.'.
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the Cornell University Library.
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the United States on the use of the text.
http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924019889702
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The Spanish stage in the time of Lope de
3 1924 019 889 702
THE SPANISH STAGE
IN THE TIME OF
LOPE DE VEGA
BY
HUGO ALBERT RENNERT, Ph.D. (Freiburg i. b.)
PROFESSOR IN THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA,
CORRESPONDING MEMBER OF THE ROYAL SPANISH ACADEMY,
OF THE ROYAL GALICIAN ACADEMY,
MEMBER OF THE HISPANIC SOCIETY OF AMERICA
NEW YORK
1909
Copyright, 1909, by
The Hispanic Society
of America
TO THE MEMORY OF
MY MOTHER
MAY 19, 1835— JUNE 5, 1899
Death is the end of life ; ah, why
Should life all labour be ?
Let us alone. Time driveth onward fast,
And in a little while our lips are dumb.
Let us alone. What is it that will last ?
All things are taken from us, and become
Portions and parcels of the dreadful Past.
Tennyson.
PREFACE
Little more than a decade has elapsed since the attention
of scholars has again been directed to the history of the
Spanish stage, and their labors have been rewarded with
most unexpected success. While these results have been due
to the work of a number of investigators— Sanchez-Arjona,
Cotarelo, Restori, and others — it is to the late Dr. Cris-
tobal Perez Pastor's patient and unwearying researches
that we are especially indebted. The mass of material
which he has brought to light will always form the founda-
tion upon which others must build. For nearly a cen-
tury, or since the appearance of Pellicer's work upon
the Spanish stage in 1804 (excepting the very important
matter contributed by Schack in the Nachtrdge to his
Geschichte der dramatischen Literatur und Kunst in
Spanien, 1854), little of importance had been done by
scholars in this field until very recent times. About
ten years ago Perez Pastor began investigations in the
Archives of Madrid and other Spanish cities that have
yielded the richest results, and to these the present volume
is greatly indebted. The labors of this distinguished
investigator have, moreover, shown that the first volume
of Pellicer's Tratado Historico sobre el Origen y Pro-
gresos de la Comedia y del Histrionismo en Espana,
Madrid, 1804, is, upon the whole, trustworthy as far as
VI
PREFACE
it goes, and, sincr a number of documents to which Pelli-
cer had access seem to have disappeared, his work is still
valuable.
It was with the purpose of utilizing the latest researches
of the scholars above mentioned, and such other informa-
tion as has come to my knowledge, that the present ac-
count of the Spanish stage was undertaken.
The amount of material for such a work is now large.
I have not attempted to chronicle every known fact, and
whether I have always chosen what is most important,
must be left for others to judge. Frequent references will
be found in the course of the succeeding pages to the stage
history of other countries, especially of England and
France, with the view of throwing some light upon the
points under discussion. They may, it is hoped, be not
unwelcome to the reader.
The "List of Spanish Actors and Actresses," which
originally appeared in the Revue Hispanique, Tome XVI,
1907, is now reprinted in a revised and corrected form.
While it is necessarily incomplete, and while further re-
searches will undoubtedly add many a detail, the data
here collected may render some service pending the ap-
pearance of a more satisfactory list, compiled by one to
whom all the sources are accessible.
H. A. R.
CONTENTS
PAGE
Chapter I 3
Early religious representations. The festival of Corpus
Christi. The secular drama. Lope de Rueda. Torres
Naharro. Early secular representations.
Chapter II 26
The corrales of Madrid. The Corral de la Pacheca. The
Corral de Burguillos. The Corral de Puente. The founda-
tion of the two famous theaters : The Corral de la Cruz and
the Corral del Principe.
Chapter III 47
The corrales of Seville. Las Ataraxanas. La Alcoba. San
Pedro. The Huerta de Dona Elvira. The Coliseo. La
Monteria.
Chapter IV 62
Music in the corrales. Dancing. Spectators on the stage.
Various dances and bayles at Corpus Christi. The Zara-
banda, Chacona, Escarraman, etc.
Chapter V 76
The staging of the comedia. English court plays. The Enter-
taining Journey of Rojas. Alonso Lopez Pinciano on staging.
The stage. The curtain. Scenery. Stage machinery. Apa-
riencias. Tramoyas. The French stage. Private repre-
sentations.
Chapter VI 104
Costumes. Their impropriety. Their magnificence. Costumes
in the autos sacramentales. Performances in the public thea-
ters. Prices of admission. The audiences. The mosque-
teros. Women in the caxuela. Ruffianism in the theaters.
Seats in the corrales.
Chapter VII 137
Women on the stage. In France, England, and Italy. Women
on the Spanish stage. The companies of players. Companias
viii CONTENTS
PAGE
reales. Cotnpanias de parte. Smaller companies. The Enter-
taining Journey of Rojas. The traveling of companies.
Chapter VIII 159
The actors. Their hardships. Alonso de Olmedo. Juan de
Morales. Roque de Figueroa. Maria de Riquelme. La Cal-
derona. Adventures of actors related in the "Entertaining
Journey." The term autor de comedias. Relations of dramatist
and manager. The stealing of plays. Honorarium of dram-
atists. Collaboration.
Chapter IX 181
The salaries of actors in the sixteenth and seventeenth centu-
ries. Managers turn actors. Corrales in various cities.
Valencia as a theatrical center. It is visited by players from
Madrid. Sums received by managers for the performance of
a cornedia. For autos sacramentales. Receipts of a repre-
sentation. The rental of the corrales.
Chapter X 206
Character of the actors and 'actresses. Decrees regulating
theatrical performances. The opposition of churchmen. De-
crees of 1598, 1600, 1603, 1608, and 1615 for the reformation of
comedias.
Chapter XI 229
Private representations before the King. Philip the Third.
Philip the Fourth. The latter's fondness for the theater. Rep-
resentations in 1622. Festivals at Aranjuez. The "Buen
Retiro." Lope's Selva sin Amor. Dramatic spectacles by Cal-
deron. Decree of 1641 regulating plays. The theaters closed
in 1646 and again in 1682.
Chapter XII 252
The "Partidas" of Alfonso the Learned concerning secular
plays. The church and the theater. Public players declared
infamous. Opposition of the clergy to the theater. It is mostly
due to the players. Character of the actresses.
Chapter XIII 274
The term cornedia defined. The various kinds of comedias.
The licensing of comedias. The representation of a cornedia.
Loas, Entremeses, Jdcaras, Sainetes, Mogigangas.
CONTENTS ix
PAGE
Chapter XIV 297
The representation of autos sacramentales. Description of the
autos at Madrid. The carros. Abuse of the representation of
autos. Protests of churchmen. Sums paid for the representa-
tion of autos. Autos in the theaters. Great expense of these
festivals.
Chapter XV 322
Contemporary accounts of the representation of comedias and
autos. Francis van Aerssen. The Comtesse d'Aulnoy. The
behavior of audiences. Scenes in the theaters. Spanish players
abroad. Conclusion.
Appendix A 345
Appendix B 357
Appendix C 360
Index 381
Addenda 403
List of Spanish Actors and Actresses . . . .407
INTRODUCTION
It has been said that the dramatic literature of Spain in
the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries exceeded that of all
other European nations combined, and this is, perhaps, no
exaggeration. Lope de Vega, the great founder of the
national drama, who heads the list with about fifteen hun-
dred plays, would alone suffice for an entire nation. He
is followed by Tirso de Molina and Luis Velez de Gue-
vara, with about four hundred plays each, and by other
playwrights whose productivity is almost as remarkable.
Of the vast dramatic output of this period it has been
estimated that fully one half is lost beyond recovery. Of
Lope de Vega's repertory- about two thirds has perished;
of Tirso de Molina's and Velez de Guevara's about four
fifths has disappeared, and of all the great dramatists of
the Golden Age perhaps Calderon is the only one whose
literary baggage has descended to us almost in its entirety.1
Theatrical representations became exceedingly popular
in Spain in the last decades of the sixteenth century, and
with the establishment of the first permanent theaters in
Madrid — the Corral de la Cruz in 1579 and the Corral
del Principe in 1582 — the passion for the theater in-
creased, and it was not long before all the larger cities
possessed fixed corrales or theaters, and few towns were
bo small that they were not occasionally visited by strolling
players. In all matters pertaining to the stage, however,
1 Concerning the drama in England, W.' W. Greg (Henslowe 's Diary,
Vol. II, London, 1908, p. 146) says: "We may, I think, conclude with
some confidence that the total output of the Elizabethan Age was between
2000 and 3000 [plays] and probably not very far removed from the mean.
This is, of course, exclusive of masques." He gives about 650 as the
total number of plays extant from Elizabeth's accession to the outbreak of
the civil war (1558-1642).
xii INTRODUCTION
Madrid was always paramount. Upon this point the evi-
dence is overwhelming. The importance oi Valencia as a
theatrical center has been much exaggerated, and while
a corral may have existed in that city as early as 1501$,
there is no positive record of one till x;S; or 15 S3. As
the dramatists of the so-called Valencian school were all
followers of Lope de Vega (its activity can be dated back
no farther than Lopes residence in that city in i;8$\
so. too, the Valencian stage was at all times ruled by that
of Madrid. In the capital all the large companies of
players were organized; here all the celebrated managers
(a:, tores de comeJias) and actors lived, and from this
source all the cities of Spain, as well as the capital of
PortugaJ, drew for their theatrical representations.
After Madrid, the most flourishing theatrical center, on
account of its wealth and commercial importance, was un-
doubtedly Seville, and hence, in the following account of
the Spanish stage. I have confined myself almost exclu-
sively to these two cities, not only because of their prime
importance, but also for the no less potent reason that here
the sources flow much more freely than elsewhere.
As regards the city of Valencia it may not be out of
place to give here such information as is furnished by the
rare little book EI TeJtro dc T'alcnaa desde su Ori^ri
hjstti niustros Dias, por D. Luis Lamarca, Valencia, 1S40.
Concerning theatrical representations in that city Sr. La-
marca says that "to Valencia belongs the indisputable glory
of having been the first city in Spain in which dramas were
represented in the vulgar tongue," and mentions that in
April, 1304, there was performed in the Palacio del Real
a tragedy entitled L'hor; e'hitnorat y In frmbra sjrisfttj,
written by Mosen Domingo Masco, counselor of the
King. Don Juan I.1
A few years afterward, in 141 2. on the occasion of the
"See also Wolf, SrsiJisx sir Gfssiu'ktt irr sftwucl.s xtJ fvrtx&r-
shrien Xat}9na^:Ur.:t:,-, Berlin, iSjcs p. 5S4.
INTRODUCTION xiii
festivities celebrated by the city in honor of the visit of
the King, Don Fernando, among other things four en-
tramesos nuevos were enacted. Lamarca says that these
were probably carros triunfales, which are now known by
the name of rocas; and upon these carros were represented
pasos or mysteries, for in the deliberation of March 7,
141 5, it was decreed to pay to "Mosen Juan Sist, pres-
bitero, per trobar e ordenar les cobles e cantilenes ques
cantaren en los entratnesos de la festhidad de la entrada
del Sor. Rey, Reyna e Primogenit," thirty florins, "e igual
suma a Juan Perez de Pastrana, per haber de arreglar e
donar el so a les dites cantilenes e haber fadrins que les
cantasen e ferlos ornar" (p. 10). This, the author says,
is proof of the Valencian origin of the term entremes. As
early as the middle of the fifteenth century the city had
paid juglares (juglares asalariados) to represent the public
festivals, as is shown by a deliberation of August 28, 1487,
when the city appointed "Juan Alfonso para una plaza de
juglar de la ciudad, que se hallaba vacante por muerte de
Martin Alfonso; expresando, que se le concedia con los
emolumentos y trajes pertenecientes a dicho oficio"
(ibid.), and he continues: "Los misterios en lengua lemo-
sina que se representan todavia por las calles en la vispera
y dia del Corpus y en especial el de Adam y Eva, que
antes de salir de la procession se ejecuta sobre el carro 6
roca de la Santisima Trinidad, bajo los balcones de la casa
de ayuntamiento, son una memoria de aquellas primitivas
representaciones."
As to the playhouses of Valencia, Sr. Lamarca calls at-
tention to the fact that Jovellanos was in error in stating
that in 1526 the Hospital of Valencia possessed a theater
in that city, and states that many years passed before the
Hospital had any interest in the casa de Comedias. The
evidence for an early theater in Valencia he finds in the
circumstance that in 1566 the street now called calle de la
Tertulia was called the carrer de les Comedies. The fact
xiv INTRODUCTION
is, however, that the Hospital, in 1582, finding itself in
straits for funds, the Marquis of Aytona, then Viceroy
of the kingdom of Valencia, decreed on September 1 5 of
that year that the companies of players which came from
various parts to Valencia could only represent in the place
appointed by the Hospital. This concession was con-
firmed by the Cortes of Monzon in 1585.
From a deliberacion of November 6, 1584, it appears
that, for a short time prior to this date, a theater had been
established in a house of Ana Campo, "situada cerca dels
Santets," in which Alonso de Cisneros had represented
for three months (p. 18).
These, however, were only provisional theaters, and on
May 4, 1584, the permanent theater in the Vall-cubert
was finished. This, Sr. Lamarca declares, was in the Plaza
de la Olivera, now called the Plaza de las Comedias,
for a deliberacion of November 6, 1584, shows that
N. Velazquez represented "farsas en la casa que te
lo dit spital pera dit efecte a la Olivera." At this time the
entrance fee was 4 dineros, and a silla cost seven. This
famous Casa de la Olivera existed for thirty-four years,
until 161 8, when it was torn down and rebuilt. While
rebuilding comedias were again represented in the house
called dels Santets, over against what is to-day the church
of St. Thomas, where performances had formerly taken
place. The Teatro de la Olivera was opened on Novem-
ber 3, 1619, when the first representation took place in the
new structure, and here they were continued until 17 15,
when it was rebuilt anew.
In 1622 the dramatist Jacinto Maluenda was alcaide of
this casa de comedias, and moved to the house in the
theater called del Autor, "which he was to occupy and to
exercise the duties of his office, receiving all the returns
and profits from the sale of waters, sweets, fruits," etc.,
"del modo y manera que fins huy ho han tengut tots sos
antepasats." (Ibid., p. 63.) In 1650 representations were
INTRODUCTION xv
forbidden by royal decree. In June, 1662, we find Jose
Carrillo and his company representing forty comedias in
Valencia. Performances continued to take place in the
Teatro de la Olivera until it was demolished in 1750, at
the instance of the archbishop, D. Andres Mayoral.
With this brief notice of the theater at Valencia we now
turn our attention to the stage of Madrid, first casting a
retrospective glance over the early religious representa-
tions in the peninsula.
THE SPANISH STAGE
THE SPANISH STAGE
CHAPTER I
Early religious representations. The festival of Corpus Christi.
The secular drama. Lope de Rueda. Torres Naharro. Early
secular representations.
So far as the representation of secular dramas in Spain is
concerned, we need go back no further than Lope de Rueda,
who is, in fact, the first professional actor-manager whose
name has been preserved in the theatrical annals of Spain.
To him and to Torres Naharro, Lope de Vega, the great
creator of the Spanish national drama, has ascribed the
beginnings of the comedia.1 On the other hand, any dis-
cussion of the representations of the religious drama in
the peninsula must necessarily revert to a much more re-
mote period.
The earliest definite notices of popular representations
in Spain, it may be observed here, all concern the celebra-
1In his Loa de la Comedia, Agustin de Rojas tells us that the comedia
had its beginning in the city of Granada, at the time when the Catholic
kings expelled the Moriscos from Spain (1492), and says that the comedia
was begun by Juan de la Enzina, "who was the first and of whom we have
three eclogues" (p. 120). And, again, he says that "the use of the comedia
began to be discovered" when Columbus discovered the New World (p.
121). He states that Enzina himself represented them to "the Almirante y
Duquessa de Castilla y de Infantado." But as Canete remarks: "Encina
estuvo muy lejos de ser representante, y mucho menos autor de Companias
cdmicaj en el sentido que posteriormente ha dado a este frase el tecnicismo
teatral. Poetas coetaneos de nuestro salmantino [Encina] como Pedro de
Vega, vendian ya sus cologuios pastoriles, que entonces se practicaban
mucho, a los representantes que andaban par el reino, que fueron los pri-
4 THE SPANISH STAGE
tion of the festival of Corpus Christi, which was first insti-
tuted by Urban IV. in 1264.1 Most of our information
concerning these festivals has been obtained from the
Archives of the larger Spanish cities, and that these
notices have been recorded is due to the fact that such
festal representations were given at the command and ex-
pense of the corporations of the various municipalities.
In this respect the Spanish Archives seem to be unusually
rich, and they throw much light on the character of these
early representations and on the manner in which they
were produced. It may not be without interest, therefore,
to cast a glance, though it be a very hasty one, at these
early religious representations, i.e., before the middle of
the sixteenth century.2
According to Sanchez- Arjona the Archives of Barcelona
contain accounts of the celebrations of the festival of
Corpus Christi covering the first two thirds of the fifteenth
century, i.e., down to 1462. This festival was first intro-
duced into Spain at Gerona by Berenger de Palaciolo, who
died in 13 14. It was celebrated with great solemnity in
Seville during the fifteenth century, the cathedral chapter
meros que salieron a recitar publicamente. Asi Io expresa Juan Lopez
Osorio, en una obra historica muy anterior a las de Rojas y Mendez, y su
dictamen es mas digno de credito en este punto." (Tealro completo de
Juan del Encina, Edicion de la Real Academia Espanola, ed. by Manuel
Cafiete, Madrid, 1893, p. xxxviii.) Of these actors, however, we have no
knowledge.
1That representations — secular as well as religious — must have taken
place in Spain at a period considerably antedating those mentioned in the
text, is evinced by the Siete Partidas of Alfonso X., which were probably
written between 1252 and 1257. Partida I, Tit. VI, Ley 34, is a very im-
portant document for the history of the early Spanish drama, to which
attention has frequently been called. From it Schack has drawn the
following conclusions: (1) That in the middle of the thirteenth century
religious as well as secular representations were well known in
Spain; (2) that they took place as well within as without the church;
(3) that they were represented not only by clerics, but also by laymen;
(4) that acting was followed as a profession (Erwerbszweig) ; (5) that
the plays were represented not only in pantomime, but were also spoken.
(Geschichte der dramatischen Literatur und Kunst in Spanien, Frankfurt
am Main, 1854, Vol. I, p. 114.)
2 For an account of the origin of the religious drama and of the autos
THE FESTIVAL OF CORPUS CHRISTI 5
defraying the expenses of the representations, which took
place on what was called la roca, which the cathedral books
(libros de fabrica) describe as a kind of platform (andas)
carried by twelve men and on which were those persons
who represented Maria, Jesus, Saints Dominick and Fran-
cis, and the four evangelists. "There were, besides, six
angels and eight prophets, who were playing (tanendo) ;
we do not know whether they were upon the roca, but
rather presume that they went on foot like the devils and
the angels who came forth and performed a sort of dance."
As early as 1454, or a hundred years before Lope de
Rueda, Sanchez-Arjona gives the names of two of these
performers, Beatriz and Diego Garcia, who were paid
twenty-five maravedis for dancing (que iban rillendo) . It
is very likely that the persons engaged for these early
representations were merely mountebanks and strolling
players ; in fact, in the same year forty maravedis were paid
by the corporation to "Juan Canario, a juglar, and his
companion, who appeared on the roca, besides ten mara-
vedis for coming to this city."
In Zaragoza, in 1414, on the car or float for the repre-
sentation which Don Enrique de Aragon (generally, but
wrongly, called the Marquis of Villena) had arranged to
celebrate the nuptials of the King, Don Fernando el Ho-
nes to, there was represented "a great castle with four
towers at the sides, and in the middle a higher one, with a
wheel in its center which gave motion to the whole device
(armazon), and showed successively the various alle-
gorical personages who graced it." * These castles seemed
sacramentales, see, in addition to the first volume of Schack, Geschichte der
dramatischen Literatur und Kunst in Spanien, the introduction by Eduardo
Gonzalez Pedroso to Vol. 58 of the Biblioteca de Autores Espanoles, and
Sanchez-Arjona, Anales del Teatro en Sevilla, Seville, 1898. See also
Wolf, Studien zur Geschichte der spanischen und portugiesischen National-
literatur, Berlin, 1859, pp. 556 ff.
'For an account of this piece (written in Limousin, not in Castilian),
which is ascribed to the Marquis of Villena, see Schack, Nachtrage, p. z,
and Wolf, Studien, p. 583 and note.
6 THE SPANISH STAGE
to have figured largely in these representations, for in
1454 "one Pedro Gonzalez, the friend who makes castles,"
was paid for erecting one on the roca, which must have
been a similar device to the one used by the Marquis of
Villena. Despite the exalted purpose with which these fes-
tivals were celebrated, the earthly needs of the performers
were not overlooked, as is evinced by an entry in the books
of the cathedral of Seville, in which the expenses of the
festival were kept. Here we find, among other items, one
"for wine for the angels and prophets." ( Sanchez- Arjona,
p. 4.) Again, in 1462, in addition to the item "gloves for
Mary," nine maravedis were paid "for another pair of
gloves, together with a wound for St. Francis." In 1497,
besides an increased number of personages on the roca,
other innovations were made. Two reals were paid to
each of six trumpeters and to a drummer and a tambourine-
player. "A gilded sun was provided at a cost of ten reals,
besides twelve diadems for the apostles ; keys for St. Peter,
which cost two reals ; eighteen little gilded lamps and two
hundred and thirty roses gilded and plated with leaves of
tin {lata) to adorn the sky in which is God the Father,
the gilding at two maravedis and for the plating one
maravedl." In that year "Mary wore a gilded star, God
the Father a tiara, Jesus Christ a diadem, and St. Domi-
nick a lily." It is very likely, as Sanchez-Arjona remarks,
that during the fifteenth century these festivals were chiefly
in charge of the various guilds, and he adds that, to judge
by the titles of these autos and the notices of them which
have been preserved, these representations with which the
festival of Corpus Christi was then celebrated "had no
direct relation to the sublime mystery which is commemo-
rated on that solemn day, and down to the middle of
the sixteenth century we find no auto which unites all the
distinctive characteristics of the autos sacramentalcs." He
refers here to the Farsa llamada Danza de la Muerte,
written by Pedraza, a native of Segovia, and cloth-shearer
AUTOS REPRESENTED BY GUILDS 7
(tundidor) by trade, and first printed in 1551.1 It was
doubtless represented in that city by the guild of tundi-
dores, since at that time the cars for representation were
in charge of the guilds and officers of the city, who took
part in the processions, preceded by a standard, bearing the
ensigns of the respective guilds. This was also the case
in Seville, where, besides the care of the cars, the well-
cleaners had charge of the decoration of the "tarasca," the
ganapanes looked after the "giants," and an enormous St.
Christopher was furnished by the glovers. {Ibid., p. 8.)
In Seville these autos were represented at Corpus by the
various guilds and at their expense until 1554, when they
were undertaken by the city, which also assumed all the
charges of the representations.2 At this time, says
1 The earliest auto bearing a definite date, that has survived, is Gil Vi-
cente's Auto de San Martinho, written and represented in 1504; "la rnas
antigua, entre quantas poseen fecha autentica, de dramas castellanos,
hechos para solemnizar la fiesta del Sanct. Sacramento." (Gonzalez
Pedroso, in Bibl. de Autores Espanoles, Vol. 58, p. xvii.) That there is,
however, much uncertainty concerning the chronology of Vicente's works,
has been shown by Stiefel, who makes it apparent that the Auto da Fama,
for instance, was written after 1519 and perhaps not before 1525, though
the date 1510 is assigned to it. (Archiv fiir das Studium der neueren
Sprachen (1907), p. 192.) It should be added that, while the Auto de San
Martinho was represented at Corpus Christi, it had nothing to do with the
glorification of the doctrine of transubstantiation ; and is not, therefore, an
auto sacramental. Fitzmaurice-Kelly says: "Hernan Lopez de Yanguas
est peut-etre le premier qui ait ecrit un veritable auto dans sa Farsa sacra-
mental en coplas (1520)." (Litterature espagnole, Paris, 1904, p. 174.)
The Farsa of Pedraza is republished by Pedroso, loc. cit., p. 41. On
Lopez de Yanguas, see Canete, Teatro espahol del Slglo XVI, Madrid,
1885, pp. 61 ff.
* The manuscript collection of Autos, Farsas, etc., of the Biblioteca Na-
cional, to which reference is made by writers upon this subject, has been
published by Rouanet, under the title Coleccion de Autos, Farsas y Collo-
quies del Sigh XVI, Madrid, 1901, in four volumes. It consists of ninety-six
pieces. The editor says : "Les diverses compositions du recueil pourraient se
diviser en trois classes: i° sujets empruntes a la Bible (Ancien et Nouveau
Testament) ; 20 sujets pris dans la legende ou la vie des saints. Les uns et les
autres portent le nom d'autos. 30 Sujets allegoriques, designes sous le nom
de farsas. II est a noter ici que, vers la fin du XVIe ou le commencement
du XVIIe siecle, le mot auto n'etait l'equivalent ni d'auto sacramental, ni
d'auto al nacimiento, et ne s'appliquait pas exclusivement aux representa-
tions en l'honneur de l'Eucharistie ou de la Nativite, mais a toute oeuvre
dramatique en un act. Si on voulait chercher dans le Codice de Madrid le
8 THE SPANISH STAGE
Sanchez-Arjona, it was the custom to place the Holy Sac-
rament in the middle of the principal chapel in the church,
and the town council and cathedral chapter having occu-
pied the stage or platform (tablado), placed between the
two choirs, the representation of the auto took place, after
which divine service was held. The mass and sermon be-
ing concluded, the dances were presented in the same place
in which the auto had been given, and there they remained
dancing before the Holy Sacrament until evening, when
the procession, of which they formed a part, emerged from
the church. {Ibid., p. 9.) Meanwhile the deputies ap-
pointed by the city to take charge of the festival assigned
the places where the representations were to take place,
and once designated, fixed the arms of the city over
them, so that, the representations within the cathedral and
before the chapters being concluded, the players might go
in their "cars" to perform the autos in all the places indi-
prototype des autos sacramentales tels qu'on les concut plus tard, c'est
parmi les farsas qu'on le trouverait. Les autos, au contraire, y apparais-
sent comme une forme encore rudimentaire des comedias dimnas." {Ibid.,
p. x.) Forty years before, Wolf, in speaking of this same collection, had
said that from their nature these pieces must have been represented outside
the church, and that in the farsas sacramentales the special, allegor-
ical form of the auto sacramental is already found developed, while the
pieces which in this collection are called autos mostly treat of the lives of
heroes of the Old and New Testaments, of saints, etc., and may be con-
sidered the forerunners of the so-called comedias divinas. "More-
over," he says, "it may be confidently asserted that the ancient religious
drama in Spain was divided, as in France and England, into two prin-
cipal classes: historical representations of sacred history (Mysteries or
Miracle-plays) and moral-allegorical pieces (Moralities). From the
former the comedias divinas were afterward developed, and from the latter
the autos (in the signification which was afterward exclusively con-
fined to this name)." (Studien zur Geschichte der spanischen und
portugiesischen Nationalliteratur, Berlin, 1859, p. 602, quoting Schack,
Vol. I, p. 243.) A piece similar to those contained in the collection
edited by Rouanet, and which, moreover, bears a definite date, was
written by Sebastian de Horozco of Toledo, and is printed in his
Cancionero, Seville, 1874, p. 148. It is entitled "Representacion de la
Parabola de Sant Mateo a los veinte Capitulos de su sagrado Evangelio;
la qual se hizo y represento en Toledo en la Fiesta del Sanctissimo Sacra-
mento por la Santa Iglesia. Ano de 1548 afios." It also begins with an
"Argumento" or prefacio, as the author calls it.
LOPE DE RUEDA 9
cated by the arms of the city. (Ibid.) So the procession
moved from street to street and received the name, in
popular phrase, of the "Festival of the Cars" — La Fiesta
de los Carros.1 Toward the close of the sixteenth cen-
tury the auto received a new and powerful impulse
through Lope de Vega, seconded by other writers; an
impulse that was epoch-making in the annals of this
species of composition, which developed in regularity
and brilliancy, at the cost, perhaps, as Sr. Sanchez-
Arjona says, of its former tenderness and simplicity,
and putting an end to the autos viejos, works of tran-
sition between the farces of the fifteenth and early
sixteenth centuries and the eucharistic representations of
the seventeenth century, in which they constituted one of
the richest and most varied manifestations of the dramatic
muse.2
Throughout the seventeenth century the autos sacra-
mentales were represented publicly in the streets of Spain,3
the performances moving from place to place, as directed
by the authorities of the cities, under whose auspices and
at whose expense they were given. And it is in Benavente,
in 1554, that we first hear of Lope de Rueda, when he
represented an auto in that city. Lope de Rueda is the
earliest autor de comedias (head of a company of players)
in Spain of whom we have any knowledge. His is a
famous name in the annals of the Spanish theater, of which
he was one of the founders. Indeed, his great successor,
Lope de Vega, frequently alludes to his illustrious name-
sake as the first to bring the comedia, as it was afterward
known, upon the public stage. To Lope de Rueda the
name autor was rightly applied; he was an author as
well as actor and wrote the farces and comedies which
he and his little company performed in the public squares.
'Ticknor, History of Spanish Literature, Boston, 1888, Vol. II, pp. 291 ff.
2 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 8.
3 For the representation of autos in the theaters, see below, Chapter XIV.
io THE SPANISH STAGE
Born in Seville, probably in the second decade of the
sixteenth century, he at first followed the trade of a gold-
beater. The earliest documentary notice concerning him
is of the year 1554, when, as just stated, he represented
an auto at Benevente in honor of Philip the Second, on
his passage through that town on his way to England.1
On August 15, 1558, we find him in Segovia performing
una gustosa comedia at the dedication of the new cathe-
dral of that city.2 In 1559 his company represented
two autos at Seville, El Hijo prodigo and Navalcar-
melo,3 and the instrument dated April 29, 1559, is still
preserved in the Archives of Seville, in which Juan de
Coronado, the mayordomo of the rents and properties of
the city, is commanded to pay to Lope de Rueda, "residing
in this city, forty ducats, on account of seventy ducats,4
which he is to receive for two representations, to be given
on two cars (carros), with certain figures, on Corpus
Christi ; the one Navalcarmelo, the other El Hijo prodigo,
with all the costumes of silk and other things that may be
necessary," etc. Attached is the receipt of Lope de Rueda,
'The best account of Lope de Rueda and his works is to be found in
Cotarelo y Mori, Lope de Rueda y el Teatro Espanol de su Tiempo,
Madrid, 1901, and in the same writer's introduction to the Obras de Lope
de Rueda, published by the Spanish Academy, Madrid, 1908, 2 vols. See
also Cortes, Un Pleito de Lope de Rueda, Madrid, 1903, and on the sources
of Rueda's plays, the excellent article of Professor Arthur L. Stiefel, Lope
de Rueda und das Italienische Lustspiel, in the Zeitschrift fiir Romanische
Philologie, Vol. XV.
2 "A la tarde, celebradas solenes visperas en un teatro que estava
entre los coros. . . . Luego la compania de Lope de Rueda, famoso come-
diante de aquella edad, represento una gustosa comedia." (Diego de
Colmenares, Historia de Segovia, Madrid, 1640, Cap. XLI, p. 516.)
'This auto is still extant and has been published by Rouanet in the
Coleccion de Autos, Farsas y Coloquios del Sigh XVI, Vol. II, Madrid-
Barcelona, 1901. In the introduction to Vol. I (p. xii), M. Rouanet says:
"No. LIX, VAuto de Naval y Abigail est precisement celui que Lope de
Rueda composa en 1559 pour la Fete-Dieu de Seville."
' For some years after this seventy ducats seems to have been the usual
price for an auto. In May, 1580, seventy ducats each were paid for the
autos of that year by the chapter of Toledo, Alonso Rodriguez receiving
210 ducats for three autos and Melchor de Herrera 140 ducats for two
autos. (Perez Pastor, Bulletin Hispanique (1906), p. 78.)
MARIANA AND THE DUKE n
dated May 9, 1559, acknowledging the payment of forty
ducats, and signed by his own hand.1
The court having moved from Valladolid to Madrid,
we find Lope de Rueda in the latter city on September 24,
1 56 1, married to a Valencian woman. After a short stay
in Madrid, in which his company seems to have been very
unfortunate — for he was obliged to leave part of his theat-
rical wardrobe in pawn for a debt — he left for Valencia,
whence he returned to Seville, where, on July 18, 1564,
Juana Luisa, "daughter of Lope de Rueda and his wife
Rafaela Anxela," was baptized.2
A very curious document,3 which throws an interesting
light upon the early theatrical career of Lope de Rueda, is
a lawsuit brought by "Lope de Rueda and Mariana de
Rueda, his wife," on July 6, 1554, in Valladolid, against
Juan de la Cerda, the heir and successor of Don Gaston de
la Cerda, Duke of Medinaceli, for services rendered by
the wife to the latter. It appears that about the year
1546, two women, who earned their living by singing and
dancing, arrived from Aragon in the town of Cogolludo,
where Don Gaston was residing. The Duke was so pleased
with one of these singers that he admitted her to his ser-
vice. She was called Mariana, and we are told that she
fulfilled with extreme solicitude her duty of amusing the
Duke. She remained in his service six years, "dedicating
herself exclusively to furnishing him with recreation, sing-
ing and dancing in his presence whenever it suited his
caprice, and giving him always grande placer e contenta-
miento." Mariana seems to have been an excellent singer
and dancer, and, according to the testimony of one of the
witnesses, "es en extremo unica e sola en lo que hace." At
all events, she greatly pleased the old Duke, "who ad-
mitted her to his chamber, le daba de comer en su propio
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. n.
' Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, p. 38, note.
* See Cortes, Un Pleito de hope de Rueda, Madrid, 1903.
12 THE SPANISH STAGE
plato, and lavished gold and silver upon her, and in his
solicitude not to be separated from her, he used to take ,
her with him on his hunting parties." In order the better
to accompany the Duke, "now on foot and now on horse,"
Mariana had her locks shorn and dressed in male attire.
While her position, in the circumstances, might be re-
garded as rather equivocal, it should be added that one of
the witnesses "affirmed under oath, and insisted upon it,
that Mariana tried to please the Duke and to serve him
in all that she could como muger honrada." It appears that
the old Duke died owing Mariana considerable money,
and sometime after her marriage to Lope de Rueda she
determined to sue for the amount due her. The testimony
at the trial shows that when suit was brought (1554) she
had been married to Lope de Rueda for about two years.
As Mariana entered the Duke's service in 1546 and re-
mained six years, she must have married Lope de Rueda
directly after she left the Duke. This lawsuit lasted from
July, 1554, until March, 1557, during which time Lope
de Rueda was living with his wife, Mariana, in Valladolid.
.The testimony of some of the witnesses in this case af-
fords a glimpse of Lope de Rueda's company at this time.
The first witness was Pedro de Montiel, "a silk-spinner
(hilador de sieda), being in this court [Valladolid] and
a member of the company of Lope de Rueda." Another
witness was Gaspar Diez, musico, who testified that
"whenever the said Lope de Rueda represents a comedy,
he calls him and pays him [the witness] well for playing
the biguela in the said comedy," etc. Francisco de la
Vega, musico e tanedor of Valladolid, and Alonso Centino,
danzante, also testified, the latter saying that he was not in
Rueda's company because he [the witness] was married.
It appears, therefore, that Lope de Rueda was twice
married, first in 1552 to Mariana, a strolling singer and
dancer, and sometime in 1 563 or earlier to Rafaela Anxela.
Two years before this, in 1561, he is said to have repre-
TORRES NAHARRO 13
sented the autos at Corpus in Toledo, and on October 4
and November 28, 1561, he received one hundred reals
each for two comedias acted at the instance of the Queen,
Dona Isabel de la Paz.1 He died at Cordoba shortly
after March 21, 1565, the date of his testament.2
To Bartoleme de Torres Naharro and Lope de Rueda
belongs the singular honor of having been the "first in-
ventors" of the comedia in Spain ; Torres Naharro was the
first Spaniard to write comedias in the manner in which
they were afterward taken up and brought to the highest
development of artistic form by Lope de Vega.3 His
comedias are in verse, while Rueda's are in prose. Na-
harro has been strangely overlooked by those early Spanish
writers who touch upon the drama. Juan de la Cueva
does not mention him, nor does Agustin de Rojas. Cer-
vantes notes him briefly in the "Canto de Caliope" in his
Galatea, as does Lope de Vega in the dedication of his
comedia Virtud, Pobreza y Muger, in 1624, where he
says: "In Spain the rules of art are disregarded; not
through ignorance — for the first inventors [of the comedia
in Spain], Rueda and Naharro, who have scarcely been
dead eighty years, observed them — but through following
1 Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, p. 37, note.
'Ibid., p. 39.
s The most distinguished of living critics of the Spanish drama, Sr.
Menendez y Pelayo, says this of our author: "Bartolome de Torres Na-
harro, inferior & otros contemporaneos suyos en dotes poeticas, habia nacido
hombre de teatro, y en esta parte les aventaja a todos. Comparense sus
obras con cuanto inmediatamente las precedio en nuestra escena: con las
eglogas, farsas y representaciones de Juan del Enzina (sin excluir las ulti-
mas y mas complicadas) ; con las de Lucas Fernandez, Francisco de Ma-
drid, Diego de Avila y Martin de Herrera; y aun con todo lo que Gil
Vicente compuso antes de la Comedia del Viudo, que es de 1514, acaso
influida ya por los ensayos de nuestro autor; y nos parecera que entramos
en un mundo nuevo, y que fue un paso de gigante el que Torres Naharro
dio en el camino de la buena comedia" (p. lxxxviii). Again: "Complied
ingeniosamente la trama, en tres por lo menos de sus piezas; atendio por
primera vez al estudio de las costumbres, y si no llego a la comedia de
caracter, fue por lo menos el fundador de la comedia de intriga"
(p. xciii). (Introduction to the Propaladia of Torres Naharro, Vol. II,
Madrid, 1900.)
i4 THE SPANISH STAGE
the bad style introduced by those who succeeded them."
Juan de Timoneda, as Schack has observed, is the earliest
Spanish writer to couple the names of Torres Naharro and
Lope de Rueda as the founders of the Spanish drama, call-
ing attention to the fact that the works of Torres Naharro
are in verse, while the comedies of Lope de Rueda are in
prose.1
Lope de Rueda's historic importance lies in his in-
vention of the pas'o — a dramatic interlude turning on
some simple episode: a quarrel between Torubio and
his wife Agueda concerning the price of olives not yet
planted, an invitation to dinner from the penniless licen-
tiate Xaquima, etc. Mr. Fitzmaurice-Kelly, in his brief but
admirable summary of Rueda's achievement, says : "Rueda
had clearly read the Celestina to his profit ; and his prose,
with its archaic savor, is of great purity and power. . . .
Considerable as were Rueda's positive qualities of gay
wit and inventive resource, his highest merit lies in this,
that he laid the foundation stone of the actual Spanish
theater, and that his dramatic system became a capital
factor in his people's intellectual history."2 And Sr.
Menendez y Pelayo says : "The positive and eminent merit
of Lope de Rueda is not in his dramatic conception, nearly
always foreign, but in the art of the dialogue, which is a
treasure of popular diction, picturesque and seasoned as
well in his pasos and coloquios sueltos as in those which can
be culled from his comedias. This episodical part is really
the very essence of them. This is what Cervantes admired
'The works of Lope de Rueda, which Timoneda began to publish at
Valencia in 1567, are now accessible in the two volumes edited by the
Marques de la Fuensanta del Valle in the Coleccion de Libros Espaholes
raros 6 curiosos, Madrid, 1895-96, and in the new edition of the Spanish
Academy, just issued in two volumes (Madrid, 1908), edited by Emilio
Cotarelo. For the above allusion, see the edition of 1895, Vol. I, p.
153. The Propaladia of Torres Naharro has also been reprinted, with an
excellent introductory essay by Menendez y Pelayo, in two volumes, in the
Libros de Aniaho, Madrid, 1880 and 1900; the second volume containing
the introductory essay.
'History of Spanish Literature, New York, 1898, p. 169.
THE PROPALADIA 15
and in part imitated not only in his entremeses but also in
the picturesque portion of his novels."1
Of Lope de Rueda, Rojas says :
"Digo que Lope de Rueda,
Gracioso representante,
Y en su tiempo gran poeta,
Empecp a poner la farsa
En buen uso y orden buena,
Porque la repartio en actos,
Haziendo introito en ella
Que agora llamamos loa," etc.
{Viage entretenido (ed. 1 603), p. 123.)
As Pellicer had already observed,2 Rojas does not seem
to have been acquainted with the Propaladia of Torres
Naharro, first published at Naples in 15 17, since he
ascribes the introduction of the introito or argumento to
Rueda, though it had been used by Naharro nearly half
a century before. Nor is Rojas correct in saying that
Rueda divided his farsas into acts. The only division of
his plays is into scenes. Caiiete calls Naharro "padre y
fundador de la comedia espafiola."3
Of the plays of Naharro numerous editions appeared
after the first one at Naples: at Seville in 1520, 1526,
1533, and 1545; one at Toledo in 1535, and one at Ant-
werp without date, but probably about 1550. According
to Menendez y Pelayo,4 the Propaladia was first placed
upon the Index Expurgatorius in 1559, and an edicion
castigada was issued at Madrid in 1573, one at Antwerp
1 Introduction to his edition of the Comedias de Alonso de la Vega, Dres-
den, 1905, p. xiv. He says further: "Lope de Rueda, con verdadero instinto
de hombre de teatro y de observador realista transporto a las tablas el
tipo de la prosa de la Celestina, pero aligerandole mucho de su opulenta
frondosidad, haciendole mas rapido e incisivo, con toda la diferencia que
va del libro a la escena."
