The Criminals by Ferdinand Bruckner Premiered at Teatre Nacional de Catalunya: A Powerful Piece of Political Theater

From the article by Lluís Capdevila (Barcelona, ​​​​​​​​1893-Andorra la Vella, 1980) to the “Political Theater” section of Meridian (VI-24-1938), a newspaper that was in Catalonia, under the conditions of the Spanish war and the social revolution, taken over from Mirador, a weekly reference during the Republic. Yesterday the Teatre Nacional de Catalunya premiered “The Criminals”, by Ferdinand Bruckner (Sofia, Bulgaria, 1891-Berlin, 1958).

I just read Racesby Ferdinand Bruckner. His reading has given me a strong, strong, terrible impression. Erwin Piscator advocates a good work of political theater. I think it would be a great resource, especially at this time, to translate and perform this work, because, today more than ever, the theater must be a platform. Representing works as inappropriate I’m almost eight, my cook, Luisa Fernanda, etc., etc., we will not serve for war. And today we must put everything to the service of war, we must not forget it. […] You cannot call yourself anti-fascist and be part of a Committee that promotes illiterate theatre. Bruckner is one of the most interesting playwrights of our time. In Catalonia we know him thanks to the good will and good understanding of Pius Davi – whose work as an actor and director was not appreciated or loved enough – who first appeared, in Romea in 1931, The criminals in the Catalan version by Millàs Raurell. And it was Pius Davi, too, who made him known at the Beatriz Theater, in 1933, with Elizabeth of England, Spanish translation by Salvador Vilaregut. Bruckner was better received in Barcelona than in Madrid, it must be said. And it is logical that this was the case because there was not much to expect from an audience that introduced Muñoz Seca. This does not mean that there is no select minority in Madrid, or that intelligent and sensitive works must fail. No no no; In Madrid, works by Valle Inclán, Angel Lázaro, Casona, García Lorca, the Machado brothers, Paulí Massip, Manuel Abril, Jacinto Grau, Edgard Neville, Benavides, Azorín, and, among others, Molnar, Sutton Vanne, Lenormand, Georges Kaiser, Bernard Shaw, Chiarelli, Evreinoff. And this is not a theater of what business people say commercially. However, from Madrid we have the Muñoz Seca, the Pérez Fernández, the Torrado, and, finally, the stupid and pornographic magazine. It is logical, then, that the Barcelona theater climate was more favorable to Bruckner than that of Madrid. […] Despite the war, I have had time to read interesting things: among them, Bruckner’s heartbreaking dramas. […]. I believe that this is one of the ambitions from which the true artist of the people cannot prevent himself: to make the history of his time with work. […] In Catalonia, unfortunately, writers do not know how or did not want to be interested in street struggle. And in Catalonia the street has been very important, it has been a real impressive element: you remember the terrorism at the beginning of the century, the farce torn by Lerrouxism, four years of war – 1914-18: elegant prostitution, quick fortune. , roulette, cocaine, betrayal – the sinister guns, the grotesque dictatorship… Ferdinand Bruckner, a Jew, a refugee from the fortress of fascist Germany, writes a beautiful, strong, humane, extremely interesting work. Work, above all, anti-fascist. […]