Ohio Wesleyan to Perform New Adaptation of 'Blood Wedding'
Four Presentations of Federico García Lorca’s Play Set for April 6-9
DELAWARE, Ohio – Ohio Wesleyan University’s Department of Theatre & Dance will present four performances April 6-9 of “Blood Wedding,” a new gender-reimagined adaptation of the classic Federico García Lorca play.
“Lorca pondered whether ‘living one’s instinctual life to the full’ was the only path to happiness,” said director and Ohio Wesleyan theatre professor Edward Kahn. “Here the Bride is torn between instinct and passion on one hand, and tradition, rules, and conventions on the other.”
Although Lorca was a gay poet and playwright, the Bride’s forbidden love is a previous boyfriend in his play “Bodas de sangre,” written in 1932 while Lorca lived in conservative, Catholic Spain. In 2017, it seemed fitting for translators/adapters Kahn and assistant professor of Spanish Eva Paris-Huesca to change the Bride’s past love to a woman.
“We hope that in performance the change both honors the intent of Lorca’s play and resonates with our contemporary audiences,” Kahn said. “When I hear Leonarda speak the famous line, ‘To stay quiet and burn inside is the greatest punishment we can inflict on ourselves,’ I feel that we bring the audience closer to the ‘secret desires’ which Lorca mentions so often in his poetry.”
“Bodas de sangre” was inspired by a real event in Almeria in 1928 and is the first play in Lorca’s rural trilogy, which offers his tragic view of women’s lives and destinies. Despite the civil rights gained by women with the rise of the left-wing Republic and the Spanish Constitution of 1931, attitudes were slower to change, especially in rural Andalusia where the play takes place.
“Blood Wedding” will be presented in three evening performances and one matinee. It will be performed in one act, lasting approximately 80 minutes. “It’s wonderfully expressionistic, mixing poetry, music, acting, and dance,” Kahn said.
The cast is comprised of 15 Ohio Wesleyan students and features Alexia Minton as the Bride, Rose Jonesco as Leonarda, Ares Harper as the Boyfriend, and Audrey Castañeda Walker as the Mother.
Scenic design is by Chadwyn Knutson, lighting design by D. Glen Vanderbilt Jr., and costume design by Donna Williamson. Choreography is by Rashana Perks Smith, and original music has been composed by OWU students Jase Jacobson and Colin Pietron. Student Emily Poltor is the stage manager.
“Blood Wedding” will be performed at 8 p.m. April 6, 7, and 8 and at 2 p.m. April 9 in the Main Theatre inside Ohio Wesleyan’s Chappelear Drama Center, 45 Rowland Ave., Delaware.
Tickets are $10 for general admission and $5 for senior citizens, Ohio Wesleyan employees, and non-OWU students. Admission is free for OWU students with a valid university ID. All seating is general seating.
To reserve tickets, call the OWU box office at (740) 368-3855. For more information visit www.owu.edu/TheatreAndDance.
Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation’s premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private university offers nearly 90 undergraduate majors and competes in 23 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Through Ohio Wesleyan’s signature OWU Connection program, students integrate knowledge across disciplines, build a diverse and global perspective, and apply their knowledge in real-world settings. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives,” listed on the latest President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with Distinction, and included in the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review “best colleges” lists. Learn more at www.owu.edu.