A close bond unites director Oriol Broggi with The Tempest, as it was precisely this play, which he saw in 1993, directed by Peter Brook, that convinced him to dedicate himself to theatre.
Shakespeare's last play, translated by Jaume Coll, narrates how a storm shipwrecks Alonso, King of Naples, his son Ferdinand, and Antonio, who usurped the Duchy of Milan from his brother. The powerful storm, caused by Prospero, the legitimate Duke of Milan, has brought them to the remote island where he has lived in exile for years with his daughter Miranda. The shipwreck sets Prospero's revenge in motion, which does not end as he had foreseen…
Magic, a fundamental element in the play
Magic is very present in The Tempest. A subject that Prospero diligently studies and that allows him to invoke beings from the afterlife. Like Ariel, the spirit who claims his freedom and acts as Prospero's accomplice.
Other themes that appear in the play are the desire for revenge that drives Prospero's actions to recover the duchy, the freedom that we all want to achieve, and the forgiveness that finally arrives thanks to love, capable of returning the protagonists of The Tempest to the earthly world to which they belong.
Magic is also present in the staging. "Apparently" invisible spirits, moving trees, white tunics and curtains, points of light, fog, wind, background music (performed by the company members). A successful scenography that accompanies the play's plot at all times. It goes without saying that the magnificent stage space of Teatre La Biblioteca, located in one of the Gothic naves of the old Hospital de la Santa Creu from the 10th century, contributes to creating the scenic density of this work.
Excellent performance by Lluís Soler in the role of Prospero
While The Tempest is an ensemble play, Lluís Soler's performance, convincing as always, deserves strong applause. His characteristic voice and excellent diction make him a magnificent Prospero, full of nuances, who struggles between the desire for revenge, forgiveness, and love for his daughter Miranda.
“You were the cherubim that saved me […] you gave me courage to endure anything that came” (Prospero to Miranda)
Also noteworthy is the actor Babou Cham in the role of Ariel, who acts as a kind of master of ceremonies, Clara de Ramon in the role of the naive Miranda, who has grown up on the island without contact with other humans, and Jacob Torres in the amusing role of Caliban, the island's native whom Prospero has not managed to subdue. A clear reference to the colonialism prevalent in Shakespeare's time.
It must be said, however, that the line separating the earthly world from the supernatural is not always evident and at times causes us confusion, but the amusing scenes, especially those involving the wild Caliban, make the play lighter. A success, as without them The Tempest would surely be difficult to follow.
A thank you to the translators
Before finishing this review, I would like to highlight the great work done by translators. Thanks to their work, we can read or see texts written in other languages in the theater.
In the case of classics like Shakespeare, this work is even more complicated because, in addition to being faithful to the original, they must transfer the metric structure of the work while respecting the morphology of English and Catalan. A complex job that is often not valued enough but requires a high degree of linguistic knowledge.