* Tratado historico sobre el Origen y Progr'esos de la Comedia y del
Histrionismo en Espana, Madrid, 1804, Vol. I, p. 22.
'El Teatro espanol del Sigh XVI, p. 112.
* Propaladia, Madrid, 1900, Vol. II, p. Ixxv.
16 THE SPANISH STAGE
in the same year, and again at Madrid in 1590, though,
according to the same distinguished critic, other editions,
unexpurgated, were published between 1559 and 1573.
This list of editions evinces considerable vogue for the
Propaladia, though its influence on the Spanish drama at
this period does not seem to have been proportionate.
Still, those who are most competent to give an opinion in
the matter declare that Naharro's influence was wide and
immediate.1
However this may be, it was in the plays of Xaharro
and Rueda that Lope de Vega, with the eye of genius,
saw the coming comedia, and in them it had its beginnings,
as he himself tells us. Hence the career of Lope de Rueda,
who was both actor and playwright, is of especial interest
to us. Cervantes, born in 1547, is the most important
witness we have among Spanish poets concerning Lope de
Rueda. He saw him in the flesh. We can imagine Cer-
vantes as a boy of ten or twelve standing in the square of
Valladolid gazing with unfeigned delight at the somewhat
crude and boisterous farces enacted, with due accompani-
ment of horse-play, doubtless, by Lope de Rueda and his
little company of strolling players.2 They made an endur-
1 Propaladia, Vol. II, pp. cxlv et seq.; Schack, GescUthte der dramati-
scAi". Literatur und Kuiui in Spanien, Frankfort am Main, 1854, Vol. I,
pp. 194. ft.; Cafiete, El Teatro espahol del Siglo XVI, Madrid, 1885, p. 206;
Ticknor, History of Spanish Literature, Boston, 1888, Vol. I, p. 209; VoL II,
p. 54. As long ago as 17+9 Bias Xasarre said of our author: "Pero Bartolome
de Torres Naharro, que florecio por el mismo tiempo debaxo del Pontificado
de Leon X, debe ser tenido por el primero que dio forma a las Comedias vnl-
gares; las suyas se representaron en Roma," etc (Comedias j Entremeses
de Miguel de Cervantes, Madrid, ^49. \ A list of pieces which were printed
in the first half of the sixteenth century, containing several not men-
tioned by any writer on the Spanish drama, has been published by Emilia
Cotarelo y Mori, Catdlogo de Obras dramaticas impresas pero no conocidas
hasta el presenie, Madrid, 1902. See also Anales de la Literature espanola,
ed. Bonilla y San Martin, Madrid, 1904, p. 236. A long list of srxreenth-
century pieces had been given many years ago by Gayangos in his Spanish
translation of Ticknor, Vol. II, pp. 523-550. See also Canete, El Teatro
espahol del Siglo XVI, pp. 55 ff.
3 Lope de Rueda evidently gave a performance whenever an audience
could be collected, both in the morning and afternoon, for at the close of
MIGUEL DE CERVANTES 17
ing impression on his boyish mind. From that time forth
he was in the thrall of the stage, and never afterward,
through all his long and checkered career, even when in
his generous, valiant optimism he must have acknowledged
that his plays were failures, was he able to shake off en-
tirely the spell of the theater. After the lapse of more
than half a century, in the prologue to the volume of his
Comedias ( 1 6 1 5 ) , the old hero of Lepanto, whose name
was now the greatest in all the literature of Spain, falls
into one of his delightfully reminiscent moods and gives
us an animated description of the primitive performances
of Lope de Rueda's little band of strollers. The account
is now much worn by constant usage, but Cervantes is the
only eye-witness who has left anything on paper, and his
narrative must serve once more here.
In the time of this celebrated Spaniard [Lope de Rueda] all the
properties of a theatrical manager were contained in a sack (costal),
and consisted of four white pelices trimmed with gilded leather,
and four beards and wigs, with four staffs, more or less. The plays
were colloquies or eclogues between two or three shepherds and a
shepherdess. They were set off by two or three entremeses, either
that of the "Negress," the "Ruffian," the "Fool," or the "Bis-
cayan," for these four characters and many others the said Lope
acted with the greatest skill and propriety that one can imagine.
At that time there were no tramoyas (theatrical machinery) nor
challenges of Moors or Christians either afoot or on horse. There
were no figures which arose or seemed to arise from the center of
the earth through the hollow of the stage, which at that time con-
sisted of four benches arranged in a square, with four or five boards
upon them, raised about four spans from the ground, nor did clouds
with angels or souls descend from the skies. The furnishings
(adorno) of the stage were an old woolen blanket drawn by two
cords from one side to the other, which formed what is called a
dressing-room (vestuario) , behind which were the musicians, sing-
his Eufemia he invites his audience "only to go and eat their dinners and
to return to the square, if they wish to see a traitor beheaded, a loyal man
freed," etc. (Obras de Lope de Rueda, Madrid, 1896, Vol. I, p. 88.)
1 8 THE SPANISH STAGE
ing some old ballad without the accompaniment of a guitar. . - •
Lope de Rueda was succeeded by Nabarro, a native of Toledo,1
famous as an impersonator of the cowardly ruffian; he improved
somewhat the setting of the comedia (levanto algun tanto mas el
adorno de las Comedias), and instead of a bag for the costumes
used chests and trunks. He brought the musicians from behind the
curtain, where they formerly sang, out upon the stage, removed
the beards of the players, for up to that time no actor appeared upon
the stage without a false beard, . . . except those who represented
old men or other characters which required a facial disguise. He
invented stage machinery (tramoyas) , thunder and lightning, chal-
lenges and battles, but these never reached the excellence which we
see now, etc.
Continuing, Cervantes mentions his own plays, Los
Tratos de Argel, La Destruycion de Numancia, and La
Batalla Naual, which were then seen in the theaters of
Madrid, and speaks of the innovations introduced by him,
such as reducing the comedias from five acts to three;
representing for the first time upon the boards the "imag-
inations and hidden thoughts of the soul and moral abstrac-
tions," etc.
All this is very interesting, but the accuracy of Cer-
vantes's statements has been questioned because they
apparently do not agree with facts that are known from
other sources.2 There can be no doubt that Cervantes is
mistaken when he says that he first reduced the comedia
from five acts to three. This had been done by Francisco
1 Of this autor, Pedro Nabarro, one play survives, La Marquesa Saluzia,
llamada Griselda, a drama in four acts in verse. From a unique copy,
dated 1603, Dr. C. B. Bourland has reprinted it in the Revue Hispanique
(1905)-
2 Juan Rufo, another eye-witness of the performances of Rueda, cor-
roborates the testimony of Cervantes as regards the rudeness of the stage at
that time. In his Seiscientas Apotegmas, y otras obras en verso (Toledo,
1596), fol. 266, v., he says:
"Quien vio, apenas ha treinta anos,
de las farsas la pobreza,
de su estilo la rudeza,
y sus mas que humildes panos."
PRAGMATIC A OF CARLOS V. 19
de Avendaiio as early as 1553. Besides, Schack cites a
rescript promulgated by Charles V. in 1534 against ex-
travagance in dress, "which is to extend likewise to players
— men and women — musicians and other persons who take
part in comedias by singing and playing." 1 Schack observes
that this decree not only shows that the representation of
comedias in Spain had reached a high degree of refinement
at that early date, but that women also appeared upon the
stage at that time, while later, under Philip the Second,
women's roles were played by boys.2
Another curious notice referring to the same period is
found in the Ingeniosa Comparacion entre lo antiguo y lo
presente, by the Bachiller Villalon, which first appeared in
1539. The author says that never since the creation of
the world had "the comedias which we call farsas been
represented with such subtlety and ingenuity as nowadays."
He speaks of six men who are regularly in the pay
(asalariados) of the church of Toledo, of whom the two
principal ones, named Correa, are such remarkable actors
that he says he would spend a large sum of money or go
begging in order to see them, "though they should be many
miles from here."3
It cost but a copper to see the show:
"Una 6 dos comedias solas,
como camisas de pobre,
la entrada a tarja de cobre,
y el teatro casi a solas."
(Quoted by Wolf, Studien, p. 606.)
1 Pragmatica de Carlos V. y Dona Juana, su madre, hecha en Toledo en
el afio de 1534 (Lib. VII, Ley 1, Tit. 12 de la Nueva Recopilacion) : "Item
mandamos que lo que cerca de los trages esta prohibido y mandado por las
Ieyes de este titulo, se entienda asi mismo con los comediantes, hombres y
mugeres, musicos y las demas personas que assisten en las comedias para
cantar y taner, las quales incurren en las mismas penas que cerca desto
estan impuestas. ' ' (Geschichte der dramatlschen Lit. u. Kunst in Spanien,
Vol. I, p. 198, note.)
* See below, Chapter VI.
* "Pues en las representations de comedias que llamamos farsas, nunca
desde la creation del mundo se representaron con tanta agudeza e industria
como agora, porque viven seys hombres asalariados por la Iglesia de
2o THE SPANISH STAGE
However, neither the rescript of Charles V. in i534> nor
the account given by Villalon in 1539, seem to me to in-
validate in the slightest degree the narrative of Cervantes.
The decree of 1534 relates, almost certainly, to the elab-
orate representations that were given at public and church
festivals, indeed Villalon states explicitly that the players
whom he had seen were regularly in the pay of the church
of Toledo. So far as we know there were no fixed corrales
or theaters in Spain at this early period nor for many
years thereafter. We may be quite sure that the little
company of Lope de Rueda (he died in 1565) never
acted upon a permanent stage. Juan Rufo, quoted above,
alludes to the "cruel inn-yard" and its furnace-heat in
summer, while the memory of the icy winter blasts still
makes him shiver.1 Surely strolling players, acting even
a quarter of a century before this, were not at all likely
to be attired in such magnificent costumes as to bring
them under the ban of the "Pragmatica" of Charles V.
Hence the representations against which the rescript of
1534 was directed were undoubtedly the religious dramas
that were acted in the public squares or within the
churches, or perhaps in the open space without the church.
Moreover, all the evidence furnished by the comedia itself
tends to corroborate and validate the account given by
Cervantes. It may be said with a great degree of proba-
bility that the stage accessories in the public theaters of
Toledo, de los quales son capitanes dos que se llaman los Correas, que en
la representation contrahazen todos los descuydos y avisos de los hombres,
como si Naturaleza, nuestra universal madre, los representasse alii. Estoy
tan admirado de los ver, que si alguno me pudiera pintar con palabras lo
mucho que ellos en este caso son, gastara yo grandes summas de dineros
6 mendicando fuera por los ver, aunque estuvieran mil leguas de aqui.
(Page 180 of the reprint by the Sociedad de Bibliofilos Espanoles, 1898,
and quoted by Menendez y Pelayo in his introduction to the Propaladia of
Torres Naharro, Vol. II, p. cl, Madrid, 1900.) See also Canete, Teatro
espaiiol, p. 95, note.
1"Porque era el patio cruel,
fragua ardiente en el estio,
de invierno un elado rio,
que aun agora tiemblan del."
ITALIAN COMEDIES IN SPAIN 21
Spain down to almost the beginning of the seventeenth cen-
tury were of a very simple and elementary kind. Two or
three musicians had been substituted for the ballad singers,
some simple devices to indicate locality and the introduction
of crude stage machinery. Indeed, in spite of the improve-
ments introduced upon the stage by Cervantes himself and
to which he alludes with evident pride in the Prologue
above quoted, we need go no further than his own plays to
show the primitive character of the stage machinery of his
day. To represent thunder and lightning, we read the
following stage direction in his Numancia: "Under the
stage they make -a noise with a barrel full of stones and
discharge a rocket." x
That representations were given in Spain, at this early
period, in which there was, in all probability, much display
of costume, there is other evidence to prove. The come-
dias of Torres Naharro, as we have seen, were published
as early as 15 17, and Italian comedies were not impossibly
known in Spain at this time or not long thereafter. As
we shall see (below, p. 29), one Muzio, with his company
of Italian players, had taken part in the Corpus festival
at Seville in 1538. The earliest known account of the
performance of an Italian comedy in Spain is dated 1548,
when one of Ariosto's comedies was represented at Valla-
dolid on the occasion of the marriage of the Infanta Dona
Maria, daughter of Charles V., to Maximilian, Prince of
Hungary. It was performed "with such apparatus and
scenery as are used at Rome in the representation of come-
dies," and was "a royal and sumptuous affair."2 Creize-
nach, commenting on this, says: "This is also the first
known instance in Spain of the use of the scenic arrange-
1 "Hagase ruido debaxo del tablado con un barril Heno de piedras, y
disparese un cohete volador." (Numancia, Act II, Scene II, p. 195, ed. of
1784O
'Pellicer, Vol. I, p. 31. The latter's authority, as Stiefel (Zeitschrift fiir
Roman. Phil., XV, p. 319) remarks, is Caluete de Estrella, Felicissimo
Viaje del Principe Phelippe . . . , Anvers, 1552, fol. 2b.
22 THE SPANISH STAGE
ments of the Renaissance, the sight of which was evidently
a matter of the first importance to the narrator, for he
does not even mention the title of Ariosto's comedy.
Towards the close of the same year, Philip II., the suc-
cessor of Charles, saw a comedy performed at Milan, with
the greatest refinement and luxury of scenic decoration,
and after he had ascended the throne (1556), according
to a later account, Antonio Vignali of Siena, a member of
the Academ'ia degli Intronati, is said to have produced
Italian comedies at his court. Still, after this time we hear
of no great lords or rich corporations in Spain instituting
such elaborate productions. These were naturally beyond
the reach of the professional actor, but the latter had
found, even as Torres Naharro before him, many a useful
hint in the Italian comedy." 1 Furthermore, we read that
in 1 56 1, on the occasion of the marriage of Guglielmo,
Duke of Mantua, to Eleonora of Austria, the celebrated
"scultore del re di Spagna," Leon Leoni of Arezzo, was
sent to Mantua "a inventare e porre in ordine qualche
bellissimo apparato ed invenzione." 2
These representations, with their wealth of costume and
decorations, were Italian comedies, and were performed
privately by Italian players, before the King or his great
nobles. They had nothing to do with plays in the market-
places, for theaters, so far as we have any information,
were then unknown in Spain. But during the great
church festivals or on other solemn occasions, here,
1 Geschichte des neueren Dramas, Vol. Ill, p. 167. See also ibid., Vol. II,
p. 297. Stiefel (/. c), and after him Creizenach, quotes Scipio Bargagli,
Commedie degli Accademici Intronati, Vol. II, p. 494, as follows: ' ' Arsiccio
intronato (i.e. Vignali), con onore stato conosciuto infino da 11a remotissima
Spagna, mentre in buonissirao grado vi servi Filippo il Secondo la regnante,
a diletto di cui fece alia guisa Italiana, ivi non prima conosciuta, rappre-
sentare, dal regal tesoro illustrate, piu e chiarissime commedie, dalla ricca
e piacevolissima vena del suo f elice e tanto universale ingenio scaturite. ' '
According to this, as Creizenach observes, these representations must have
taken place between 1556 and the time of Vignali's death (1559), while
"regnante" Philip might be taken as early as 1543.
' D 'Ancona, Origin! del Teatro Italiano, Vol. II, p. 416, note.
FESTAL REPRESENTATIONS 23
doubtless, as in religious or festal representations in
other countries, the costumes were often very elaborate
and costly. Schack mentions such a representation at
Valladolid, on June 5, 1527, at the christening of the
Infanta Philip. On this occasion the auto of the "Baptism
of St. John" was performed.1 The same author, quoting
Ortiz de Zufiiga, Anales de Sevilla, ed. of 1796, Vol. Ill,
pp. 339 ft., mentions a magnificent representation given in
Seville in the previous year (1526) in honor of the mar-
riage of Charles V with the Princess Isabel of Portugal,
and also the autos represented at Corpus in 1532, likewise
at Seville. Schack remarks that it is very probable that
allegorical figures appeared in these autos, though this
fact is not expressly stated.2
In 1563 there was represented at Plasencia, at the festi-
val of Corpus Christi, the tragedy of Nabuco Donosor,
with elaborate scenic display {con gran aparato), "and
when the children were thrown into the furnace, it seemed
so real that some persons believed that they were actually
thrown in."3 Seven years after this, in 1570, we find the
1 See the passage from Sandoval, Historia de Carlos V., Valladolid,
1604, Bk. XVI, quoted by Schack, Geschichte, Vol. I, p. 200. On page 403,
indeed, he mentions some elaborate religious representations which were
given a quarter of a century earlier, in 1501, in honor of the Palsgrave,
afterward Kurfurst Friedrich II. He quotes from Hubertus Thomas of
Luttich, Annates de inta et rebus gestis Friderici II., Francof., 1624 (Ger-
man: Spiegel des Humors groszer Potentaten, Schlensingen, 1628). Speak-
ing of the "pomphaf ten dramatischen Spielen" given in Barcelona, he says :
"Da war angestellt ein gemachter Himmel, dabei man auch die Ilolle sah,
sehr schrecklich und grausam. Dabei wurden viele Historien gespielt,
welche fast an die vier Stunden wahrten." "In Perpignan sahen wir
Stiicke aus dem alten und neuen Testament, Paradies und Holle waren da
gleich prachtig zu schauen, und vier Stunden lang gab man da ein
schauerliches Stuck zu sehen. Die Engel in weiszen Kleidern, die Teufel
in Gold und Silber stattlich angethan stritten mit einander ; unter gewalti-
gem Krachen und Platzen sprangen die Raketen und es gab einen Hollen-
larm, als bewegten sich Himmel und Erde. Zuletzt kam Judas und erhing
sich an einem Fenster, ward auch sobald mit einem Feuerstrahl getroffen
und verschwand, dasz ihn Niemand mehr sahe."
2 Ibid., pp. 202, 203, and p. 205 for a list of early autos.
" Sanchez- Arjona, Anales, p. 16. See also the account of the elaborate
representation in 1578, in the public square of Plasencia, of El Naufragio
24 THE SPANISH STAGE
students of the college of San Hermenegildo representing
a tragedy entitled San Hermenegildo, in which there were
thirty-four characters, besides soldiers, pages, etc. While
this was a festival performance given under the direction
of the Fathers of the Company of Jesus, and not a repre-
sentation in a public theater, we have here one of the
earliest descriptions of stage scenery, and hence it is of
interest.
The stage was about five feet (un estado) in height and thirty-
nine feet square. On the front was a large door of fine architec-
ture, representing the city of Seville, on the frieze of which was a
shield with the letters S. P. Q. H. At the two sides of this door
ran a handsome canvas of a wall with its battlements, forth from
which, projecting a distance of three feet, arose towers somewhat
higher, of which the tower on the left served as the prison of San
Hermenegildo, while the one on the right was the castle for the
entertainments. On the sides of these two towers sufficient room
remained for the exit of those personages who were represented as
belonging outside of Seville, such as the King Leovigildo and
others, for through the middle gate only those entered and de-
parted who were supposed to be from Seville, like San Hermene-
gildo,1 etc.
Juan de Malara, the reputed author of this tragedy,
was, as is well known, an imitator of the ancient comic
poets, as opposed to the popular style of Lope de Rueda.
But it were useless to cite other religious or festal repre-
sentations. We have already passed beyond the period
of Lope de Rueda, and our chief reason for citing such
spectacles is (as this is not a history of the drama)
to show that, while they were not uncommon during the
de Jonas prof eta, in Canete, El Teatro Espanol del Siglo XVI, p. 139, and
of the Representation of Francisco de las Cuebas in Aleala in 1568. {Ibid.,
p. 323.) This shows, as Sr. Canete says, that ' ' el aparato escenico de los
dramas religiosos era en toda Espana lujosisimo durante el siglo xvi." A
copy of this Representation of Cuebas is before me, made by my col-
league, Dr. Crawford, who purposes publishing it shortly.
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 41.
A TRUSTWORTHY WITNESS 25
time of Lope de Rueda and even long before, they
cannot serve in support of the statements of some writers
that during this period the costumes and accessories
of the popular theater in Spain were of an elaborate and
sumptuous character. For such spectacles as we have
mentioned had nothing to do with the performances of
strolling players in the market-places, and hence a "prag-
matica" of 1534 could not have had them in view. We
are therefore safe in accepting the account of Cervantes
in regard to Lope de Rueda's performances as essentially
true.
CHAPTER II
The corrales of Madrid. The Corral de la Pacheca. The Corral
de Burguillos. The Corral de Puente. The foundation of the
two famous theaters : The Corral de la Cruz and the Corral del
Principe.
Madrid became the capital of Spain in 1560. Strolling
players had certainly appeared there long before this date,
but with the rapid growth of the city in wealth and popula-
tion, which naturally ensued when it became the official
center of the kingdom, it was necessary to find some fixed
place where these companies of players could perform.
The establishment of permanent theaters in Madrid was,
at the outset, connected with an event that seemed to have
but a" remote relation to public amusements.1 In 1565 a
number of charitable citizens of Madrid founded a fra-
ternity called the Cofradia de la Sagrada Pasion, the
primary object of which was merely to feed and clothe the
poor ; but, under the auspices of the King and the Council
of Castile, their field was soon widened, and a hospital for
poor women suffering from fever, "because there was no
other hospital for this purpose in the capital," was founded
in the calle de Toledo. In order to increase the funds of
the hospital the President of Castile, Cardinal Espinosa,
and the Councilors granted to the Cofradia the privilege
1 Schack, Geschichte der dramatischen Literatur und Kunst in Spanien,
Vol. I, p. 264, remarks that such a connection between public amusements
and religious or charitable foundations seemed natural enough to the
Spanish mind ; that it seemed equally natural to the English mind, we shall
see further on. The theater being supported by the public, it does not
appear so very strange, after all, that it should contribute to the public
charities.
26
THE COFRADIAS 27
of providing a place for the representation of all comedias
given in Madrid, and of appropriating to their pious
purposes the funds thus obtained.1 Two years after this,
in 1567, another fraternity was founded called the Cofra-
dia de Nuestra Senora de la Soledad, with charitable aims
of greater scope than those of the older fraternity. The
Cofradia de la Soledad bought a house near the Puerta del
Sol and fitted it up as a hospital. The places designated
for theatrical representations by the Cofradia de la Pasion
were three : a square or corral in the Calle del Sol ; another
belonging to Isabel Pacheco, in the Calle del Principe,2 and
a third in the same street — a corral leased from one Bur-
guillos — which afterward passed into the control of the
Cofradia de la Soledad. For in 1574 the latter brother-
hood also petitioned for the right to furnish a place for
the representation of comedias in order to maintain its
hospital,3 and the matter ended in a compromise with the
1 If now we cast a glance at theatrical affairs .in London, we find that in
March, 1573-4, the Lord Chamberlain (Earl of Essex) requested that one
Mr. Holmes might appoint places for plays and interludes within the city.
"The Mayor and aldermen replied that it would hurt their liberties so to
do, and that it was unfitting for any private person to hold such an office.
They had had preferable offers of a similar nature, for the relief of the
poor in the hospitals; they would accept these, if any." (Fleay, Chronicle
History of the London Stage, 1559-1642, London, 1890, p. 45.) And an
Act of the Common Council of London provided that all plays performed in
the city should first be licensed . . . and that of the money taken there
should be applied to the relief of the sick poor such sums as shall be agreed
on. (Ibid., p. 46.) Again, on October 8, 1594, Lord Hunsdon wrote to
the Lord Mayor asking permission for his players to play at the Cross-Keys,
"as they have been accustomed [i.e., before 1592]. They will play from
2 P. M. to 4, instead of beginning at 4 or 5, . . . and be contributory to the
parish poor." (Halliwell-Phillipps, Illustrations, p. 31. See also Collier,
Annals of the Stage, Vol. I, p. 216, and Henslotue's Diary, ed. W. W.
Greg, Vol. II, p. 77.)
2 There is a notice of a performance here in 1568: "En miercoles a 5 de
Mayo de 1568 afios entro a representar Velazquez en el Corral desta casa'.
ha de dar seis reales cada dia de los que representare. ' ' (Pellicer, Tratado
historico, Vol. I, p. 48. El Corral de la Pacheca, by Ricardo Sepulveda,
Madrid, 1888.)
3 Among the reasons on which they based their petition were that "come-
dians were people coming and going to the court [Madrid], and as they
were not to remain therein longer than eight or ten days, they performed
freely wherever they listed, and making use of this and wishing to do a
28 THE SPANISH STAGE
older fraternity, the Cofradia de la Soledad acquiring the
corral of Burguillos. Both brotherhoods finally decided
to join forces and petitioned Dr. Antonio de Aguilera,
Councilor of Castile and deputy for the administration of
the said hospitals, that two thirds of the profits accruing
from these corrales should go to the Cofradia de la Pasion,
and the remaining third to the Cofradia de la Soledad; the
expenses to be shared in the same proportion. This agree-
ment of the two brotherhoods was approved by Dr. Agui-
lera on June 7, 1574.
These corrales — a name that down to our own day has
remained synonymous with playhouse — were originally,
before they were transformed into theaters, the yards of
houses.1 In the rear was the stage ; the larger part of the
audience viewed the performance standing in the court-
yard, while the windows of the principal building and of
the surrounding houses served as boxes for the more dis-
tinguished spectators. Arrangements for the comfort of
actors and audience were at first, naturally, very crude.
The stage, as well as the whole court-yard, had no roof
nor any kind of protection against sunshine or rain. If
the weather was unfavorable the representation was either
suspended or brought suddenly to a close.2
As early as 1574 a company of Italian players under
good work and a charity to the brotherhood of La Soledad, Alonso Rodri-
guez and other comedians were' representing corned i as to aid in the bringing
up of foundlings, in the Corral de Burguillos, which the brotherhood had
provided, and for which it had paid." (Pellicer, Tratado, Vol. I, p. 50.)
1 So in England the immediate predecessor of the playhouse was the inn-
yard. Until 1576, Fleay says, public performances in London were given in
inn-yards, of which there were five. (See also Collier, Annals, Vol. I, p. 36.)
2 Schack, Vol. I, p. 266. Under date of December io, 1579, we read:
"No hubo representacion en ningun corral por haber llovido mucho."
(Perez Pastor, in Bull. Hispanique (1906), p. 76.) Moreover, when there
were but few people in the corral the managers refused to give a perform-
ance. "27 de Agosto de 1579. — No hubo representacion en la calle del
Lobo (Corral de Puente) porque Cisneros estaba ausente, ni en la Pacheca
porque Ganasa no quiso representar al ver que habia poca gente en el
corral, y se devolvi6 el dinero a las personas que habian entrado." (Ibid.,
P- 74-)
THE CORRAL DE LA PACHECA 29
Alberto Nazeri de Ganassa1 presented plays at Madrid
(mostly in pantomime, as it appears) , and in the same year
Ganassa succeeded in having a theater erected in the Corral
de la Pacheca. "For while comedias had already been
represented in the said corral, it was wholly open, and the
stage, raised seats, and patio were exposed to the inclem-
ency of the weather, so that when it rained no perform-
ance could be given." And in 1574 the theater was built
by two carpenters, using the "tablados, lienzos y otros
pertrechos del Corral de la Pacheca," and also the awn-
ings which had been made to shade the stage of this corral
from the sun.2
The agreement was that a theater and stage should be
built, wholly covered by a roof, and that this theater
should be leased for a period of nine or ten years, etc., the
1 Concerning Ganassa, who had a company of players in France in Sep-
tember, 1571, see Baschet, Les Come"diens Haliens, Paris, 1882, pp. 18-25,
and Sanchez-Arjona, Anales del Teatro en Sevilla, Sevilla, 1898, p. 47. As
Ganassa appeared in Seville in 1575 in the Corral de Don Juan, the
corrales of the latter city were probably established as early as those of
Madrid. (Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 53, and see below.) Ganassa seems
to have been at the head of the company called the Gelosi as early as 1572,
and to him is probably due the invention of the second Zanni or Arlecchino.
Scherillo says: "La compagnia, che sembra avesse gia allora (1572) il titolo
dei Gelosi, era condotta da un bergamasco Alberto, noto pel suo nome o
soprannome di Ganassa; al quale, oltre tutto il resto, si deve fors' anche
l'invenzione della parte e del nome del secondo Zanni, cioe dell' Arlecchino."
(La Commedia dell' Arte, in La Vita Haliana del Seicento, Milano, 1895,
p. 451.) It appears that a company of Italian players had visited Spain as
early as 1538, when one Muzio, "Italiano de la Comedia," was in Seville,
taking part in the festival of Corpus Christi. (Sanchez-Arjona, Anales,
p. 47, note.) The petition of Muzio, which is found in Vol. VI of the
Escribania de Cabildo of the municipal Archives of Seville, is as follows:
"Los Italianos que sacaron los carros en la fiesta del Corpus Cristi supli-
can a V. S. que, pues es costumbre de repartir joyas a quien mas buena
voluntad y obras mostrare en tal dia, que habiendo ellos hecho todo lo que
pudieron, sean V. S. tan benignas que, aunque en ellos haya poca parte de
merecimientos, puedan gozar della, y en todo sea, como suplican, con
aquella brevedad que el favor de V. S. y sus necesidades requieren, a fin
que se puedan ir a su viaje, e quitarse de los gastos, que son muchos, que
hasta agora han tenido para aguardar tan seiialada merced." — Muzio,
Italiano de la Comedia. (Ibid., p. 47, note.) Stiefel (Zeitschrift fiir
Roman. Phil., Vol. XV, p. 320) conjectures that Lope de Rueda may have
joined this company of Muzio's, and it is not improbable.
2 Pellicer, Tratado historico, Vol. I, p. 54.
30 THE SPANISH STAGE
rent being fixed at ten reals per day. But, in fact, the roof
covered only the stage and the sides of the patio; the sole
covering of the latter was an awning to shade the specta-
tor from the sun. From this patio the rank and file — the
vulgo or gente del bronce — viewed the play, standing. On
account of the clamor and uproar they made, they were
called mosqueteros. So in France "the boisterous and
vulgar" stood, as did the "groundlings" in the pit of the
inn-yards of London.
Ganassa further agreed to perform two comedias for
the benefit of the theater, to advance 600 reals toward the
erection of it — to be returned to him at the rate of ten reals
per day (the rental of the playhouse) — and agreed besides
to give sixty performances.
Of the plays performed by Ganassa and his Italian com-
pany, Pellicer says: "Representaban comedias italianas,
mimicas por la mayor parte, y bufonescas, de asuntos
triviales y populares. Introducian en ellas las personas
del Arlequino, del Pantalone, y del Dotore."1 This was
the Italian commedia dell' arte. Ganassa seems to have
made several journeys to Spain with his company, for
after this first visit in 1 574, he appeared again in June and
July, 1579 (see below, p. 31), at the Corral de Puente,
and also in the beginning of the following year in the
Pacheca and again during the years 158 1 and 1582, 2 and
in the Corral del Principe in 1584.3 He seems to have
visited Spain again in 1603, according to Pellicer,4 though
his statements are not clear on this point. We may be
quite sure that the financial success reaped by Ganassa
and his players, to which Ricardo de Turia (Don Pedro
1 Tratado ktstorico, Vol. I, p. 53.
2 Under date of December 31, 1581, we find the curious notice that
"Saldafia did not perform on this day, because he and his company were at
the Teatro de la Cruz to see the Italians." (See Perez Pastor, in Bull.
Hispanique, April-June, 1906, p. 149, and Appendix A.)
3 See below, p. 43.
4 Vol. I, pp. 57 and 72.
THE VALDIVIESO AND THE PUENTE 31
Juan de Rejaule y Toledo)1 alludes many years after-
ward, induced other Italian actors to try their fortunes
upon Spanish soil. To these we shall recur further on.
The Corral de la Pacheca, as stated above, was in the
Calle del Principe.. The increased demand for theatrical
representations, however, now induced the same Cofradias
to rent another corral, belonging to Cristobal de la Puente,
in the Calle del Lobo, which they furnished with benches
and gradas or raised seats, and fitted it up for the per-
formance of comedias. Besides, another corral was pro-
vided by the fraternities for Francisco Osorio, a theatrical
manager, who came to Madrid with his company in June,
1579. To Osorio was assigned the Corral de Valdivieso
by the then comisario de comedias, Francisco de Prado,
"and the said Osorio has bound himself to build a stage
and two platforms (tablados) at the sides, at his own cost,
and the profits arising therefrom shall be for the hospitals,
without any deductions being made, and besides the said
Osorio is to give ten reals for every day that he performs,
and to-day [June 7, 1579] is the first day that the said
Osorio represents, while also on this day Salcedo repre-
sents in the Corral de la Pacheca and Ganassa in the
Puente." 2 We learn, moreover, that Osorio only gave per-
formances on June 7, 8, and 9, when, on account of the
small number of spectators, he abandoned the corral. On
Sunday, June 7, 1579, the Hospital de la Pasion received,
as its two-thirds share from the performances of Ganassa,
who was representing in the Corral de Puente, and from
Salcedo, in the Corral de la Pacheca, two hundred and
twenty-one reals and ten maravedis, and on June 8 and 9
these receipts were one hundred and fifty-six reals twelve
1 In his Apologetico de las Comedias espaholas, prefixed to the second part
of Norte de la Poesia Espahola, etc., Valencia, 1616, he speaks of "el famoso
comico Ganaca, que en la primera entrada que hizo en ella [Espana] robo
igualmente el aplauso y dinero de todos." I possess an excellent copy of
this very rare book.
."Perez Pastor, in Bull. Hispanique, 1906, p. 72, and see also Appendix A.
32 THE SPANISH STAGE
maravedis, and one hundred and ninety-five reals ten
maravedis respectively. Ganassa and Salcedo also repre-
sented on Trinity Sunday, and on June 18 we learn that
Ganassa had gone to Toledo for the festival, while
Salcedo was engaged in the festival at Madrid, so
that there were no representations in the Corral de
Puente, where Ganassa had performed, nor in the Pacheca
which Saldafia had occupied. On June 24 Ganassa re-
turned from Toledo and again performed in the Puente,
and on June 28 and 29 in the Pacheca. On July 2
Ganassa appeared in the Pacheca "and declared that he
had been given a license by the Council of Madrid to
perform two days in each week."1 In these corrales
various autores or theatrical managers gave performances,
among them Ganassa, Cisneros, Alonso Rodriguez "el
Toledano," Jeronimo Velazquez, Francisco Salcedo,
Rivas, Juan Granado, Alonso Rodriguez of Seville, Sal-
dafia, and others.2
Of these directors of companies many wrote farces or
comedias, 3 and the term autor was therefore strictly appro-
priate to them at this time. It was not till some years
afterward that the title autor de comedias came to mean
'The representations during the three next succeeding years will be found
in Appendix A. The list is copied from the very important article by
Dr. Perez Pastor, in the Bull. Hispanique, 1906.
' Pellicer mentions Alonso Velazquez among these early autores, but ac-
cording to Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 98, this autor de comedias was not
born till 1572.
3 Of these autores Antonio de Villegas is said to have written fifty-four
comedias and forty entremeses, according to Pellicer, Vol. I, p. 116. The
latter quotes Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 54, as his authority, but Pellicer's
mistake was pointed out by Barrera (Catdlogo, p. 493) nearly fifty years
ago. Rojas evidently meant that these comedias and entremeses formed the
repertory of Villegas, not that he wrote them. None of the comedias at-
tributed by Pellicer to Antonio de Villegas was written by him. Callar hasta
la Ocasion, which Pellicer ascribes to Alonso de Cisneros, was, according to
Barrera, written by Don Juan Hurtado y Cisneros. Pellicer also mentions
Gaspar Vazquez, an actor (perhaps the lessee of the Corral del Principe in
1583, mentioned below, p. 41), who, in the opinion of Tamayo de Vargas,
in his Biblioteca manuscrita, is the author of a comedia entitled La Costanza
(Alcala de Henares, por Sebastian Martinez, 1570).
THE CORRAL DE LA CRUZ 33
merely a theatrical director, an impresario.1 We have seen
that, after paying the autor and his company, the average
net proceeds of a single representation varied, at this early
period, from 140 to 200 reals, which went to the hospitals
of the city. It may be mentioned here that in 1583 Philip
11. granted to the "Royal House of Incurables" at Naples
half the proceeds derived from the public performances
of comedias in that city.2
Performances in these corrales always took place in the
afternoon. At first they were limited to Sundays and feast-
days, but with the growing demand for such spectacles,
two representations were authorized during the week, on
Tuesdays and Thursdays, and sometimes they continued
for fifteen or twenty days before Shrovetide. On Ash
Wednesday the theaters were closed till Easter, and in
1580 plays were not resumed until September 11, when
Rivas began in the Pacheca.3
All representations took place in these corrales until the
Cofradias erected their own permanent theaters, the first
one in the Calle de la Cruz in 1579, the other in the Calle
del Principe in 15 82.*
Let us turn now to these permanent theaters. A site
having been purchased in the Calle de la Cruz on October
12, 1579, for 550 ducats, the wood, benches, and other
properties were moved from the corral of Cristobal de la
Puente. and a new theater was fitted up.5 It is interesting
'Caramuel, writing in the latter half of the seventeenth century, says:
"Autor de Comedias apud Hispanos non est qui illas scribit aut recitat,
sed qui Comicos alit et singulis solvit convenientia stipendia." (Rhythmica
(second ed. Campaniae, 1668), quoted by Schack, Nachtrage, p. 25.)
2 Croce, / Teatri di Napoli, p. 56.
* For details see Appendix A.
* Performances continued to take place in the old corrales, however, for
some time after the establishment of the two permanent theaters. There is
record of a representation in the Pacheca in January, 1583, and in the Corral
de Puente on February 18, 1584. See Appendix A.
""Martes 8 de Diciembre [1579] :— En este dia se notified a Crist6bal de
la Puente, dueno del corral de la Calle del Lobo, que tienen alquilado las
cofradias, que cesaba este arrendamiento y que los asientos, tablados y
34 THE SPANISH STAGE
to note that the building and the expenditures of this new
theater, or Corral de la Cruz, as it was called, were in
charge of Getino de Guzman, who had been the surety for
Cervantes' s mother, Dona Leonor de Cortinas, for his re-
demption from Algerine captivity.1
The Corral de la Cruz had not yet been completed
when the first comedia was represented therein on Sunday,
November 29, 1579, by the companies of Juan Granado
and Jeronimo de Galvez.2
Though on December 8, 1579, as we have just seen,
the Corral de Puente had been stripped of its benches, etc.,
Cisneros again began to represent in it on January 28,
1580; and we find him there again on February 11 and
i8,s and according to Pellicer4 on February 1, 1584.
It is clear, however, that the new Corral de la Cruz*
pertrechos que a costa de las cofradias se habian hecho en dicbo corral se
trasladarian al nuevo teatro de la calle de la Cruz ya por evitar gastos ya
tambien porque Francisco Salcedo, que representaba en la calle del Lobo, se
ha ausentado." (Perez Pastor, Bull. Hispanique, Jan., 1906, p. 75.)
1 Bull. Hispanique (1906), p. 76. Cervantes alludes to the relation exist-
ing between the theaters and the "Brotherhoods of the Hospitals" in his
Entremes del Retablo de las Maravillas, where Chanfalla says: "Yo senores
mios soy Montiel, el que trae el retablo de las marauillas; hanme embiado
a llamar de la Corte los senores cofrades de los hospitales, porque no ay
autor de comedias en ella, y perecen los hospitales, y con mi yda se re-
mediara todo." (Ocho Comedias, etc., Madrid, 161 5, fol. 244.)
2 "Yo Francisco de Olea doy fee ... en como hoy domingo 29 dias del mes
de Noviembre de 1579 afios fue el primero dia que se represent6 en el corral
que las cofradias de la Sagrada Pasion y Nuestra Senora de la Soledad tienen
en esta dicha villa en la calle de la Cruz, en el qual asi mismo represento
la primera vez Juan Granado y Galvez, autores de comedias, esta ultima
vez que vinieron a esta corte sin que hubiesen representado en el ni en otro
corral donde se acostumbra hacer las dichas comedias otra vez desta postrera
venida . . . Francisco de Olea." (Perez Pastor, Bull. Hispanique, Jan,
1906, p. 75.)
1 Ibid., pp. 77, 150. See Appendix A.
4 Vol. I, p. 80.
5 In 1576, three years before the building of the Corral de la Cruz, "the
first London theater properly so called, the Theatre, was built by James
Burbadge, one of Leicester's players. It was situate in Halliwell or Holy
Well, in the parish of St. Leonard's, close to Finsbury fields. In 1577 we
find another theater called the Curtain erected close to the Theatre, both
being in the same fields." (Fleay, Chronicle History of the London Stage,
p. 37.) "When Shakespeare came to London (1586?) there were two
THE CORRAL DEL PRINCIPE 35
and the Corral de la Pacheca now became the favor-
ite playhouses, and were leased by the most famous
autores: Ganassa, Galvez, Granado, Saldana, Jeronimo
Velazquez, Cisneros, Alonso Rodriguez, Salcedo, and
others. On October 29, 1580, all representations in
Madrid were suspended on account of the death of the
Queen, Dona Ana, and the theaters were closed until
November 30, 1581, when Ganassa and his Italian players
again appeared at the Corral de la Cruz.1
The success of the Corral de la Cruz and the desire to
be relieved of the rent which they were paying for the
Corral de la Pacheca induced the Cofradia de la Soledad y
Ninos expositos, in 1582 (February 19), to buy a number
theaters in London and its suburbs: the Theatre and the Curtain, both in
Shoreditch. In February, 1592, a third playhouse, the Rose, was opened by
the manager Philip Henslowe. It was situated on the Bankside in South-
wark and was doubtless the scene of Shakespeare's pronounced success alike
as an actor and dramatist. In 1594 he [Shakespeare] was connected with
another theater at Newington Butts [see now Greg, in Hensloiue's Diary,
II, pp. 72 and 85]; and later (1595-1599) he returned to the Theatre and
Curtain. The latter playhouse was kept up till after his death, but the
Theatre was torn down in 1599, and most of the materials were used by the
Burbadges in the erection of the Globe on the Bankside. From the opening
of this theater until Shakespeare gave up acting, it appears to have been the
only one [with the Blackfriars"] with which he was regularly connected.
