Let’s start with a sentence by Juan Mayorga: “The situation is theatrical.” The playwright delivered it in 2019, during his inaugural speech at the Royal Spanish Academy, to underline the “theatricality” of this ceremony in relation to its apparent staging, but also reveals one of the keys to his writing: there is almost always a metatheatrical play in his works , and the essence of many of them lies right at the intersection of life and theater. Amistad, which premiered at the Naves del Español at the Matadero in Madrid on Thursday, is a perfect example of this. Primarily because of the “situation” that develops: three lifelong friends chatting at a wake. What could be more “theatrical” than three lifelong friends mixing memories with the tics and platitudes people typically resort to to endure the boredom of waking up? And secondly, because this “situation” is actually a “theatrical game” practiced by these three men without skipping any of their protocols, since it is precisely the theatrical conventions – in this case those of comedy – that are the conventions expressed here bring of life.
Explained in this way, the work seems twisted because it is not possible to reveal much more of its plot in order not to lose its main charm, but the staging is not complicated at all. Rather the opposite, maybe too easy. A light comedy. Well, the text contains no more ambition than the play. It’s brilliant in that regard, especially since Mayorga exploits the resource of repetition, both in the dialogues and in the structure. Also for the great touch of black humor that runs through the writing. But it is precisely this game that is supposed to explode the truth in the uncomfortable and embarrassing context of the wake, forcing the protagonists to tell each other everything they haven’t told each other for years, the envy, the jealousy, the aversion to stolen girlfriends, since the Childhood fueled affection… It’s all there, but expressed in a superficial and stereotypical way. So that the immersion in the theme of friendship that the title promises remains in a simple bath. A strange conversation between friends caused by a strange situation. The crossover between theater and life does not take place this time. The first prevails.
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She also asserts herself in the production premiered in Madrid. Played by three more than solvent actors, Daniel Albaladejo, Ginés García Millán and José Luis García-Pérez, directed by the latter, however, the show remains on the surface. Cracked in the sheer staging of the odd dialogues and the odd situation, but not what lies beneath or the construction of the characters. As if the director hadn’t found the right tone or atmosphere. Or maybe because it puts everything on the search for laughs: punctuating the funny moments of the text with unnecessary gags that slow down the show and create others with forced actions. When Mayorga makes a comedy, you have to squeeze it thoroughly. However, if it is overloaded, a rebound effect can occur. Like laughter out of a can.
Friendship
Text: Juan Mayorga. Address: José Luis García-Pérez. Actors: Gines García Millán, José Luis García-Pérez and Daniel Albaladejo. Spanish ships in Matadero. Madrid. Until March 5th.
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