Image via Tickets Olmedo.es
Because in summer Spain not only lives on sun and beach, during During the summer, numerous cultural festivals are held throughout the country for all audiences. Theater festivals, in particular, are one of the most popular and for a few days many towns become the nerve center of the performing arts.
In case this summer you want to soak up something more than sea water, then We propose several theater festivals that promise to make culture lovers happy.
Classic Olmedo Festival
From July 15 to 24, the Classic Theater Festival in Villa del Caballero will show twelve shows on the occasion of its eleventh edition in charge of several theater companies that represent a careful selection of the best that can be seen today in terms of classical theater.
During those ten days you can see in this small town of Valladolid different scenic proposals by various authors, eras, genres and countries that share quality as an inalienable condition. There is tragedy, drama and comedy but this edition is dedicated to Miguel de Cervantes and William Shakespeare, two great figures of world literature who this year celebrate the fourth centenary of their deaths.
Spain, England, Italy and France, the four great territories of that European theater of Modernity, will be represented in Olmedo Clásico., with works by Lope de Vega, Carlo Goldoni, Tirso de Molina and Molière, among many others. Likewise, there will be conferences on classical theater to reflect on different issues related to gender. Also photographic exhibitions and sections dedicated to children to attract them to the stage.
Alcántara Classical Theater Festival
Image via Extremadura Tourism
The Alcántara Classical Theater Festival is considered one of the most important at the national level due to the activities that surround the festival, the content of its programming and the incomparable setting where it is held: the Carlos V gallery of the Conventual de San Benito.
This theater festival was born in the eighties, in the process of experimentation with theater and is one of the longest running in Spain. Today it is celebrated during the summer season, in the first days of August. On these dates the town is decked out to look like a totally medieval city, a unique atmosphere ideal for the representation of this event and to enjoy other alternative activities such as the Alcántara tapas route, its medieval market or its children's workshops.
From August 3 to 8, the Alcántara Classic Theater Festival celebrates its thirty-second edition with works such as 'El cerco de Numancia', 'Reina Juana' and 'El Retablo de las Maravillas', among others.
International Festival of Classical Theater of Mérida
Two thousand years after its inauguration, the Roman Theater of Mérida is more alive than ever thanks to the International Festival of Classical Theater of Mérida. Classic, modern and timeless, three adjectives that define this cultural event that opens a new cycle with the 62nd edition held between July 6 and August 28.
This 2016 the International Classical Theater Festival of Mérida proposes seven absolute premieres and a symphonic concert where the commitment to the variety of genres and titles never before represented in Mérida prevails.
In addition, figures from theater, music or dance such as Paloma San Basilio, Verónica Forqué, Estrella Morente, Aída Gómez, Ara Malikian, Aitor Luna or Unax Ugalde among many others, will step on the arena of the Roman Theater of Mérida to represent these stories before the hundreds of spectators who fill the city every year.
Since the festival began its journey in the 30s, with the passing of the editions it has become an unavoidable summer appointment and in one of the most important and influential cultural events in Spain.
Olite Classical Theater Festival
Image of the exterior of the Royal Palace of Olite, in Navarra
From July 17 to August 2, the old capital of the kingdom of Navarra will become a cultural capital on the occasion of the Olite Classical Theater Festival. For approximately a fortnight, the best works by famous playwrights such as Calderón de la Barca, Shakespeare, Tirso de Molina and Molière will be performed before the walls of the beautiful Royal Palace.
The Festival has two open-air stages to represent the functions: the one located in the Cava (intended for the most important productions as they have a greater capacity) and the one in the Palace. During those days the famous 'Entremeses' by Cervantes, 'El Príncipe' by Machiavelli and the classic tragedies 'Oedipus the King', 'Medea' and 'Antígona' will be shown to the public.
The schedule of the Olite Classical Theater Festival is completed with shows, conferences and training activities on the street and in various enclaves of the town intended for all audiences or theater professionals.