The Blackfriars theater, originally a dwelling-house converted into a theater
by James Burbadge in 1596, was in the City, not far from the northern
end of Blackfriars bridge. The Times building is now on this site."
(Collier, Works of Shakespeare, Vol. I, p. 80.) Between July 22, 1596, and
April 17, 1597, Romeo and Juliet was acted at the Curtain by the company
known as Lord Hunsdon's servants. (See Ordish, The London Theatres,
p. 100.) According to the same writer Shakespeare's Henry V. was first
performed at the Curtain in 1599, "presumably by the Burbadge-Shake-
speare company." (Ibid., p. 84.) Ordish says that after the accession of
James I., in 1603, the Chamberlain's company — which Shakespeare had
joined before Christmas, 1594 (ibid., p. 169) — acted only at the Globe and
at the Blackfriars. (Ibid., p. 103.) Greg suggests that Shakespeare may
have been a member of Lord Strange's company (which became the servants
of Baron Hunsdon, Lord Chamberlain, after the death of Lord Strange,
then Earl of Derby, in 1594) as early as April, 1593, though Shakespeare's
name does not occur in the list of the company, as he was not a shareholder.
(Hensloiue's Diary, Vol. II, p. 74.)
1 "30 Noviembre 1551. — Ganasa represento en la Cruz y fue el primer dia
que hubo comedia despues de la muerte de la reina Ana. 'Y de todo el
aprovechamiento de la comedia, sin la representacion [i.e., the rental paid by
36 THE SPANISH STAGE
of houses near the latter corral, in the Calle del Principe,
for which they paid the owner, Dr. Alaba de Ibarra,
physician to Philip II., the sum of 800 ducats.1 Here
they built a theater after the pattern of the Corral
de la Cruz: this was the Corral del Principe, which, with
the Corral de la Cruz, were, after 1584, the only public
theaters of Madrid.2 Their glory, in the annals of the
modern drama, is surpassed only by the Globe and Black-
friars in London. And it is a curious coincidence that the
dramatic careers of the great creators of the English and
Spanish dramas began at about the same time. Lope de
Vega, born in 1562, began to write for the public stage
about 1585. Shakespeare, born in 1564.J came to London
in I586(?), and became attached to one of the theaters.
Each rose to the topmost height in the dramatic art of his
country, and while the wide gulf that separates Shake-
speare from his contemporaries does not exist in the case
of Lope de Vega, the superiority of the latter among the
dramatists of his own country is now undisputed. Lope de
Vega had his Sessa, and Shakespeare his Southampton, yet
neither ever received aid or encouragement from his
the players], se allegaron doscientos y sesenta reales y medio de que cupo a
la cofradia de la Soledad de la tercia parte que lleva noventa reales y cinco
maravedis, y a la Pasion le cupo de sus dos tercias partes ciento y ochenta
reales y doce maravedis.' " (Perez Pastor, Bull. Hispanique (1906), p. 148.)
1 "Escritura de venta de dos pares de casas y corrales otorgada por el
Dr Alava de Ibarra, medico de S. M., por si y como legitimo adminis-
trador de su hijo D. Juan, en favor de los diputados de la cofradia de Na
Sa de la Soledad y Ninos expositos, en la calle del Principe, por precio de
800 ducados. Madrid, 19 Febrero 1583. — Venta de las dos tercias partes
de las casas de la calle del Principe que fueron del Dr Alava de Ibarra
otorgada en favor de los diputados de la cofradia de la Pasion por los
de la cofradia de la Soledad y Ninos expositos en precio de 200,000 mara-
vedises. Madrid, 10 Marzo 1582." (Ibid., p. 152.)
2 1 prefer to use the term Corral del Principe and not Teatro, because
Corral was the only term applied to these theaters for many years after
their foundation. Antonio Armona, in his Memorias cronologicas, a
manuscript in the Biblioteca Nacional at Madrid, says that these buildings
began to be called teatros in 1608. They were still called corrales in
1611 (Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 376) and certainly as late as the middle of
the seventeenth century, (Pellicer, Vol. I, p. 108.)
SHAKESPEARE AND LOPE 37
sovereign. There is no proof at hand of personal patron-
age extended to Shakespeare by either Elizabeth or
James,1 nor did Philip the Third or Philip the Fourth be-
stow any favor upon Lope.2 Neither poet seems to have
been mindful of the glory he had reaped in the field of the
drama, while each took a peculiar pride in his other
poetical compositions. Shakespeare polished the verse of
his Venus and Adonis and his Rape of Lucrece, and Lope
laid the last file on his epics and sonnets, while both
strangely neglected those works which have since been the
delight of mankind. Lope's achievement in the drama
was too stupendously vast to receive much pruning or
revision at his hands, while Shakespeare never troubled
himself about the fate of his plays after they were once
in print. I cannot forbear quoting the words of Collier in
this regard: "Shakespeare probably superintended the
passage through the press of his two poems, Venus and
Adonis and Lucrece, but it is our conviction that, as far
as regards any of his plays, he never corrected a line of
them after they were in type. Even with respect to the
two dramas that with most show of probability may be
said to have been published entire, in order to check the
sale of imperfect, mutilated, and surreptitious copies —
Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet — we feel persuaded that
their author was in no way instrumental in the issue of the
more authentic copies. . . . After his plays had answered
their purpose on the stage, he seems to have been utterly
reckless of their fate." 3
1 Ward, History of English Dramatic Literature, London, 1899, Vol. I,
p. 501.
' This statement must be mildly qualified in view of a document recently-
published by Dr. Cristobal Perez Pastor, Bulletin Hispanique (1908), p. 253 :
"Ordenareis que se paguen a Lope de Vega Carpio ciento y cincuenta
ducados de que la Reyna Nuestra Senora le hizo merced por el servicio que
le hizo de la comedia de El Vellocino dorado, y esto se pagara por donde se
acostumbran pagar cosas deste genero. Dios guarde al Sr. Contralor.
Madrid, 3 de Noviembre 1626. — El duque y conde de Benavente. (Arch.
de Palacio. — Espectaculos publicos y privados.)" But even here it will be
seen that the sum was granted by Philip the Fourth's young queen.
3 Memoirs of Actors, pp. 66, 67.
38 THE SPANISH STAGE
"If any one should cavil about my comedias and think
that I wrote them for fame, undeceive him and tell him
that I wrote them for money."1 So wrote Lope in the
autumn of 1604. From all that we know of Shakespeare,
it is clear that his plays also were written merely for
money, and that for him they had no further interest save
the profit to be derived from them. Lope de Vega, indeed,
in his later years, when he realized that his chief claim to
be remembered by posterity lay in his comedias, did make
an attempt to correct his plays for the press, and beginning
with Part IX (1617), they were printed under his super-
vision.2
On the other hand, Shakespeare's indifference to the
fate of his plays continued till the end of his life. The
Tempest was probably the latest drama that he completed,
and it was written, as it appears, early in 161 1 — at all
events, it was well known in the autumn of that year.
Moreover, Lee says : "While there is every indication that
in 161 1 Shakespeare abandoned dramatic composition,
there seems little doubt that he left with the manager of
his company unfinished drafts of more than one play which
others were summoned at a later date to complete. His
place at the head of the active dramatists was at once filled
by John Fletcher, and Fletcher, with some aid possibly
from his friend Philip Massinger, undertook the working
up of Shakespeare's unfinished sketches."3
Shakespeare lived five years after this date, in retire-
ment at Stratford. We are told that until 16 14 he made
frequent visits to London, but he does not seem to have
had sufficient regard for his plays to revise and correct
them. He continued to draw his income from them, and
in his quiet days at "New Place" his thoughts must often
1 See my Life of Lope de Vega, Glasgow, 1904, p. 154, note.
' In the following year, in Part XI of his Comedias, Lope gives the num-
ber of plays he had then written as eight hundred.
' Sidney Lee, Shakespeare's Life and Work, p. 135.
THE ACTOR AND THE PRIEST 39
have reverted to the scenes of his great dramatic tri-
umphs, yet he allowed the plays on which his great fame
rests to go through the world, not in the perfection in
which they issued from his pen, but lame and halt and
disfigured, as chance might change and shape them, re-
gardless of their fate.1 So there is some justification, it
would seem, for Pope's couplet on Shakespeare :
For gain, not glory, wing'd his roving flight,
And grew immortal in his own despite.
While it has not been without interest, perhaps, to thus
point out coincidences and parallels in the careers of the
two greatest dramatic geniuses of the modern stage, the
comparison closes with a contrast. Lope de Vega was a
priest, Shakespeare an actor,— almost the two extremes of
the social scale in their day. Lope was the lion of Madrid,
the "Phenix of Spain," whose fame had spread far and
wide, and whom men came from distant lands to see.
Shakespeare enjoyed no such renown among his fellow-
countrymen. In the fullness of his powers, at the age of
forty-seven, he withdrew from the theater, well provided
with the goods of this world, to lead a life of ease and
retirement in the quiet of his birthplace. Lope remained
in harness, a veteran of seventy-three, battling till the end,
on the scene of his early triumphs. His generous hospi-
tality, his unstinted charity, kept his purse-strings ever
open, and the last years of his life found him often de-
pendent upon his patron for the necessities of his humble
household.
In 1582, as we have seen, the second of the famous thea-
ters of Madrid— the Corral del Principe— was erected in
1 "He allowed most mangled and deformed copies of several of his great-
est works to be circulated for many years, and did not think it worth while
to expose the fraud, which remained in several cases undetected, as far as
the great body of the public was concerned, until the appearance of the
folio of 1623." (Collier, Shakespeare's Works, Vol. I, p. 142.)
4o THE SPANISH STAGE
the Calle del Principe. The deputies of the brotherhoods
seem to have proceeded with great circumspection in the
building of this new theater. An expense-book was kept,
and the work was begun on Monday, May 7, 1582. Of
these building expenses the Cofradia de la Pasion paid
two thirds and the Soledad one third, just as they shared
the profits, the former contributing 200 ducats and the
latter 100 ducats toward the expense. Pellicer gives the
following description of the theater: "A platform or stage
was built, a green-room, raised seats {gradas) for the
men, portable benches to the number of ninety-five, a
gallery for the women, stalls and windows with iron grat-
ings, passageways, and a roof to cover the gradas. Finally
the patio was paved and an awning was stretched over it
which protected against the sun, but not against the rain."
Four stairways were also erected, "one to ascend to the
women's gallery, with its balustrade of brick and plaster,
its wooden steps and its partitions of plaster around the
lower part, and the same above, so that the women who
went up the said stairway and were in the balcony could
not communicate with the men," etc.1 In addition three
other stairways were built, "ascending to the seats of the
men [in the galleries?] and to the green-room (vestua-
rio),2 and also a stall or box in the corral, whereby
women entered to a window which looked upon the stage."
1 Andres Aguado [the builder of the theater] "se obligo a hacer quatro
escaleras, una para subir al corrector de las mugeres, con sus pasamanos de
ladrillo y yeso, y sus peldanos de madera labrados, y sus cerramientos al
rededor de yeso por la parte de abaxo, y por la de arriba ni mas ni menos,
de manera que las mugeres que subiesen por la dicha escalera y estuvieseu
en el dicho corredor, no se puedan comunicar con los hombres: y de la
mesma manera otras tres por donde se sube a los asientos de los hombres y
al vestuario: y asimcsmo un aposento en el Corral por donde entran las
mugeres para una ventana que cae al dicho Teatro . . . y un tejado a dos
aguas encima de la dicha ventana hasta el caballete del tejado del aposento
de la calle." (Tratado Historico, Vol. I, p. 68.)
1 From this it appears that the green-room was on the floor above the
stage. If this were so, a change must have been made later, for an exam-
ination of the comedias of Lope de Vega shows that the vestuario must
have been at the back of the stage and on both sides of it, i.e., on the same
THE CORRAL DEL PRfNCIPE 41
So impatient was the public for these spectacles that the
theater was opened before its completion, on September
21,1 5 83, when [Antonio ?] Vazquez and Juan de Avila rep-
resented therein.1 The proceeds of this performance, in-
cluding the ten reals paid by the players for the rent of the
theater for that day, amounted to seventy reals,"for neither
the gradas, nor the ventanas, nor the corredor were yet
finished." {Ibid., p. 69.) Adjoining the Corral del Prin-
cipe on one side was the house of Dona Juana Gonzalez
Carpio, afterward the wife of Francisco Alegria, one of
the lessees of the theaters of the city. To Dona Juana the
brotherhoods paid one hundred ducats annually for allow-
ing a passage to be made through her house for a women's
entrance to the theater. Payment was made by giving her
two aposentos, one in the Cruz and one in the Principe?
The proceeds of a single representation at this time
generally amounted to about three hundred reals, after
deducting expenses. Seeing the large pecuniary gains de-
rived by the two fraternities from the theaters, the Council
of Castile in December, 1583, decreed that the General
Hospital of Madrid should henceforth have a share in the
proceeds. Besides the charge for admission to the theater
or corrales, the privileges for the sale of water, fruit,
aloja, and confections were an additional source of income
to the fraternities.3
Schack4 gives the following description of the corrales
or theaters of that time :
floor. See my article "On the Staging of Lope de Vega's Comedias," in
the Revue Hispanique, 1907. Concerning the Coliseo of Seville, Sr.
Sanchez-Arjona (p. 152) says: "En su origen el vestuario del Coliseo
estaba lindando con la casa de D. Diego Davalos, y las puertas que daban
paso a los espectadores muy proximas al tablado y vestuario."
1 Pellicer, Vol. I, p. 69.
2 Ibid., p. 70.
" The privilege of selling water, fruit, etc., in the two theaters of La Cruz
and El Principe was granted to Francisco Briceno on March 23, 1587; he
paying on each day that a comedia was acted Ave reals for each theater,
until St. Michael's day of the said year. (Pellicer, Vol. I, p. 82.)
* Geschichte, etc., Vol. I, p. 369.
42 THE SPANISH STAGE
The corrales were, as we have said, court-yards where the backs
of several houses came together. The windows (ventanas) of the
surrounding houses — provided, as is the Spanish custom, with iron
railings or latticework, and then called rejas or celosias — served as
boxes or stalls ; a much larger number of these windows than origi-
nally existed in the buildings were especially constructed for this
purpose. If these boxes were situated in the upper stories, they
were called desvanes (attics) ; the lowest row of windows above the
ground, however, were called aposentos, a name that, in a wider
sense, seems also to have been applied to the desvanes. These
aposentos (apartments or rooms) were really spacious rooms, as
the name implies. The windows were, like the houses to which
they belonged, sometimes the property of others, and if not rented
by the fraternities, were entirely at the disposition of their owners,
who, however, had to pay annually a specified sum for the privilege
of seeing the plays from them.1 Beneath the aposentos was a row
of seats, raised like an amphitheater, and called gradas; in front of
these was the patio, a larger open space whence the vulgo saw the play
standing. In front of the patio, and nearest the stage, stood rows
of benches called bancos, presumably also under the open sky, like
1 In 1635 permission was given to Don Rodrigo de Herrera to open a
window looking into the Corral del Principe, he paying to the lessees of
the theater the sum of thirty ducats (330 reales vellon) annually. (Pellicer,
Vol. I, p. 70; Sepulveda, El Corral de la Pacheca, p. 89.) This privilege
was also granted in the same year to Don Pedro de Aragon, who, having
purchased in the Calle del Principe a house which already had two apo-
sentos looking upon the Corral de las Comedias, wished to open another
window between the two. (Sepulveda, p. 90.) This notice is interesting
in view of a picture published by Sepulveda (p. 18), representing the
Teatro del Principe in 1660. I do not know the provenance of this picture,
but it corresponds in every detail to the description in the text as given by
Schack. It represents a rectangular space inclosed on the two longer sides
by houses with grated windows, and with a raised stage occupying the
further end. The whole space is open to the sky, except the portion over
the stage and extending some distance beyond it, which is covered by a
canvas awning. In the middle space or pit are a number of benches, which
cover about half the ground immediately in front of the stage. The rest
of the open space or patio is free, and is the place from which the ground-
lings or mosqueteros saw the play, while standing. On the left, beginning
level with the ground, are rows of terraced seats — the gradas mentioned
above. These are protected by a small roof supported by pillars. These
seats were partitioned off from the pit. The stage seems to have had a
slightly projecting roof. Of course the women's gallery (cazuela) does
not appear in the picture.
GANASSA AND THE ITALIANS 43
the patio, or protected only by a canvas covering. The grades were
under a projecting roof at the sides. In the rear of the corraies,
i.e., in the part furthest from the stage, was the gallery set apart
for women, especially of the lower classes, and called the cazuela
or stewpan, also called corredores de las mugeres or gallery for
women. The more refined women patronized the aposentos or
desvanes.1
Women were, apparently, no less eager to see a comedia
than men, and when Jeronimo Velazquez, in February,
158.6, determined to give a morning performance for
women only, no less than seven hundred and sixty flocked
to the theater, but on hearing of this the Council of Castile
stopped the performance and confiscated the proceeds for
the benefit of the hospitals.
We have seen above (p. 33, n. 4) that representations
continued in the older corraies even after the new theaters
— the Cruz in 1579, and the Principe in 1583 — had been
opened. On February 1, 1584, according to Pellicer,2
Saldaria performed in the Corral de Puente, Cisneros
in the Cruz, and Ganassa in the Corral del Principe, and
on Sunday, February 5, Ganassa appeared in the Principe,
Velazquez in the Cruz, and Cisneros in the Corral de
Puente. It seems to result from a document published by
Pellicer3 that before 1587 all the other corraies had
passed out of existence, except the Corral de la Cruz and
the Corral del Principe. The success of Ganassa and his
Italian company, to which we have already alluded, doubt-
less induced other Italian players to visit Spain. Ganassa
had appeared in the Corral de la Cruz on February 23,
1 Malone, speaking of the London theaters, says: "What was called the
pit in the private theaters, like the one in Blaclcf riars, was called the yard
in the public ones, as the Globe. The former theaters were inclosed by a
roof, and the latter were open, except the stage, which was covered by a
thatched roof. In the pit were benches for the spectators, while in the yards
the groundlings stood." {Historical Account of the English Stage. See
also Collier, Annals of the Stage, Vol. Ill, p. 335.)
'Vol. I, p. 80.
' Ibid., p. 81.
44 THE SPANISH STAGE
1582. Four days afterward, on February 27, we find a
notice that Ganassa did not represent because he had been
put in prison.1 On June 29, 1582, we find that "an Italian
performed acrobatic feats in the Pacheca and continued
performing with his tumblers until St. James' day," and on
August 24, 1582, los Italianos nuevos represented a
comedia at the Pacheca.2 They again appeared on Sep-
tember 29 and 30, on October 17 and 18, and on Novem-
ber 1. From the fact that they are called "the new Ital-
ians," it is very probable that this company was not
Ganassa's. In 1587 and 1588 we find another company
of Italian actors in Madrid (or was it the company of
1582?) under the management of the brothers Tristano
and Drusiano Martinelli.3 This is undoubtedly the Italian
company that was performing at the Corral del Principe
in November and December, 1587, and for some time
thereafter. Lope de Vega was a frequent visitor at this
time to these plays by the "Italians," or the "Comedia of
the Harlequin."4
It is, moreover, very probable that in his early career as
a dramatist Lope was much influenced by the commedie
dell' arte which he saw represented by these Italian
companies. The name of the male lover in these com-
medie, Fulvio, Valerio, Ottavio, Leandro, Fabricio, Cin-
thio, etc., and of the female lover, la comica accesa,
1 See Appendix A.
2 It is not likely that two companies of Italians were acting in Madrid at
the same time, and I presume that these Italianos nuevos were the same
as the company called Los Corteses (1 Cortesi), who represented in the
Pacheca on August 26, 1582, and again on September 2, 8, 9, 16, 21, 23, 29,
and 30, and at various times down to November 15 of the same year.
(Bulletin Hispanique (1906), p. 152. See Appendix A, under year 1582.)
3 D'Ancona, Origini del Teatro Italiano, Vol. II, p. 479. Drusiano Mar-
tinelli was in England with a company of players in 1577. Collier says:
"There was an Italian commediante named Drousiano, and his company,
in London, in January, 1577-78. The nature of their performances is not
anywhere stated, but it is possible that they might represent some extem-
pore comedies." (Annals of the Stage, Vol. Ill, p. 398, note.)
* Rennert, Life of Lope de Vega, pp. 27 ff. Drusiano Martinelli was a
famous Arlecchino. (See D'Ancona, Origini del Teatro Italiano, Vol. II,
LA COM MEDIA DELL' ARTE 45
Isabella, Lucinda, Leonora, etc., we find very frequently in
the comedias of Lope. Besides, there is much similarity in
the situations in many of Lope's comedias de capa y espada,
or comedies of intrigue, and the ordinary commedia dell'
arte. In the latter they recur from piece to piece with in-
considerable changes, each with the same mistakes, the
same quarrels, the same night scenes, where one person is
taken for another in the darkness; the same misunder-
standings— scene equivoche,1 etc.
Lope de Vega, seeing these plays almost daily, at the
very beginning of his dramatic career, could hardly have
failed to be influenced by them. Indeed, Clemencin re-
marks that the comic figure, Trastulo, in these farces of
the Italians may have suggested to Lope the character of
the gracioso?
One of the members of Martinelli's company whom
Lope saw in 1587 was undoubtedly the "Madama An-
gelica," wife of Drusiano, a celebrated actress and at that
time a member of the company called / Confidently In a
letter of Drusiano Martinelli, published by D'Ancona,4 he
p. 497, and Scherillo, La Commedia dell' Arte, in La Vita ltaliana net
Seicento. Milano, 1895, p. 475.)
1 See Mantzius, History of Theatrical Art, Vol. II, p. 228.
J Cervantes, Don Quixote, ed. Clemencin, Madrid, 1833, Vol. IV, p. 126,
note. See also his very interesting note on the hobo of the comedia, ibid.,
p. 64. That Lope de Vega was an assiduous visitor of the theater, care-
fully observing the striking situations, is also asserted by Ricardo de
Turia in his Apologetico de las Comedias Espanolas, prefixed to the Norte
de la Poesia espahola, Valencia, 1616. He says: "EI Principe de los Poetas
Comicos de nuestros tiempos, y aun de los pasados, el famoso y nunca
bien celebrado Lope de Vega, suele oyendo asi Comedias suyas como agenas,
aduertir los pasos que hazen marauilla y grangean aplauso; y aquellos
aunque sean impropios imita en todo, buscandose ocasiones en nueuas Co-
medias, que como de fuente perenne nacen incesablemente de su f ertilissimo
ingenio," etc.
3 See below, p. 143. That both Drusiano and Tristano Martinelli were
in Spain in this and the following year is shown by a letter which the
former wrote to his mother, dated August 18, 1588, in which he says:
"Staremo tutto quest' anno qui in Spagna." (Rasi, / Comici Italian!,
Firenze, 1897, Vol. II, p. 104.) For his wife Angela or Angelica, see also
ibid., p. 16.
' OrHgini del Teatro Italiano, Vol. II, p. 479.
46 THE SPANISH STAGE
signs himself "husband of M? Angelica," and from an-
other letter1 it appears that M? Angelica was quite as frail
as most of her sister-actresses. In a document of 15872
her name is given as Angela Martineli ; she, Angela Salo-
mona, and La Francesquina (Silvia Roncagli) seem to
have been the only women then in the company of the
Confidenti.3
1 Origini del Teatro Italiano, Vol. II, p. 523.
* See below, p. 143.
'Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 21. This company had been in Paris
in 1584-85. (Moland, Moliire et la Comedie Italienne, p. 41.)
CHAPTER III
The corrales of Seville. Las Atarazanas. La Alcoba. San Pedro.
The Huerta de Dona Elvira. The Coliseo. La Monteria.
Turning now to another city, to Seville, we find more
detailed information concerning the public theaters or
corrales than was available in the case of Madrid. In
Seville, as already noted, corrales seem to have been estab-
lished at about the same time that we first find them in
Madrid. The Corral de Don Juan was in existence as
early as 1575 ; here the Italian Ganassa performed in that
year, "and those who went to see the comedias of Ganassa
in the Corral de Don Juan paid an entrance fee of half a
real; a real for each chair (silla) and a cuartillo (=^4
real) for each seat on the bancos."1 In 1578 the Corral
de las Atarazanas was built, followed by that of the Huerta
de la Alcoba and the San Pedro (the latter apparently
ceased to exist after 1610), besides one mentioned by
Rodrigo Caro, which was in the Collacion de San Vicente,
and lastly, and perhaps the most famous of all, that of
Dona Elvira.2 During the seventeenth century two others
1 Sanchez- Arjona, Anales del Teatro en S 'evil la, 1898, p. 51. From this
■work the account in this chapter is taken.
2 There were other corrales in Seville besides those here mentioned, ac-
cording to Sanchez-Arjona. "Mateo de Salcedo y Juan Cano arrendaron
en 1600 unas casas que hubieron de servir de posada para los comediantes,
y en cuyo patio hicieron un teatro con algunos aposentos de tablas, 'sin
otra mezcla que la trabazon,' y los autores que venian a Sevilla 'negociaban
representar sus comedias en el dicho teatro y casa de Salcedo, sin haber
habido otra licencia de la Ciudad.' " Besides this corral there were "las
casas del coliseo del Duque de Medina Sidonia (situadas en la plaza del
Duque)" and "el corral de San Pablo, proximo sin duda al convento de
este nombre, de cuyos corrales no tenemos mas noticias que esta ligera refe-
renda." (Ibid., pp. 502, 503.)
47
48 THE SPANISH STAGE
were built: the Coliseo and La Monteria, "notable for
their construction and famous in the annals of the
theater."
"With the establishment of fixed corrales de comedias,"
says Sanchez-Arjona, "as well in the capital as in Seville
and other cities of importance, and with the increased
fondness of the people for theatrical representations, the
number of professional actors also continued increasing,
and as, down to this time, those who furnished the text for
the autos1 also represented them, or, at all events, in-
trusted their representation to persons who were not pro-
fessional players, from this time there began to take
charge of these representations autores de comedias, as the
chiefs or directors of the companies were called, and a
distinction was established between the writer and the
player."2
Of the Corral de Don Juan nothing seems to be known
beyond the fact just stated, that Ganassa acted therein
with his company of Italians in 1575.3 The Corral de las
Atarazanas, which was built in 1578, was of wood and was
constructed by Diego de Vera, lessee of the huerta de las
Atarazanas, at a cost of two thousand ducats, upon a spot
once occupied by a rubbish-heap in the huerta. It passed
out of existence in 1585, when a mint was built on its site.
On petition to the city, the builder and lessee, Diego de
Vera, who had had a lease for eighteen years, at an annual
rental of 1 50 ducats, was permitted to erect a new corral
with the wood and materials of the old one, in the huerta de
'The word auto was first applied to any and every play; then, the mean-
ing becoming narrower, an auto was a religious play, resembling the me-
dieval Mysteries (Gil Vicente's Auto de San Martinho is probably the
earliest piece of this type) . Finally, a far more special sense was developed,
and an auto sacramental came to mean a dramatized exposition of the Mys-
tery of the Blessed Eucharist, to be played in the open on Corpus Christt
day. (Fitzmaurice-Kelly, History of Spanish Literature, p. 327.)
2 Anales del Teatro en Sevilla, p. 54, sub anno 1575- See above, p. 32.
' It stood upon the site of what is to-day the Iglesia de los Menores, and
derived its name from its owner, Don Juan Ortiz de Guzman. {Ibid.,p. 51.)
LA CORRAL DE DONA ELVIRA 49
la Alcoba, likewise upon a spot that had once been a dung-
heap. It was in the Corral de las Atarazanas that two
comedias by Juan de la Cueva, La Libertad de Espaha por
Bernardo del Carpio and La Libertad de Roma por Mucio
Scevola, were first performed, the former by Pedro de
Saldafia, the latter by Alonso de Capilla.1
The Corral de Dona Elvira was in existence as early as
1579, for in that year, according to the same writer, three
plays by Juan de la Cueva were first represented therein
by the company of Alonso Rodriguez. Their titles are:
La Muerte del Rey Don Sancho y Reto de Zamora por
D. Diego Ordonez; El Saco de Roma y Muerte de Borbon
y Coronacion de nuestro invicto Emperador Carlos V., and
the tragedy Los siete Infantes de Lara. Besides, the fol-
lowing four plays, also by Juan de la Cueva, were repre-
sented this year in the same corral by the company of
Pedro de Saldafia : El Degollado, El Tutor, La Constancia
de Arcelina, and the tragedy La Muerte de Ayax Telamon
sobre las armas de Aquiles, in which, Cueva says, Saldaha
played the part of Ajax admirably.2
The Corral de Dona Elvira was situated in the parish
of the Sagrario, near the residence of the Count of Gelves,
at the mouth of the Borceguineria, with an entrance through
two small streets (callejas) near the Plazuela del Pozo
Seco.3 The corral was- so called because it was built on
the property of Dona Elvira de Ayala, wife of the admiral
1 Sanchez-Arjona, p. 60.
2 Ibid,, p. 64. This corral was originally called La Huerta de Dona Elvira.
' It may not be without interest to note that in 1619 (and doubtless before
this) the Corral de Dona Elvira belonged to the Counts of Gelves. In
that year there was some litigation concerning this corral, and the Count
of Lemos is mentioned as administrator (curador) of "la condesa de
gelbes dona Catalina de Portugal." [Ibid., p. 196.) Dona Leonor de
Milan, wife of D. Alvaro de Portugal, second Count of Gelves, was the
divinity of Fernando de Herrera's verses, whom he celebrates under the
name "Luz." She died either shortly before or after September 29, 1581,
the date of her husband's death. Their eldest son, D. Jorge Alberto de
Portugal, born in 1566, died in 1589, "sans laisser de posterite." The
Dona Catalina mentioned above was probably his widow. See Coster,
Fernando de Herrera (El Divino), pp. naff.
50 THE SPANISH STAGE
D. Alvar Perez de Guzman, and daughter of the great
Chancellor of Castile, Pero Lopez de Ayala.1 It consisted
of a spacious patio surrounded by numerous aposentos
(rooms or boxes) and a cazuela, having its entrance
through the Calle del Agua, opposite the Calle del Chorro.
Perhaps originally the patio was open to the sky, and only
the aposentos and the cazuela were covered, as in other
corrales of the time. But, if this was the original arrange-
ment, the corral was probably completely covered after-
ward, for in 1 617 it was directed that "toda la armadura
[framework, truss] que cubre el dicho coral de Dona
Elvira, juntamente con los colgadizos [shed, shed-roof] de
los lados," should be torn down.2 Still, it is probable that
the armadura may have merely protected the stage.
In a document existing in the Archivo del Alcazar of
Seville, dated October 10, 1585, Diego de Vera, lessee of
the Corral de las Atarazanas, is described as the gardener
of the huerta de la Alcoba, for which he paid a yearly
rental of 450 ducats, and in consideration of the permis-
sion to build a theater on the grounds he agrees to pay an
additional 150 ducats, or 600 ducats annually.3 The
theater, called El Coliseo (the street in which it stood still
bears the name), was finished in 1607, and was leased
at the beginning of the following year for the term
of six years to Diego de Almonaci, at a yearly rental of
3250 ducats, the city reserving fourteen aposentos, which
were leased to Luis de Aguilar, for the same term, at 800
ducats annually. The price of the aposentos was fixed at
six reals each for every representation. At this time, it
seems, there were only two other corrales in Seville, besides
1 Sanchez-Arjona, p. 65. The corral must have been built on property
belonging to the descendants of Dona Elvira de Ayala, for if she was the
daughter of Pedro Lopez de Ayala she must have been dead about two
hundred years at this time, as her father, the great Chancellor, died in
1407. See Salazar de Mendoza, Origen de las Dignidades seglares de
Castillo y Leon, Madrid, 1794, p. 278.
'Ibid., p. 65.
* See above, p. 48.
THE COLISEO 51
the Coliseo, namely, the Doha Elvira and the San Pedro.
We learn, moreover, that in 1608 less than one hun-
dred and fifty comedias were represented in the city, "on
account of the rains, the dog-days, Lent, and for lack of
theatrical companies."1 Indeed, it is said that, on an aver-
age, the period during which performances were given
in a corral did not exceed four months in the year, after
deducting Sundays, Lent, the summer months (in which
no plays were given), the rainy days, and other occasions.
The price of the sillas in the theaters at this time was half
a real ; a seat on the bancos one real, and the aposentos six
reals each.
The Coliseo, though the latest and largest of the cor-
rales in Seville, was originally without a roof, as we learn
from the fact that those living in the immediate neighbor-
hood used to gather on the tops of their houses to
view the performance, "thus occasioning considerable
loss and much noise."2 It was a wooden structure,
which must have been very poorly built, for por-
tions of it had to be repaired and rebuilt in 1614.
It was, on its reconstruction, provided with 250 seats
with backs (sillas de respaldo) and 50 benches cov-
ered with leather and having stuffed backs (taburetes con
asientos de vaca y los espaldares aforrados de baldana con
sits clavos de hierro negros ) . The interior was supported
by twenty Doric columns, with bases and capitals of white
marble; these were ten feet high, the first gallery hav-
ing twenty columns, likewise of marble, seven feet high.
In this gallery were the twenty-nine aposentos, the guard-
rails of which were of iron, and above this another gallery
or corredor. Here the ventanas were situated, each more
than two and a half yards high and one and a half yards
wide, in the wall in the side of the house of the Marquis
of Ayamonte. The object of these ventanas was to give
light to the corral, which, unlike other theaters of the
1 Sanchez-Arjona, p. 133. 'Ibid., p. 152.
52 THE SPANISH STAGE
time, was covered by a roof and painted ceiling. Besides
the patio, in which the representations took place, there
was another space, forming an entrance, the floor of which
was paved with stone and likewise decorated in marble.
The principal entrance was also of marble, surmounted by
the arms of the city. In the body of the house (patio de
las representaciones) were placed fixed benches (bancos)
and the sillas de respaldo and taburetes above mentioned.
The work of rebuilding, though begun in 1614, progressed
slowly, and the theater was finally leased for 6500 ducats
annually, on condition that the lessee should finish it by
Easter of 1616.1 It appears that, in spite of the large
amount of money expended in the construction of the
Coliseo, its acoustic properties were defective, and the
autores coming to Seville preferred the Corral de Doha
Elvira, although the latter was now in poor condition and
in need of repairs.
These two corrales were the only ones in Seville in which
performances were now given, and so great was the pref-
erence for the older of them (Dona Elvira) that in 1617
Juan Acacio, after representing for some time in the
Coliseo, petitioned that his company might now pass to
the Dona Elvira (in which Pedro Llorente's company was
then performing) , on account of the few people who visited
the Coliseo, and that representations be given alternately
by. the two autores for fixed periods in the two corrales.2
Such, however, was the unsafe condition of the Dona
Elvira (the roof and other portions of which were in
imminent danger of falling, according to an examination
made by a commission) that it was resolved to tear down
this corral in part and rebuild it. Accordingly, Pedro de
Valdes, who was then (February, 161 7) representing with
his company in the Doha Elvira, was notified to cease,
under a penalty of 200 ducats. Valdes objected on ac-
count of the large amount that he had expended for
apariencias especially made for a comedia already an-
1 Sanchez-Arjona, p. 174. "Ibid., p. 183.
AUTOS IN THE CORRALES 53
nounced, and the threat to close the theater was not carried
into effect, though it is to be presumed that some repairs
were made in the building, for in the following May,
Pedro Llorente was still performing therein.
At this time the yearly rental of the Corral de Dona
Elvira was 3700 reals, plus one half the profits, the other
half going to the lessee.1
As the residence of the Marquis of Ayamonte, in the
Plaza de la Regina, adjoined the Coliseo, the city granted
him the privilege of making a private entrance to one of
the aposentos, "in view of the fact that his party-wall had
been used without expense to the theater; that he had
furnished water from one of his private fountains, and had
otherwise aided in the construction of the said corral."
This aposento was to be enjoyed by him and his successors
without cost.
Lope de Vega's Obras son Amores, an auto written in
1 61 5, but not yet performed, was represented in Seville
in this year (161 8), he receiving 600 reals for it.
The number of persons frequenting the theater having
greatly diminished, to the serious loss of all concerned, and
especially of the city and of the dependent charities, it was
resolved to close the Corral de Dona Elvira and to restrict
all performances to the Coliseo. No representations were to
be given in the Dona Elvira after January 1, 1620, and
the rental of the Coliseo was increased 400 ducats an-
nually, to counterbalance the loss occasioned by the closure
of the Dona Elvira.
It was customary, says Sanchez- Arjona, to represent the
autos of the festival of Corpus Christi in the corrales,
which was an additional source of profit to the theatrical
managers. This year (161 9) they were represented in
the Dona Elvira by the companies of Juan Acacio and
Diego Vallejo, and a poster announcing a performance
on June 5, 161 9, is still preserved in the Archivo del
Ayuntamiento of Seville.2
1 Sanchez-Arjona, p. 185. 2 See below, p. 133.
54 THE SPANISH STAGE
On the afternoon of July 25, 1620, the Coliseo was com-
pletely destroyed .by fire during the performance of Clara-
monte's comedia San Onofre 6 elRey de los Desiertos, by
the company of Juan Bautista and Juan Jeronimo Valen-
ciano. Fifteen or sixteen persons, mostly women and chil-
dren, lost their lives. The actors all escaped, the one who
played the part of San Onofre running into the street
almost nude, "with a bunch of ivy (mat a de yedra) for
small-clothes (por patios menores). On seeing him in
this strange guise, he was pursued by a shouting crowd of
little boys until he reached his house, which, unfortunately,
was some distance off." 1
While some of the good citizens of Seville looked upon
the burning of the Coliseo as a visitation of the wrath of
the Almighty, the municipal authorities, considering the
loss which the city had sustained in its revenues, viewed it
in a different light and resolved to rebuild the theater.
Meanwhile all theatrical performances were confined to
the Dona Elvira, which had been condemned and ordered
to be torn down after January 1, 1620, as we have seen.
As a matter of fact, representations did not cease in the
Dona Elvira on January 1, and the lessee at the time,
Luis de Leon,2 continued to give performances in it.
On March 31, 1621, Philip the Third died, the theaters
were closed, and all representations were suspended until
July 28, not a castanet being heard at the performance of
the autos of that year.3
The city, having resolved, in 1622, to rebuild the
Coliseo, which had been destroyed by fire in 1620, hit
upon a rather novel expedient. The new theater was to
be leased for a period of nine years, the lessee to pay 2000
ducats annually, to build the theater at his own expense,
and to be recouped from the receipts. The lease was ad-
judged to Juan Bautista de Villalobos, apparently a man
1 Sanchez-Arjona, p. 212.
2 Ibid. In Nuevos Datos, p. 174, this name is given as Luis de Lesa.
'Pellicer, Vol. I, p. 161.
SOME STATISTICS 55
of straw, put up by Diego de Almonacid. The rent
was to begin on January 1, 1623; the theater to be fin-
ished, according to plans furnished by the city, on the
first day of Pascua Florida of 1624. The prices for ad-
mission to the various localities in the theater were fixed
as follows: one real for each banco (which was to hold at
least three persons), 24 maravedis for a Mia, 18 mara-
vedis for a taburete, 6 reals each for the aposentos
which were entered through the corral, and 12 reals
for each aposento entered from the outside of the corral,
because persons using the latter were to pay nothing at
the entrance. Out of these 12 reals, however, the lessee
was obliged to pay the theater's share in the maintenance
of the public prison and such other imposts as were payable
out of the entrance money. In addition, the lessee was
entitled to his share of the takings at the second door. In
the patio eight or nine fixed benches were to be placed for
those who only paid the entrance fee.1
In order to determine the rental to be paid, the
following curious statistics were drawn up, showing
the amounts produced and the expenses incurred. It is
one of the most important documents concerning the early
Spanish theater which we possess, and is as follows:
Representations can only be given on 198 days out of the
365 in a year, since none can be given on the remaining 1 67
days, for the following reasons :
46. days during Lent.
77 days for the months of July, August, and half of Sep-
tember, when no autores come to Seville.
34 for the Saturdays, on which days no performance can
be given.
10 days to be allowed for the making of apariencias
(stage machinery) ; for St. Sebastian's and St.
James's day; because of few spectators and on ac-
count of rain.
167 days.
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 218.
$6 THE SPANISH STAGE
There remain 198 days for representations, "rather less
than more, for none have been deducted for the time that
elapses between the coming and going of the various
autores."
The lessee's share for these 198 days is: From the en-
trance fee of each person he receives 5 maravedis, "and
as it is notorious that many persons enter who do not pay,
it is calculated that, taking one day with another, about
350 persons will pay each day, which, at 5 maravedis,
amounts to 5 1 l/i reals."
From each silla he receives 6 cuartos (=24 maravedis)
and from each taburete 4^ cuartos (=18 maravedis),
and taking into account those for which nothing is received,
it is estimated that 40 sillas and 20 taburetes will be paid
for daily, which amounts to 39 reals.
From each banco the lessee receives one real, and count-
ing that on an average thirty-two are rented daily, this
amounts to 32 reals.
Of the twenty-eight aposentos, supposing that on an
average twelve are rented, and taking these at an average
rate of 9 reals each, produces 108 reals daily.
Estimating the rental of the right to sell water, sweets,
fruit, aloja (a kind of mead), etc., at 8 reals per day, it
gives a total of 238J4 reals daily, which, for 198 days,
amounts to 47,223 reals. Besides, during Lent and at
other times it is customary to have in the Coliseo puppet-
shows or pantomimes {titer es) and other games, and
these produce about 1000 reals yearly. The living-rooms
in the residence portion of the Coliseo (which are also
one of the benefits accruing to the lessee) are worth 600
reals each year. This makes the total annual receipts
of the lessee 48,823 reals.
