Written by Alina Mae Wilson
Last night I watched Fullerton College’s production of Federico Garcia Lorca’s Blood Wedding. Lorca’s tragic tale of an ill-fated wedding got its inspiration from gruesome newspaper clippings from southern Spain, and we are led to believe Blood Wedding occurs in a similar location. We, in the audience, are transported to another time, place, and culture through dual-language storytelling techniques. The back-and-forth dialogue between Spanish and English is entertaining and effective in telling a story that is, while occasionally confusing, ultimately enjoyable.
photography by Heather Plenty
In a small town in Spain, a young Bridegroom has a conversation with his Mother about marriage. He seems nice: smiling, friendly, and dutifully caring for his elderly Mother’s needs. There are worse men to marry. However, Mother is anxious about the prospect of his leaving her since her husband and elder son have already fallen victim to violence from another family. Nevertheless, she eventually agrees to be supportive of his upcoming nuptials to a young woman rumored to have been in a previous relationship with the family of Mother’s husband’s killers. When they finally meet the Bride, the Mother’s qualms seem to vanish because the beautiful Bride is charming and content with the situation. But is she really? As the story progresses, we discover the truth of the Bride’s current situation and its causes.
The beauty of the stage cannot be understated. Given the play’s title, it’s unsurprising that anyone wouldn’t anticipate heavy use of red at one point or another. For the majority of the first act and part of the second act, the stage is awash with red light. However, this is not grotesque. In the first act, the scenes are lit with red, bringing to mind the warmth of sunsets and hope. This is suitable for a plot line that focuses much of its attention on home, life, and nature. The stage is stacked a few steps up, one on top of the other, with a higher balcony serving as decor for much of the show. The audience is placed on either the same level or higher than the stage on bleachers, so seating is solid. Occasionally walking behind the bleachers, the cast whispers lines of dialogue to help set the mood for the scenes. While the attempt is certainly appreciated, it is also distracting. Fortunately, the cast doesn’t do this too often.
Special mention goes to Krystal Navarro (Bride) and Abel Miramontes (Leonardo). Navarro is sufficient in her charm and pain as the Bride, while Miramontes is believable in all his conflicts. Both performers keep the audience’s attention every moment they are onstage.
photography by Heather Plenty
The play is executed very well, and while I understand not everyone speaks Spanish, monolingualism in and of itself will not prevent you from comprehending the story (my husband went and had no trouble). For starters, they speak English at least fifty percent of the time, probably more, although I did not count every line. The songs are almost entirely in Spanish but are not sung often. And during the first act, the performers are extremely expressive. They are expressive during the second act as well. Still, the beginning is much more classic and familiar to the American audience. Even if some lines don’t make sense, you can easily piece together what is happening and follow along without feeling left out of the experience. This is in stark contrast to Act 2, which has many stranger things taking place and is a bit harder to follow. Even a fluent Spanish speaker might spend a few minutes saying, “…What?..what?…random.” Never fear, the end of the show clarifies it all, so it is enjoyable for people–no matter what language they speak at home.
Bronwyn Dodson Theater on:
December 3-5 at 7 pm,
Dec. 6 at 2 pm
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WOW!! This was a great production and I loved seeing it with my family LOL It was super funny and…