The author and director Luis Luque takes the fragments of this character - which we can qualify as secondary - to give him his own identity. As in a kind of spin-off of the original piece, Poncia provides a tangential view and at the same time also from within the same conflict.
If you saw Lolita in the role of Colometa in La Plaça del Diamant, you already know that the folkloric image of Lolita shown on TV disappears on stage. The interpretation of Lolita Flores is intense but also contained.
Pure emotion that she transmits with a well-modulated voice, without overacting. She accompanies it with expressive gestures, a sober and dark costume, and some symbolic elements such as Bernarda's cane or Adela's ashes. The music by Luis Miguel Cobo is also noteworthy.
Excellent performance by Lolita Flores: heartfelt and contained
Like in a puzzle, Poncia addresses the characters of this Lorca play in different scenes. Starting with Adela, to whom Poncia dedicates words full of love, sorrow, impotence, regret, and guilt. A wide range of emotions that Lolita expresses perfectly.
What could Poncia have done to avoid the tragic outcome? Deep down, she couldn't have done anything because she is just a maid, as Bernarda often reminds her. Her only function is to serve and above all to be silent. A silence that stirs her insides.
The reproaches, rage, and hatred she reserves for the intransigent Bernarda who keeps her daughters captive, with the useless attempt to keep them away from any male. Her efforts are useless. And also for the eldest daughter, the selfish Angustias who will be chosen to marry the enemy. The man embodied by Pepe "El Romano", who could be anyone else as he is just an archetype.
Through the fragments of Poncia that Luque has extracted from Lorca's work, we reconstruct the tragedy of Bernarda Alba's daughters. With a stage design, by Mónica Boromello, that stands out for its subtlety and elegance. Large translucent curtains and lights of different colors that accompany us through the different scenes, separated by a "fade to black".
Poncia vindicates women's freedom to choose
In the final part of the work, Poncia recovers her own voice, to show us her soul and everything she believes in. She talks to us about love and sex, education and social classes, about the life as a couple that Bernarda's daughters have not had and will never have. She vindicates the freedom of women in a repressive society where men rule. A world where women must obey. Without realizing it, they are all a kind of servants.
To be born a woman is a great misfortune.
The risk taken by Luis Luque in taking Poncia out of the pages of The House of Bernarda Alba is great. She might not have had enough consistency as a character outside the work, but this is not the case. Instead, the fragments of Lorca's text, the beautiful staging and, above all, Lolita Flores' performance deserve strong applause.
Please turn off your phones
Finally, I want to explain a fact that, far from being anecdotal, is increasingly common in the theater. Despite the warnings prior to the performance, during Lolita's intense act, a mobile phone rang, breaking her concentration. She, with elegance, left the stage to return shortly after, but perhaps we should ask ourselves the following: Can we really not go for a little over 1 hour that Poncia lasts without being glued to our phones? It is not only a lack of respect for the professional on stage but also for the rest of the audience