Payments and expenditures: The amount expended in
sending for the various autores, for sums advanced to"
them, and for cost of apariencias and other expenses, 5
reals for each day of representation. To the person who
LA MONTERIA 57
takes the money at the first entrance, 8 reals daily; to the
person in charge of the sillas and buncos, 6 reals daily; to
the person who hires the aposentos on the right-hand side,
6 reals ; to the one who hires the aposentos on the left, 6
reals daily. To the autor representing, an average of 64^
reals daily as an ayuda de costas.1 To the poor of the
prison, one sixth of the proceeds of the aposentos, sillas,
and bancos (together 179 reals), that is, 29 y2 reals. This
makes a total daily expenditure of 125 reals, or in 198
days 24,750 reals. Adding to this the interest on the
sum expended in the erection of the Coliseo, about 10,000
ducats, which amounts to about 10 reals per day, or 3650
reals for the year, the total amount of expenditures is
about 28,400 reals. Deducting this from the receipts,
48,823 reals, leaves a profit of about 20,423 reals annually.
If, therefore, the corral were rented for 1600 ducats
(17,600 reals), it would leave a sufficient profit to the
lessee. We have seen that it had been rented to Juan
Bautista de Villalobos for 2000 ducats annually.
In 1626, in the former Alcazar of Seville, in the spa-
cious "patio de la Monteria" a new theater was built
called La Monteria. The corral was leased to Diego de
Almonaci, the younger {el mozo), "who shall cause to be
constructed on his own account, and according to the plans
made by Bermudo Resta, a corral for the representation of
comedias, he to enjoy the profits for the space of ten
years, to begin with the day of Pascua de la Resurreccion."
The condition of the agreement was that the amount ex-
1 Besides this amount the autor received his share of the money taken at
the door. This, however, does not seem to have been the usual practice.
It was customary for the lessee of the theater to give a fixed sum to the
autor of the company for each performance. As an instance we may men-
tion that Diego de Almonacid, lessee of the corrales of Seville in 1619, had
signed an agreement in that year, whereby Hernan Sanchez de Vargas and
his company were to give sixty representations in the Coliseo, the said
Sanchez to receive 1000 reals for each performance. These representations
were actually given by the company of Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan. (Nue-
vos Datos, p. 177.)
58 THE SPANISH STAGE
pended by the lessee, under the supervision of the oficiales
of the Alcazar, was to be deducted from the rent, which
was fixed at 850 ducats annually, Almonaci agreeing to
finish the corral by the next ensuing Pascua Florida, the
contract being dated December 6, 1625.
As already stated, the theater was to be built at the sole
expense of the lessee, "who was to enjoy all the profits
there might be from the street entrance to the second door of
La Monteria, as well as what might be taken from the ad-
missions, bancos, sillas, aposentos, or any other thing which
might or ought to be profitable." 1 Only one real was to be
charged for each silla as well as for each banco (perhaps
this means for each seat on a banco, as they held three
persons) ; six reals for the aposentos (boxes or stalls)
entered from within, and twelve reals for those entered
directly from the street, because persons using the former
also had to pay an entrance fee. It was stipulated that
there should be two alguaciles, each to be paid ten reals
daily, at the joint expense of the lessee and the autor;
one of these officers to be stationed at the first entrance,
the other at the entrance for women. The building
was to be of wood and all the aposentos and passages
to be paved with brick; the aposentos to be furnished
with partitions and iron railings and lattices or blinds.
The whole to be whitewashed and the aposentos to be
provided with doors, locks, and keys. The structure
was oval,2 with two rows or series of aposentos, situated
on the right and left of the principal entrance. There were
thirty-four aposentos, sixteen above and eighteen below,
of which four were reserved for the Alcazar. Above the
aposentos was the cazuela (stewpan), or place set apart
1 "Que acabado el corral el arrendador habia de gozar de todos los
aprovechamientos que hubiere 6 pudiese haber desde la puerta de la calk
hasta la segunda puerta de la Monteria, asi lo que se cobrase de entradas,
bancos, sillas," etc. (Sanchez-Arjona, p. 250.)
'This was the first oval theater, to my knowledge. All others had been
rectangular in shape.
A COSTLY THEATER 59
for women. The patio, in which the sillas and bancos were
placed, was of earth firmly rammed, and the whole corral
was covered by a wooden roof. The building also con-
tained living-rooms for the autor or for the players. Its
total cost was over 183,000 reals.1 This sum, which
represents a purchasing power to-day of about $45,000,
will give some idea of the character of the new theater,
ha Monteria. The first representation in it took place on
May 25, 1626.
The Corral de Dona Elvira, which had its entrance in
the Calle del Agua, opposite the Calle del Chorro, had
long been in need of repairs. Like the rest of the
older theaters of the time, it consisted of a spacious
patio open to the sky, surrounded by covered aposentos
and a covered cazuela. The more convenient situation
of La Monteria (though it was not very far from the
Dona Elvira), and the fact that the former was a new
and much handsomer structure, gradually caused the public
to neglect more and more the Dona Elvira, which was
finally closed and torn down. A part of it was converted
into a tavern, the remaining ground being used for games.
Later, cards and dice were played here, and the place be-
came the haunt of ruffians and vagabonds. Finally, in
1679, an asylum for poor priests was built on its site.
In 1629 La Monteria was leased to Domingo de Rogas
for six years at 1450 ducats annually. While the Coliseo
was to have been finished by Easter, 1624, as we have
1The very interesting memorandum, preserved in the Archivo del Alca-
zar, is as follows: "Importe de la madera 63,730 reales. Materiales 35,587.
La clavazon 18,091. Raspadores, aserradores, traida de maderas y mate-
riales, jornales al carpintero Felipe Nieto y sus oficiales y al albanil Gabriel
Marin y sus oficiales y peones 50,985. En lucir el frente del teatro y otras
paredes, solar los dos aposentos del vestuario de ladrillo, igualar a pison el
suelo del patio, hacer unas gradas, tarimas y otras obras de arbanileria y
carpinteria, y por ultimo el escudo, columnas y la Fama que se pinto encima
del teatro, por cuya pintura solo se abonaron mil reales — 4000. Planchas
de hierro y abrazaderas para la seguridad y firmeza de la obra y hierra-
mientas, etc., 11,000 reales," making a total of 183,393 reals. (Sanchez-
Arjona, Anales, p. 252.)
60 THE SPANISH STAGE
seen, the building was not actually completed until 1631.
Much of what had been built in this long interval by the
lessees was so badly done that the city determined to tear
it down and build it anew. An agreement was made with
Alonso de Vergara to construct a new theater. He
was to pay 1400 ducats yearly for ten years, the cost of the
new building to be deducted from the rent. A further con-
dition was that the structure must be finished by Easter,
1632. Rodrigo Caro describes this magnificent and
costly building, "worthy of all esteem and praise," as "the
finest of its kind in Spain, and capable of holding between
four and five thousand spectators, all of whom were
equally able to see and hear." 1
In 1636 La Monteria was leased to Miguel de Molina
for six years at an annual rental of 1450 ducats (15,950
reals), to be paid in three payments.2 In the following
year Antonio de Prado, autor de comedias, agreed with
the lessee of the Coliseo to give sixty performances, from
the second day of Easter till Corpus, receiving 200 reals
for each performance as an ayuda de costas; of these
12,000 reals 4000 were to be paid on signing the contract,
and the balance on Palm Sunday.
On October 4, 1659, the Coliseo was again destroyed by
fire, only the front wall and a few rooms (in which actors
lived) remaining of the famous edifice. It may be noted
that the two companies of players in Seville in the follow-
ing year (1660) were managed by women. These autor as
were Francisca Lopez and Juana de Cisneros.
*"El Coliseo tenia tres ordenes de aposentos, de balconeria de hierro,
unos sobre otros, trabados en estribos de magnifica y costosa silleria, cubierto
el alto de un arteson igual por techo, con rica pintura, para las representa-
ciones que se hacen al pueblo, con tanta distincion para dif erentes personas
de hombres y mujeres, que no pueden embarazarse unos a otros, y tan capaz
su disposition que caben cuatro a cinco mil personas, pudiendo gozar todas
igualmente de la vista y oido de su teatro; obra digna de toda estimation
y alabanza por la mejor de Espana de las de su genero," etc (Antigue-
dades de Seiilla, fol. 25 v, quoted by Sanchez-Arjona, p. 270.)
' In 1642 La Monteria was leased to Antonio Correa at a yearly rental
of 13,000 reals vellon.
DESTRUCTION OF LA MONTERIA 61
The Coliseo was rebuilt in 1676. Three years later
both theaters were closed on account of the plague. A
portion of La Monteria was then used as a stable, in
which, on May 3, 1691, a fire broke out, and the whole
corral was reduced to ashes, "causing it to disappear for-
ever."1
How soon after 1679 representations were resumed
in the Coliseo is uncertain. It is not likely, however,
that any performances were given in it until 1692,
when permission . was granted to a company of acro-
bats and sleight-of-hand performers to represent therein.
These performances found such favor that women used
to go to the theater early in the morning to secure a
seat. On November 12, 1698, during the performance
of Mescua's comedia El Esclavo del Demonio, a woman
in the cazuela raised a cry of fire. In the attempt to
escape from the building a number of women were killed,
and thereafter all theatrical representations in the Coliseo
were forbidden, which interdict lasted till after the middle
of the eighteenth century.3
1 Sanchez-Arjona, p. 495.
2 Concerning the theater in Valladolid, Sr. Cortes says : "El patio de
comedias se hallaba situado en el mismo sitio donde aiin existe el teatro
antiguo (plaza de las Comedias). Su administration correspondia a la
cofradia de S. Jose, con el directo apoyo del Ayuntamiento, que tenia su
aposento propio para presenciar las representaciones." (Noticias de una
Corte literaria, Valladolid, 1906, p. 30.)
CHAPTER IV
Music in the corrales. Dancing. Spectators on the stage. Various
dances and baylts at Corpus Christi. The Zarabanda, Ckacona,
Escarrttman, etc
About the middle of the sixteenth century, in the time
of Lope de Rueda, as we have seen, the music accompany-
ing the plays acted in the public squares was provided by
one or two persons "who sang an old ballad without the
accompaniment of a guitar," behind a woolen blanket,
which served as a curtain, and which separated the dress-
ing-room (vestuario) from the stage.1 It was Pedro
Navarro of Toledo, Cervantes tells us, "who brought the
musicians, who formerly sang behind the curtain, upon
the public stage."2 Here they played before and after
the performance of the farce or between the acts of a
1 See above, p. 17. Rojas, speaking of the time of Lope de Rueda, says
that a guitar was played behind the curtain:
"Tanian una guitarra
Y esta nunca salia fuera
Sino a dentro."
(Fiage entrtttmdt, ed. 1603, p. 1*4.)
* "Sucedio a Lope de Rueda Nabarro, natural de Toledo, el qual . . .
sacd la musica que antes cataua detras de la manta al teatro publico."
(Ocho Comrdias, etc., Madrid, 1615, "Prologo al Lector.") "El teatro
publico" evidently means the stage. As late as 1671 the musicians of
Moliere's troupe were concealed from the spectator: "Jusques icy [15
Auril, 1671] les musiciens et musiciennes n'auoient point voulu parroistre
en public; ils chantoient a la Comedie dans des loges grillees et treillissees,
mais on surmonta cet obstacle, et auec quelque legere despance on trouua
des personnes qui chanterent sur le Theatre k visage descouuert, habilles
comme les Comediens, scauoir . . ." etc., and he gives the names of eight
musicians. (Registrf de la Grangt, Paris, 1876, p. 134.) In the London
theaters, the "band," as Malone calls it, "sat in an upper balcony, over
6:>
THE MUSICIANS 63
comedia. As I have nowhere found any special place
designated for the musicians, it is probable that they
occupied the stage during the whole of the best period
of the comedia. Indeed, as the principal' part of their
entertainment consisted of singing, they could not have
been stationed elsewhere.
In 1593 we find that a comedia was performed "with
its entremeses and with its music of a viola and guitars,"1
and we are told that later the music consisted of "two or
three violins and an oboe." Even in the middle of the seven-
teenth century theatrical companies in Spain rarely contained
morethanfourorfivemusicians. Most of the actresses were
also dancers ( bailarines ) , and every company containedper-
sons who were designated especially as dancers, while
most players were hired both to act and dance.
In the company of the famous Alonso Riquelme, a
favorite autor of Lope de Vega, we find the following
musicians in 1607: Luis de Quinones, musico y repre-
sentante; Vega; Francisco Martinez; Leon, musico y
bailarin; Marigraviela, musica y representanta; Maria de
los Angeles, musica y representanta, and Juan Catalan,
musico y representante.2 Here the term musica, in the
case of the actresses, probably meant merely singer. In
1 619, when the comedia was almost at its apogee, the
company of Diego Vallejo contained but two musicians,
and the same number were in the companies of Juan Acacio
and Cristobal Ortiz.3 By 1640 the number of musicians
in a company seems to have been greatly increased. In
•what is now called the stage-box," and was not placed "between the pit
and the stage," until 1667. (Historical Account of the English Stage,
Basil, 1800, pp. 120, 123.)
1 Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 37. Minsheu says viola is the same as
■vihuela, "an instrument called a viall, sometimes a bandore," and defines
Vihuela de drco as "a viall de Gamba, or a great viall that men set be-
tween their legs to play on." (Spanish Dictionary, London, 1599.)
Clemencin says: "Vihuela en lo antiguo era distinto de guitarra, y habia
vihuela de mano y de arco." (Don Quixote, ed. 1833, Vol. V, p. 423.)
2 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 126.
* Ibid., pp. 203, 204.
64 THE SPANISH STAGE
that year the first five actresses in the company of Antonio
de Rueda have added to their names the word musica, and
in two of these cases the word arpa is also used ; four men
musicians are also in the company, one of them being
maestro de la musica and two being harpists. As this
company represented the autos in Seville in that year, the
large number of musicians may be due to that fact.1
Upon the English stage more attention seems to have
been paid to instrumental music, where it was likewise
played between the acts; the instruments chiefly used
were trumpets, cornets, hautboys, lutes, recorders, viols,
and organs. Malone2 cites the following stage directions
from Marston's Sophonisba, acted at the? Blackfriars
theater in 1606: "The ladies draw the curtains about
Sophonisba; — the cornets and organs playing loud full
musicke for the act. . . . Organ mixt with recorders, for
this act. . . . Organs, viols, and voices play for this
act. ... A base lute and treble viol play for this act."
And in Henslowe's Diary3 we read: "Lent unto Richard
Jonnes the 22 of desember 1598 to bye a basse viall &
other enstrementes for the companey, x x x x s."
It is well known that in the Elizabethan theater the gal-
lants frequently took seats upon the stage;4 whether this
1In 1631 Luisa de Guevara agreed to play third parts in the company of
Juan Martinez and also first musical parts (primera parte de musica)
(Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 220) ; and in 1633 Alonso Gonzalez Cama-
cho agreed to play the violin, dance, and poner los tonos in the company of
Fernan Sanchez de Vargas during the octave of Corpus for 500 reals, a
very considerable amount. (Ibid., p. 233 ; see also ibid., p. 246.) Every
company also contained a prompter (apuntador).
'Historical Account of the English Stage, Basil, 1800, p. 120, note.
* Edited by W. W. Greg, London, 1904, Vol. I, p. 100.
"'Whether therefore the gatherers [Spanish = cobradores~\ of the public
or private playhouse stand to receive the afternoones rent, let our Gallant
(hauing paid it) presently aduance himself up to the throne of the Stage.
I mean not into the Lords roome . . . but on the very Rushes where the
Comedy is to daunce. ... By sitting on the Stage, you haue a signed patent
to engrosse the whole commodity of Censure; may lawfully presume to be
a Girder ; and stand at the helme to steere the passage of scttnes, etc. . . .
By sitting on the stage, you may (with small cost) purchase the deere
acquaintance of the boyes ; haue a good stiole for six pence," etc (Dekker,
SPECTATORS ON THE STAGE 65
custom prevailed in Spain in the early period we are unable
to determine.1 I find no evidence of spectators being ad-
mitted to the Madrid stage at any time. That they occu-
pied seats on the stage in Seville is shown by an incident
recorded by Sanchez-Arjona. On May 31, 1635, in the
theater La Monteria, the company of Salvador Lara and
Maria Candau, his wife, was representing the burlesque
comedia Casarse por defender. In the second act there
is a passage which necessitates the drawing of swords,
and one of the actors, Antonio de Rueda, accidentally
wounded in the face a boy who was sitting on the stage
viewing the performance, and who promptly ran out of
the theater shouting, "Confession, confession, they have
The Gufs Horne-Booke, London, 1609, chap, vi.) From the three legs of the
stools here mentioned, they were called tripos. Wallace says that "the
fad of sitting on the stage came into vogue with the Blackfriars in
1597. ... It was a custom in no other theater in Elizabeth's reign." He
adds that it was imitated afterward by two other private theaters, the
Cockpit (1617) and Salisbury Court (1629), but that it was never toler-
ated at the Globe or at any public playhouse, and was abolished sometime
prior to September 14, 1639. (The Children of the Chapel at Blackfriars
159J—1603, Lincoln, Nebraska, 1908, pp. 130 ff.) According to this writer
the custom spread from England to France.
1From the Argumento which precedes the Auto de la Ungion de David
(second half of the sixteenth century), one might infer that at the repre-
sentations of the short autos or farces of that time the spectators were in
the habit of gathering upon the platform or stage. This Argumento is as
follows: "... El acostunbrada atencjon que en semej antes casos se rrequiere
pide el autor, para que con ella entiendan claramente la obra; y porque
siento qu'el profeta [one of the characters] sale, le quiero desocupar el sitio,
suplicando a vs. mds. suplan nuestras faltas." (Coleccion de Autos, Farsas,
etc, ed. Rouanet, Vol. I, p. 315.) Bapst says that the custom of the
elegants sitting upon the stage was unknown in France in the middle of
the sixteenth century. (Essai sur I'histoire du Theatre, Paris, 1893,
p. 146.) But it was evidently in vogue in 1661, for in that year Moliere,
in the opening lines of Les Facheux, denounces this reprehensible practice,
and four years later he again complains of it at the performance of the
tragi-comedy La Coquette ou le Favori at Versailles: "Le Vendredy 12
Juin, [1665] la Troupe est allee a Versailles par ordre du Roy, oil on a
joue le Fauory dans le jardin, sur un theastre tout garny d'orangers, Mr
de Moliere fist vn prologue en marquis ridiculle qui uouloit estre sur le
theastre malgre les gardes, et eust une conuersation risible auec vne
actrice qui fist la marquise ridiculle, placee au milieu de l'assemblee."
(Registre de La Grange, Paris, 1876, p. 74.) Voltaire also alludes to
"la foule des spectateurs confondues sur la seine avec les acteurs" on the
66 THE SPANISH STAGE
killed me." The wound was a slight one, and the barber,
we are told, made "la primera cura."1
As early as the beginning of the Christian era Spanish
women were celebrated as dancers,2 and as far as modern
times are concerned, Ticknor truly observes that "dancing
has been to Spain what music has been to Italy, a passion
with the whole population." As Cervantes says :
There never yet has been a Spanish woman
Who was not born into this world a dancer.3
/•"**■
! From the King down, everybody danced, and it was said
of the grave and somber Philip the Third that "he dances
very well and it is the thing that he does best and enjoys
' most."4
occasion of the first performance of his Semiramis. (Dissertation sur la
Tragedie Ancienne et Moderne (seconde partie), in Oeuvres Completes,
Paris, 1823, Vol. Ill, p. 111.) According to Despois this practice did not
cease in France till 1759. See his interesting note in Oeuvres de Moliere
(ed. des Grands IJcrivains de la France), Paris, 1876, Vol. Ill, p. 36, and
Fischmann, Moliere als Schauspieldirektor, in Ztft. fiir Franz. Sprache und
Lit. (1905), p. 30.
1 Sanchez- Arjona, Anales, p. 296.
1 Spanish dancers were famous among the Romans, the lascivious dances
of the women of Cadiz being especially mentioned by Juvenal and Martial.
Mariana, in his chapter on the Zarabanda, says: "las mugeres que hacian
este baile de deshonestidad las Hamaban en Roma gaditanas, de Cadiz,
ciudad de Espafia, donde se debio de inventar en aquel tiempo." (Contra
los Juegos publicos, cap. xii.) Martial's words are :
"Nee de Gadibus improbis puellae
Vibrabunt sine fine prurientes
Lascivos docili tremore lumbos."
See also the eleventh Satire of Juvenal, the passage beginning: Forsitan
expectes ut gaditana canoro, etc.
* "No ay muger Espanola que no saiga
del vientre de su madre bayladora."
La gran Sultana, Act III. (Ocho Comedias, Madrid, 1615, fol. 130, v.)
* See the very interesting Cuadros viejos of Julio Monreal, Madrid,
1878, the chapter entitled "Los Bailes de antafio." In Lope's El Maestro
de Danzar (written in 1594), Tebano says:
"Verdad es que es el danzar
£1 alma de la hermosura,
Que mas que el rostro procura
Persuadir y enamorar.
DANCES AT CORPUS 67
Music and dancing seem to have been indispensable
accompaniments of the comedia from the earliest times.
They were also a necessary part of all religious festivals
and representations, and we may be sure that no auto was
performed without music and dancing for the delectation
of the spectators. One of the earliest documents pre-
served in the Archives of Madrid concerning these
dances is dated May 17, 1574, when Alfonso de Silva,
dancing-master, agreed to present four dances at the festi-
val of the Holy Sacrament;1 and in 1579 Jusepe de las
Cuevas produced a dance "representing the battle of
Rodrigo de Narvaez with the Moor Abindarraez" at the
festival of Corpus Christi, and also a dance of the "Seven
Virtues and Seven Sins."2 These dancers were frequently
Portuguese, and in 1587 one Hurtado, at the Corpus
festival in Seville, exhibited a car "with five Portuguese
women, with their tamboriles and sonajas3 and instru-
ments, who are to dance, play, and sing along the streets
through which the procession is to pass";4 and in 1590
eight ducats were paid to Leonor Rija, a mulatto, to ap-
pear upon a car at Corpus in Seville, and dance, sing, and
play the guitar, sonajas and tatnboril, together with four
other mulatto women and two men.5 In the same city at
the Corpus festival of 1591, two sleight-of-hand perform-
Que aquel agil movimiento
Muestra con mayor afeto
Un sentimiento secreto
Que nos muestra sentimiento."
(Act I, Scene IV, ed. Hartzenbusch, II, p. 73.)
1 Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 9.
* Ibid., p. 12.
* Tamboril = timbrel or tabor ; sonajas = "a kind of instrument the country
people dance to, being a round, flat frame of wood, with both sides covered
with parchment like a drum, not above six inches diameter, and not above
two inches between the parchments, and round the frame horse-bells or loose
brass plates are set; this they shake with the one hand and strike it with
the other to make a rustical musick." (Delpino's Spanish Dictionary, Lon-
don, 1758.)
* Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 77.
*Ibid.,y. 81.
68 THE SPANISH STAGE
ers, with living birds, "according to the custom of the
Italians," with music and ballads "in the sacred style," took
part.1 For a dance at the Corpus festival of 1609 the
Villa de Madrid paid 1550 reals to Andres de Najera.
This was a danza de cascabel, entitled "The dance of Gay-
feros and rescue of Melisendra," to consist of nine per-
sonages: "four Frenchmen, four Moors, and the infanta
Melisendra; also an enchanted castle, a horse of painted
pasteboard (papelon), and Don Gayferos." A descrip-
tion of the rich costumes of the dancers follows, and we
are told that the castle is to be provided with hinges, so
that it may be opened where desired.2 In 161 1 there is
mentioned a "Dance of King Alonso,"3 and in 1623 a
dance called "The History of the Marquis of Caiiete."
1 Sanchez-Arjona, p. 82. For other dances at the Corpus festival at
Madrid in the closing years of the sixteenth century, see below, pp. 74, 75.
2 Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 113. "Las danzas de cascabel eran para
gente que puede salir a danzar por las calles. Y hubiera sido indecente
que asistiesen a ellas los maestros. Era danza muy diversa de la de cuenta
que era para Principes y gente de reputacion." (Don Quixote, ed. Clemen-
cin, Vol. VI, p. 273.) Clemencin's source for this statement was probably
Juan de Esquivel, Discursos sobre el Arte del danzado, Sevilla, 1642, who
tells us that Philip IV. was extremely fond of dancing: "El Rey nuestro
Senor, a cuya obediencia se postran los dilatados terminos del mundo,
aprendio este arte, y quando le obra, es con la mayor eminencia, gala y
sazon que puede percibir la imaginacion mas atenta." He mentions the most
famous dancing-masters of the time, among them Antonio de Almenda, of
Madrid, Philip's teacher, Jose Rodriguez Tirado of Seville, Antonio de
Burgos, Juan de Pastrana, and others. On fol. 30, v., he says that "jdcara,
rastro, zarabanda y tarraga son una misma cosa." He always speaks
with contempt of the "bailes populares, a los que llaman danzas," as un-
worthy of gentlemen. On fol. 44, v., he says : "Todos los maestros aborrecen
a los de las danzas de cascabel, y con mucha razon porque es muy distinta
a la de quenta y de muy inferior lugar, y ansi ningun maestro de reputacion
y con escuela abierta, se ha hall ado jamas en seme j antes chapandacas y si
alguno lo ha hecho, no habra sido teniendo escuela, ni llegado a noticia de
sus discipulos, porque el que lo supiese rehusara serlo de alii adelante,
porque la danza de cascabel es para gente que puede salir a dangar por las
calles, y a estas dancas llama por gracejo Francisco Ramos, la tarasca del
dia de Dios," etc. (Gayangos, in the Spanish translation of Ticknor's
History, Tomo III, p. 458.)
'This seems to have been a very ancient dance. Cervantes alludes to it
at the close of his entremes El Rufian -viudo as :
"El Rey don Alonso el Bueno,
Gloria de la antiguedad."
BAYLES 69
In 1634 costumes were hired from Alonso de la Vega,
autor de comedias, for a dance in the town of Mejorada,
the sum paid being 150 reals, besides a skin (bota) of wine
of half a gallon, and a hen, "which are to be presented
to the said autor by the mayordomos of the Lady of the
Rosary of the said town";1 and in 1637 we read of a
sword dance (danza de espadas) to be performed in the
town of Valdemoro.2
Dances or bayles, and short interludes, called erttre-
meses, were inseparable from the comedia. Most of the
players in a theatrical company, as already observed, also
sang and danced, besides acting in the comedia, and many
of the contracts between manager and player stipulate
that the player is to act, sing, and dance {para representor,
cantar y bailar) . Of the nature of these bayles we know
very little, except that many of them were deshonestos.3
They were always accompanied by words or by singing;4
the three or four most celebrated bayles, at least, having
each its particular air, to which the later ones were often
sung. They were frequently of such a loose and licentious «-
nature that they caused great scandal and obliged the
It is mentioned in the Tragicomedia de Lysandro y Roselia (Salamanca (?),
1542). See Coleccion de Libros espaholes raros 6 curiosos, Vol. Ill, Madrid,
1872, p. 22s, and Pellicer's note to his edition of Don Quixote, Madrid,
1797, Vol. IV, p. 102.
'Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 238.
2 On the danza de espadas, see Leon-Pinelo, Velos antiguos y modernos,
Madrid, 1641, fol. 112, v.
8 Gonzales de Salas makes the following distinction between danzas and
bailes: "Dances are measured and grave movements in which the arms are
not used, but the feet only. Bailes admit of freer gestures of the arms and
feet at the same time." (Nueva Idea de la Tragedia antigua, Madrid,
1778, p. 171.) See, however, Pellicer's note to Don Quixote, Pt. II, chap,
xlviii, on the distinction between bailar and danzar.
"'Assi tambien lo vemos en nuestros Theatros, pues unas veces
Danzan i Bailan solo al son de los instrumentos, i otras veces al son de lo
que con los instrumentos cantan las voces. I lo que mas es, los mismos
que danzan i bailan, cantan juntamente, primor i elegancia en estos ultimos
aiios [before 1633] introducida, i sumamente dificultosa, siendo fuerza que
estorbe, para la concentuosa harmonia de la voz, el espiritu alterado i de-
fectuoso con los ajitados movimientos." (Gonzales de Salas, ibid., p. 173.)
70 THE SPANISH STAGE
authorities to intervene and suppress them.1 Of these
bayles the most famous as well as the most voluptuous and
indecent, it seems, was the Zarabanda, first introduced
about 1588, according to Pellicer.
The earliest authentic date that I have found for the
Zarabanda is contained in the Cancionero Classense, from
which excerpts and a complete list of contents have been
published by Professor Restori.2 This Cancionero was
copied by Alonco de Nabarete of Pisa in Madrid, in 1589.
On fol. 94, v., we read:
La Qarabanda:
L,a Qarabanda esta presa
que dello mucho me pesa
que merece ser condesa
y tambien emperadora
"A la perra mora! A la matadora!"3
'It is well known that the Elizabethan plays generally began with a
prologue and ended with a "jig," which has been described as a "dramatic
performance in rime, every part of which was sung by the performers, and
one which was frequently exhibited on the stage as an afterpiece, as farces
are at present." (Ward, History of English Dramatic Literature, Vol. I,
p. 476. See also Collier, Annals, Vol. Ill, pp. 376 flf.)
2 Cancionero Classense, Roma, 1902.
* This shows, moreover, that the bayle entitled La Perra Mora and also
La Matadora were then well known, and as Professor Restori remarks that
there are "30 strofe con vari ritornelli," it is very probable that many other
bayles current at the time are mentioned in these refrains. Three bayles
by Quinones de Benavente are published among his Entremeses. They
generally contain about a hundred verses or less, and are danced by two
men and two women and a gracioso, or three men, three women, and a
gracioso. A Bayle famoso del Cauallero de Olmedo, compuesto par Lope de
Vega, is printed at the end of Lope's Comedias, Part VII, Barcelona, 1617,
made up, in no small part, of snatches from the old popular ballads.
In Cervantes's entremes La Cueua de Salamanca, near the end, we are
told that the Zarabanda and other bayles were invented in hell :
Pancracio: "Digame senor mio, pues los diablos lo saben todo 1 donde se
inuentaron todos estos bayles de las zarauandas, zambapalo, y dello me
pesa, con el famoso del nueuo escarraman? Barber 0: Adonde ? en el in-
fierno, alii tuuieron su origen y principio." (Ocho Comedias y ocho Entre-
meses nueuos, etc., Madrid, 1615, fol. 252, v.) Many of the dramatists
wrote bayles, and they are found in nearly all the collections of en-
tremeses published in the .second half of the seventeenth century. The-
little volume called Migaxas del lngenio contains several by Lanini,
among them a "baile cantado."
THE Z ARAB AND A 71
Much has been written about this dance; all agree that it
was -pestiferous," and perhaps this ought to suffice.1 It
is therefore most strange that, in spite of its notorious
immorality, the Zarabanda should have been danced at
the festival of Corpus Christi in Seville in 1593, when
the autos were represented by the company of the cele-
brated Jeronimo Velazquez.2 Many were the remon-
strances against this dance, especially by churchmen.3 The
Zarabanda was followed by other and, it is to be feared,
not much more decorous dances.4 Among the most cele-
1 Alonso Lopez gives a description of the Zarabanda as he saw it danced
in the house of his friend Fadrique. There he saw "una moca de buen
talle, y a una vieja de feo y pesimo. La moca se inclino hazia el un lado
del suelo, y alcp una vihuela, y comengo a cantar, y cantando, acabo uno
y otro romance viejo; tan bien, que el Pinciano quedo a ella honestamente
aficionado, que hasta entonces parecian las mugeres, la una, una sancta
Monica; y la otra una sancta Anastasia: pero poco despues descubrieron la
hilaza (como dizen) que la que parecia antes Anastasia, se troco en Satha-
nas, y la Monica en Demonica fue conuertida: porque se levanto la una, y la
otra de la mesa, y la moga con su vihuela dangando y cantando, y la vieja
con una guitarra cantando y dangando, dixeron de aquellas suzias bocas mil
porquerias, esforgandolas con los instrumentos, y mouimientos de sus cuerpos
poco castos. Tal fue la dissolucion, que los tres hombres, que solos eran,
estauan corridos y afrentados." (Philosophia antiguq foetica, Madrid,
IS9^> P- 4Z9-) See also, on the Zarabanda, the interesting note of Bonilla y
San Martin in his edition of Guevara's Diablo Cojuelo, Vigo, 1902, pp. 140,
141, and the learned dissertation on this and other dances by Rodriguez
Marin, El Loaysa de "El Celoso Extremeno" Sevilla, 1901, pp. 256-288.
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 85.
8 See Cotarelo y Mori, Bibliografia de las Controversias sobre la Licitud
del Teatro en Espana, Madrid, 1904, pp. 375 ff., an excellent work.
* The historian Mariana in his treatise Contra los Juegos publicos devotes
a whole chapter (xii) to the bade y cantar llamado Zarabanda. He is
scathing in his denunciation of this dance, which he says was danced in
one of the most illustrious cities of Spain in the procession and festival of
Corpus Christi: "Sabemos por cierta haberse danzado este baile en una de
las mas ilustres ciudades de Espana, en la misma procesion y fiesta del
santisimo Sacramento del cuerpo de Cristo, nuestro Scfior, dando a su
Majestad humo a narices con lo que piensan honralle. Poco es esto: despues
sabemos que en la raesma ciudad, en diversos monesterios de monjas y en
la mesma festividad se hizo, no solo este son y baile, sino los meneos tan
torpes, que fue menester se cubriesen los ojos las personas honestas que alii
estaban." (Biblioteca de Autores Espaholes, Vol. XXXI, p. 433.) In this
Mariana is supported by the evidence of Cervantes, cited in the text.
Ticknor also mentions a performance of the Count of Lemos's comedia La
Casa confusa, now lost, which was given in the church of San Bias at
72 THE SPANISH STAGE
brated were the Chacona and the Escarraman. Cervantes
and Lope de Vega were both great admirers of the popular
dances, and the former has introduced a chacona in his
novel The Iltustrious Kitchen-maid, which is danced by
muleteers and Galician girls, the refrain of which is :
The Chacona is a treasure:
Makes of life a real pleasure.
The third stanza is as follows:1
Oft that noble dame Chacona,
With the Saraband allied,
Has put our carking cares to rout
And the black bitch has defied.
Oft Chacona makes its entry
Through the chinks of convent cell,
And that tranquil virtue flutters
Which in sacred haunt should dwell.
Often those who most admire it
Rail against Chacona's charm,
For the fool is ever eager,
And the loose imagine harm, etc.2
But the Chacona and the Escarraman were no less vigor-
ously opposed by the clergy than the Zarabanda had been.
Lerma, before Philip III. and his court in 1618, ending with "the scandalous
and voluptuous dance of the Zarabanda." (History of Spanish Literature,
Vol. II, p. 519, note.) This also shows that the dance continued in vogue
despite all opposition. In fact, as Pellicer (Vol. I, p. 138) says: "la Zara-
banda quedo tan mal muerta que aun vivia y pirueteaba en los Corrales de
Madrid el ano de 1640."
1 Cervantes, The Exemplary Novels, translated by N. Maccoll, Glasgow,
Gowans & Gray, 1902, Vol. I, p. 55.
2"Que de veces ha intentado
Aquesta noble sefiora
Con la alegre Zarabanda,
El pesame, y perra mora
Entrarse por los resquicios
De las casas religiosas," etc.
It should be observed here that the pesame and the perra mora were also
bayles. The Escarraman is danced in Cervantes's entrcmes entitled El
Rufian biudo.
THE CHACONA
73
In 1 613 we find the Catalan Jesuit, P. Juan Ferrer,
speaking of them in these terms: "In a certain city in
Spain there was current at one time one of those songs
which they call the chacona, of such licentiousness that it
created the greatest scandal, and now there are songs which
they call escarraman, sung in this city [Barcelona], that
have been produced in the theaters with such lewdness that
even the admirers of the comedia were scandalized thereby,
and many left the theater to avoid hearing them." x
Besides the three bayles or dances just mentioned, which
1 Cotarelo y Mori, Controversial, p. 253. The Chacona is defined as a
"Son 6 tanido que se toca en varios instrumentos, al cual se baila una danza
de cuenta con las castanetas, muy airosa y vistosa, que no solo se baila en
Espana en los festines, sino que de ella la han tornado otras naciones, y le
dan este mismo norabre." (Die. de Aut.) In the very rare volume, "Norte
de la Poesia Espanola ilustrado del Sol de doze Comedias (que forman
Segunda Parte) de laureados Poetas ValenAanos, etc. Ano 1616. Impreso
en Valencia: En la Impresion de Felipe Mey," there are found, at the end
of Ricardo de Turia's comedia La Fe pagada, "tres f amosas Chaconas para
cantar," of which the first is as follows :
"Assi vida, vida bona,
vida vamonos a Chacona.
Acuerdome un tiempo quando
dulce, y amada Senora,
la noche me hallo en tus bracos,
y en ellos el Alba hermosa.
Y en medio destos contentos,
aunque mejor diria glorias,
con la grana de tus labios
mescle mis dos amapolas.
Y aunque acertaron a hallarse
dos lenguas en cada boca,
en un profundo silencio
pasamos la noche toda.
Ay quanto un amor se aumenta,
y una aficion se acrisola
entre sauanas suaues,
y entre las obscuras sombras.
Alii en bonanca tranquila
olas de estorbos se cortan,
los uracanes de celos
su fuerca, y poder aflojan.
Los escollos de desdenes
en dulce puerto se tornan,
y los baxios de ausencia
del gran Neptuno en la concha.
Y con tener sesgo el mar,
y tener el viento en popa,
no nauega mal quien puede
nauegar legua por hora.
Que del trabajo del vaso
por ser materia porosa,
Sudan mastiles y jarcias,
y los velames se mojan.
Que en seme j ante ocasion
sudaran hasta las rocas;
tal es el dulce trabajo,
y la apacible congoja.
Los prosperos vientos cesan,
y asesan con vozes roncas
los pechos que el pecho dieron
al agua del amor sabrosa.
Falta el viento, y el aliento
antes de salir se ahoga,
quedando el Vagel rendido
en una calma amorosa,
hasta que refresca el viento,
y la gente se alboroca,
continuando el viage
hasta arribar a las costas.
Asi vida, vida bona," etc.
74 THE SPANISH STAGE
were the most popular, Pellicer mentions a number of other
"bayles antiguos" : the Turdion, Pavana, Madanta Or-
liens, Pie de gibao, Rey Don Alonso el Bueno, etc., and of
what he calls the "populares y truanescos," he gives a long
list, including the Carreteria, Hermano Bartolo, Polio,
Perra Mora, Canario,1 etc. That these dances were in
vogue at about the same time is shown by the fact that the
Canario, Rey Don Alonso el Bueno, Coscolina, Repulida,
Pizpita, Chiquinaque, Mostrenca, Juan Claros el galan,
Zambapalo, Pesame dello, Gallarda, Villano, and others
are mentioned by Cervantes in the Escarraman which he
has introduced into his interlude El Rufian biudo.2
Many other curious dances are mentioned by Perez
Pastor, which were performed at the Corpus Christi fes-
tival in Madrid: in 1584 the Danza de Radamante,
Reinaldos, Roldan, Oliveros and Montesinos, and the
Llegada de Eneas a Cartago;3 in 1592 the Danza de seis
Abestruces y seis Muchachos zapateadores and the Danza
de la Recuperacion de Espana;* in 1596 the Danza del
Robo de Elena and Danza de Villanos y Villanas;5 in
1 Tratado historico, Vol. I, p. 126, and p. 137 for a long list of bayles that
were danced to the air of the Zarabanda.
2 Lope de Vega laments the disappearance of these old dances, and
mentions another, La Alemana: "se van oluidandose ... las dancas
antiguas, con estas acciones gesticulares, y mouimientos lasciuos de las
Chaconas, en tanta ofensa de la virtud de la castidad, y el decoroso
silencio de las damas. Ay de ti Alemana, y Pie de Gibao, que tantos
afios estuuistes honrando Ios saraos !" (La Dorotea, Madrid, 1632, Act I,
Scene VII, fol. 40.) Gongora, in one of his ballads, says there is no dance
like the Gallarda:
"Que quiere dona Maria
Ver bailar a dona Juana
Una Gallarda espanola,
Que no hay danza mas gallarda."
The stately gravity with which the Gallarda was danced is described at
some length by Calderon in his El Maestro de Danzar, Jornada II, Scene
XXV. See Monreal, Cuadros viejos, Madrid, 1878, p. 85. In a French
work on dancing, Arbeau's Orchesographie, published at Macon in 1588,
the Tordion and Gaillard are described as being danced exactly alike.
See Shakespeare's Much Ado about Nothing, ed. by Dr. Horace Howard
Furness, Philadelphia, p. 65, note 69.
* Nuevos Datos, p. 15. * Ibid., p. 33. 'Ibid., p. 43.
DANZAS HABLADAS 75
1598 a Danza de Portugueses^ in 1599 a Danza de
veintequatro Sdtiros y Fdbulas y un Sileno, danced on the
occasion of the entrance of the Queen into Madrid.2 I
presume that these were all what were called "Danzas
habladas."3
It appears that down to the close of the sixteenth cen-
tury and perhaps even later, these dances at the Corpus
festivals were performed and the expenses were borne by
the various guilds. In March, 1599, there was an agree-
ment between the company of tavern-keepers (gremio de
taberneros) and Jusepe de las Cuevas to represent the
"danza de los caballeros para la entrada de la Reina" ;4
and in April of the same year Juan Granado is to give the
dance La Boda a lo sayagues by order of the blacksmiths,
and the Danza de los Dioses, to be paid for by the shoe-
makers, and the Danza de la Pandorga, performed by the
joiners and inn-keepers (cajoneros y mesoneros).6 Be-
sides, the "gremios" or guilds of "cabestreros, esparteros,
zurradores," and "curtidores" represented dances at
Corpus in Madrid in 1599.6
* Nuevos Datns, p. 48.
