Cheek by Jowl, led by Artistic Directors Declan Donnellan and Nick Ormerod, announce tour dates and cast for their first Spanish-language production Life is a Dream (La Vida Es Sueño) by Pedro Calderón de la Barca.
One of the most famous plays of the Spanish Golden Age, this production has its première at Teatro Lope de Vega in Seville, before touring to Girona, Valladolid, Valencia, Madrid and Albi (France) in its first season.
The production will then return to the Barbican where the company are Artistic Associates, for its UK premiere from 13 April to 16 April 2023, with further dates to be announced.
Performed by an ensemble of Spanish actors, Donnellan directs Ernesto Arias, Prince Ezeanyim, David Luque, Manuel Moya, Rebeca Matellán, Alfredo Noval, Goizalde Núñez, Antonio Prieto and Irene Serrano.
The production is a co-production with Spain’s foremost classical theatre, the Compañía Nacional de Teatro Clásico in Madrid, under the Artistic Direction of Lluís Homar and LAZONA Productions.
Declan Donnellan today commented: “It is great to be working with this wonderful company of Spanish actors – and on this play, arguably the greatest achievement of the Spanish Golden Age. We performed in Spain before we ever performed in London, in the autumn of 1984. That was with Pericles which subsequently toured widely across the UK, Europe and beyond. In the spirit of that odyssey and adventure, we look forward to bringing our new production of Life is a Dream home to the Barbican and sharing it with audiences far and wide in the coming season…. We are very grateful to our partners in Spain, France and the UK who helped us to make this Dream a reality”
Co-produced by Cheek by Jowl, Compañía Nacional de Teatro Clásico (CNTC Madrid) and LAZONA; in collaboration with the Barbican, London and Scène Nationale d’Albi, France.
