Disappearing Acts: On Analysing Creative Practice in Spain

Abstract

This article deals with modes of seeing and ways of working in contemporary Spanish theatre. It explores the methodologies of talking with actors about the preparation and enactment of a role, of observing rehearsals and discussing the setting up of the sequence of actions that makes up the theatrical performance, and how these interactive collaborations with theatre and film artists can assist in a mapping out of ‘other’ or largely undocumented working practices. I draw on a number of select examples: conversations with Nuria Espert on her own practice; observational work watching the production process of stage directors Calixto Bieito and Lluís Pasqual; and in the final section of the paper, an extended consideration of my collaborations with Pedro Almodóvar. Through a framing mechanism drawing on archival research conducted on the actresses María Guerrero and Margarita Xirgu, I hope to show how an engagement with practices of enactment has shaped the historical narratives I have constructed on contemporary creative practice, and the ways in which a direct engagement with those who make culture in Spain can assist in understanding how that culture is constructed and consumed.