' Ibid., p. 349.
3 See Don Quixote, Part II, chap. 30c, and Clemencin's note. Delpino de-
fines a Danza hablada as "a dance composed of many persons, with dresses
suitable to represent any passage in history." {Spanish Dictionary, London,
1758.)
4 Nuevos Datos, p. 49. ' Ibid., p. 50. ' Ibid.
CHAPTER V
The staging of the comedia. English court plays. The Entertain-
ing Journey of Rojas. Alonso Lopez Pinciano on staging. The
stage. The curtain. Scenery. Stage machinery. Apariencias.
Tramoyas. The French stage. Private representations.
In any discussion of the stage or scenic arrangements of
the early Spanish theater the distinction between autos and
other festival or court performances, on the one hand, and
those which took place in the public corrales, on the other,
must always be borne in mind. In the former, as al-
ready observed, there was often an elaborate display
of scenery and ornamentation even before the middle
of the sixteenth century, while the public theaters or
Hcorrales were almost destitute of scenery, in our ac-
ceptation of the word. And this, we know, was also
the case in England in Shakespeare's time.1 Cunning-
ham2 gives some curious information concerning the
private representations at the English court. As early as
1 57 1, after mentioning several plays, the last of which is
Paris and Vienna, "shewen on Shrovetewsdaie at night by
the children of Westminster," we read: "All whiche vi
playes being chosen owte of many and ffownde to be the
best that then were to be had; the same also being often
perused and necessarely corrected & amended by all thaf-
forseide officers. Then they being so orderly addressed,
were likewise throwghly apparelled & furnished with sun-
1 See the interesting articles by G. F. Reynolds in Modern Philology,
Vols. II and III (1904-5).
'Extracts from the Accounts of the Revels at Court, London (Shakespeare
Society), 184a.
76
ENGLISH COURT PLAYS 77
dry kindes and sutes of Apparell & furniture, flitted and
garnished necessarely & answerable to the matter, person
& parte to be played. Having also apt howses, made of
canvasse, fframed, ffashioned & paynted accordingly as
might best serve theier severall purposes" (p. 13).
1573 (it may be noted that in this year Italian players
are mentioned at Windsor, ibid., p. 79) : "Mrs. Dane for
Canvas to paynte for howses for the players & for other
properties as Monsters, great hollow trees & suche other,"
etc. (p. 54).
1574: There is frequent mention of frames and canvas
as early as this year, and also the following entry: "Pulleys
for the Clowdes and curteynes . . . Dubble gyrte to
hange the soon in the clowde," etc. (p. 90).
1578: "For a hoope and blewe Lynnen cloth to mend
the clowde that was borrowed and cut to serve the rock
in the play of The burnyng Knight," etc. (p. 147).
1579: "The History of Serpedon shewen at Whitehall
on Shrovetewesdaye at night enacted by the Lord Cham-
berleyns servants wholly furnyshed in this office whereon
was ymployed for head attyres for women and Scarfes xi
ells of Sarcenett, a greate Cittie, a wood, a castell and vi
payre of gloves" (p. 156). Colors for painting scenery
are mentioned in this year: "William Lyzarde for sondry
things by him browght into the office. Syse, cullers, pottes,
nayles and pensills used and occupyed upon the payntinge
of vii Cities, one villadge, one Country howse, one battle-
ment, iiii axes, a Braunche, lillyes, and a mount for Christ-
mas Hi Holidaies" (p. 162).
1580: "A Storie of Pompey, enacted in the hall
[Whitehall], on twelfnighte whereon was ymployed newe,
one great citty, a senate howse, and eight ells of double
sarcenet for curtens and xviii paire of gloves" (p. 167).
1584: " The History of Felix &? Philomena shewed and
enacted before her highnes by her Mates servauntes on the
sondaie next after neweyeares daie, at night at Grenewiche,
78 THE SPANISH STAGE
whereon was ymploied one battlement & a house of can-
vas." Lastly, in the same year we read: "A pastorall or
Phillyda £sf Choryn . . . whereon was ymployed . . .
one greate curteyne and scarfs for the nymphes, one moun-
tayne and one greate cloth of Canvas" (p. 188) .
All these were court performances and had nothing to
do with the public theaters in England, which at this time
had probably advanced no further than those of Spain.
To these we now return.
There can scarcely be a doubt that down to about the
last decade of the sixteenth century (i.e., even a few years
after Lope de Vega had begun to write for the stage) the
public theaters of Madrid possessed only the most primi-
tive stage machinery and appliances, and no scenery in our
sense of the word. This view, however, is not in accord
with an opinion expressed by Schack, though this dis-
tinguished writer's other statements upon the subject
can hardly be reconciled with the assertion to which
we refer, which is as follows: "According to Rojas,
/therefore, the improvements in scenic arrangements had
/ progressed to such an extent by about 1580 that come-
j dias were performed in which were represented mirac-
i ulous visions, artistically contrived scenes, and alarms
• of war, and even horses were brought upon the stage." 1
Schack bases this statement upon the following lines of
the "Loa de la Comedia" contained in the Viage entre-
tenido of Rojas: "Now they made inflated verses, wore
costumes of cloth, satin, and velvet, and silken stockings.
They wrote [comedias] in three acts and introduced
challenges; they sang by two and threes, and women
acted. The time arrived when comedias de apariencias
(i.e., with scenic effects) and lives of saints and plays with
1 "So war, nach Rojas, die Vervollkommnung der scenischen Vorrich-
tungen um 1580 schon so weit gediehen dasz man Comodien rait Wunderer-
scheinungen, Coulissenkunsten und Kriegslarm auffiihrte und sogar Pferde
auf die Biihne brachte." {Geschichte der dramatischen Literatur u. Kunst
in Spanien, Vol. I, p. 308.)
AGUSTIN DE ROJAS 79
stage machinery came into vogue, and among these, farces
in which battles were represented. Pedro Diaz then wrote
his comedia El Rosario, which was good, and Alonso
Diaz his San Antonio, and finally there was not a poet in
Seville who did not write a comedia about some saint.
Then they sang by threes and fours ; the women were beau-
tiful and dressed in male attire, and gallantly and well
made up they stepped upon the stage, adorned with pearls
and chains of gold. Now horses were brought upon the
stage, a feat never seen until this time, nor was this the
least of them. All these things passed away, and then
came our day, which may be called the Golden Age, to
judge by the point reached by comedias, actors, plots,
conceits, epigrams, inventions, novelties. . . . What, that
has not already been done, can they do who come after us?
What can they invent that is not already invented?" etc.1
Important as the Viage entretenido is in many respects,
1 After mentioning Artieda's Los Encantos de Merlin (now lost), Luper-
cio's tragedies, the Semiramis of Virues, and the Conde Loco of Morales
(v. Barrera, Catdlogo, pp. 517, col. i, and 527), Rojas continues:
"Hacian versos hinchados, Vestianse en habito de hombre,
Ya usaban sayos de telas Y bizarras y compuestas,
De raso, de terciopelo, A representar salian
Y algunas medias de seda. Con cadenas de oro y perlas.
Ya se hacian tres jornadas, Sacabanse ya caballos
Y echaban retos en ellas, A los teatros, grandeza
Cantaban a dos y a tres, Nunca vista hasta este tiempo,
Y representaban hembras. Que no fue la menor de ellas.
Llego el tiempo que se usaron En efecto este paso,
Las comedias de apariencias, Llego el nuestro, que pudiera
De santos y de tramoyas, Llamarse el tiempo dorado,
Y entre estas farsas de guerras, Segun al punto en que Uegan
Hizo Pedro Diaz entonces Comedias, representantes,
La del Rosario, y fue buena, Trazas, conceptos, sentencias,
San Antonio Alonso Diaz, Inventivas, novedades, . . .
Y al fin no quedo poeta
En Sevilla que no hiciese i Que haran los que vinieren
De algun santo su comedia : Que no sea cosa hecha ?
Cantabanse a tres y a quatro, i Que inventaran, que no este
Eran las mugeres bellas, Ya inventado? cosa es cierta," etc.
(El Viage entretenido, Madrid, 1603, pp. 127, 128.)
Rojas then mentions the appearance of Lope de Vega, La fenix de nuestros
tiempos, and after him El Divino Miguel Sanchez.
80 THE SPANISH STAGE
it was not the purpose of its author to write a history or
the Spanish stage. It was composed, as the title indicates,
for the mere entertainment and pastime of the reader.
Rojas, in all probability, took no great pains to be precise
and accurate in his statements. What he wrote slipped
from his pen without much thought of chronology.
His statements should not be taken al pie de la letra.
Moreover, his experience on the stage was limited,
according to his own statement, to about three years.
Of Pedro Diaz and his comedia El Rosario, mentioned by
Rojas, we know nothing, but Alonso Diaz is said by
Sanchez-Arjona {Andes, p. 86) to be the author of an
auto entitled Santa Maria Egipciaca, for which he received
thirty ducats when it was represented by the company of
Gaspar de Porres at Seville in 1594. Alonso Diaz was,
therefore, a contemporary of Lope de Vega. His San
Antonio was doubtless one of that large class of comedias
de santos which greatly depend .for their effect on the use
of apariencias and tramoyas, quite primitive stage ma-
chinery at that time, we may be sure. As Morel-Fatio
says: "Les pieces, en effet, ou etait representee la vie d'un
saint se pretaient particulierement au jeu de cette machi-
nerie primitive qui enchantait le peuple." The same writer
quotes Cristobal Suarez de Figueroa (El Passagero, Alivio
iii) , who says: "En las comedias de cuerpo (pieces a grand
effet par opposition a celles dites de ingenio ou de capa y
espada) que, sin las de reyes de Hungria o principes de
Transilvania, suelen ser de vidas de santos, intervienen
varias tramoyas o apariencias, singular anagaza para que
reincida el poblacho tres o quatro vezes con crecido pro-
vecho del autor."1 That skilful engineers or machinists
were employed by the public theaters in staging such plays
at the time alluded to by Rojas, is not at all probable.
1 Bulletin Hispanigue, October-December, 1901, p. 481. See also Cle-
mencin's note to his edition of Don Quixote, Madrid, 1833, Vol. Ill, p. 407,
and Suarez de Figueroa, Passagero, ed. 1617, ff. 104-106.
HORSES ON THE STAGE 81
Concerning the assertion of Rojas, "Sacabanse ya caba-
llos" ( horses were now brought out upon the stage ) , there is
no dramatist prior to 1 602 to whom this could particularly
refer, so far as I know, except Lope de Vega.1 In the
latter's La Serrana de la Vera, El Sol parado, and La
Varona Castellana, all written before 1603, and in El
primer Faxardo, perhaps also before that date, a horse
appears on the stage. According to Luis Fernandez
Guerra,2 it was Andres de Claramonte particularly who
was fond of bringing horses upon the stage in his plays.
He says: "Gozabase en aderezar muchas de sus comedias
con desafios a caballo y en pasear sobre hipogrifos de
carne y hueso a las hermosuras de bastidores por en medio
de lo mas turbulento y alegre de la concurrencia. . . .
Esto dio lugar a que Ana Mufioz, obligada en uno de sus
dramas a salir a caballo por el patio, alborotado el corcel
con la algaraza de los mosqueteros, malpario un varon."
As Claramonte is mentioned by Rojas3 among those actors
who had (at least as early as 1602) written farsas, has,
bayles, etc., it is not improbable that the allusion may be to
him. In any event, it carries us no further back than the
time of Lope de Vega, who was a contemporary of Clara-
monte's. Moreover, Miguel Sanchez, el Divino, who is
mentioned after Lope de Vega, was undoubtedly one of
Lope's predecessors. Hence the period to which Rojas
refers cannot be "about 1580," as Schack had supposed,
but was, in all probability, more than a decade later.4
1In El gallardo Espanol by Cervantes, Act I, is the stage direction:
Entra Alimuzel a cauallo, con lanza y adarga. And in La Casa de los
Zelos, Act I: ha de entrar por el patio Angelica la bella sobre un pala-
fren. These plays may date before 1592. Tirso de Molina also not infre-
quently introduced horses upon the stage, though at a much later date.
'Don Juan Ruiz de Alarcon, p. 186.
* Fiage entretenido, p. 131.
* It is interesting here to note the observations of a very acute and learned
writer, Alonso Lopez Pinciano, concerning the decorations of the stage, the
costumes, etc., written about 1595 or perhaps a little before. From a refer-
ence to two of the older Spanish autores de comedias, it has been considered
that, though published in 1596, the work alluded to was written at least
82 THE SPANISH STAGE
We may readily believe that with the appearance of a
genius like Lope (who wrote plays at twelve, but perhaps
did not begin to write for the public stage until about
1585) the progress in the comedia was accompanied by a
corresponding advance in staging. Yet it seems reason-
ably safe to say that, even for some years after Lope be-
gan his career as a playwright, the decorations and scenic
effects in the public theaters of Spain were very primi-
tive. As Schack observes, any attempt at optical illusion
was wholly out of the question. "Nor was there a curtain
in front of the stage, from which it follows that, at the
beginning of a piece, the stage could not be occupied by
groups [of players], but the actors had to enter before the
eyes of the spectators." An examination of the comedias
ten years earlier. (Schack, Vol. I, p. 299, says that it was written shortly
after 1580.) The passage is: "When I see the placards of Cisneros or
Galvez, I cannot help going to see them, and while I am in the theater I
neither feel the cold in winter nor the heat in summer." But we know now
that Jerdnimo Galvez was acting at least as late as 1590 and probably later,
while Alonso de Cisneros did not die till September 10, 1597. It is probable,
therefore, that our author's remarks refer to about the time that his work
was published. This work is in the form of a conversation between the
author and his friends Ugo and Fadrique, and consists of a number of let-
ters written by the author to one Don Gabriel and the replies of the latter
thereto. In the thirteenth and last letter "de los adores y representantes,"
Don Ugo remarks: "So far as the action is concerned, the person, the time,
and the place ought to be considered, for it is clear that a different decora-
tion and dress or costume is required for a prince than for a servant, and
different ones for youths and old men. Wherefore the second consideration,
that of time, is very important, for the Spain of to-day demands a different
decoration and dress from the Spain of a thousand years ago, and hence it
behooves to examine carefully histories which throw light upon the costumes
of the times, and we should likewise take note of the various countries,
for in each they have different kinds of dress. The actor should observe
these matters carefully, for the poet rarely pays any attention to them,
generally writing the poem to be read rather than to be represented, leav-
ing those matters that refer to the action to the actor, whose business it
is to represent. Whence it is to be inferred that the good actor (especially
the chief of a company) ought to know much of fiction (fabula) and of
history, so that, in accordance with the difference in time, besides the cos-
tumes of the persons in the action, there is required a corresponding decora-
tion for the theater itself, besides the necessary machinery, which ought
to be in conformity with the poem: if it be pastoral, there should be woods;
if the action take place in a city, there should be houses; and so in accord-
ance with the other differences, the theater should have its various decora-
THE CURTAIN 83
of Lope de Vega proves the truth of this assertion, as re-
gards the theaters of Madrid, and that there was no
outer curtain in the theater at Valencia is shown by a
number of plays by Valencian dramatists which appeared
in a volume entitled Norte de la Poesia espanola, Valen-
cia, 1616.1 This statement seems to be contradicted by a
passage at the close of Lope de Vega's Lainocente Sangre,
published in Part XIX of his Comedias, the Aprovacion
of which is dated 1622. Here one of the characters,
Mendo, says:
"Corre essa cortina, y desse
fin a los Carauajales," etc.
Five players are on the stage, and the curtain is drawn to
conceal them from the audience. It is possible, how-
ever, that this, too, was a curtain farther back on the
stage. Unfortunately, we do not know the date of this
tions (ornato). And in the machinery there should be much excellence
(primor), for there are some machines which are fitting for a miracle and
others for different purposes, and they have their differences according to
the persons, for an angel must appear to be flying and a saint going
through the air with joined feet, and both must descend from on high, while
the demon ascends from below. ... In a word, the actor should observe
and study the various machinery and artifices, so that suddenly, as if by
a miracle, a person be made to appear: by magic art, if terrestrial; without
it, if the person be divine." (Philosofhia Antigua, ed. 1596, pp. 522, 523.)
1 Lope's El Rey Bamba (written before 1603) shows clearly that there
was no outer curtain. At the close of the play the King is lying dead
upon the stage, when Atanarico says:
"Cojamos el cuerpo en ombros
y luego el entierro se haga,
dando fin a la comedia
y vida y muerte de Bamba."
(Comedias, Part I, Valladolid, 1604, fol. 116, v.)
And in his La Quinta de Florencia, Part II, 1609, we read at the end:
"Vanse todos par su orden, con que se da fin a la Comedia." At the close of
Aguilar's play, published in the Norte de la Poesia espanola, entitled El
Mercader Amante, is the stage direction: Entranse todos, y se da fin a la
Comedia del Mercader Amante. Ricardo de Turia's Burladora burlada
concludes with the stage direction: Entranse todos cada uno for su puerta,
dandose con eslo fin a la famosa Comedia, etc. The same author's La
belligera Espanola and Aguilar's La Fuerca del Interes close with similar
stage directions. These would, of course, have been unnecessary had there
been an outer curtain.
84 THE SPANISH STAGE
play. Though not printed till 1622, Lope says in his
dedication that he had written it years ago : "Anos ha que
escriui este suceso."
There was a curtain at the back of the stage, like the
traverses of the Elizabethan theater, which could be drawn
aside to represent a tent, bedchamber, chapel, etc.1 The
sides of the stage were also hung with curtains, as the
stage directions abundantly show.2
Cervantes even tells us that the curtains were of green
baize, and they must have been arranged, upon occasions,
in such a manner that the spectator could see behind
them.3
In the background, raised some distance from the
stage, was a gallery (lo alto del teatro), which served for
"In the first act of Lope de Vega's El As alto de Mastrique (Comedias,
Part IV, 1 614), we read the stage direction: Corrase una tienda, o cortina,
y veanse sentados el Duque de Parma, etc. . . . los soldados se arrimen al
Teatro. Afterward: Cierrese la tienda, y los soldados digan:
"Soldado: Parece que ya se van
de la tienda."
In El Marmot de Felisardo, Act III (written before 1604), occurs the stage
direction: Corre Tristan la cortina, detras de la qua! estd Elisa, etc., and in
Las Pobrezas de Reynaldos (also before 1604), Act II: Corren una cortina,
y descubrese una Capilla con tin altar, etc. So near the close of Act III of
Guillen de Castro's La Tragedia por los Celos (1622) the curtain that was
drawn to show the dead body of Margarita de Hijar was doubtless at the
rear of the stage. And in Ricardo de Turia's La Burladora burlada
(printed in 1616), Act III, Laura says:
"Detras deste tapiz rico
pienso escuchallas."
This is followed by the stage direction: quedase detras de la cortina.
2 See La Burladora burlada, cited in the previous note. Also in Alarcon's
El Desdichado en fingir (one of his earliest plays, written probably before
1600), at the close of a scene in Act II, is the direction: Vanse, y escondense
detras de una cortina. In Act III of Tirso de Molina's La fingida Arcadia,
a stage direction seems to show that a curtain sometimes covered the whole
rear of the stage. The direction is: Tocan trompetas, etc. Cdese aba jo todo
el lienzo del teatro y quede un jardin lleno de flares y yedra. This is a late
play, however, certainly after 1621, for in it Tirso mentions Lope de Vega's
La Filomena, which appeared in that year. For further examples see my
article "The Staging of Lope de Vega's Comedias," in the Revue His-
panique, Vol. XV, 1907.
* In La Gran Sultana we find the stage direction : Parece el Gran Turco
WINDOWS AND BALCONIES 85
various purposes ; for example, to represent the walls of a
city, the balcony of a house, a tower, a mountain, etc.
In the above article I have collected many examples under
the various headings: "A wall or tower at the back of the
stage," "A window," "A balcony," etc., which show that
the "balcony" was merely a gallery at the upper part of
the back of the stage, which was covered by a hanging
curtain, so that there was no essential difference in the
representation of a wall, a tower, a window, or a balcony.
That a gallery ran along the back of the stage, perhaps a
continuation of the gallery occupied by the spectators, ap-
pears from stage directions in a number of plays.1
The stage, Schack observes, was not nearly so deep as
that of the modern theater, but was rather wide. "Its
decorations consisted of curtains of a single color, hung
at the sides and in the background, leaving the various
entrances free. These represented now a room, now a hall
or a street, now a garden or a forest, without any visible
change."2 Continuing, the same writer observes: "With
this simple arrangement those pieces were played the
action of which was supposed to take place in ordinary
domestic and civil life, chiefly therefore the comedias
de capay espada, but especially those in which the stage
did not essentially enter into the action of the play and
where the imagination of the spectator could be relied
upon. Whether more machinery was to be used or not
delras de unas cortinas de tafetan verde . . . descubrese la cortina: parece
el Gran Turco. (Comedias, etc., Madrid, 1615, fol. 121.)
'In Tirso de Molina's Dona Beatriz de Silva, Act I: Tiros de Artilleria;
musica de todo genero; fiestas de dentro, y saca Silveria sobre los corredores
de arriba, a un lado una bandera con las armas de Portugal y Castillo.
Afterward we read: Al otro lado saca arriba Olivenza otra bandera, etc.
Finally: Eniranse los de arriba. This comedia was written about 1618,
according to Cotarelo. See additional cases cited below, p. 94, note 1.
* These statements require some modification. That there were at least
two doors at the back of the stage, always called puertas, is shown by every
comedia. In the above article on the staging of Lope's plays, numerous
instances are given to show that trees were represented on the stage either
painted on canvas hanging at the sides, or single trees or groups of trees
on frames standing on the stage. Some examples are cited below.
J
86 THE SPANISH STAGE
was left to the discretion of the theatrical manager. This
depended especially upon whether the play in question,
from its subject-matter, necessitated scenery and was such
that all could not be left to the imagination. In such cases
the objects which would otherwise have to be imagined
were actually brought before the eye, and the plays in
which such apparatus had to be employed, beyond the
I simple curtains, and in which the costumes were richer and
costlier, were called comedias de teatro. Decorations,
however, in the modern sense of the word, or a regular
change of scene, were wholly unknown."1
For most scenes, as just remarked, a simple curtain
sufficed, and this was used to represent the most diverse
localities. "If the stage was unoccupied for a moment and
persons came upon it through another entrance, a change
of scene had to be imagined by the spectator, though none
was visible on the stage, and this was irrespective of the
entrances or exits of the characters." Schack cites several
instances of this : Act II of Calderon's El Alcayde de si
1 Schack, Geschichte der dram. Lit. u. Kunst in Spanien, Vol. II, p. 120.
Spaniards, according to Caramuel, considered changes of scene super-
fluous, as neither the exactness of the thought, nor the elegance of the dic-
tion, nor the splendor of the production, depended upon them. He says:
"Scenarum mutationes Hispani superfluas judicant: quas tamen Itali esse
necessarias supponentes in theatri fabrics pro unica interdum Comoedia
magnam summam ducatorum impendunt. Et hie, si loquamur sincere, incon-
sequenter Hispani laborare videmur: quoniam hinc leges scribendi Comoe-
dias ab Antiquis latas fastidimus, inde scenarum mutationes quasi super-
fluas judicamus, cum tamen haec duo non subsistant. Cur non volumus ut
nostrae Comoediae subsint Veterum legibus? Quia falsae hypothesi leges a
Veteribus prolatae insistunt. Putabant ipsi Comoedias Viris tantum doctis
scribi, et coram doctis tantum agi, cum tamen certum sit et nos supponimus,
illas scribi vulgo et coram numeroso vulgo representari. Et cur non vo-
lumus mutare Scaenas? Quia ab earum mutatione conceptuum subtilitas,
verborum elegantia et nitor prolationis non dependent. Ecce severas
scribendi Comoedias leges negligimus, nam illae representantur propter
vulgus, qui illas leges non capit: et ecce Scenarum mutationes negligimus,
nam docti, quorum est, de conceptuum et versuum nitore judicare, ut bona
laudent carmina, hoc impendio non indigent. Ego hoc auderem discurrere.
Seu doctis seu indoctis scribantur Comoediae, debent Scenae mutari et ap-
parentiae quas vocant admitti: illarum enim varietate doctorum et indoc-
torum oculi dilectantur." (J. Caramuelis, Primus Calamus, Tom. II, quoted
by Schack, Nachtrage, p. 28.)
LOS EMBUSTES DE FABIA 87
mismo opens in a park; the second scene is a forest; enter
three peasants and Antona, who says that Benito has as-
sured her that on her return to the forest she will find his
love "more firm than this oak." Nothing has been said to
intimate a change of scene when Federico enters, and in a
dialogue with Roberto says: "Is not some one knocking?
Roberto: Yes. Federico: Then go and open the door,"
and the stage direction follows: "Federico sits down in a
chair; enter Marguerite," whereby a change to the interior
of the castle is to be supposed by the spectator.1
In Lope de Vega's Los Embustes de Fabia, Aurelio has
been in the chamber of his mistress and has not left the
stage, when he says: "Here is the palace and there Nero,
our Emperor, appears, for the poet has permitted this ex-
pedient to be employed, since, if the Emperor should not
enter now, the narrative would be so vague that nobody
would understand it." 2 A better example to illustrate the
point under discussion could hardly be found. We do not
know when Los Embustes de Fabia was written, but it was
one of Lope's early plays, for it is mentioned in the list
in the first edition of his Peregrino en su Patria, and hence
must be earlier than 1604. A notable instance of where
a change of scene is indicated merely by the actor's going
'Schack, Geschichle, etc., Vol. II, p. 121. It should be noted that this
incident was first referred to by Damas Hinard, that excellent scholar to
whom Spanish literature owes so much. In his Chejs-d' cewure du Thidtre
Espagnol, Calderon, 2e Serie, Paris, 1841, note to p. 316, he says: "Nous
etions tout-a-1'heure dans le pare, et tout-a-coup nous voila transported dans
1'interieur du chateau. Comme Frederic et Roberto n'ont pas quitte le
theatre, il nous est impossible d'indiquer un changement de scene. Mais
enfin le lecteur est averti, nous sommes maintenant dans le chateau de Bel-
flor, ou de Miraflor."
3 "Este es el palacio, aca sale
Neron, nuestro Emperador,
Que lo permite el Autor
Que desta industria se vale;
Porque si aca no saltera
Fuera aqui la relacion
Tan mala y tan sin razon
Que ninguno lo entendiera."
(Comedias, Part XXV, Zaragoza, 1647, fol. 537.)
88 THE SPANISH STAGE
in one door and coming out of another is furnished by La
Espanola de Florencia, a comedia wrongly ascribed to Cal-
deron. The example is of especial interest because of the
comparatively late date of the play, which was probably
written between 1630 and 1635.1 Schack further remarks :
"That the stage did not always realize what one should sup-
pose, even in the so-called comedias de teatro, results from
the speeches of the characters, who frequently indicate the
locality, which would have been unnecessary if it had been
actually brought before the eyes of the spectator. Only
when the progress of the action could not well be otherwise
indicated was recourse had to such expedients of the scenic
art as were available. Such cases were mostly left to the
judgment of the theatrical manager, inasmuch as the poets
only gave directions in the most necessary cases. The
1 "Salen Carlos y Gerardo.
Gerardo: Ya hemos Uegado a casa.
Carlos: | Ay, Gerardo, que el pecho se me abrasa!
Lucrecia: Cavalleros, si el cielo
a piedad os inclina, tened duelo
de una muger, si noble, desdichada,
que llega de su suerte atropellada
a pedir vuestro amparo.
Valgame vuestra casa de reparo,
que en tanta desventura
mi honor vuestra noble'za me assegura.
Entranse Carlos y Lucrecia.
Carlos: Entrad, Senora en ella.
Gerardo: j Por Dios, que la muger parece bella!
No seria en mi amo dicha poca,
si por esta oluidasse [a] la otra loca.
Entranse, y salen por la otra puerta todos tres.
Carlos: Ya estamos en la posada."
(Comedias Escogidas, Vol. XII, Madrid, 1658, Jornada II, fol. 105.)
Jornada III furnishes a similar instance:
"Salen Cesar y Valeria.
Cesar: Ya a casa a buscaros me boluia,
Carlos ; yo os hallo, j que gran dicha es mia !
Lleguemos a la entrada.
LUcrecia: Lida, aquesta ocasion es apretada.
Carlos: Ya en vuestra casa estamos."
I quote these passages at length on account of the scarcity of this comedia.
Dr. M. Rosenberg purposes publishing a critical edition of it shortly.
SIMULTANEOUS SCENERY 89
staging of plays was therefore very arbitrary." 1 A deco-
ration which happened to be at hand was sometimes used
in cases where it was not necessary, while in other in-
stances, where the required apparatus was lacking, an
appeal was unreasonably made to the imagination of the
spectator.
Moreover, the freedom exercised in the matter of
scenery can hardly be exaggerated. "There was no thought
of any actual illusion — of any deception of the senses.
The painting of scenery according to the rules of perspec-
tive, so that the stage should have some appearance of
reality, was wholly unknown. A few houses or trees
painted on pasteboard or linen did duty for a street or a
forest, while the simple curtain in the background or the
sides remained unchanged. After such a decoration had
been set upon the stage, no particular care was taken to
remove it at the end of the scene, and frequently it had to
suffice to indicate another similar place."
There can scarcely be a doubt that simultaneous scenery
was used upon the Spanish stage, as it was used at the same
period in the Elizabethan theater. In the representation of
Calderon's El Alcayde de si mismo it is very probable that
a tree was represented upon the stage at the opening of
the second act and was not removed until its close.
In Alarcon's El Dueno de las Estrellas (1618?), toward the close of
Act III, the scene is supposed to represent a street at night. The King and
Palante appear before the house of Marcela. Palante gives a sign, and
we have the stage direction : Asomase Marcela a una ventana.
"Marcela: ;Es Palante? Palante: Si. Marcela: Ya voy.
(Vase a abrir la puerta.)"
Presently Palante says : "Ya esta a la puerta Marcela.
(Aparece Marcela en la calle.)
Marcela: Entrad. Rey: Marcela querida, etc.
Marcela: Seguidme. (Vanse de la calle, y dando la vuelta por
detras del teatro, entranse despues en la sala \de Marcela].)"
That is, the actors merely pass out on one side of the stage and enter on
the other, and the scene is supposed to change from a street to a room in
Marcela's house.
1 For a detailed account see my article already referred to, in the Revue
Hispanigue for 1907.
9o THE SPANISH STAGE
"Sometimes a change of scene was indicated by simply
drawing a curtain aside, whereby the essential object be-
came visible, the rest of the stage remaining unchanged,
only a small scene, as it were, stepping out of the larger
one. In this way it is frequently supposed that from the
foreground, which represents a street or a room, one can
look into the interior of a house or into another apartment.
How little attention was given to the probability of a scene
may be observed from the fact that not seldom the stage
represented a field of great dimensions, in which the
personages traverse long distances, so that the scene was
actually to be considered movable. Thus, in the first act
of Calderon's Dos Amantes del Cielo,1 one of the charac-
ters, Chrysanthus, is represented as being in the grove of
Diana ; then it is supposed that he goes thence deeper into
the mountains ; he describes the wild, mountainous country
which he is now approaching, without leaving the stage
for a moment. A change of scene could not have taken
place here ; the same trees and perhaps hills which had at
first served for a grove were afterward taken to represent
the wilder mountain region."
Another and similar case is the following : "when the per-
sonages upon the stage are supposed to be moving forward
and have reached an object which attracts their attention
and which enters into the action of the play, a back or side
curtain is drawn in order to permit this to appear. Exam-
ples are frequent. At the beginning of Lope's Arauco
dotnado a number of soldiers are wandering in the neigh-
borhood of a South American seaport. They are on their
way to the public square, where a Corpus Christi proces-
sion is to pass under a triumphal arch ; when they arrive at
the spot, the scene is opened by withdrawing a curtain,
and a glimpse is afforded of the arch and the holiday
crowd."2 So in Tirso de Molina's El Burlador de Sevilla
1The date of this play is unknown: it was written before 1651.
a Schack, ibid., p. 123. For a similar scene, see Lope's La Prueba de los
THE PLACE OF ACTION 91
(written before 1630), Don Juan and his servant are
roarffirig the streetsoT Seville, and after they have been
upon the stage a considerable time, the statue of the
Comendador, Don Gonzalo de Ulloa, is suddenly dis-
closed.
Sometimes the place of action is mentioned in the dia-
logue at the beginning of a scene; more rarely by a stage
direction.1 But the stage remained the same, there was
no visible change, whether the action was transported to
Florence, Rome, or Hungary. Indeed, there is often great
difficulty in distinguishing interior from exterior scenes.
Many scenes, in fact, are entirely unlocalized, and here, as
in the Elizabethan drama, "vagueness of localization" is
a fundamental fact.2
Besides, it must be borne in mind that costume was a
Amigos (1604.), Act III, in the article above mentioned on The Staging of
Lope de Vega's Comedias, p. 7, and La Fe rompida (before 1604), Act I,
ibid., p. 9.
'In Lope de Vega's Rey Bamba (Part I, 1604), Act II:
"Rodrigo: Esta es la Vega famosa,
del Tajo la placa liana
y aquesta de Galiana
la morada deleytosa."
In Lope's Comedia del Molino (Part I, 1604), Act III:
"Rey: Que gente es esta que camina al bosque,"
showing that a grove is intended.
Lope's La Quinta de Florencia (Part II, 1609), Act I:
"Alexandra: Hermosa ciudad Florencia."
Coello's El Conde de Sex (a late play, probably about 1635), Act II, at
the beginning:
"Cosme: Aora, a Londres llegaraos,
y ya a palacio venimos?"
Place indicated in stage direction: Lope de Vega, La Escolastica zelosa
(Part I, 1604), Act III: "Sale Marico solo de camino en Alcala." Lope,
La Burgalesa de Lerma (1613), Act I: "Salgan en Madrid Clauela y Lu-
cia." Lope, De Cosario a Cosario (Part XIX, 1623), Act I: "Salen en la
calle Mayor Celia, dama," etc. Lope, Peribanez y el Comendador de Ocana
(Part IV), Act I: "El Comendador en casa con ropa, y Luxan lacayo."
Numerous cases could be cited; see the above-mentioned article in the
Revue Hispanique for 1907.
! See an excellent article by William Archer in the Quarterly Review
92 THE SPANISH STAGE
very important means, and frequently the only one, or
indicating a change of scene. Many examples could be
quoted. In Lope de Vega's La Fe rompida,1 at the open-
ing of Act I we find the stage direction: "[Enter] Luzinda
as a huntress with a javelin and Alberto, peasant," show-
ing that a wood is to be imagined by the spectator. In
Los Comendadores de Cordoba ,2 Act I, near end: "Enter
D. Fernando with cloak and buckler, as if at night."
In the rear of the stage were two doors. It is quite
probable, indeed, that there were three, the middle
door being in a recess (nicho) in front of which a curtain
could be drawn. This was certainly the case later, as
Calderon's El Encanto sin Encanto3 shows. While the
exact date of this play is unknown, it was performed,
in all probability, before 1635.
The dressing room, or vestuario, occupied the two sides
and the back of the stage. It is evident from a number
of stage directions that an actor could enter upon the
stage directly from the vestuario. In fact, when a man
was killed upon the stage he generally managed to fall
into the dressing-room. In Cervantes's El gallardo Es-
pahol, Act III, we read the stage direction, "They fall
for April, 1908, p. 447, who very pertinently says: "The category of place
imposed itself but faintly and intermittently on the mind of the Elizabethan
play-goer: a fact which the believers in the habitual indication of scenes
by placards, and even by painted cloths, would do well to note. . . . We
believe that -vagueness of localization of the Elizabethan drama to be a
fundamental fact which cannot be fully realized until the student has dis-
missed modern editions from his mind, and gone back to the original texts."
1 Comedias, Part IV, Madrid, 1614.
' Comedias, Part II, Madrid, 1609.
* Jornada I, stage direction : Escondense los dos en la puerta de en
medio, y sale el Gobernador, etc. Jornada II, Los dos se pasen, y sale al
patio Serafina, Libia, etc. Jornada III, Arrimanse al nicho, suena ruido
en la otra puerta, etc. That painted canvas was then used, is evinced
by the following direction: Jornada II: Vanse las dos, y abriendose una
puerta, que estard pintada de muralla, y que convenga con lo demas. The
term bastidores also occurs in this piece. While I have seen no edition
of this play earlier than 1760, the stage directions are probably unchanged,
as this edition is not divided into scenes. For the date of this play, see
Schmidt, Die Schauspiele Calderon's, Eberfeld, 1857, p. 59.
THE VESTUARIO 93
within the dressing-room";1 in Lope de Vega's La Oca-
sion perdida (written before 1604) : "Enter Leoncio
. . . then the Princess ... all come close to the can-
vas (liengo) of the vestuario."2
That the vestuario was separated from the stage by a
canvas (liengo) results from a number of stage directions,
and also that it contained doors, for it is very probable
that the doors mentioned in these stage directions some-
times referred, not to the two doors at the back of the
stage, but rather to doors at the sides, for it is clear that
the stage could be entered from the two sides, which were
provided with hangings at first and afterward were evi-
dently of canvas.3
Many of Lope de Vega's earliest comedias, being come-
dies of intrigue, required no theatrical accessories of any
kind except a balcony or window. These balconies, which
served also for windows or towers, seem to have been, as
already stated, a continuation of the gallery or corredor
of the theater, and extended behind the hangings or parti-
* Comedias, Madrid, 1615, fol. 26. In Lope's El Capellan de la Virgen
(printed in Part XVIII, 1623), Act II, is the stage direction: Vase desati-
nado a caer en el vestuario.
2Entra Leoncio, Pinabelo, . . . y la Princessa detras, llega Doriclea a
besarle las manos, y arrimanse todos al lienco del vestuario, descubiertos.
(Comedias, Part II, Madrid, 1609, fol. 37, v.)
8 In Lope de Vega's La Obediencia laureada (Part VI, 161 5), Act I, stage
direction : Mira hacia el vestuario.
"Carlos: A cielos, dos bultos veo,
mas parece, yo lo creo,
liengo de Ninfas pintadas" (fol. n).
Lope de Vega, La Imperial de Oton (Part VIII, 1617), Act III, stage direc-
tion: Entrense, y con musica descubran el lienco del vestuario . . . y Mar-
garita en lo alto. Lope, El Amante agradecido (Part X, 1618) : Veanse dos
medias barcas con sus ramos a la puerta del vestuario, etc. La bella Aurora
(printed in Part XXI, 1635), Act II: Las dos huyendo se pongan en dos
tramoyas, que estaran en dos partes del lienco del vestuario, etc. In Alar-
con's La Cueva de Salamanca (perhaps the first of his works, and written
about 1599, according to Hartzenbusch), Act I, a cord is stretched across the
stage to trip an alguacil, and the stage direction reads: A tan el cordel atra-
vesando el vestuario, where evidently the back of the stage only is meant.
But near the close of Act II is the stage direction: Sale Lucia y un Gana-
pan, con un cajon de la estatura de un hombre; ponelo en pie a raiz del
94 THE SPANISH STAGE
tion which separated the sides of the stage from the
auditorium.1
It is, perhaps, needless to remark that Lope de Vega
did not divide his comedias into scenes, nor did any of the
older dramatists. The only division that they made was
into three acts. These scenes are the work of later
editors. It is equally superfluous to add that, for the pur-
poses of an examination like this, the editions of these
later editors are absolutely useless. Recourse should be
had only to the original editions, and these only have been
consulted in the present examination.2
The appeal to the imagination of the spectator for a
change of scene is sometimes made in words, by the poet.
Cervantes, in his Rufian dichoso, Act II, says :
To the auditor it matters
Little that I in a moment
vestuario. Afterward we read: Abre el cajon, y sale del Don Diego; que
el cajon ha de tener la espalda tambien hecha puerta, que se abre hacia el
vestuario, de suerte que la gente no lo eche de ver; y asi, cuando dona Clara
cierra el cajon, abren la puerta trasera, y quitan la estatua y entra don
Diego. In the same author's La Manganilla de Melilla (written in 1616-
17), Act III, is the stage direction: Coge Acen del vestuario un hombre
iiestido como Pimienta [one of the characters of the play], y echalo par un
escotillon, y Pimienta aparece luego en lo alto del vestuario. These stage
directions, it should be added, however, are taken from the edition of
Harteenbusch in the Bibl. de Autores Espanoles. The existence of a side
curtain is shown very clearly in Lope's La Reina Doha Juana de Napoles
(Part VI, 1615), Act I. The Queen, Ludovico, and Tancredo are in a
garden; as Isabela enters, the stage direction reads: Escondese la Reyna
detras del pano y sale Isabela, a strange confusion. For other examples,
see above, p. 84, note, Ricardo de Turia's La Burladora burlada, and the
article mentioned above.
1 See the previous note. But other cases may be cited : In Lope de Vega s
Los Torneos de Aragon (Part IV, 1614), Act III, is the following stage
direction: Chirimias y sientanse en un corredor, que tome todo lo alto del
Teatro, el Rey de Aragon, etc. In Alarcon's El Examen de Maridos, writ-
ten at the beginning of 1625 or earlier, Act III, is the direction: Sale
Ochauo en el corredor mas baxo, y salta al teatro. So it reads in Lope's
Comedias, Part XXIII, £aragoca, 1633, fol. 59. In the Comedias de Alar-
con, ed. Hartzenbusch, we find: Desde un tejado muy bajo salta al suelo y
caese. See also Lope's El Amor Vandolero, Act II, and El Favor agrade-
cido, Act II.
" The one exception is especially noted above.
