Review: Bodas de sangre by Federico García Lorca (Spoiler-Free)

MADRE: ¿Tú sabes lo que es casarse, criatura?

NOVIA: (Seria.) Lo sé.

MADRE: Un hombre, unos hijos, y una pared de dos varas de ancha para todo lo demás.

This is the first play I've ever read of my own accord, and I'm glad I trusted Lorca with that high honor.

I wish I was still enrolled in a course that would give me the historical background for this one, but the knowledge I've been exposed to about Lorca in general is enough to enhance the experience. The play itself is exciting—full of passion and betrayal—but having lived in Andalucía and studied some theater there, I can't help but overanalyze.

Speaking of passion and betrayal—those are a telltale sign of Lorca's plays. Specifically a woman becoming impassioned by a man, yet unable to live a life with him. This theme likely stems from Lorca's own harbored feelings for men, as he lived through the dawn of the Spanish Civil War. He was both admired and rejected by peers such as Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí, and you can feel that tension, that love and hate for the male being, in each of his works. This play also includes a disdain for needless violence—perhaps implying a distaste for war—which aligns with Lorca's tragic end as a victim of Nationalist forces.

I continue to be impressed by each of Lorca's pieces (having previously read La casa de Bernarda Alba and Don Perlimplín) and would love to see one put to stage. I believe there's also a Carlos Saura adaptation of this one into flamenco, which is also intriguing.

P.S. I know this review was pretty serious, but I can't help but throw in that I saw a "Me vuelves Lorca" sign at a bookstore recently and I think it's iconic.