and tasteless comedy framed in the context of the destape (unveiling) period, thus entering the realm of lowbrow culture and becoming a Shakespop product.

Abstract

This paper surveys the reception of Romeo and Juliet in Franco’s Spain by showing the evolution of the tragedy on the Spanish stages. Thanks to the censorship material kept at the Archivo General de la Administración, I have carried out an analysis of different productions that reveals that Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is not a stable entity but a web of translations, adaptations and appropriations reflecting the political, social and cultural forces at work at the time. Besides, this work brings to light how the performance of the play evolved from a poetic and chaste love story during the first years of the dictatorship to a more sexual and tasteless comedy framed in the context of the destape (unveiling) period, thus entering the realm of lowbrow culture and becoming a Shakespop product.

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. List of contributors vii
  4. Introduction 1
  5. Chapter 1. Heavenly eloquence 25
  6. Chapter 2. Juliet’s balcony 37
  7. Chapter 3. Romeo and Juliet in Germany 61
  8. Chapter 4. Romeo and Juliet on the French stage 77
  9. Chapter 5. Romeo and Juliet in Spain 101
  10. Chapter 6. Judaisation in the first Hebrew translation of Romeo and Juliet 119
  11. Chapter 7. Giulietta e Romeo 139
  12. Chapter 8. Star-crossed lovers in Sweden 159
  13. Chapter 9. Romeo and Juliet  – The East Side Story 177
  14. Chapter 10. “Unveiling” Romeo and Juliet in Spain 197
  15. Chapter 11. Romeo and Juliet in British culture 227
  16. Chapter 12. A festival blockbuster 247
  17. Chapter 13. What’s in a stamp? 263
  18. Chapter 14. “In fair [Europe], where we lay our scene” 283
  19. Chapter 15. A selective timeline of Romeo and Juliet in European culture 301
  20. Index 321
https://doi.org/10.1075/sec.1.11ban

Chapters in this book

  1. Prelim pages i
  2. Table of contents v
  3. List of contributors vii
  4. Introduction 1
  5. Chapter 1. Heavenly eloquence 25
  6. Chapter 2. Juliet’s balcony 37
  7. Chapter 3. Romeo and Juliet in Germany 61
  8. Chapter 4. Romeo and Juliet on the French stage 77
  9. Chapter 5. Romeo and Juliet in Spain 101
  10. Chapter 6. Judaisation in the first Hebrew translation of Romeo and Juliet 119
  11. Chapter 7. Giulietta e Romeo 139
  12. Chapter 8. Star-crossed lovers in Sweden 159
  13. Chapter 9. Romeo and Juliet  – The East Side Story 177
  14. Chapter 10. “Unveiling” Romeo and Juliet in Spain 197
  15. Chapter 11. Romeo and Juliet in British culture 227
  16. Chapter 12. A festival blockbuster 247
  17. Chapter 13. What’s in a stamp? 263
  18. Chapter 14. “In fair [Europe], where we lay our scene” 283
  19. Chapter 15. A selective timeline of Romeo and Juliet in European culture 301
  20. Index 321
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