EL RUFIAN DICHOSO 95
Pass from Germany to Guinea,
Though from off this stage I move not.
Human thought, indeed, is nimble ;
Well may they accompany
Me with it, where'er it may be,
Without losing me or tiring.1
Yet it must not be inferred from what has just been said
that no attempt at verisimilitude was made — that nothing
was done to aid the imagination of the spectator. There is
abundant and indisputable evidence to the contrary. A
garden was represented on the stage; of this there are
numerous instances;2 or a fountain,3 or rocks and moun-
tains.4 Trees were represented on the stage, either painted
on canvas or by set pieces. Many examples might be cited.5
1 "Muy poco importa al oyente
Que yo en un punto me passe
Desde Alemania a Guinea
Sin del teatro mudarme.
£1 pensamiento es ligero ;
Bien pueden acompanarme
Con el, do quiera que fuere,
Sin perderme ni cansarse."
Comedias, Madrid, 1615, fol. 97. See also the closing lines of his comedia
Pedro de Urdemalas, ibid., fol. 220.
2 In Lope de Vega's La Ocasion perdida (before 1604), Act II, stage
direction : La Princesa detras de un muro baxo, y dentro se vea como jardin.
Act III : Assomase la Infanta en lo alto del jardin. So in La octava Mara-
villa (Part X, 1618), Act II: Este un jardinillo en el teatro, y saiga el Rey
con un escardillo. For further examples, see the article above mentioned.
"Lope de Vega's La Quinta de Florencia (Part II, 1609), Act II, stage
direction: Ha de estar en el tablado una fuente, donde ha de auer estado
todo este tiempo Laura, junto a ella hinchando el cantarrillo.
"Laura: Por estas ramas me voy.
Sale Belardo.
Belardo: Estos los marmoles son
de aquellas fuentes hermosas.''
'Lope de Vega's El Animal de Ungria (Part IX, 1617), Act I: Subese
el Nino en una pena. El Principe despenado (1602), Act II: Va baxando
por la sierra la Reyna dona Eluira en habito de Saluage con una piel, y
parece en medio de la sierra, y prosigue.
"Lope de Vega's San Isidro labrador de Madrid (Part VII, 1617), Act
II: Vease un arbol con algun algodon encima, que parezca neuado, y unas
palomas- en el.
//
96 THE SPANISH STAGE
In one instance a fort1 was represented by a painted can-
vas, and again a castle.
From the examples just cited it may be inferred that
painted scenery, at all events in Lope de Vega's later years,
was not unknown to the public stage, but that it was not
movable on rollers or slides, we may be reasonably sure.
A most important matter, to be borne constantly in mind
when treating of the staging of plays, is that of chronology.
Only where we know the exact date of a play or a reason-
ably approximate date can it furnish us with helpful and
reliable evidence. For here a matter of a very few years
may make a vast difference in scenic appliances.
Lope de Vega wrote for the public theater for half a
century, and naturally there were many innovations upon
the stage in the course of his long career. In the Prologo
del Teatro a los Let ores, prefixed to Part XI (1618) of
his Comedias, the Theater (i.e., the stage) , speaking, says:
"Despues que a viua fuerga de tantas, y tan diferentes
comedias de varios Poetas, como en mi se han representado
(Letor amigo, o enemigo, como tu quisieres) he aprendido
a hablar, aunque compuesto de tablas, y liencos, con mas
trampas que un hombre que no tiene de que pagar, ni
verguenga de deuer, descanso con quexarme de los muchos
sinrazones que mis duefios padecen, y a mi me hazen."
From this we see that lienqos, or canvases for scenery,
were getting to be of frequent use.
Again, in the Prologo Dialogistico, prefixed to Part XVI
(1623), the Theater says: "I have come to great misfor-
tune, and I presume that it is due to one of three reasons :
either because there are no good actors, or because the
poets are bad, or because the auditors lack understanding ;
for the managers avail themselves of machinery, the poets
"Lope de Vega's Pobreza no es Fileza (written in 1624. or earlier), Act
II : Salen despues de auer toe ado caxas sol da Jos, y el Conde de Fuentes,
aura en el teatro un fuerte pintado de canteria. See also El Casamiento en
la Muerle (Part I, 1604), Act III, and La Vitoria del Marques de Santa
Cruz (before 1618), Act II.
APARIENCIAS AND TRAM OY AS 97
of the carpenters, and the auditors of their eyes."
Further : "But to return to the common people, I say that
they are justly moved by this machinery to delight the eyes,
but not by that of the Spanish comedia, where the figures
rise and descend so clumsily, and animals and birds appear
in like manner, which* the ignorance of the women and the
rude mechanics among men come to see."1
Lope's complaint is significant, moreover, inasmuch as
it shows that a great change had come over his audiences
early in the third decade of the seventeenth century.
The vulgo now went to- see the play, not to hear it ; the
comedia had become a spectacle for the eyes. And so the j^"
play degenerated and the splendor of scenery and stage
setting increased, until in the eighteenth century we come -
to a playwright like Cornelia, in whose comedia Cristovai
Colon, Act I, we find the following stage direction: "Jar-
din magnifico, adornado de macetas cenadores, y fuente
grande en el medio, con asientos al rededor, el foro repre-
senta el Palacio con su galeria y escaleras, para baxar; la
galeria estara adornada de macetas de flores. Aparece la
Reyna sentada, y las Damas repartidas, cogiendo flores,"
etc. Here we find the term bastidor (wing of stage
scenery),2 and at the end of the act, the direction: Cae el
telon, the drop-curtain falls.
The help of stage machinery of various kinds, under the
name of artificios, invenciones, apariencias, and tramoyas,
had been invoked in the religious representations of Spain
since very early times. One of the primary requisites was^t
a trap-door, and with these the public stages were early _Jj
provided. In the performance of the autos of Corpus
Christi the apariencias formed a very important feature
of the festival and were frequently of the most elaborate
character, the municipalities expending large sums of
1 Life of Lope de Vega, Glasgow, 1904, p. 289.
2 Bastidor es or wings were in use long before this, and we find them
mentioned at the beginning of 1643 among the stage appliances at La Mon-
teria, Seville. ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 364, and see above, p. 92, note 3.)
98 THE SPANISH STAGE
money in their preparation. Upon the stage of the public
theaters, on the other hand, we may well imagine that the
apariencias or tramoyas were of a more crude and inexpen-
sive kind. Still, Lope de Vega, as we have seen, early
complained of the great importance attached to stage ma-
chinery, and he again refers to the work of the stage
carpenter in the Prologue to Part XIX of his Comedias
(Madrid, 1623). Here, too, in a dialogue between the
Poet and the Theater, the former says: "Since they use
apariencias, which they call tramoyas, I do not care to
publish my comedias." He never concealed his contempt
for the arts of the scene-painter and the machinist. As
Mr. Fitzmaurice-Kelly says : "Lope needed no scene-paint-
ers to make good his deficiencies. In lAy Verdades! que
en Amor ( 1625) , he laughs at the pieces
en que la carpinteria
suple concetos y trazas." 1
Likewise in Don Quixote (Part I, chap, xlviii), the Ca-
non, in the course of his remarks on the drama of the day,
says : "Y aun en las [comedias] humanas se atreven a hacer
milagros, sin mas respecto ni consideracion que parecerles
que alii estara bien el tal milagro y apariencia como ellos
llaman, para que gente ignorante se admire y venga a la
comedia." Apariencia or tramoya was, therefore, the
technical term for stage machinery, and commenting on
this passage, Clemencin says: "Apariencia es tramoya 6
maquina teatral para representar trasformaciones 6 acon-
tecimientos prodigiosos."2
The term appearances was also used on the English
1 Chapters on Spanish Literature, London, 1908, p. 182. See also the close
of Lope's Epistola d Pablo Bonnet, the verses beginning:
"EI Teatro de Espana se ha resuelto
En aros de cedazos y clauos."
* Edition of Madrid, 1833, Vol. Ill, p. 409. In 1633, when Gonzalez de
Salas published his Nueva Idea de la Tragedia antigua, he spoke of the
THE FRENCH STAGE 99
stage. When Cartwright's Royal Slave was presented be-
fore the King and Queen at Oxford, in August, 1636, the
changes of scene then produced by Inigo Jones were called
"appearances." They were eight in number, but whether
they were effected by sliding frames covered with canvas,
or by falling curtains now technically called "drops," is
not stated.1
We may be quite sure that theatrical machinery had
made no greater advances in the public theaters than the
stage decoration. That this machinery was still very rudi-
mental and imperfect, even after the middle of the seven-
teenth century, is evinced by the accounts published by
Francis van Aerssen, Madame d'Aulnoy, and other trav-
elers in Spain.
From the above instances we are enabled to form a fairly ^
clear conception of the resources ( or perhaps it were better
to say the limitations) of the Spanish stage in the time of
the great creator of the Spanish drama. They also furnish
information that is not without importance as to the ar-
rangement of the Spanish stage. It did not project into
the theater, as did the Elizabethan stage, and its two sides /
were provided with hangings (panos), behind which the 1
actors could retire, and from which they could make their f
entrances.
The stage setting of the French theater at this time was
quite different from that in use in Spain and England, and
in the time of the playwright Hardy it was that of the
Mysteries of the Middle Ages. With slight modifications
this system reigned for nearly a hundred years at the
Hotel de Bourgogne, the only public theater in Paris dur-
ing the second half of the sixteenth and the first thirty
word tramoya as if it had been but lately introduced: "las Machinas de la
Scena, las appariencias quiero decir, i ingeniosos artificios, a quien vulgar-
mente Ios Nuestros llaman con un vocablo nuevo Tramoias." (Edition of
Madrid, 1778, Vol. I, p. 248.) This seems to show that the work was
written some years before the date of its publication.
'Collier, Annals of the Stage, London, 1831, Vol. Ill, p. 372.
ioo THE SPANISH STAGE
years of the seventeenth century.1 This stage of the Mys-
teries consisted of two parts: the mansions and the stage
proper, or the free space between and in front of the
mansions. These mansions were simply houses or build-
ings to which the action was transported during the play.
Thus one might represent the house of the Virgin at Naza-
reth, another the temple at Jerusalem, another the palace
of Pilate, which formed so many mansions in the Mystery
of the Passion. In other words, the simultaneous scenery
of these religious plays of the Middle Ages was trans-
ferred to the public stage, which was divided into several
regions, and France might be represented by one corner
of the theater, Turkey by the other, and Spain in the
middle of the stage. Indeed, the author of the Traite de
la disposition du poeme dramatique (1637), quoted by
Rigal,2 says: "II ne faut pas introduire ni approuver
la regie qui ne represente qu'un lieu dans la scene."
It is this system to which Corneille objected in his
Examen de Melite (1629), when he says: "Common
sense, which has been my sole guide, gave me sufficient
aversion to this horrible confusion, which placed Paris,
Rome, and Constantinople on the same stage, to reduce
mine to a single city."3 Here, too, we are told that a wood
was. represented merely by a little foliage, an encampment
by half a tent, and that the sea and the mountains "were
absolutely lacking in majesty."4 "Besides the permanent
decorations and those which appeared only at certain
times in the performance, the players used also more or
less ingenious machinery, but whether these trues were al-
ways successful, is more than we care to affirm."5 That
this stage setting as late as 1642 was very crude and far
from satisfactory is shown by the complaints made by
d'Aubignac concerning the manner in which his tragedy
1 Rigal, Le Theatre franfaii avant la periode classique, Paris, 1901, pp.
238 ff.
2 Ibid., p. 246. 5 Ibid., p. 247. * Ibid., p. 252. s Ibid., p. 255.
PARTICULARES 101
La Pucelle d 'Orleans was staged. Bapst says that in 1634
the stage at the Hotel de Bourgogne was ornamented with
pilasters, cornices, moldings, arabesques, etc. "It was the
Italian stage setting on a small scale . . . there were
three doors, one at the back and one on each side, without
counting the lucarnes." The canvases were painted in per-
spective. In 1635 representations took place by daylight,
without lamps. At the beginning of the seventeenth cen-
tury a police ordinance fixed half-past four o'clock in the
afternoon as the closing hour of the spectacles in winter.
In the middle of the seventeenth century the Opera,
Moliere, and the Comedie Frangaise had no place for
their performances except the tennis courts, which must
have been most unsatisfactory, both optically as well as
acoustically, to both auditors and actors.1 In these ten-
nis courts, transformed into theaters, the rich and the
nobility occupied boxes or stalls, while "the less fortunate
public stood in the part of the building that was not
occupied by the stage."2
The poverty of scenic effects upon the Spanish stage
applies, as already stated, only to the public theaters, like
the Cruz and the Principe in Madrid, where an entrance
fee was paid. The representations which took place in
the palaces of great nobles (these representations were
called particulares) ,3 and those given before the King
in his private theaters (see below, Chapter X), were
generally accompanied, as we may readily imagine, by
ingenious and costly scenic effects and stage machinery.
'Bapst, Essai sur Vhistoire du Theatre, Paris, 1893, P- l&7-
2 Ibid., p. 171.
* In October, 1602, Antonio Granados represented a comedia before D.
Diego Gomez, "who was sick with quartan fever," receiving 200 reals
(Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 353) ; in February, 1603, Nicolas de los
Rios received 300 reals for a comedia which he represented before the
Duke of Lerma, "en la Huerta de la Ribera del Pisuerga" (ibid., p. 353) ;
and in November, 1603, the same autor de comedias received, for going
from Valladolid to Tordesillas, and representing four comedias before the
King, 1200 reals, besides 371 reals for expenses. This was, apparently,
also a festival given by the Duke of Lerma. (Ibid., p. 354.)
102 THE SPANISH STAGE
We read, for instance, that in 1618 Luis Velez de
Guevara's comedia El Caballero del Sol was performed
by the company of Baltasar Pinedo in the house of D.
Juan Gaytan de Ayala, in the Calle de Atocha, "with the
same invenciones and stage arrangement with which this
comedia was represented in the garden of his Excellency
the Duke of Lerma." This latter representation was,
doubtless, intended solely for the delectation of the
Duke's friends. The performance in the house of
D. Gaytan de Ayala, however, is the only one that I
have found recorded, in which an admission fee was
charged, and from which other profits accrued to the per-
son giving the comedia. The details are so curious that I
transcribe them. The document is in the form of an
agreement between D. Juan de Vidaurre, Captain in
Ordinary to his Majesty in Madrid and his entretenido
in that city, and the lessees of the profits which result to
the hospitals from the performance of comedias, reciting
that the said comedia is to be given by the company of
Pinedo in Ayala's house. "That the said D. Juan de
Vidaurre is to provide the said invenciones and to erect,
at his own cost, in the said house and yard, the theater and
boxes {aposentos) and seats {gradas) necessary for the
men as well as the women to hear the said comedia. Like-
wise that the said lessees are to give to the said D. Juan
forty ducats, in part payment of the expenses. Likewise
that all that may result by way of profit during the
whole time the said comedia is to be given in the said
corral — deducting the share of the said Baltasar de
Pinedo, autor — as well from the entrance fees as from the
aposentos, and all other profits, are to be divided equally
between the said lessees and the said D. Juan, but the
forty ducats which the said Baltasar de Pinedo is to give
to the said D. Juan are to belong solely to the latter.
All the fruits and confections while the festival lasts are to
be sold by Roque Hernandez, who is also to receive eight
THE KNIGHT OF THE SUN 103
reals, one half to be paid by the said lessees and one half
by the said D. Juan. Likewise the said forty ducats are
to be returned by the said D. Juan, unless he erect the
said theater and gradas in eight days." x
1 Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, pp. 164, 165.
CHAPTER VI
Costumes. Their impropriety. Their magnificence. Costumes in
the autos sacramentales. Performances in the public theaters.
Prices of admission. The audiences. The mosqueteros. Women
in the cazuela. Ruffianism, in the theaters. Seats in the corrales.
As there was little thought of verisimilitude in the stage
setting, so, as regards the costumes worn by the players,
there was no pretense to historical accuracy. All charac-
ters appeared in the Spanish costume of the time. This is
due to a peculiarity — shared in a measure by the drama of
other nations at the time (particularly the English),
but eminently characteristic of the Spanish drama—
that is, the tendency to translate everything which it
represents into the present and actual in which it moves:
that the remotest past and the strangest occurrences are
transformed into the national usages and customs, and
that what is most foreign is changed, as it were, to some-
thing essentially Spanish. The single exception was in
the case of plays founded upon Spanish history or legend,
—here only an attempt was made to reproduce the spirit
of a bygone age.1
1 "Ein ganz eigenthiimlicher, nirgends in gleicher Starke hervortretender
Zug der spanischen Comodie nun besteht darin, dasz sie in Allem, was sie
vorfiihrt, sich die nachste Gegenwart und Umgebung, in der sie selbst lebt,
abspiegeln laszt^dasz sie die fernste Vorzeit, die fremdeste Begebenheit in
die heimische Sitte und Gewohnheit hiniiberzieht und selbst das Entlegenste
durch Umwandlung gleichsam zum spanischen Nationalgut raacht. Gewisz
ist diese Art, die Gegenwart zur Grundlage der Darstellung zu machen,
die einzige, wie ein wahres Nationalschauspiel entstehen kann. Denn das
Drama, das vor allem auf lebhafte Anregung seiner Zuhorerschaft bedacht
sein musz, wird durch alles Entlegene, nicht unmittelbar Verstandliche in
seiner lebendigen Wirkung beeintrachtigt, und vermag die Begebenheiten
SPANISH COSTUMES 105
As Ticknor says, "Coriolanus was dressed like Don
John of Austria, and Aristotle came on the stage with a
curled periwig and buckles on his shoes, like a Spanish
Abbe."1 Only the most obvious distinctions were made:
a Moor, naturally, would appear in the traditional cos-
tume, or, at all events, in a turban and long mantle, for
these were known to the audience, but the Roman wore a
short cloak and sword. Lope de Vega, in his Arte nuevo
de hacer Comedias (1609), complains of the impropriety
of Romans wearing breeches upon the Spanish stage, for
Greeks and Romans, as he says, appeared with cloak and
sword, in the national costume.2 But this reproach applies
not only to the Spanish drama, but to all others of the
time as well. Concerning the French theater we are told :
"Le meme costume, cheveux tombants, cuirasse collant au
corps, avec tonnelets, brodequins et casque a panache, sert
a tous les roles historiques, depuis David et Salomon
und Verhaltnisse fruherer Zeiten oder ferner Lander nur insofern zu ge-
brauchen, als es sie mit der Gegenwart verkniipfen und seinen Zuschauern
in nachste Nahe riicken kann. Nur die Stoffen aus der nationalen Geschichte
oder Sage hat sich daher die spanische Comodie bemuht, sich genau in den
Geist und Ton vergangener Zeiten zu versetzen, weil diese der lebenden
Generation noch mannigfach vertraut und gegenwartig waren; die Ge-
schichten des classischen Alterthums und des Auslandes dagegen finden wir
durchaus phantastisch und in der Art behandelt, dasz die spanische Natio-
nalitat, die Sitte und Sinnesart der Gegenwart iiberall durchklingt."
{Geschichte der dramatischen Literatur und Kunst in Spanien, Vol. II, pp.
79, 80; cf. also ibid., pp. 29, 30.) These remarks, it seems to me, apply
with almost equal force to the Elizabethan drama. An audience totally
ignorant of the facts of history was responsible for such a condition and
requisite for its maintenance. Hence the glaring anachronisms that occur
in the plays of Lope, Shakespeare, and other dramatists of the period passed
unnoticed. There was, for instance, no hesitancy in introducing firearms
upon the stage in a play, the action of which took place long before gun-
powder was invented, if the effect of the action were heightened thereby.
1 History of Spanish Literature, Vol. II, p. 539.
2 The stage directions, however, abundantly show that some regard
was had, here also, for the fitness of things. The costume, being an indi-
cation of rank, helped to tell the story. Apart from the very obvious fact
that the peasant always appeared in a costume suited to his station (ex-
amples: Lope de Vega, Lie gar en Ocasion (Part VI), fol. 12, v.-.Salen Fenisa,
y Otauio con gauan de labrador. El mejor Maestro el Tiempo (Part VI),
Act III: Sale Oton de villa.no con un azadon, etc., etc.), we find such stage
106 THE SPANISH STAGE
jusqu'a Charles V."1 Of course the Roman citizens of
Shakespeare's time wore the English costume then in
vogue, and we know that, in the middle of the eighteenth
century, Garrick appeared as Macbeth in a powdered wig
and knee-breeches. In Spain, too, this carelessness as to
costume was maintained until far into the eighteenth cen-
tury. D. Jose Clavijo y Fajardo, speaking of the autos in
1762, says: "Who could help laughing aloud on seeing a
Levite appear, in the first age of man {en la primer a edad
del hombre), dressed like a priest and wearing a miter?
It would be hard to say which were the greater nonsense,
to introduce a Levite at that period or to clothe him in
this manner."2
When it is said, however, that the costumes had little
or no regard for historical accuracy, it by no means implies
that they were not magnificent and costly.3 On the con-
trary, there is ample evidence to prove that Spanish actors
and actresses were exceedingly extravagant in the matter
of costumes, and the amount of money expended upon
them often shows an improvidence which has been a char-
acteristic of the theatrical profession in all times. In 1589
Sebastian de Montemayor, an autor de comedias or theat-
rical director, and Ana de Velasco, his wife, paid 100
ducats (= 1 100 reals) for a rich skirt and jacket ("precio
directions as: Salen dos alabarderos, vestidos como Tudescos, con su bota
de Vino. (Lope de Vega, Urson y Valentin, Part I, 1604, fol. 171.) In El
Hijo de Reduan (Part I), Act I: Entra Gomel con un alguizel [Moorish
cloak] de alarde, y un bonete Colorado, y unas abarcas de pellejos(io\. 143).
Servir con mala Estrella (Part VI, 1616), Act I: Salen Rugero de V aloes y
Turin su criado de camino a lo Frances. Cervantes, La Gran Sultana, Act
I, opening: Sale Dona Catalina de Oviedo Gran Sultana vestida a la Tur-
quesca, and a little later: Salen Madrigal de cautiuo, y Andres en abito de
Griego.
1 Bapst, Essai sur I'histoire du Theatre, p. 176.
a Cotarelo y Mori, Controversias, p. 159. The same writer says: "Un
Elias vestido muy pobreraente, con mucha barba y zapatos encarnados con
galon de oro ya lo habiamos visto en Ios Tres Prodigios del Mundo, pero
Cristo peinado de ala de pichon, con polvos y corbatin, esto estaba reservado
para aumentar las deformidades de los autos."
* The theatrical wardrobe -was, perhaps, the manager's heaviest item of
MAGNIFICENCE OF COSTUMES 107
de una basquiria y un manteo ricos, para representar").1
In 1602 Melchor de Leon paid 330 reals for a skirt of
straw-colored satin ("basquina de razo pajizo").2 In
1607 Baltasar Pinedo paid 550 reals for hats, feathers,
and silks.8 In 16 10 Diego Lopez de Alcaraz paid 240
reals for a costume "de pario de mezcla aceitunada," or
mixed cloth of an olive color.4 In 161 7 Jusepe Jimenez
and his wife Vicenta de Borja, players in the company
of Baltasar Pinedo, paid 440 reals for a skirt and
waist of grosgrain with silk lace ("basquina y
jubon de gorgoran con pasamanos de seda").B In
161 9 Juan Bautista Mufiiz and his wife Eugenia Osorio
paid 2400 reals for a costume of greenish-gold sateen with
gold lace and edging of red sateen with trimmings of gold
fringe, lined with red taffeta silk ("vestido de raso de oro
verde con pasamanos de oro y pestafias de raso encarnado
y alamares de peinecillo de oro forrado en tafetan encar-
nado").6 In 1636 Pedro de la Rosa, theatrical director,
bought from Bartolome Romero and his wife Antonia
Manuela, both players, "un calzon de ropilla y ferreruelo
[short cloak, without cape] de lana parda, bordado de
coronas y palmas de oro y plata, y las mangas del jubon
de canutillo [embroidery] de plata," for 3600 reals.7
One may form some conception of this extravagance,
bearing in mind that the average price received by Lope
de Vega for a comedia, at the height of his popularity,
was 500 reals.
Sometimes, indeed, the costumes used in the representa-
tion of the autos sacramentales — which were given at
the expense of the municipality — were so costly that
expense. A conception of the splendor of the costumes in Spain at the
beginning of the seventeenth century may be formed from the "Memoria
del hato para representar" sold by Baltasar Pinedo to Juan Granados, on
April 25, 1605, printed in the Bull. Hispanique, 1907, pp. 369-371.
"Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 337.
'Ibid., p. 78. 'Ibid., p. 101. * Ibid., p. 119.
"Ibid., p. 163. 'Ibid., p. 181. ''Ibid., p. 251.
108 THE SPANISH STAGE
the actors petitioned the city for an extra sum to defray
this expense, alleging that the costumes were useless for
any other purpose. This the town council frequently did,
in one case paying 200 reals.1 Many instances are re-
corded where actors and actresses were granted a special
sum by the town council, as a prize for having particularly
distinguished themselves in the performance of an auto
either by their acting or costume.
While the principal players possessed their own cos-
tumes, the autores de comedias provided them for the
lesser members of their companies. Frequently, also, a
town, in order to give a dance or comedia for some fes-
tival, hired the costumes from some autor. So in 1597
the clothes and costumes ("ato y vestidos de farsa") of
Gaspar de Porres were hired; in 1634 Sanchez de Vargas
hired out his costumes for a dance in the town of Mejo-
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, pp. 307 and 322. The value of Spanish money
in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries is a very difficult matter
to ascertain even approximately, as it varied so much from time to
time. The only Spanish coins with which we have to deal are the ducado,
the real, and the maravedi. There is an excellent article on the maravedi
in the Reiiista de Archivos for March -April, 1905. The ducado = 11 reals,
and the real plate = 34 maravedis. Minsheu's Spanish Dictionary, London,
1599, tells us that a ryall plate=s\xe pence^34 maravedis. The maravedi,
which was at first a gold coin, became in the time of Philip III (1598-
1621) a copper coin of very small value. And just here occurs the diffi-
culty. Seldom is it stated whether the real vellon (copper) or the real de
plata (silver) is meant, the real plate being equal to two reals copper. It
would seem, however, that at one time there was little difference between
the real de plata and the real vellon. As an example : under date of Valla-
dolid, September 1, 1604, Gaspar de Porres, autor de comedias, bound him-
self to pay to the Brotherhood of the Ninos Expositos of that city 2000 reals
silver, which he had received in vellon from the treasurer of the Brotherhood
(Nuevos Datos, p. 88). This may be explained by a note which I find in
Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. Ill, p. 1150: "AI principio deste ano (1604) se
quilataron las monedas de vellon en todos los reinos de Castilla, doblandose
el valor para socorro de S. M. y se pregono con graves penas en esta
cibdad (Cordoba) a 29 de Marzo que no corriese la moneda sino quila-
tada." Again, in 1612, Juan de Morales Medrano, autor de comedias,
promises to repay 1000 reals, which he had borrowed, "in silver and not in
•vellon." (Nuevos Datos, p. 129.) I believe that the silver' real of the
double value of the real vellon is called the real de plata doble. (See
Nuevos Datos, p. 160.) An account of the value of money at a later period
(1667) is furnished by a work entitled Hispania Illustrata, or the Maxims
HIRING OF COSTUMES 109
rada.1 In 1636 Andres de la Vega hired out to Pedro
de la Rosa, to be returned after the festival of Corpus,
a costume of Moses, a ropon for Aaron, a capuz for a
Jew, and a ropon for a Moor, together with eight cloaks
of taffeta, for 2500 reals.2 In 1636 Mariana de Aparicio
agreed with Andres de la Vega to play second parts in his
company, he to furnish the costumes.3 Andres de la
Vega seems to have been possessed of a rich and extensive
theatrical wardrobe, which he frequently hired out.4
Some idea of the extent and quality of the ward-
robe of a prominent theatrical manager in the mid-
dle of the seventeenth century is furnished by the list
of the effects of Jacinto Riquelme, which were attached in
1652 to compel the performance of a contract to act in
the Corral de La Monteria in Seville.5 In this list are
included all the properties, scenery, and machinery neces-
sary to represent what were called comedias de apariencias,
"besides the costumes for the fools and peasants."6
It may not be without interest to note here that in 1608
of the Spanish Court, etc., London, 1703. On p. 53 we find: "In 1667, 500
doblones = £450 sterling. A doblon = 4 pieces of 8 = 74 reales vellon, and
that a real plate = 6d. and a real •vellon = zVzd." From such data as I
have been able to gather, I infer that the purchasing power of a real in the
early seventeenth century was about five times its value in present money,
i.e., that a real plate = about 25 cents. So we are told that in Moliere's
time, which was nearly half a century later, money was worth five times
as much as at present, i.e., in 1654 six cents livres = trois mille francs.
(Soulie, Recherches sur Moliere, p. 68.) A convenient norm for the value
of money in Spain at the close of the sixteenth century is furnished by an
instrument dated March 26, 1596, by which Baltasar Pinedo, autor de come-
dias, agrees to pay to Gabriel Rubio, tailor, of Madrid, 24 ducats =
264 reals, for board and lodging for six months for himself and servant, at
the rate of 4 ducats per month, i.e., n reals per week, for two persons.
(Nuevos Datos, p. 43.) The great depreciation of money during the reign
of Philip IV., and the many attempts to regulate its value, render any
definite general statement impossible.
1 Nuevos Datos, p. 238. s Ibid., p. 252. * Ibid., p. 258.
4 See ibid., pp. 269, 271.
5 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, pp. 398 ff. For a list of the properties and cos-
tumes of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz in 1602, see Nuevos Datos, p. 63.
'"Todo el jato que llaman ornato del vestuario, pafios y maromas, y
vestidos de villanos y bobos, y garruchos y hierros y tramoyas.
no THE SPANISH STAGE
Shakespeare was proprietor of the wardrobe and proper-
ties of the Blackfriars theater, besides owning four shares,
which brought him in £133 6s. id. "These properties, we
may conclude, he lent to the company for a certain consid-
eration."1
When in financial straits, a condition that has ever been
familiar to the followers of Thespis, the mainstay of the
player or manager was the wardrobe, which he could al-
ways pawn with some money-lender.2 A curious case is
that of Lorenzo Hurtado de la Camara, who in 1639 paid
1000 reals to redeem a costume which he had pawned to
the convent of S. Juan de Dios in Ocafia.3 Indeed,
with very few exceptions, both autores de comedias
and actors seem to have been almost constantly in
debt, as the many obligations and agreements collected
by Perez Pastor amply show. To compel the pay-
ment of a debt, recourse was had to the very efficacious
remedy of clapping the debtor into prison. Not infre-
quently, as the records prove, did this misfortune befall
the theatrical manager and actor of those days. In 1601
Rodrigo Osorio, autor de comedias, was imprisoned at
Madrid for a debt of 700 reals, being released on the
guaranty of his son-in-law Diego Lopez de Alcaraz and
his daughter Magdalena Osorio to pay the debt;4 and in
1605 Alonso de Riquelme, a famous autor, was impris-
oned in Valladolid for a debt of 900 reals.5
1 Shakespeare's Works, ed. Collier, Vol. I, p. 191. Greg (Hensloioe's
Diary, II, p. 130) says: "The wardrobe of a company appears to have been
a complicated affair; part, like the stage properties, belonged to the com-
pany in general, that is to say, -was the common property of the sharers,
while part belonged to individual actors. Thus, we find Pembroke's men
pawning their 'parel in 1593, and Edward Alleyn buying Jones's share in
the common stock of playing-apparel, etc., belonging to Worcester's men in
1589," etc.
2 A list of the theatrical wardrobe of the stranded company of Jeronimo
de Amelia, seized for debt in Valencia in 1628, is given in the Bull. His-
panique, 1906, p. 377.
' Nuevos Datos, p. 315.
* Ibid., p. 54.
'Ibid., p. 91. (See also Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 374.)
TIME OF PERFORMANCES in
With the passing of the Corral de Puente, about 1584,
the theaters of Madrid were reduced to two, the Corral de
la Cruz and the Corral del Principe. These continued to be
the only public theaters in Madrid till the close of the
seventeenth century. The King had his own private thea-
ters, and from an account of the events which happened
at court between 1599 and 1614, written by the historian
Luis Cabrera de Cordoba, it follows that private perform-
ances of comedias must have taken place in the King's
palace, the Alcazar, as early as the beginning of the seven-
teenth century. Besides this stage, which was erected in
one of the rooms of the palace, Philip the Third, in 1607,
caused a theater to be built in the Casas del Tesoro, near
the palace.1
Dramatic performances in the public theaters always
took place in the afternoon, at three o'clock in summer and
at two in winter.2 By an ordinance of 1608 it was pro-
vided that the doors of the theaters3 should not be opened
1 Cabrera says under the date, Madrid, January 20, 1607: "Hdse hecho
en el segundo patio de las casas del Tesoro un teatro donde vean sus Ma-
gestades las comedias, como se representan al pueblo en los corrales que
estan deputados para ello, porque puedan gozar mejor de ellas que quando
se les representa en su sala, y asi han hecho alrededor galerias y ventanas
donde este la gente de Palacio, y sus Magestades iran alii de su Camara
por el pasadizo que esta hecho, y las veran por unas celosias." (Relaciones
de las Cosas sucedidas en la Corie de Espana desde el Ano 1599 hasta 1614,
edited by D. Pascual de Gayangos, Madrid, 1857, P- 298-) It appears
that Philip IV., in 1622, the year after his accession to the throne, enter-
tained the project of building another theater in Madrid. (Perez Pastor,
Nuevos Datos, p. 191. See below, p. 237.)
'Court performances, on the other hand, were generally given at night;
this was also the rule in England. (Malone, Historical Account of the
English Stage, p. 185.)
3 Don Luis Fernandez-Guerra, in his excellent biography of Alarcon, p.
181, says that the Corral de la Cruz had seven doors and the Principe eight,
"cada cual para su objeto, ya de subir a los aposentos, ya para el escenario
y su servicio, ahora'para entrada de hombres, ahora para las mugeres;
cual, la de la alojeria; una, la del cocheron; y la ultima, la de la taberna."
His authority for this statement is Armona, Memorias cronoUgicas. The
latter work, because of the recent publications of Perez Pastor and Cotarelo,
is now of little importance. I have a popy of portions of it, and under the
caption "Visita que en el ano de 1606 se hizo por el visitador del Real
Hospedaje, etc. Ano de 1606," it is stated that the Corral del Principe has
ii2 THE SPANISH STAGE
until noon, and that representations should begin, during
the six months beginning October i, at two o'clock, and
during the remaining six months at four in the afternoon,
"in such a manner that the performance may be concluded
an hour before nightfall," and the comisarios and bailiffs
were to take particular care that this proviso be ful-
filled. The same ordinance likewise provided that posters
should be put up to indicate clearly the comedias which
were to be represented each day.1 The same provisions
are again found in the "Regulations for the Theaters,"
issued in 1641, to which we shall recur in a succeeding
chapter. A performance generally lasted from two to
three hours.2
The price of admission to the corrales varied at different
eight doors, the first to ascend to the aposenlos and the other five (sic) for
entrance, but there is besides "a casa con dos puertas en que hay una tienda
y taberna." These two doors evidently did not give access to the theater.
Likewise in 1638 there were only six entrances. In the "Visita general que
se hizo el afio de 1606," to the Calle de la Cruz, we find: "Corral de la
Cruz. For no estar labrado no se taso," which I do not understand. In
1638 there were seven ( ?) doors: one to the Alogeria, two to the aposentos,
one for women, and another entrance is described as a coach-house
(cochera). The latter is probably accounted for as follows: in 1631 the
King commanded that his entrance to the Corral de la Cruz, which was the
property of the Duke of Medina de las Torres, should be changed to a
more retired and more decent place. In April, 163 1, a corral was taken
which belonged to D. Fernando Segura in the Plazuela del Angel, and an
entrance made, so that the coach of the King could be driven to the stair-
way, a rent of 2000 reals yearly to be paid. Since, in doing this, a part of
the property of Dona Potencia de Quesada would have to be occupied, it
was necessary to rent this also for 75 ducats yearly. (Averiguador, Vol. I,
p. 171.) This entrance was still in existence in 1653.
1 Cotarelo y Mori, Controversial, p. 623.
' "La comedia aora empecamos,
De aqui a dos horas saldremos,
Quando ya estara acabada,
Que todo lo acaba el tiempo."
(Loas to Comedias of Lope de Vega, Part I, Valladolid, 1604, p. 3.)
And again:
"Boluamos a lo importante,
Que es el silencio pedido,
Por tres horas no cabales."
(Ibid., p. 7.)
THE PRICE OF ADMISSION 113
times. What it was in Madrid in the latter part of the
sixteenth century, we learn from a document dated March
6, 1589, published by Pellicer.1 According to this, "every
person who entered to see the said comedias paid for his
seat 4 quartos (= 16 maravedis), and at the entrance, be-
sides what he gives to the players, he pays another quarto,
in such manner that each person who enters the comedia
pays 5 quartos, besides what he gives to the players." 2 In
Seville, "those who went to see the comedias of Ganassa
in 1575 at the Corral de Don Juan paid half a real en-
trance, one real for each silla, and a cuartillo (= one
fourth of a real) for each seat on a banco."3 About 1585
the price of a seat on the buncos in the Corral del Principe
was a half-real.4 This price was afterward increased, but
in April, 1602, the court being no longer in Madrid (it
was removed to Valladolid in January, 1601, and did not
return to Madrid till the end of January, 1606) , the town
council of Madrid again lowered the prices and declared :
"that the autor (manager) receive from each man and
woman, at the entrance, 1 2 maravedis ; and that the Gen-
eral Hospital receive, as it had received, two maravedis
from each person at the entrance."5 Thus the entrance
fee for the mosqueteros (who stood in the patio), and for
the women, was 14 maravedis, or a little less than half a
1 Tratado historico, Vol. II, p. 191.
!"EI Hospital General de Madrid tiene dos Corrales, donde se represen-
tan Comedias, y cada una de las personas que entran a ver las dichas Co-
medias, dan por el asiento en que se asientan quatro quartos, y a la entrada,
ademas de lo que se da a los Comediantes, se da otro quarto: por manera
que son cinco quartos los que cada uno de los que entran en la Comedia
paga, demas de lo que dan a los Comediantes," etc. These 5 quartos (=
20 maravedis) were therefore the limosnas, or alms, which was the share
of the hospitals from each one who entered the corrales; and in addition to
this the spectator had to pay a sum to the manager of the players. This
charge the theologians, to whom it was referred, did not consider excessive
in view of the fact that four and even six reals were at that time paid in
Madrid for a seat to see a bull-fight. (Ibid., p. 195.)
* Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 51.
* Life of Lope de Vega, p. 28.
"Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 73.
ii4 THE SPANISH STAGE
real. The price of the sillas and seats on the buncos
(which held three persons) was probably the same as be-
fore, or one real. The court having returned to Madrid
in January, 1606, another decree was issued, dated March
21, 1606, in which the deputies of the Brotherhoods were
called upon to fix the price of admission to the corrales,
restoring the prices in vogue when the court left Madrid.
They agreed that from the first day of Pascua de Resur-
rection every man admitted to the gradas was to pay
16 maravedis, and every woman who entered the large
compartment for women (cazuela), 20 maravedis, which
included the quarto (=4maravedis) for the General Hos-
pital ; each aposento was 1 2 reals and each banco [seat on a
banco ?~\ one real ; each of the celosias which has its entrance
through the house of the Condesa de Lemos, 1 2 reals, and
that likewise the General Hospital should receive at the
entrance doors of the corrales a. quarto from each person,
and the same from the persons who occupy the aposentos,
"which are the prices which are ordinarily paid when the
court is in Madrid."1
1 Pellicer, Tratado Historico, etc., Vol. I, p. 88. Information concerning
the price of admission to the English theaters of the period is not very
definite. Malone says: "The galleries or scaffolds and that part of the
house which in private theaters was named the pit, seem to have been at the
same price, and probably in houses of reputation, such as the Globe and
that in Blackfriars, the price of admission into those parts of the theater
was six pence, while in some meaner playhouses it was only a penny, in
others two pence. The price of admission into the best rooms or boxes was,
I believe, in Shakespeare's time a shilling; though afterward [about 1640]
it appears to have risen to two shillings, and half a crown. At the Black-
friars theater the price of the boxes was, I imagine, higher than at the
Globe." {Historical Account of the English Stage, pp. 77-79.) As regards
the English actors in Germany, Creizenach gives the following prices of
admission to their performances : "In Ulm and Frankfort the ordinary price
was 2 Kreuzer; in the former city at first 1 Kreuzer; in Strassburg 3 Kr.,
though the players would have preferred a Batzen (=4 Kr.) ; later, in
1618, it was 1 Batzen. In Cologne 2-4 Albus (Albus = 2 Kr.). In Mem-
mingen in 1600 it was 4 Kr. In Nurnberg at first Y? Batzen, after-
ward as high as 6 Kr. In Munster in 1599, one Schilling. The
difference in price is probably due to the fact that in some instances the
cost of the seat is included. Where this is not the case, the price given i9
for entrance only, an additional sum being required for a seat. In Frank-
THE CORRAL DE DONA ELVIRA 115
In the ordinance of 1608 we find that every person who
entered the theater paid 5 quartos (= 20 maravedis) at
the door, men as well as women, of which 5 quartos the
autor received 3, and the hospitals of Madrid 2 quartos.1
In the Corral de Doha Elvira at Seville, in 16 10, the
price of a silla was half a real and the banco one real, and
each aposento 6 reals.2 Here 8 maravedis was the
amount exacted from each entrance fee for the benefit of
the city hospital.3 This seems to have been in addition to
the regular charge for entrance. This admission fee I
infer to have been 16 maravedis (= 4 quartos) , from the
petition of Juan Jeronimo Valenciano, an autor de come-
dias, who, in 1625, sets forth that the lessees of the
Coliseo had refused to advance him and his company the
customary sum as an ayuda de costa, and he therefore
begs that he be .given a license to perform in Triana,
within the walls, in such place as he may find, receiving
4 quartos from each person.4
In 1 61 7 the price of a silla in the Coliseo or the Dona
Elvira was 4 quartos, while the banco remained at one real.
