Dramatized Reading of José Zorrilla's 'Don Juan Tenorio'
- Iggy Planas
- Nov 1, 2018
- 3 min read
Yesterday's evening, because it was October 31st, we performed a dramatized reading of José Zorrilla's 'Don Juan Tenorio' as we did two years ago, this time enlivening students from different places in Zona Universitària (especially in EPSEB and ETSAB). The reading itself had a great acceptance among the assisting ones who watched the story of Seville's trickster getting a good critique by the audiences.
Part of the cast after the performance.
From left to right: Miguel Herrero (Avellaneda), Germán Frasio (Captain Centellas), Carlota de Haan (Doña Ana), David Alonso (Don Luis Mejía), Alejandro Oya (Don Juan Tenorio), Diana Vallverdú (Doña Inés), Iggy Planas (Ciutti),
Aida Pi (Brígida) y Alberto Rizzo (Don Gonzalo de Ulloa)
What is 'Don Juan Tenorio' about?
Don Juan Tenorio makes a vile bet with don Luis Mejía consisting in charming in record time not only a naive novice but also his enemy Luis Mejía’s fiancée.
Don Juan Tenorio achieves his goals: he fools his rival’s fiancée and kidnaps the seventeen-year-old noble lady doña Inés from her convent. But don Juan falls madly in love with her and decides to ask her father, the commander don Gonzalo de Ulloa for her hand in marriage.
Don Gonzalo de Ulloa and don Luis Mejía appear enraged at the seducer’s house to confront him. Don Juan Tenorio fights against both gentlemen, killing them on the way. But authorities tighten the grip around the seducer, and he must flee from Seville, leaving her loving doña Inés behind.
After several years, Don Juan comes back to Seville, only to find that his palace had become a pantheon where all his victims are buried. These victims still have pending issues with him and, during a single night, don Juan Tenorio must confront the spirits of the ones he fooled long ago and try to find salvation for his impure soul.
Poster designed by Alberto Rizzo
The dramatized reading started at 19h in EPSEB's entry, and it was a kind of 'semi-performed' reading where each act took place on determined places in three faculties of Zona Universitaria. But, unfortunately, during the performance the rain started to menace with the planned itinerary and some improvised measures needed to be taken regarding the place where the three last acts of the play were performed, a thing we solved without many inconveniences.
Thanks to all the audience who attended to the dramatized reading for your patience though the strolls and the inclement conditions, for all your critiques and suggestions and thanks to the rest of my partners in the reading for your effort and for being able to carry on with this semi-performed dramatized reading with just a couple of weeks of rehearsals.
Different pictures of the dramatized reading
In a personal level I wanted to say that it's been a challenge for me to retake this play as a dramatized reading we already performed in November 2016, this time improving it and trying to make it more representable, adapting ourselves to the place where we performed and trying to be faithful to verse theatre and the period costumes. I think the challenge was fulfilled, in fact I made an effort to not reading the most and learning my lines, the subtext and the movements of my character (Ciutti) reliably to the Zorrilla's text, but I had a sour-sweet feeling of not having performed it in 100%.
In Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the city I come from, it's very usual that, during All Hallows Eve', 'Don Juan Tenorio' is represented around different places in Vegueta, the city's old town, and since I was a kid I attended to watch the play whenever possible. I don't know if it was because of this, but I felt that something similar to this could be performed, but that's another challenge to be faced in the future.
For the ones who didn't come, I must tell you that this project is not seen to be performed anymore during this year, but we do not discard to retake it in a near future to make a decent performance of the play and not a dramatized reading. A happy outcome is worth waiting for, so, why should we set it apart? Stay tuned to the news, though from now on we must wait, I'll keep you informed about it.
Final applauses after the dramtized reading
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