It was particularly specified in the leases of these theaters
fort in 1 601 the entrance was 8 Pfennig, and 4 Pfennig additional for a
seat in the gallery, which is designated as a preferred place in 1610. In
1613 the Council of Niirnberg fixed the entrance fee at 3 Kr., besides 3 Kr.
for a seat in the gallery. In 1611 at Ulm only 2 Kr. could be charged, and
in 1611 the Council of Frankfort declared that a scale of prices must be
hung outside the theater door. Here, too, overcharges were frequent, and
in 1599 Sackville had to pay a fine of 20 Florins for overcharging. At
Leyden in 1608 the players were obliged to give half their receipts for the
support of poor orphans, the guardians of the orphans furnishing a person
at the outer door to collect this amount." (Die Schauspieler der Engli-
schen Comedianten, pp. xvii-xix.) Concerning the theaters in France, a
police ordinance of 1609 forbade actors charging more than five sous to the
pit and ten to the boxes and galleries. These prices were still in vogue
about 1620, but in 1634 they seem to have been about nine or ten sous for
the pit and nineteen or twenty for the boxes, while in 1652 it was fifteen
sous for the pit. (Rigal, he ThSdtre frangais avant la Piriode classique,
pp. 156, 157.)
1 Cotarelo y Mori, Controversial, p. 624.
' Sanchez- Arjona, Anales, p. 144.
3 Ibid., p. 147. iIbid., p. 241.
n6 THE SPANISH STAGE
that no spectator be allowed to bring into the theater any
seat or chair; the entrance fee entitled to standing room
only. Admission to the aposentos, which were numbered,
was by a numbered ticket.1
The ticket-scalper or speculator is not a creation of our
own day; sometimes he was the lessee of the theater, for
we find that, in 1616, Don Francisco Mejia, lessee of the
Dona Elvira in Seville, exacted 20, 24, and even 32 reals
for the aposentos, instead of 6 reals, and 2 reals for each
silla instead of 24 maravedis.2 In like manner, the youth
who had charge of the sillas and bancos in La Monteria in
1633 charged 3 reals and even more, instead of one, the
regular price.3 And in 1637 Domingo Hernandez, who
hired the lower aposentos in the same theater, compelled
strangers to pay 20 and 24 reals, instead of 12.4
There were generally two outer doorkeepers or cobra-
dores; one collected the money at the principal entrance
and the other at the entrance for women. Two collections
were made, one for admission and a second for the benefit
of the hospitals,5 besides the extra price paid for a seat,
for this was not included in the entrance fee.
Two alguaciles, or peace officers, were also stationed,
one at each door, and frequently also one in the women's
gallery. Besides these there were persons to collect the
extra charge for the sillas and bancos, and others in charge
of the aposentos or rooms.
Green and dried fruits, water, sweets, aloja (a kind of
1 Sanchez- Arjona, Anales, p. 262.
'Ibid., p. 178. * Ibid., p. 283. 4 Ibid., p. 308.
"There are many references showing that two fees were collected:
On March 26, 16 14, Francisco Mufioz entered into an obligation with
Alonso de Heredia, autor de comedias, to collect at both doors for him
(para cobrar a la puerta y traspuerta) . (Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p.
143.) And Cervantes, in the "Adjunta al Parnaso," subjoined to his Viaje
del Parnaso (1614), mentions the privileges sent by Apollo to the Spanish
poets, and among them: "Item, that every comic poet who has brought out
three successful comedias shall have the entry of the theaters without pay-
ment, unless it be the pittance for the poor at the second door, and even
this, if need be, shall be excused him." (Edition of Madrid, 1784, p. 148.)
ODI PROFANUM VULGUS 117
mead), and barquillos (thin rolled wafers) were sold
among the audience.
The audiences were often unjust and noisy, and always
hard to please. The mosqueteros, or infantry, as the rough
and boisterous crowd who stood in the patio or pit, were
called, constituted, as Ticknor says, the most formidable
and disorderly part of the audience, and were especially
feared by both author and actor, for upon their whims the
success or failure of a comedia generally depended. Many
are the complaints made, by even the greatest dramatists,
of the injustice and turbulence of these spectators.
Lope de Vega often alludes to the vulgo, as he calls
them, in a tone of bitter contempt, and Alarcon shows his
utter despisal of the rabble by addressing them as bestia
fiera (wild beasts) in the prologue to the first volume of
his Comedias (1628) : "To you I address myself, wild
beasts, for to the noble it is unnecessary, for they speak
for me better than I myself could do. Here are my
comedias : treat them as is your wont ; not as is just, but
as is your pleasure, for they face you fearlessly and with
contempt, and having passed the ordeal of your whistlings
they can now readily pass that of your lurking-places. If
they displease you I shall rejoice, for it will be a proof
that they are good; if they please you, however, then the
money they have cost you will be for me a sufficient re-
venge for this proof of their worthlessness." The theat-
rical manager Lorenzo Hurtado, in a Loa with which he
began his representations in Madrid for the second time
In Seville, in 1620, 8 maravedis were collected for the benefit of the city at
the second door of the Corral de Dona Elvira from each person who en-
tered, and this continued to be the custom, for we read that in 1652 2
quartos ( = 8 maravedis) were also collected at the second door of La
Monteria for the same purpose. (Sanchez-Arjona, Anales del Teatro en
Semlla, pp. 213, 404.) In 1619 at the Teatro de la Olivera in Valencia the
price of an aposento was 4 reals in Valencian money ( = 5 reals 22 mara-
vedis), which was afterward increased to 8 reals 16 maravedis. The share
of the players was 8 dineros per person, and the entrance 6 dineros, so that
the general admission was 14 dineros, which was paid at two doors, 8 at
the first and 6 at the second door. (Lamarca, El Teatro de Valencia, p. 27.)
n8 THE SPANISH STAGE
(1632-34?), addresses the mosqueteros, "who already
have their whistles at their lips,"1 and Roque de Figueroa,
the friend of Lope de Vega, and one of the most celebrated
theatrical directors of his time, tries to conciliate his audi-
ence in a Loa2. He speaks in turn to the spectators in the
different parts of the theater : the buncos were back of the
standing-place of the mosqueteros in the pit, the gradas
were the rising seats on the sides, the aposentos were
rooms whose windows extended around the three sides of
the court-yard in different stories, the uppermost being the
desvanes. These were occupied by persons of both sexes
who could afford such a luxury, as Ticknor says, and who
not unfrequently thought it one of so much consequence
that they held it as an heirloom from generation to genera-
tion.3 Even the court poet Calderon did not consider it
beneath him to beg the indulgence of the mosqueteros*
Nor were the women who attended the theater any
1 "A los mosqueteros,
Que en el pico de la lengua
Tienen ya los silbos puestos."
(Entremeses de Quinones de Benavente, ed. Rosell,
Vol. I, Madrid, 1873, p. 32.)
sHe addresses them as follows:
"Sabios y criticos bancos,
Gradas bien intencionadas,
Fiadosas barandillas,
Doctos desvanes del alma,
Aposentos, que callando
Sabeis suplir nuestras faltas;
Infanteria espanola,
Porque ya es cosa muy rancia
El llamaros mosqueteros."
(Ibid., p. 172.)
8 History of Spanish Literature, Vol. II, p. 524. "II y en a qui ont leur
place aupres du Theatre, qu'ils gardent de pere en fils comme un Mayo-
razgo, qui ne se peut vendre ni engager, tant ils ont de passion pour cela.'
(Relation de I'Estat et Gowvernement d'Espagne par Francois Bertaut,
Cologne, 1666, p. 59.)
4 At the end of Calderon's El galan fantasma (written in 1635 or
earlier), Candil, the gracioso, thus addresses the mosqueteros:
"Yo, que pase tantos sustos,
No quiero de nadie nada,
THE DISORDERLY STEW-PAN 119
more orderly or charitable. Of course I do not refer here
to the more respectable who occupied the boxes or apo-
sentos and who generally went masked.1 But the motley
crowd that surged into the cazuela (stewing-pan), which
men were not allowed to enter, was no less disorderly
than the "infantry" of the patio, so that an alguacil, or
peace officer, was always stationed in this gallery to keep
them within bounds. Here no woman with any regard for
her reputation entered unmasked.2 Like the mosqueteros,
these denizens of the jaula, or cage, as it was also called,
pelted the actors with fruit, orange-peels, pepinos (cucum-
bers), or anything they found at hand, to show their dis-
approval, and generally came provided with rattles,
whistles, or keys, which they used unsparingly.3 Roque
Sino de los Mosqueteros
£1 perdon de nuestras faltas,
Para que con esto fin
Demos al galan fantasma."
1 Guillen de Castro, Los mal Casados de Valencia, Act II. Malone notes
that respectable women also wore masks in the English theaters. {His-
torical Account of the English Stage, p. 126.) The same custom prevailed
in France: "Peutretre aussi dans les loges y avait-il quelques femmes hon-
netes, mais trop curieuses, cachees sous le masque. On sait, en effet, que les
dames ne sortaient jamais sans masque, sauf a le laisser attache pres de
l'oreille, si elles ne le voulaient pas porter, comme font de bonnes dames
de Paris, qui, encore qu'elles ne se masquent jamais dans la rue, craignant
de s'echauffer ou pour quelque autre sujet, ont toujours le masque pendant,
comme un volet pres de la fenetre, de peur que l'on n'ignore leur noblesse."
(Rigal, op. cit., p. 213, note, quoting Maison des jeux, Vol. I, p. 457.)
* In the interlude De los Pareceres by Benavente, one of the characters,
Petronila, speaks of a lady -whom she had seen at the entrance to the theater :
"I could not speak to her," she says, "but watched her" :
"Que tapada se entraba en la cazuela."
(Entremeses, ed. Resell, Vol. II, p. 312.)
' In France ladies can hardly be said to have visited the Hotel de Bour-
gogne (the only regular theater in Paris for nearly thirty years from the
beginning of the seventeenth century) until Richelieu began to take an
active interest in the theater, about 1635. Women did go to the theater, as
Rigal says, "puisqu'il arrive a Bruscambille de leur adresser la parole;
mais il ne le fait guere que pour leur dire des obscenites. C'etaient done
surtout des femmes perdues." He says further: "Les honnetes femmes
n'allaient point a l'Hotel de Bourgogne et n'y pouvaient aller, effrayees par
les insolents et par 1'immoralite des spectacles; mais leur abstention meme
120 THE SPANISH STAGE
de Figueroa, in the Loa above mentioned, addresses
them:
Damas que en aquesa jaula
Nos dais con pitos y llaves
Por la tarde alboreada,
A serviros he venido,
thus showing the awe in which even the most famous play-
ers held these mugercillas. Indeed, Roque's prayer, beg-
ging the indulgence of his unruly auditors, is the best
evidence of the character of this vulgo, before whom the
works of the greatest dramatists of Spain were represented.
But despite the above description of the audience in
Spanish theaters,1 let us not imagine for one moment that
these men and women were worse than we find them else-
where in Europe at the public theaters. Indeed, the
weight of the evidence here rather favors the Spaniard, as
against other European nations. The plays that he saw
were cleaner and on a higher moral plane than those which
were represented before his contemporaries elsewhere.
And this in spite of what we shall read hereafter concern-
ing the immorality of the Spanish stage. An examination
of the Elizabethan theater, or of the farces and comedies
in France and Germany at this time, to say nothing of Italy,
etait un mal et laissait le champ libre a l'immoralite comme aux inso-
lences." (Entremeses, ed. Rosell, Vol. II, p. 214.)
1 Suarez de Figueroa, in his Passagero (1617), says of these mosqueteros:
"Dios os libre de la furia mosqueteril, entre quien si no agrada la que se
representa, no hay cosa segura, sea divina 6 profana. Pues la plebe de
negro no es menos peligrosa, desde sus bancos 6 gradas, ni menos bastecida
de instrumentos para el estorbo de la comedia, y su regodeo. Ay de aquella
cuyo aplauso nace de carracas, cencerros, ginebras, silbatos, campanillas,
capadores, tablillas de San Lazaro, y sobre todo de voces y silvos incesables.
Todos estos generos de musica infernal resonaron no ha mucho en cierta
farsa, Uegando la desverguenza a pedir que saliesa a baylar el Poeta, £
quien llamaban por su nombre" (fol. 104). Besides the instruments here
mentioned by Suarez de Figueroa, which the vulgo brought to the theater
for the purpose of creating a noise and disturbance, Gonzalez de Salas
mentions the castradores : "Sabida cosa es, que las Flautas Pastoricas cons-
taban antiguamente de aquella desigualdad de canas, que hoi vemos imi-
tada en Ios vulgares instrumentos, que la plebe llama grosseramente
THE MOSQUETEROS 121
whose theater was the most immoral in Europe, will soon
convince one of the truth of this statement. The Spaniard
was quick and vigorous in his disapproval of a play, and
he made his dislike unmistakable, but he doubtless com-
pares very favorably with his contemporaries in other
countries.1
As already observed, the success or failure of a new
comedia generally hung upon the judgment of this popu-
lacho in the pit. If they applauded and shouted Victor!
it was a good augury, and the popularity of the play was
assured; if they whistled and hissed, the comedia was
doomed.2 Bertaut relates the story of an author who went
to one of these mosqueteros and offered him a hundred
reals to-be favorable to his play, which was about to be
acted. Eut he replied haughtily that he would see whether
the piece was good or not, and it was hissed.3 Some
years later, in 1679, Madame d'Aulnoy relates that the
chief arbiter of the fate of a comedia in Madrid was
a shoemaker, "who had acquired such absolute authority
Castradores. De estos usa hoi tambien el vulgo en los Teatros, para affli-
gir, como con los Silvos, la no bien accepta Representation." (Nueva Idea
de la Tragedia Antigua, Madrid, 1778, Vol. I, p. 210.)
1An idea of the character of the rabble at the Hotel de Bourgogne is
furnished by the Fantaisies de Bruscambille, first printed in 1612. Brus-
cambille, irritated by the impatience of the mob, which is clamoring for the
performance to begin, says: "A-t-on commence? C'est pis qu'antan. L'un
tousse, l'autre crache, l'autre pete, l'autre rit, 1'autre gratte son cul," etc.
Quoted by Rigal, op. cit., p. 206, who remarks concerning the audience:
"Et combien il etait bruyant, agite, querelleur! La plus grande partie se
trouvait au parterre, et la, debout . . . [elle] constituait pour les pieces et pour
Ies acteurs le moins attentif et le plus irritable des juges." (Ibid., p. 204.)
"lis ne cessent de parler, de siffler et de crier," etc. (ibid., p. 208), and
the players run the risk "d'etre assomme a coups de pommes cuites."
(Ibid.) Of the audiences at the Hotel de Bourgogne during the first twenty
or thirty years of the seventeenth century, Rigal says they were "en majo-
rite turbulent, grossier et immoral." (Ibid., p. 215.)
2 James Mabbe, who was in Madrid in 1611-13, speaks of the "plaudits
of the auditors in the theaters, crying, 'Vitor, Vitor, . . . Pinedo or Fer-
nandez,' while in the intervals he watched the Spaniards entertain the
women they brought thither with good wines cooled with snow and
sweetmeats." (Celestina, tr. by Mabbe, ed. H. Warner Allen, 1909,
p. Ixxviii.)
3 Relation de I'Estat et Gowvernement d'Espagne, Cologne, 1666, p. 60.
122 THE SPANISH STAGE
in these matters, that authors were in the habit of going
to him when they had finished a play, in order to procure
his approval ; they read their pieces to him, and the shoe-
maker, assuming a grave air. says a hundred impertinences,
which they must endure. Finally, at the first representa-
tion, all eyes intently watch every move and gesture of this
low fellow. The younger men, whatever be their quality,
imitate him; if he yawns, they yawn; if he laughs, they
laugh. Finally he gets impatient, draws forth a little
whistle, places it to his lips, and immediately the whole
house resounds with whistlings. The poor author is in
despair, and all his pains are at the mercy of the good or
ill humor of this scoundrel."1
Quick and unruly as the audiences were in showing their
dislike of a play, they were equally noisy and demonstrative
in manifesting their approval, which they did by crying
Victor! Not infrequently dramatic authors — mostly
second-rate ones — condescended, at the end of their plays,
to ask the audience for a victor. Lope de Vega never
stooped so low as this; at all events, I have not found a
single instance in his comedias. His disciple, Montalvan,
however, often sinned in this regard, as did also Moreto,
and especially Francisco de Rojas. It was the custom of
all playwrights — inaugurated, I believe, by Lope de Vega
— at the conclusion of a comedia, to ask the auditors, who
were generally addressed as "El ilustre Senado," to pardon
the faults of the play. But these later dramatists often
exercised considerable ingenuity in introducing the prayer
for a victor. At the conclusion of Montalvan's Cumplir
con su Obligation, Mendoza says :
To me then it falls to say it :
Fulfil ye your obligation,
And you all will have fulfilled it,
If, as courteous as you are,
You a victor in the bargain
1 Relation du Voyage d'Espagne, La Haye, 1693, Part III, p. 21.
PLAUDUNT HISTRIONI 123
Give, even if not for the Poet,
For the wish he has to serve you.1
And Moreto ends his celebrated comedia El Desden con el
Desden with the words :
And with this and with a victor,
Which most courteously and humbly
The Wit begs, here the comedia
Scorn repaid with Scorn concludeth.2
Rojas, in his El mas impropio Verdugo por la mas jttsta
Venganza, even carries his obligation for a victor beyond
the grave :
If you should at tip of tongue
Or at hand applause have ready
Or victor or other money,
1Mendoza: "A mi me toca el decirlo:
Cumplir con su Obligation,
Y todos la havreis cumplido,
Si como tan Cortesanos
Nos dais de barato un vitor,
Ya que no .por el Poeta,
Por el gusto de serviros."
So in La mas constante Muger:
"Decid victor al deseo
De quien vuestro esclavo es."
a "Y con esto, y con un vitor
que pide humilde, y cortes
el Ingenio, aqui se acaba
El Desden con el Desden."
In his comedia Fingir y Amar he asks for a •vitor "if there be any at hand":
"Un vitor si le hay a mano."
And in La Confusion de un Jardin he asks for it as a charity:
"Dadle un vitor de limosna."
In his El Parecido en la Corte the actors call for a victor for him :
"Tacon: Y con esto y con un vitor
Todos: Para Moreto aqui tiene
fin dichoso el Parecido."
At the close of the comedia Lo que son Mugeres, Rojas asks for a victor
because the play contains neither a death nor a marriage :
"Y don Francisco de Rojas
Un vitor solo pretende
124 THE SPANISH STAGE
In this life and in the other
The poet will pay you for it.1
Many more examples might be cited, but we will conclude
with this one by Solis, who, in his El Doctor Carlino,
stoops to the groundlings, asking for a victor to bury his
comedia :
Here expireth the Comedia;
If aught of success it merit,
Give, to bury it, a victor,
You, senores mosqueteros.2
We have seen the efforts that were made by the players
to conciliate their audiences; these examples show quite
conclusively that the playwrights feared them no less.
There were, quite naturally, in Spain, in these early
days, not a few persons (and they have not decreased in
our own time) who thought they were entitled to enter
the theater without paying. As Ticknor says, it was
deemed a distinction to have free access to the theater, and
persons who cared little about the price of a ticket strug-
gled hard to obtain it.3 But it is safe to say that to the
vast majority of those who tried to enter without paying,
the gate-money was a matter of capital importance.
These persons seem to have existed nowhere in such large
Porque escribio esta comedia
Sin casamiento y sin muerte."
Sin Hour a no hay Amistad concludes with:
"Dad un vitor de piedad
Al que escribio la comedia."
'"Si hubiere quien tenga a lengua,
Como a mano algun aplauso,
Un vitor u otra moneda,
En esta y en otra vida
Se lo pagara el poeta."
' "Y aqui espiro la Comedia;
Si tuviere algun acierto,
Den para enterrarla un vitor
Los senores mosqueteros."
' History of Spanish Literature, Vol. II, p. 525.
DEADHEADS 125
numbers as in Seville, where the populacho easily bore off
the palm for ruffianism,1 a distinction which, I am told,
that city has maintained to the present day. As a conse-
quence, brawls and stabbing affrays at the doors of the
theaters were of frequent occurrence.
In 1 6 1 5 Pedro Martinez de Asensio, to whom the city
of Seville had farmed out for 4000 reals annually the
charge of 8 maravedis which inured to the city from each
person entering the corrales, complained of the many per-
sons who entered the Doha Elvira without paying, and
requested that those who enter by force be seized and
taken to the prison of the Real Audiencia? In 1628 Luis
Candado, a well-known actor, was taking the money at the
door of La Monteria when one Juan de Heredia at-
tempted to enter without paying. It was charged that
Heredia took Candado's sword from him and threatened
him with it, though no harm was done, as others inter-
fered. Heredia tried to exculpate himself by declaring
that Candado had stooped to collect some coppers which
he had let fall, whereupon his (Candado's) sword was
pushed out from his belt, which sword Heredia grasped,
so that the owner of it might not injure himself. Heredia
was fined 12 reals, "as an alms for some pious work, and
notified that henceforth he should pay at the door of the
theater."3 The spectacle of a hidalgo with a sword, gath-
ering coppers, is certainly ludicrous.
By 1632 the number of persons who entered the Coliseo
without paying was so great that not enough money was
taken at the door to defray the expenses of the company.4
1 Their reputation for never paying the entrance money when they could
possibly avoid it had reached every quarter of Spain. In the Loa to Turia's
La Fe pagada, printed in Valencia in 1616, we read:
"Quien paga, y quien por honrado
a lo de Sevilla se entra."
* Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 164.
' Ibid., p. 260.
'Ibid., p. 281. In a Bayle de X dear a published about forty years after
126 THE SPANISH STAGE
In the following year, on January 5, a bloody affray took
place at the door of La Monteria, when five or six young
men in the dress of students forced their way through the
first door and were met at the second by the alguacil with
his "rod of justice," who declared that "on former occa-
sions he had entreated them to pay on the day of a new
comedia, since they did not pay on the other days." The
ruffians withdrew, and arming themselves with swords, re-
turned and attacked the alguacil, wounding him.1
In Madrid these brawls and stabbings at the theater
doors seem to have been less frequent, though this may be
due to the lack of exact information. That "deadheads"
were equally plentiful, however, we may be quite sure.
They stood around the doors of the theaters in the rain,
drenched through, waiting for a chance to slip in without
paying.2
Of the turbulent character of these audiences and of
this, we read that "only the mosqueteros, those who whistled down the co-
medias, paid their money" :
"En la comedia solo los mosqueteros
los que siluan lo pagan con su dinero."
(Migajas del Ingenio, Zaragoza (no date), p. 30.)
And those who entered the theater gratis were the first to whistle:
"Acabemos el bayle
no nos le paguen
con algun silvo fiero,
que entre de balde."
(Bayle de la Entrada de la Comedia, by Pedro Francisco Lanini,
ibid., p. 18.)
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 283. See also pp. 306 and 333. The latter
case happened on June 4, 1638. Besides the public representations of the
autos which were given, they were also performed this year in La Monte-
ria. A waterman of Triana, when requested by the doorkeeper to pay,
said that he never paid, and drawing a sword, wounded the alguacil who
was standing at the door. On the following day a similar affray took
place at the same theater, when the aggressor, "who was certainly a
Creole," in the words of the doorkeeper, "was one of those who did not
pay, nor was he accustomed to do so." (Ibid., p. 324.)
1 In the Jdcara sung by the company of Ortegon in Madrid, in 1635,
Leonor sings:
"En el corral de comedias
Lloviendo a la puerta estan
NUGAE CANORAE 127
their ruffianly behavior within the theater there is other
and ample testimony. On the afternoon of November 10,
1639, in the theater La Monteria in Seville, a comedia was
performed, and after the bayle or dance at the end of the
first act had been executed by Jacinta Herbias, one Don
Pedro de Montalbo, a spectator who was studying for the
priesthood (clerigo y estudiante), cried out: "Bravo,
Jacinta !" to which Antonia Infante (who was playing the
first part to Jacinta's second) called from the stage:
"Bravo indeed, and welcome, for she deserves it." And
as some of those who were shouting exclaimed, "Bravo,
Jacinta, and down with Antonia 1" one Don Lope de
Eslava arose and cried out, "Bravo, Antonia, and down
with Jacinta! and whoever says otherwise lies, like a
cuckold." Whereupon Don Pedro shouted, "You lie!"
On hearing which, Don Lope, blind with rage, drew his
sword, and rushing upon Don Pedro, mortally wounded
him. "Yet those were not wanting who asserted that an
old feud had existed between Don Pedro and Don Lope,
because the former had accused Dona Ana de Espinosa
[also an actress and wife of the actor Juan Roman] of
living with Don Lope." 1
Another instance occurred in 1641. The students of
the college of Maese Rodrigo had been celebrating the
festival of the "Boy Bishop" (Obispillo) ,2 and after creat-
ing a great tumult and scandal at the college gate, they
sallied forth upon the streets with "prohibited weapons,"
knocking down everybody they met on their way. In the
afternoon they went to the Corral de la Monteria, and
Mohadas y mas mohadas,
Por colarse sin pagar."
(Entremeses de Benavente, ed. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 445.)
1 Saochez-Arjona, A males, p. 304.
2 "La farsa llamada del Obispillo" is as old as the fourteenth century.
(Espafia sagrada, Tomo 45, trat. 88, cap. ii, p. 18, ed. of Madrid, 1832.
Wolf, Studien, p. 579.) See also, for the festival of the "Boy Bishop,"
Chambers, The Medieval Stage, Vol. I, pp. 336-371.
128 THE SPANISH STAGE
entering the aposentos, they caused the performance, which
had already commenced, to be begun again. Not content
with, this, they started a fight on coming out, in which
several persons were wounded.1 Again, on Sunday,
January 25, 1643, tne comedia San Cristobal was an-
nounced by posters to be played in the Corral de la
Monteria, but the Inquisition had forbidden its perform-
ance until certain passages were expunged. The autor
(director) came on the stage and announced this fact and
; offered to substitute another comedia. "The low and
common people (la gente baja y popular), who had come
because it was a feast-day and they were not working, and
having congregated in great numbers because there were
apariencias — a matter which the common people and the
women enjoy more than the artistry, verses, and plot of the
comedia — became turbulent and unruly because they
wanted no other comedia than San Cristobal, which they
shouted amidst great tumult, and as this could not be
represented without incurring the penalty of excommunica-
tion, they began to break benches and chairs, shattering
them and destroying the curtains (celosias) of the apo-
sentos and the whole theater, as well as the costumes of the
players which they found in the green-room (vestua-
rio)."2 The company acting in La Monteria at this
time was probably that of Manuel Alvarez Vallejo. And
in 1645, while the company of Luis Lopez was repre-
senting in La Monteria, "there was another one of those
scandals which were so frequent there. It appears that
from the cazuela, where the women sit, somebody threw
some lemon-peels (cdscaras de Union), which, falling upon
the head of a man standing in the patio, he shouted: 'The
devil take the . Why don't you look where you are
throwing ?' Whereupon a man who was close by replied :
'Why don't the cuckold look to what he says?' and at the
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 349.
'Ibid., p. 365.
MEN IN THE CAZUELA 129
same time dealt him a blow. At this the other drew a
pistol, the discharge of which caused a great scandal." 1
We have seen that from their very beginning the Span-
ish theaters had set aside a place exclusively for women.
This gallery, called the cazuela (stewpan), jaula de las
mugeres, or corredor de las mugeres, had a separate en-
trance and was provided with a doorkeeper, so that it
might be wholly apart from the portion occupied by the
men.2
Despite this arrangement of the theaters and the fact
that an alguacil was always stationed at the women's en-
trance, the attempt to separate the men from the women
was not always successful. In 1627 complaint was made
in Seville "that the women occupied seats in the first and
second rows of the sillas and bancos among the men, and
likewise in other parts of the theater, from which great
scandal results," etc.3 And in 1651, in view of the con-
tinued disturbances in La Monteria, occasioned by permit-
ting men and boys to enter the cazuela of the women,
"against the expressed mandate," the lessee, one Juan
de Bartanes, was notified to place at the entrance door,
1 Ibid., p. 374.
2 The same precautions for separating men from women in the public
theaters were observed in the Spanish colonies in South America. On
April 17, 1630, an edict of the Viceroy of Peru, the Count of Chinchon,
provided that men should not enter the aposentos of the women in the
Corral de las Comedias of Lima; commanding that the said aposentos be
separate, and that two entrances be constructed, one for men and the other
for women, and imposing <t penalty on all men who should be found in the
galleries and aposentos reserved for women. It also provided that all rep- '
resentations cease before the bell for evening prayers (oration), under the
penalties provided therefor. At this time Antonio de Santoyo and his com-
pany, Los Conformes, were playing at the theater in Lima. (Perez Pastor,
Nuevos Datos, p. 219.) Even in the churches of Madrid separate entrances
and exits were prescribed for men and women. James Mabbe (1611-^3),
"was duly shocked at the young men, who gathered about the church doori
to watch the women coming from their devotions, 'an ill custome, that is!
too much used in many great Cities, . . . especially in Madrid, where to
prevent this Church-courting, the men are to goe in and out at one doore,
and the women at another.'" (Celestina, translated by James Mabbe,
edited by E. Warner Allen, London, 1909, p. lxxviii.)
3 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 255.
i3o THE SPANISH STAGE
"where the said women enter, new doorkeepers (cobra-
doves') and satisfactory ones, so that in no circumstances
men or boys be allowed to enter, under a penalty of 50
ducats, . . . and that the person in charge of the keys of
the said cazuelas be notified not to permit any man or boy
to enter, and he shall lock the door as soon as the comedia
begins and not open it again until it be concluded, nor
permit any one to be on the staircases," 1 etc. All of which
did not keep Bernardo de Soto out of the "stewpan," for
we read that on April 7, 1654, he, the said Bernardo,
"ascended to the cazuela of the women in ha Monteria,
and getting under the seats, he began to raise the petti-
coats and touch the legs of those who were looking at the
play, by which great scandal was occasioned; and the
culprit was seized and sentenced to be banished from the
city and ten leagues therefrom, for the term of two years,
any infringement of this sentence to be expiated in one of
the fortresses of Africa."2
While more or less force was sometimes used to enter
the theaters without paying, peace, here as elsewhere, also
had its victories, and other means were resorted to for
viewing the comedia without the aid of reals and mara-
vedis. As the Spanish theaters were open to the sky, peo-
ple sometimes gathered on the surrounding housetops and
looked at the performance. Complaint was made in this
regard, in 161 2, concerning the Coliseo in Seville, "which
being uncovered, the neighbors ascended the roofs to view
the representations, occasioning considerable loss and
noise. A
Theatrical performances in Spain, as we have said
above, were at first limited to Sundays and feast-days, but
with the growing demand for these spectacles representa-
tions were authorized during the week, on Tuesdays and
Thursdays, and sometimes they continued for fifteen or
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 395.
'Ibid., p. 408. 'Ibid., p. 152.
GANASSA 131
twenty days before Shrovetide. On Ash Wednesday the
theaters were closed till Easter. But gradually the time
during which representations might be given was extended,
though all theaters were closed during Lent. It seems,
however, that even in very early times performances were
given on other than the prescribed days, for the Italian
Ganassa, who visited Seville with his company in 1575,
"having given, in the month of June, some performances
in the ancient Corral de Don Juan, so great was the num-
ber of spectators, especially of the common people, that
the city was petitioned to refuse a permit for these repre-
sentations on account of the prejudice that resulted from
the fact that workingmen, in their eagerness to run after
this novelty, abandoned their employments; besides, the
great scarcity which prevailed in Seville did not admit of
such extraordinary expenditures." 1 We learn that in 1580
Ganassa obtained a license to perform two days in the
week, in addition to the feast-days, while Pedro de Saldaha
and Jeronimo Velazquez were permitted to represent only
on feast-days.2 But that theatrical performances were not
long confined to these days we now have abundant
means of proving,3 and in 1595 we find that the com-
panies of Alonso de Cisneros and Gaspar de Porres were
to represent in Madrid from Lunes de Quasimodo (the
day following the first Sunday after Easter) till Corpus
Christi,4 while in 1605 Baltasar Pinedo agreed to give
sixty performances in four months.5 In 1639 Antonio de
Rueda agreed to give ninety performances on successive
days, except Saturdays, unless they be feast-days, in the
Corral de la Monteria at Seville,6 but doubtless daily
representations (except on Saturday) had been given in
the theaters long before this time.
In general, no public representations took place on Sat-
1IHd., p. 49. 'Ibid., p. 51. * See Appendix A.
4 Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 40.
5 Ibid., p. 89. ' Ibid., p. 3 17.
132 THE SPANISH STAGE
urday, but as early as 1593 there is recorded an agreement
by Gabriel Nunez, autor de comedias, to go to Nava del
Carnero by Sunday, August 1, "with the persons and bag-
gage (hato) that may be necessary to represent, on the
eve of the said Sunday, a comedia entitled Los Comenda-
dores [by Lope de Vega], with its music and entremeses,
and on the said Sunday another comedia a lo divino in the
morning and one a lo humano in the afternoon, the latter
to be Los Enredos de Benetillo [perhaps Los Enredos de
Benito of Lope], or any other that may be demanded, with
its music de Viola y guitarras." *
Representations were, of course, always given on Sun-
day. This day was much favored by both actors and
autores, on account of the great crowd it drew, for which
reason the comedias were always performed with greater
savor.2
Besides the performances in the theaters of Madrid, the
town council or ayuntamierito authorized public repre-
sentations {comedias publicas) from time to time in the
squares of the city, for which no fee was charged. In
1580 the Council of Madrid agreed to pay 300 ducats to
each of the autores who were to represent comedias in the
Plaza de San Salvador in honor of the safe delivery (alum-
bramiento) of the Queen,3 and in 1620, on the occasion
of the beatification of San Isidro, the patron saint of
Madrid, the town council resolved to have comedias repre-
sented on the streets, ordered five stages to be erected for
that purpose, and engaged five companies to give the per-
Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, pp. 36, 37.
1 Roj as says :
"Nosotros desseamos los domingos,
Porque en domingo viene mucha gente,
Y siempre las comedias en domingo
Representamos todos con mas gusto."
(Fiage entretenido, Madrid, 1603, p. 575.)
In England plays on Sunday were forbidden by James I. in May, 1603.
(Collier, Shakespeare, Vol. I, p. 167.)
"Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 12.
THEATRICAL POSTERS 133
formances.1 In Seville, in 1630, on the eve of the festi-
val of the Conception of our Lady, public comedias and
bayles were given by the companies of Jose de Salazar
and Pedro de Ortegon,2 and in 1631 the company of
Damian Arias gave a public comedia in Seville, "paid for
by the city," at the festival of Shrovetide. Each of these
companies received 850 reals, which was the customary
amount paid for a public comedia.3
The theaters were usually opened in September, and, in
the absence of contagious diseases, continued (excepting
the period of Lent) until about the middle of June. For
example, on June 20, 1632, the Corral de la Monteria was
closed on account of the heat (por el calor),4 and in 1637
all representations in the corrales of Seville were for-
bidden, as the pest was then prevalent.5
The custom of issuing posters to announce the perform-
ance of a comedia was in early use in Spain, as we have
seen. The distinction of first introducing them is generally
awarded to Cosme de Oviedo of Granada, a well-known
autor de comedias? of whom we read as early as 1561,
when he received seventy ducats for two cars which he
brought out at the Corpus festival at Seville. A poster
announcing a representation by the companies of Vallejo
and Acacio on June 5, 161 9, is still preserved in the
Archivo del Ayuntamiento of Seville :
©allefo i #ca?io
RPSS.TAN 01 MIERCOLES SUS FAMOSAS FIESTAS
EN DONA EL VERA A LAS DOS.
'Acuerdo de la Villa de Madrid de 6 Mayo 1620. "Acordose que para
las fiestas de S. Isidro haya comedias por las calles un dia de la octava y
que se hagan cinco tablados 'para que representen cinco autores y se trai-
gan de fuera los que faltaren' y que despues sirvan dichos tablados para
las danzas." (Perez Pastor, Bull. Hispanique (1907), p. 384; Rennert,
Life of Lope de Vega, p. 277.)
' Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 269.
'Ibid., p. 271. 'Ibid., p. 281. 'Ibid., p. 306.
'"Cosme de Oviedo, aquel autor de Granada tan conocido, que fue el
134 THE SPANISH STAGE
It is about half a yard long and a foot wide, the upper line
in Gothic characters, and done by hand, as most or all
posters were, down to a much later time. This poster was
put up at the corner of the Borceguineria, where such an-
nouncements were generally fixed, and a similar one at the
Doha Elvira.1
Plays seem, however, to have been announced by public
cry even as late as 1638, in which year Inigo de Loaysa,
a well-known actor, was murdered in the streets of Valencia
while announcing the play for the following day.2 And in
1639 we find Agustin Romero, of the company of Fran-
cisco Velez de Guevara, combining with his duties as
prompter those of posting placards, being engaged "para
apuntar y hacer carteles."3
The most exclusive and costly seats in the Spanish thea-
primero que puso carteles." (Rojas, Viage entretenido, ed. 1603, p. 132;
Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 26.)
1 Ibid., p. 200. Sr. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2034, speaking of the MS.
comedia Los Mdrtires del Japon, a copy made in Lisbon in 1637, says:
"Contiene dos fragmentos de los carteles que antiguamente Servian para
anunciar las representaciones teatrales, analogos al que se conserva en el
Archivo municipal de Sevilla." This reference is evidently to the poster
just mentioned above. It is a great disappointment to learn that the two
fragmentos mentioned by Sr. Paz, -which are bound in with the play, are
parts of two sheets of rough paper, upon one of which is written in red ink:
Jamas bista de . . .
REpTA pAZ
while the other merely contains the word : Prim . . .
* "Inigo de Loaysa, de quien se dice que habiendo salido en Valencia a
ofrecer anuncio para el dia siguiente, . . . le dieron un tajo en la garganta,
de que murio degollado." (Sanchez-Arjona, p. 323.) There may be some
confusion here with the actor Inigo de Velasco, who was murdered in
Valencia, December 1, 1643. (Comedias de Calderon, ed. Hartzenbusch,
Vol. IV, p. 718.)
' Nuevos Datos, p. 308. These play-bills or placards merely announced
the names of the plays and the companies by which they were to be per-
formed, and apparently did not contain a list of the characters, or the
names of the actors by whom they were represented. The same custom
obtained in England. While Spanish placards or posters, however, were
done by hand, the "billes for players" in London were printed at least as
early as 1587. "They were set up upon posts some certaine days before,
to admonish the people to make resort to their theaters, that they may
thereby be the better furnished, and the people prepared to fill their purses
BOXES AT THE THEATER 135
ters were the aposentos1 (stalls or boxes), which were
occupied by the nobility and the rich. They were fre-
quently rented by the year, the price varying from 100 to
150 ducats (a ducat =11 reals) annually. Every one
who made any pretension to being "upper-crust," we may
be sure, had his aposento, just as nowadays such persons
have their box at the opera. Among the distinguished
personages occupying these favored places in Madrid in
1639 was the Florentine ambassador, who paid 100
ducats each for a yearly aposento in the Corral del Prin-
cipe and the Cruz.2
The "ayuntamiento" or town council of the cities also
generally possessed an aposento at the theater. In Madrid
the "ayuntamiento" had one in each of the two theaters,
for which 300 ducats were paid yearly.3 Doubtless in
most cities this was an "aposento grande con mayor
adorno y autoridad que los demas aposentos que hay en
la casa," as was the case in Valladolid in 1614.4 Here
those august dignitaries, the "Regidores," sat, who in
those not over-scrupulous days guarded the destinies of
the stage.
This privilege of the "Regidores" seems to have been
abused by their sons, for on August 20, 1614, the town
council of Madrid forbade the doorkeepers to allow any-
body to enter the aposentos of these dignitaries in order to
avoid the disorder caused by the fact that their sons
used to visit these boxes and bring their friends, and
because other persons also occupied them who had no
right to do so.5
A curious fact noted by Pellicer is that "some gentlemen
were in the habit of owing for their seats at the theater,"
with their treasures." (See Malone, Historical Account of the English
Stage, p. 169.)
1 The word is still used at the present day. ,
' Nuevos Datos, p. 314.
* Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, pp. 122, 144.
'Ibid., p. 155. 'Ibid., p. 152.
136 THE SPANISH STAGE
i.e., they obtained seats on credit. Thus, the books kept
by the deputies show the following entry: "Sabado 18 de
Mayo de 1602, debe el Corregidor un aposento. El Regi-
dor tres ventanas. El Teniente Antonio Rodriguez un
aposento. El Principe de Marruecos una ventana."1
1 Tratado historico, etc., Vol. I, p. 86.
CHAPTER VII
Women on the stage. In France, England, and Italy. Women on
the Spanish stage. The companies of players. Companias reales.
Companias de parte. Smaller companies. The Entertaining
Journey of Rojas. The traveling of companies.
It is probable that upon the Spanish stage women were
originally impersonated by boys, as they were elsewhere
in Europe during the greater part of the sixteenth century ;
a custom which lasted in England till after the Restoration.
On the other hand, it is quite certain that, since the earliest
times, women had taken part in public festivals and re-
ligious autos, as well as in the dances connected with
them.1 Concerning the French stage Bapst remarks : "It
is to be observed that women, who at the close of the
Middle Ages had begun to appear on the stage in pieces
which contained nothing objectionable in the dialogue, no
longer appeared at all upon the stage in the comedies or
tragedies of the sixteenth century."2
Mantzius says : "As a rule, women did not appear upon
the medieval stage, but children frequently did ; they repre-
*The abuses mentioned by the author of a paper entitled Abusos de Co-
medias y Tragedias, quoted by Pellicer, and which is apparently with-
out date, must refer to the earliest years of the Madrid corrales.
"Women are gradually being introduced upon the stage in the place of
boys, although the performances of boys of good appearance and rouged,
attired as women, are held by some to be even a greater objection." The
author also deplores the fact that separate places were not provided for
men and women in the theaters, and that both sexes went in and out by the
same door. (Origen y Progresos, etc., Vol. I, pp. 139, 140.) The latter
complaint could only have been justified before 1582, when the Corral de
la Cruz was built, which set apart a place for women, as we have seen
above.
'Essai sur I'histoire du Theatre, Paris, 1893, p. 146.
'37
138 THE SPANISH STAGE
sented angels, young girls, or children's parts. . ■ • The
more important female parts were performed by half
grown-up youths, and particular care was taken to choose
young men who were beardless and good-looking, and
whose voices were not yet breaking. . . . On very rare
occasions, nevertheless, women are seen to have acted in
the Mysteries. Thus, besides the famous barber, Metz
possessed another scenic celebrity in the person of an
actress who even appeared in the same parts. We know,
at all events, that she performed the part of St. Catherine,
for the Chronicle says: 'And the "person" (personnaige)
of St. Catherine was performed by a young girl, about
eighteen years old, who was the daughter of Dediet the
glazier, and she did her duty very well indeed, to the
pleasure and delight of everybody.' . . . Though this case
is not unique — at the Passion-play in Valenciennes, 1547,
five young girls took part in the performance — we must
take it for granted that female parts were only excep-
tionally acted by women. This is so much the more sur-
prising, as women frequently appeared in the historical
pantomimes and tableaux vivants, which the medieval
towns habitually produced on festive occasions."1
The question which chiefly concerns us is the public
theater, to which an admission fee was charged. And in
regard to this M. Bapst further says: "Women did not
appear, as a rule (d'une fagon constante), upon a regular
[French] theater until the second half of the seventeenth
century. A single comedienne de profession is mentioned
in the preceding century — Marie Fairet, wife of le Sieur
Fairet, in 1545."2 Again: "At the beginning of the six-
1 History of Theatrical Art, Vol. II, p. 90.
* Essai, etc., p. 180. Creizenach, Geschichte des neueren Dramas, Vol.
Ill, p. 70, gives the name as "Marie Ferre, die Frau des Marktschreiers
Michel Fasset," and quotes the contract which has been preserved, wherein
Marie Ferre agrees with "Anthoine de I'Espeyronnyere, joueur d'histoires,"
"a luy aider a joer chacun jour durant le diet temps tant et autant de foys
que lui plaira en l'art de joueur d'enticailles de Rome, consistant en
plusieurs ystoires moralles, farses et soubressaulx."
FRENCH PLAYERS IN LONDON 139
teenth century women appeared occasionally in Paris
theaters, but always as representing the Queen — the parts of
soubrette, nurse, and old women's roles being always played
by men. ... In 1629 a troupe of French actors, containing
women, went to London to act,1 but before Richelieu be-
gan his reforms in the theater (about 1635), the coarse-
ness [of the plays] excluded every respectable woman
from the stage as well as from the audience." But women,
in all probability, had been acting regularly in Paris for
some years prior to this date. Indeed, we know that
Marie Venier, wife of the comedian Mathieu le Febvre,
called Laporte, had acted at least as early as 1610 "sur ce
qu'on veut bien appeler le theatre du Marais."2
In England it was not till September, 1656, that an
English actress appeared upon the stage in the public
theaters. This was Mrs. Coleman, wife of Coleman, the
actor, and she played a kind of operatic part — Ianthe, in
Davenant's Siege of Rhodes.3 By this means the constant
intercourse with France and Italy had produced a change
in the public taste, so that, a little later, the royal license
1The fact is noted by Malone, Historical Account of the English Stage,
ed. of Basil, 1800, pp. 130, 131 : "1629. — November 4. For the allowing of the
French company [with women actors] to play a farce at Blackfriars, £z."
And Mantzius says that the London public was so unaccustomed to the
appearance of women on the stage that the actresses belonging to this
company were pelted with rotten apples when they appeared. (History of
Theatrical Art, Vol. II, p. 280.) Again, Malone says: "in the office book
of Philip Earl of Pembroke and Montgomery, I find a warrant for the
payment of £10. to Josias Floridor for himself and the rest of the French
players, for a tragedy by them acted before his Majesty in December last.
Dated Jan. 8, 1635-6." For the scandal caused in London by two com-
panies of French players who visited that city in 1629 and 1633, when the
actresses were insulted and hissed off the stage, see Lotheissen, Geschichte
der franzosischen Literatur im XVII. Jahrhundert, Wien, 1897, Bd. I, p.
494. Malone also quotes the following item: "£10. paid to John Navarro
for himself and the rest of the company of Spanish players, for a play
presented before his Majesty, Dec. 23, 1635." This John Navarro was
Juan Navarro Oliver, who, with his wife, Jeronima de Olmedo, had be-
longed to the company of Cristobal de Avendano in 1632.
JRigal, Le Theatre Francois avant la Periode classique, Paris, 1901, pp.
55, 59-
* Sidney Lee says : "The first role that was professionally rendered by a
i4o THE SPANISH STAGE
obtained by Davenant contained the following clause:
"That whereas the women's parts in plays have hitherto
been acted by men in the habits of women, at which some
have taken offense, we do permit and give leave, for the
time to come, that all women's parts be acted by women."1
While women appeared upon the public stage in Italy
early in the second half of the sixteenth century, Nicolo
Barbieri (Beltrame) , a distinguished actor, in his pamphlet
La Suplica,—a, sort of apology for the dramatic profes-
sion, published at Bologna in 1636, — speaks of the cus-
tom, still prevalent in his day, of boys playing the roles of
women or young girls.2
The earliest Italian actress whose name has survived is
mentioned by De Sommi, in his Dialoghi in Materia di
Rappresentazione scenica, published in 1565 or 1566, in
which he says: "Mirabile mi e sempre paruto e pare il
recitare di una giovane donna romana, nominata Flaminia,
la quale oltre all' essere di molto bella qualita ornata,
talmente e giudicata rara in quella professione, che non
credo che gli antichi vedessero ne si possi tra moderni
veder meglio. ... So che molti bei spiriti, invaghiti delle
sue rare maniere gl' hanno fatto et Sonetti et Epigrammi,
et molti altri componimenti in sua lode."3
Concerning Germany M. Bapst says: "To the actor
Johannes Velten belongs the merit of having first definitely
introduced women on the German stage, at the time that
he translated the plays of Moliere. In 1686 his troupe
included three actresses : his wife, his sister, and Sarah von
woman in a public theater was that of Desdemona in Othello, apparently
on December 8, 1660. The actress on the occasion is said to have been
Mrs. Margaret Hughes, Prince Rupert's mistress." (Shakespeare's Life
and Work, p. 188. See Malone, Historical Account, p. 141.)
1 Mantzius, History of Theatrical Art, Vol. II, p. 280.
2 Ibid., p. 270.
* D'Ancona, Origini del Teatro Italiano, Vol. II, p. 413. These Dialoghi
dell' Ebreo Leone de Somi, which are very interesting, may now be read
in Rasi, / Comici Italiani, Firenze, 1897, Vol. I, p. 107. De Somi, a Man-
tuan, "fu autor comico, poeta e impresario di compagnie comiche," as is
shown by a letter of his dated April 15, 1567. (Ibid., p. 106.)
EARLY SPANISH ACTRESSES 141
Bosberg. In 1690 his company contained, besides his
daughter, two actresses by profession, named Richter and
Moeller."1
It is certain, however, that women appeared upon the
stage in Spain, in the public squares and corrales, at a very
early date. It is quite probable that Mariana, the first wife
of Lope de Rueda, acted in his little company of strolling
players about the middle of the sixteenth century.2 As
already observed, women took part in the dances that al-
ways formed a part of the Corpas Christi celebrations, and
also in the autos, as they were called, from very early
times. A passage in the Cronica de los Hechos del Con-
destable Miguel Lucas de Iranzo proves that actresses
appeared upon the stage in the ancient momos or entre-
meses.3 It is also likely that women acted in the Italian
company of Ganassa in Madrid (1579-83), and in the
latter year we find an "obligation and agreement entered
into between Miguel Vazquez and his wife Juana Vazquez,
and Luis de Molina, oficiales de comedias, to work in the
company of Juan Limos, autor de comedias, from this date
[Madrid, March 15, 1583 J until Shrovetide of 1584,
receiving nine and a half reals for the three persons at the
end of each performance, besides food, drink, lodging,
and clean linen, and all expenses of travel."4 In the fol-
lowing year an agreement was made by Agustin Solano,
actor, residing in Madrid, "for himself and in the name of
Roca Paula, his wife, being in the court [Madrid], with
Tomas de la Fuente, autor de comedias, native of Toledo,
to help him in all the comedias and entremeses which he
may represent from this date [March 5, 1584J till Shrove-
1 Opus at., p. 280. On the dther hand, we are told that in Germany, as
late as 1717, no women were allowed upon the stage. (Shakespere Jahr-
huch, Vol. XXI, p. 236.)
2 See above, pp. 11, 12.
8 Fitzmaurice-Kelly, Litterature Espagnole, Paris, 1904, p. 178.
'Perez Pastor, Bulletin Hispanique, 1906, p. 153. The term oficial in-
stead of the more usual representante is used by Rojas, Fiage entretenido,
p. 53, where he speaks of "una compania de tan buenos oficiales."
1 42 THE SPANISH STAGE
tide of 1585, receiving nine reals for each performance,
besides four and a half reals for maintenance, in case the
company should not provide it."1 Roca Paula., being a
married woman, could not make a binding contract with-
out her husband's joining in it.
While these are the earliest instances that I have found
recorded, it can hardly be doubted that women acted upon
the stage at Madrid even prior to this time. Still, it ap-
pears that no license allowing women to act in the public
theaters of the capital was granted before 1587. On
November 1 7 of that year, Pedro Paez de Sotomayor, on
behalf of his son-in-law, Alonso de Cisneros (autor de
comedias, then absent from the city), presented a petition
to the Corregidor of Madrid, setting forth that the Coun-
cil of his Majesty had granted a license permitting married
women to act upon the stage, and that, in pursuance of that
license, women were then acting publicly in Madrid, and
he requested the same license for his son-in-law, then in
Seville, "so that it may be evident to the justices of the
said city or of any other place where he may give repre-
sentations." It recited another petition by the company
called the Confidentes Italianos,2 wherein these declare
that they cannot perform the comedias which they have,
without the women of their company, and pray for a
license permitting these women to act. This latter petition
had been granted "inasmuch as the women in the company
are married women and their husbands are with them."
It was especially provided, however, that they should not
be permitted to appear in the habit or dress of men, and
that "henceforth no boy be allowed to act attired as a
woman."3
1 Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 15. Ana de Velasco, wife of the actor
Sebastian de Montemayor, was also a member of a company of players in
Madrid, in 1584. /
3 The Confidentes Italianos were originally one of the companies of the
Duke of Mantua. (Baschet, Les Comediens Italiens, Paris, 1882, p. 23,
and D'Ancona, Origtni del Teatro Italiano, Vol. II, pp. 465 et passim.)
"Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, pp. 19-23.
PANEM ET CIRCENSES 143
The Italian actresses to whom a license was especially
granted were Angela Salomona and Angela Martinelli,1
"married women whose husbands are members of the same
company," and Silvia Roncagli (la Frances quina).2 Ap-
pended to the petition of Pedro Paez de Sotomayor were
the depositions of two witnesses who, "on the twenty-first
day of the present month of November" (1587), had
seen a comedia played by the Italians in the Corral del
Principe, in which three women acted.3
About this time (1588), as already observed, the
famous dance called the zarabanda was introduced upon
the stage, to be followed by others hardly less wild and
indecorous, and theatrical entertainments, always favored
by the people, suddenly assumed a popularity that was
unprecedented. Doubtless these "pestiferous" dances con-
tributed in no small degree to the vogue which the theater
now attained. But, as Pellicer remarks,4 the growing
popularity of theatrical representations and the conse-
quent increase in the number of theaters and players
throughout Spain, "the dances, songs, expensive costumes,
and the acting, not only of women, but of women disguised
as men, and the easy virtue of the theatrical profession,
soon made the question of the continuance of theatrical
representations a matter of grave controversy." A num-
1 Concerning Angela Martinelli, wife of Drusiano Martinelli, one of the
managers of this company / Confident!, see above, pp. 45, 46.
' Referring to the latter, the decree states: "Si la Francesquina es la que
yo vi en la posada del sefior Cardenal, no la tengo por muchacho y ansi
podra representar." (Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 23.)
3 Fr. Juan de Pineda, in the Primera parte de los Treynta y cinco didlo-
gos familiares de la Agricultura cristiana, published at Salamanca in
1589, but the Aprobacion of which is dated 1581, alludes to these Italian
companies as "los extrangeros que sacan muchos millares de ducados de
Espana cada un afio," and mentions the subjects of some of the farsas
played by them. Reproving the priesthood for visiting these plays, he
says: "jque no se os cubra la cara de vergiienza de que os vean autori-
zando y gozando de los cuentos de Medea y de Jason, y de Paris y Elena,
y Eneas y Dido, y de Piramo y Tisbe." (Cotarelo y Mori, Controversias,
etc., p. 505.)
* Tratado historico, etc., Vol. I, p. 119.
144 THE SPANISH STAGE
ber of eminent theologians took part in the discussion,
and opinion was divided. Among those who favored
the continuance of these spectacles was Fr. Alonso de
Mendoza, an Augustinian and professor in the University
of Salamanca, who declared, in 1587, "that the repre-
sentation of comedias as they are now represented in Spain
is not, of itself, a mortal sin, provided that lascivious
songs and gestures be not introrifb^ed/'1
The government accepted this' view of the matter, with
the effect of multiplying theaters and players,2 adding
to the number— already great— of entremeses, and intro-
ducing new dances, "and not the most decent ones," as
Pellicer naively remarks. And in order to give the theater
a certain air of piety and good repute, so many comedias
de santos were written and acted that, as Rojas says :
... al fin no quedo poeta
En Sevilla, que no hiciese
De algun santo su comedia.
It was even held that these plays were conducive to
J religion and good morals, and in a memorial to Philip II,
i in 1598, it was declared as a well-known fact that "several
actors who had represented the lives of St. Francis and
other saints, as well as some of the spectators, went
straight from the playhouse to take the habit of St.
Francis or of the saint represented, being stung by com-
punction."3 On the other hand, the Jesuit Mariana cites
the case of an actress who took the part of Magdalena in
1 Tratado historico, etc., Vol. I, p. 120.
2 The theaters of Madrid were, on the contrary, gradually reduced to the
two principal playhouses in the Calle de la Cruz and in the Calle del
Principe. Many other important cities, such as Seville, Valencia, Granada,
and Saragossa, had permanent theaters, and no town was so small that it
was not visited by strolling bands of players, so great had the craze for
the theater become. By an order of June 22, 1600, Fleay tells us, only two
playhouses were to be allowed in London, the Globe and the Fortune.
(Chronicle History of the English Stage, Vol. I, p. 160.) This order was.
never observed.
" Pellicer, Vol. I, p. 122.
THEATRICAL COMPANIES 145
one of these comedias de santos, and of the actor who
represented Christ, both of whom, he says, were noto-
riously immoral, "which was all the worse, inasmuch as
they were famous players, and had often brought tears to
the eyes of the spectators."1
Indeed, the "desenvoltura" of the actresses finally
brought things to such a pass that on September 5, 1596,
women were forbidden to appear upon the stage.2 This
prohibition, if ever enforced, was certainly of short dura-
tion.
Let us now turn to the companies of players as they
were organized at this time. As early as 1586a theatrical
company contained thirteen or fourteen persons, besides
the autor or director, for we find the company of the
famous Nicolas de los Rios then consisting of that
number, and even at the very height of the Spanish
drama, from 16 10 to 1640, the average number did not
exceed from sixteen to twenty players.3 As the number of
characters to be represented in the comedia frequently ex-
ceeded the number of actors in the company, it was not
1 Ibid., p. 123.
'This instrument, preserved in the library of the Academy of History at
Madrid, was first published by Schack, Nachtrage, p. 29. It reads as
follows: "Orden del Consejo a las Justicias del Reino. — 'En el Consejo se
tiene noticia que en las comedias y representaciones que se recitan en esta
ciudad salen mugeres a representar, de que se siguen muchos inconvenien-
tes, tendreys particular cuydado de que mugeres no represented en las dichas
comedias, puniendoles las penas que os pareciere, aperciviendoles que
haciendo lo contrario se executara en ellas. — de Madrid a cinco de Setien-
bre de mil e quinientos y noventa y seys anos.' " It is also now reprinted
in Perez Pastor, Nucvos Datos, p. 44.
3 More than half a century after this, theatrical companies in France were
even much smaller. The company of Moliere, when he appeared for the
first time on the Paris stage after his return from the provinces, on
October 24, 1658, consisted of the following nine persons: Joseph Bejart;-
Louis Bejart, his younger brother; Sr. du Pare, whose real name was Rene
Berthelot, and stage-name Grosrene ; Charles du Fresne ; Sr. de Brie ;
Madeleine Bejart, sister of Joseph; Mile, du Pare; Mile, de Brie, whose
stage-name was Catherine du Rosne; Genevieve Herve, whose real name
was Bejart, and who was a sister of Madeleine. Moliere's company gen-
erally consisted of twelve to fifteen persons. The first appearance of the
company in Paris was in Corneille's Nicomede and Moliere's Docteur
i46 THE SPANISH STAGE
unusual for a player to take two or even three parts. In
many manuscripts of the comedias of Lope de Vega and
other early dramatists, the "reparto" (dramatis persona)
shows this. Indeed, Cervantes, at the close of his come-
dia El Rufian dichoso, calls attention to the fact that all
the female characters in the play can be taken by two
women.1 In the Elizabethan drama this was also fre-
quently the case; so, in the Induction to Marston's An-
tonio and Mellida (1602), Piero asks Alberto what part
he acts. He replies : "the necessity of the play forceth me
to act two parts."
Whether theatrical companies were licensed in Spain
prior to 1 600, I do not know : it is probable, though I do
not find the fact noted anywhere. By an ordinance of
1600, however, and again by a decree of 1603, the number
of licensed companies was limited, the latter decree naming
the eight heads of companies who received the license of
the King to represent comedias, which number was in-
creased to twelve by a decree of 161 5. 2 The companies
authorized by these decrees were called companias reales
or de titulo. But at no time, despite these royal ordinances,
were the companies limited to those therein specified.
Numerous other companies soon sprang up, called com-
panias de la legua, which, acting without the King's
license, overran the whole peninsula.
Theatrical companies in Spain were of two kinds : those
in which the players worked for a salary paid them by the
Amoureux. They played in the Salle des Gardes du vieux Louvre, on
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday. After July 9, 1659, Mo-
Here and his company were allowed, on the payment of 1500 livres, to
play on Sunday, Tuesday, and Friday, which were the most fashionable
«days and were called the jours ordinaire*. (Registre de La Grange, Paris,
1876, p. 3 ; Fischmann, Moliire als Schauspiel-direitor, in Ztft. fiir Fran-
tosische Sprache, 1905.)
1 "Hase de aduertir, que todas las figuras de muger desta Comedia, las
pueden hazer solas dos mugeres." (Ocho Comedias, etc., Madrid, 1615,
fol. 112.)
2 These decrees regulating theatrical companies will be considered in
Chapter X.
CLARAMONTE'S COMPANY 147
autor or manager, and those in which the players worked
on shares. The latter were called companias de parte.
Such a company was organized in June, 1614, by the well-
known autor and dramatist Andres de Claramonte.1 The
agreement has been preserved, and is as follows :
Agreement and obligation of Andres de Claramonte, one of the
autores de comedias appointed by his Majesty, with Pedro Cerezo
de Guevara, Francisco Mendoza, Juan Gasque, Miguel de Ayuso,
for himself and for Luisa de Reinoso, his wife, Fernando Perez and
Maria de Montesinos, his wife, Maria Gabriela and Francisca
Maria, her daughter, Sebastiana Vazquez, sister of the said Fer-
nando Perez, and Alonso Garcia, to form a company of players.
And first that the said Andres de Claramonte, Pedro Cerezo de
Guevara, etc., . . . form a partnership company (compania de
partes) for the time and space that still remains of the present year,
and which shall end at Shrovetide of the coming year, during which
time the above-mentioned and each one of them bind themselves to
go together in the form of a company and to play in all the towns
of this kingdom and beyond during the said time, and to represent
therein all the comedies and plays which the said Andres de Clara-
monte possesses, by virtue of which the said Andres de Claramonte
binds himself to furnish (in order that they may be represented by
the said company) as many as forty comedias and such others as
the said company may require, besides the necessary entremeses,
letras, and bailes.
Item: That the various roles in the comedias shall be assigned
amongst the members of the said company in such manner as shall
seem most suitable to each in the opinion of the said company.
Item: During the said time the said members and each of them
shall be bound, and by these presents are bound, to attend with all
care and punctuality the rehearsals of all the comedias to be repre-
sented each day, at nine o'clock, at the house of the said Andres de
Claramonte, where rehearsals are ordinarily to take place, and shall
not fail to be present at any one of the said rehearsals, under penalty
of two reals to each one who shall not attend them in time and
1 Claramonte, whose wife was Beatrix de Castro, died in the Calle del
Nino, Madrid, on September 19, 1626. (Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p.
211.)
148 THE SPANISH STAGE
when he is called upon to speak; and if, being present at the said
rehearsal, he shall leave it, and another should be obliged to speak
for him, he shall pay likewise as a penalty one real every time that
this happens. And the said fines and penalties are to be deposited
with a certain person to be appointed, so that they may be dis-
tributed according to the will of the said company, in charities and
pious works, masses, etc. The said fines to be paid on the same
day by the member thus incurring them, out of the amount to be
received by him on that day for acting and for maintenance (de
ration).
Item: That during the said term there is to be a deposit chest
with three keys, which chest is to remain in the custody of the said
Maria Gabriela, the which keys the company will in due time
deliver to the persons who may be agreed upon. Into this chest
are to be put, from each performance that may be given, public as
well as private, during the said time, twenty-five reals, which are
always to remain deposited, and the chest is not to be opened until
the said day of Shrovetide, which is the term when the said com-
pany ceases to be effective, in the said year one thousand six hundred
and fifteen ; and then the said chest is to be opened, and the money
which may be deposited therein is to be divided amongst all the
members of the said company conformably to what each one may
be entitled to, according to this writing and which will be declared
below.
Item: That from the proceeds of each of the comedias which
may be represented are to be taken two reals, which the company
may distribute in alms, masses, and pious works, together with the
fines to be imposed upon the members for failing to be present at
the rehearsals.
Item: If during the said time any member of the said company
should fall sick, there is to be given to him the share which may be-
long to him in conformity with this writing — just as if he had really
acted and taken part — as well for acting as for maintenance, and
if he should remain behind sick in any place where the company
should happen to be, he is to be paid the expense which he incurs
for conveyance from that place to the place where the company may
then be.
Item : That during the said time the said Andres de Claramonte
is to have and to take from what may proceed from all the said
LOS CONFORMES 149
representations which may be given and from each one of them,
public as well as private, on account of the labor of composition and
study of them, six reals, and besides these six reals he is to have as his
share (de parte) ten reals, and four reals for maintenance every day
that there may be representations ; . . . and the said Pedro Cerezo de
Guevara also ten reals as his share and four reals for maintenance ;
. . . Juan Gasque four reals as his share and four reals for mainte-
nance; Fernando Perez and Maria de Montesinos, his wife, four-
teen reals as their share, besides eight reals for maintenance ; Maria
Gabriela and Francisca Maria, her daughter, sixteen reals, besides
four reals for maintenance ; Miguel de Ayuso and Luisa de Reinoso,
his wife, ten reals, besides seven reals for maintenance ; and Alonso
Garcia, four reals and three for maintenance.
Item: That if, during the said time, any member of the said
company shall absent himself from it, he shall lose all that would
have fallen to his share, as well of the amount that may be de-
posited in the said chest as of the costumes which the said company
may have acquired during the said time, and shall lose fifty ducats
besides, . . . which sum is to be shared amongst the other members
of the said company who may remain therein.1
This agreement fairly represents all those made in simi-
lar cases. In another, executed on July 8, 16 14, the
various members are to meet at nine every morning, at the
house of Pedro Bravo, for rehearsal. Here four reals
are set aside from the proceeds of each performance until
the amount reaches 400 reals, which are to be paid to Luis
de Monzon for providing the costumes for the company.2
A similar troupe, called Los Conformes, was organized by
Juan de Vargas, Andres de Chavarria, Sebastian Gon-
zalez, and others in Madrid, in 1623. They were to go
to the town of Leganes on October 14 and perform the
comedia La Morica garrida of Juan de Villegas, with its
loa, music, entr ernes, and bayles, for the sum of 400 reals.3
'Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, pp. 145-148. Such a company was also
formed in 1634 by Fernan Sanchez de Vargas and Juan de Malaguilla.
(See ibid., p. 235.)
'Ibid.
"Ibid., p. 202. Other companies were La Campania espanola in 1602
i5o THE SPANISH STAGE
Besides the companias reales and the companias de parte,
there were many other kinds, ranging down the whole
gamut to the lone traveling mountebank. They can best
be described in the words of Agustin de Rojas Villan-
drando, whose Viage entretenido, first published at Madrid
in 1603, is one of the most interesting works that we
possess concerning the early Spanish stage. Rojas was
born in Madrid about 1575, and was in turn page, soldier,
scrivener in Granada ( 1599) , and finally an actor. It was
in Seville, as he tells us, that he first saw a comedia acted,
and there he became a member of the company of Antonio
de Villegas, probably in 1600.1 As he wrote his Enter-
taining Journey in 1602, his professional experience was
very limited, not extending over more than two or three
years. Many of his statements concerning the history of
the stage are therefore to be received with caution, but,
as he had been himself a strolling player, his description
of the various bands of actors which were then perambu-
lating the peninsula are, in the main, trustworthy, though
doubtless somewhat highly colored for effect.2
The Viage entretenido, it may be observed here, is in
(Nuevos Datos, p. 76) and Los Andaluces in 1605, the latter consisting of
Francisco Garcia de Toledo, Diego de Monserrate and his wife Mariana
Rodriguez, Juan de Ostos and his wife Maria de Herrera, Luis de Castro,
Cristobal de Barrio, and Luis de Alvarez. (Ibid., p. 89.) Such companies,
formed the nearest parallel in Spain to the "sharers" of the Elizabethan
theater, as distinguished from the "hired men."
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 105. Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, pp. 351—
353, publishes an interesting document concerning Agustin de Rojas. It is
an agreement made in Valladolid on February 26, 1602, between Miguel
Ramirez, autor de come di as, and Agustin de Rojas, actor, in which the
latter agrees to act in all the comedias that may be produced as well in this
city [Valladolid] as in any other place where the said Miguel Ramirez
may be, as well in the theater as in any other part or spot that may be
designated during the said year, from the date of this writing [February
26, 1602] until Shrovetide of the coming year, 1603, and for which the
said Ramirez is to pay Rojas 2800 reals, and at the end of the year "a
doubloon for the washing of his linen," and shall furnish transportation
for Rojas, the latter binding himself to act with no other company during
the said time, etc.
'Among other works, Rojas was also the author of a comedia El natural
desdichado, which has been edited from the autograph in the Biblioteca.
FARANDULEROS 151
the form of a conversation between four persons : [Nicolas
de los] Rios, [Miguel] Ramirez, [Agustin] Solano, and
the author of the work, Agustin de Rojas, all actors, and
the first two were, besides, famous autores de comedias or
directors of companies. In the course of the conversation
Rios had mentioned Cosme de Oviedo, "that well-known
autor of Granada, who was the first to use posters"
(p. 132). To which Solano adds: "And also the first
to take a gangarilla through the towns on the coast."
To the query of Ramirez, "What is a gangarilla?" Solano
replies : "It is clear that you have not had much experience
of the fardndula, for you ask about such a well-known
matter." To which Rios : "I have been an autor for more
than thirty years, and this is the first time that it has come
to my notice."
Solano: Well then, know that there are eight kinds of companies
of actors, and all quite different; . . . there is the bululu, Hague,
gangarilla, cambaleo, garnacha, boxiganga, fardndula, and the com-
pany. A bululu is a player who travels alone and afoot ; he enters
a village, goes to the curate, and tells him that he knows a comedia
and a loa or two; he asks him to call the barber and sacristan,
and he will recite it to them, so that they may give him something,
that he may proceed on his way. These having assembled, he
mounts upon a chest, and begins to recite, remarking as he goes on :
"Now the lady enters and says so-and-so," and continues his acting
while the curate passes around the hat, and having gathered four
or five quartos, the curate adds a piece of bread and a bowl of
soup, and with this he follows his star and continues his way.
A naque consists of two men ; they enact an entremes or portions of
an auto, recite some octavas and two or three loas; they wear
a beard of sheepskin (zamarro), play a drum, and charge an ochavo
[= 2 maravedis], or in other kingdoms [parts of Spain] a dinerillo
(that is what Rios and I used to do) ; they live contentedly, sleep
in their clothes, go barefoot, are always hungry, rid themselves of
their fleas amid the grain in summer and do not feel them on
Nacional, Madrid, and published by Sr. Paz y Melia in the Revista de
Archivos for 1900.
152 THE SPANISH STAGE
account of the cold in winter. Gangarilla is a bigger company;
here there are three or four men : one who can play the fool (que
sabe tocar una locura) and a boy who plays the women's roles.
They represent the auto "The Lost Sheep," have beards and wigs
(cauellera) , borrow a woman's skirt and bonnet (which they some-
times forget to return), play two comic entremeses, charge each
spectator a quarto [=4 maravedis] , and also accept a piece of bread,
eggs, sardines, or any kind of odds and ends, which they put into a
bag. They eat roast meat, sleep on the ground, drink their draught
of wine, travel constantly, show in every farm-yard, and always
have their arms crossed.
Rios: Why?
Solano: Because they never have a cloak to their backs. The
cambaleo consists of a woman who sings and five men who lament ;
they have a comedia, two autos, three or four entremeses, a bundle
of clothes which a spider could carry, and transport the woman now
on their backs, now on a litter or hand-chair {silla de manos).
They act in the farm-yards for a loaf of bread, a bunch of grapes,
a stew of cabbage, and in the villages charge six maravedis, a piece
of sausage, a task of flax, and anything else that happens along (not
refusing the most worthless gift). They remain in one spot four
to six days, hire a bed for the woman, and if any of the men be on
good terms with the hostess, he gets a bundle of straw and a cover
and sleeps in the kitchen, while in winter the straw-loft is his con-
stant habitation. At noon they eat their beef-stew and each one
six bowls of broth, all sitting at a table or sometimes on the bed.
The woman distributes the food, shares out the bread and measures
the watered wine, and each one wipes his hands wherever he can,
for they have but one napkin amongst them, and the table-cloths are
so shy that they do not cover the table by a foot. A garnacha con-
sists of five or six men, a woman who plays first lady's roles and a
boy who plays the second ; they carry a chest containing two smock-
frocks, a coat, three pelisses, beards, wigs, and a woman's costume
of taffeta ( tiritaiia) . Their repertory consists of four comedias, three
autos and as many entremeses; they carry the chest on a donkey's
back and the woman, grumbling, on his rump, while the rest of the
company follow afoot, driving the donkey. They remain eight
days in a town, sleep four in a bed, eat a stew of beef and mutton,
and some evenings a fricassee well seasoned. They get their wine
DUM FATA SINUNT, VIVITE LAETI 153
in drams, their meat in ounces, their bread in pounds, and hunger
by quarters [arroba = 11.5 kilos]. They give private perform-
ances for a fried chicken, a boiled rabbit, four reals in money, two
quarts of wine, and may be hired for a festival for twelve reals. In
a boxiganga there are two women, a boy, and six or seven com-
panions, and not seldom do they meet with vexations, for there is
never lacking a fool, a bully, an impatient, an importunate, a
sentimental, a jealous or a love-sick fellow, and having any
one of these you can never travel with security, live contentedly, or
even have much money. They are provided with six comedias,
three or four autos, five entremeses, two chests — one containing the
baggage of the company, the other the women's clothes. They hire
four pack-mules — one for the chests, two for the women, and the
other on which the men may alternate every quarter-league. They
generally have two cloaks among the seven players, and with these
they enter two by two, like the friars. Often, however, the mule-
driver makes off with them, leaving the actors cloakless. Such
players dine well; all sleep in four beds, perform by night and
at festivals by day, and sup mostly on hash (ensalada) , for, as
they finish the comedia late, they always find a cold supper. While
on the road they are fond of sleeping by the fireplaces, for perchance
these may be hung with blood-puddings, chines, or sausages. These
they enjoy with their eyes, touch with their' fingers, and invite
their friends, wrapping the sausages around their bodies, the blood-
puddings around their thighs, and stowing away the chines, pigs'
feet, chickens, and other trifles in holes in the yards or stables ; and
if they happen to be in a country inn, which is the safest, they mark
the spot, so that they may know where the dead are buried. That
sort of a boxiganga is dangerous, for it is more changeable than the
moon and more unsafe than the border-land, unless it has a good
head to rule it. The fardndula is next to the company : it has three
women, eight to ten comedias, two chests of luggage. The players
travel on mules with drivers and sometimes in carts ; visit the more
important towns, dine separately, wear good clothes, perform at
Corpus festivals for 200 ducats, and live contentedly (that is, those
who are not in love) .... In the companies there is every kind of
grub and trumpery; they know something of the seamy side and
also of good manners; there are very clever people among them,
men much esteemed and persons well born, and even very respect-
154 THE SPANISH STAGE
able women (for where there are many there must be of all kinds).
They take with them fifty comedias, three hundred quarters of
luggage, sixteen persons who act, thirty who eat, one who takes the
money at the door (and God knows what he steals). Some want
mules, others coaches, some litters, others palfreys, and none there
are who are satisfied with a cart, because they say that they have
weak stomachs. Besides, there are generally many vexations.
Their labor is excessive because of the great amount of study, the
continuous rehearsals, and the varied tastes (though of this Rios
and Ramirez know only too much), so that it is better to pass this
in silence, for, in faith, much could be said on this subject.1
Despite the trivial details and the absence of much that
would have been most desirable, this description of the
various bands of strolling players by one of their number
is so important that it could not be omitted here.
The traveling of theatrical companies at this time was
necessarily slow. We have just seen from Rojas's descrip-
tion how the smaller bands of actors moved from place to
place. The larger companies traveled with a little more
convenience, still this was, after all, one of the greatest
hardships they had to endure. We know the "strenuous
life" some of them lead in our own day, when they leave
the large cities and make "one-night stands" in the smaller
towns, while the "barn-storming aggregations," which
never remain more than a day or two in one place, suffer
even greater trials. Yet one can easily imagine how much
more laborious and toilsome must have been the life of
an actor at this time, when the means of transportation
were so primitive. Journeys which now, even on the
Spanish railways, are traversed in a few hours, it then took
as many days to accomplish.
Thus, in 1586, Nicolas de los Rios and Andres de
1 Viage enlretenido, ed. of 1603, pp. 132-140. Other anecdotes illustra-
tive of theatrical life in Spain may be found in Mateo Aleman's Guzman
de Alfarache, Part II, Book I, chap, ii (ed. of Milan, 1615, p. 17), where
a story, is related concerning Cisneros and Manzanos, two well-known
theatrical managers ; also in the spurious second part of this work by Mateo
ON THE ROAD 155
Vargas contracted to have their company, consisting of
thirteen or fourteen persons and seventy quarters of bag-
gage, transported from Madrid to Seville (a distance of
about 270 miles) in thirteen days, at the rate of 38 reals
for each person and 6 reals for each quarter of baggage.1
In 1 6 10 certain carters of Illescas contracted with
Alonso Riquelme to carry his company and their para-
phernalia from that town to Aldea Gallega [near Lisbon,
a distance of about 330 miles], at 70 reals for each person
and 3 reals for each quarter of baggage, the carters
agreeing to be in the said village within twenty-two days.2
The costumes and properties were loaded on the backs
of mules or upon carts, while the players also traveled in
carts, or the larger companies in coaches. It appears from
a document dated 1613, concerning the company of Anto-
nio Granados, that a distinction was made between the
comediantes and the danzantes, the former being carried
in coaches and the latter in carts (carros).3 Sometimes,
in the case of distinguished players, another form of con-
veyance was especially stipulated, as in 1623, when the
actor Juan Vazquez and Francisca de Torres, his wife, are
to have three pack-animals (tres caballerias iguales), "for
they are not to go upon the laden carts."4
How very expensive traveling was in these early days
we also learn from an agreement made in 1630 by Fran-
cisco Moreno to furnish three mules (one with a saddle)
for the journey which Antonia Manuela, wife of the autor
de comedias Bartolome Romero, made from Madrid
to Seville, paying 100 reals for each mule and 100 reals
to the mule-driver.5 Sometimes, when a small town
resolved to give a theatrical performance in connection
with some church festival, it was especially stipulated that,
Lujan de Sayavedra, Book III, chapters vii and viii (Bibl. de Autores
Espanoles, Vol. Ill, pp. 418 ff.), where Guzman joins the company of
Heredia.
"Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 17.
1 Ibid., p. 120. a Ibid., p. 135. *Ibid., p. 193. "Ibid., p. 219.
i56 THE SPANISH STAGE
in addition to the money, certain provisions were to be
furnished to the actors, as when, in 1593, Gabriel Nunez,
autor de comedias, agreed to go to Navalcarnero (the
little village where, more than half a century afterward,
in 1649, Philip IV. married his second wife, Mariana of
Austria) with his company to perform Lope de Vega's
Los Comendadores and two other comedias for 300 reals,
besides 24 cuar tales [= 6 fanegas or about 10 bushels] of
bread, 4 arrobas [=12 gallons] of white wine, 24 pounds
of veal and 1 6 pounds of beef, a pig, a goose, two conies,
and a hen, besides people to do the cooking, and free lodg-
ing.1
As early, at least, as 1602 some companies possessed
such an extensive wardrobe that a particular person
was charged with the care of it; with arrangements for
traveling, etc. Thus we find Agustin Coronel, an actor,
employed by Alonso Riquelme, autor de comedias, in
March, 1602, to work in the company of the latter,
"taking part in the comedias as well as in the bayles, and
also to take care of the wardrobe and to arrange for the
pack-animals and the traveling,"2 etc.
Traveling in open carts in Spain in summer is not a very
comfortable method of transportation, and at a later period
we find covered carts especially provided for the players, as
when, in 1633, five covered carts were furnished to
the company of Fernan Sanchez de Vargas, to go from
Madrid to the village of Parla.3 In another case six carts,
four of them covered, board, and lodging are to be pro-
vided for the company.4 Sometimes a whole company
traveled on mules, as in 1636, when Juan Rodriguez, an
innkeeper, and Andres de Lobera, who hired out mules,
agreed to furnish to Pedro de la Rosa, autor de comedias,
thirty-three mules, with six drivers and a litter (for the
1 P6rez Pastor, p. 37.
'Ibid., p. 68. *Ibid., p. 233. lIbid., p. 234.
THE STRENUOUS LIFE 157
autora Catalina de Nicolas, we presume), "to take the
said autor and his company to the city of Segovia, the said
autor paying 28 reals for each mule, including the drivers,
and 50 reals for the litter." In this case the baggage was
transported separately.1 Indeed, Pedro de la Rosa seems
to have furnished especial facilities for the traveling of his
company, for on September 19, 1637, he provided "a
coach with five mules to carry eight persons of his com-
pany from Madrid to Valencia for 660 reals."2 And in
1638 the company of Luis Lopez, twenty in number, were
conveyed in three "comfortable carts" (carros bien acomo-
dados) from Guadalajara to Cuenca for 28 reals each.3
A further conception of the expense of traveling may be
formed from the fact that Antonio de Rueda, autor de
cotnedias, in 1639 paid 850 reals each for four coaches to
take his company from Madrid to Granada.4
Another hardship incident to the profession of acting
was the unusual hour at which a performance was some-
times required to be given. In 161 2 the company of
Fernan Sanchez de Vargas was to take part in the Corpus
festival in the town of Esquivias, and the agreement was
that he should have his company in Esquivias on the Tues-
day following Corpus at sunrise (al salir del sol), and on
that day he was to represent in the morning the same autos
that he had performed in Madrid, besides a comedia in the
afternoon.5 And in 1 6 1 3 Pedro de Valdes was to have his
company at Leganes on June 1 1 at six o'clock in the morn-
ing, to represent two autos sacramentales in the morning
and a comedia in the afternoon, with all their bayles and
entremeses* Again, in March, 161 7, Cristobal de Leon,
autor de comedias, agreed to represent two autos, with
their entremeses, at the Corpus festival in Madrid, on
Thursday, from two o'clock in the afternoon until twelve
*Ibid., pp. 254-255. 'Ibid., p. 276. 'Ibid., p. 301.
1 Ibid., p. 316. 'Ibid., p. 127. 'Ibid., p. 134.
158 THE SPANISH STAGE
at night, and on Friday from six in the morning till noon,
in such places as may be designated, for 600 ducats. "And
if the court should be in Madrid, and it should be necessary
to give more performances on Saturday, he is to receive the
customary gratuity."1 Indeed, the tribulations of the
actor's life have probably not been overdrawn in the ac-
counts that have come down to us. Rojas, who was for
a time a farandulero, speaks with authority upon the sub-
ject, and to his narrative we now turn.
'Perez Pastor, pp. 161, 162.
CHAPTER VIII
The actors. Their hardships. Alonso de Olmedo. Juan de
Morales. Roque de Figueroa. Maria de Riquelme. La Cal-
derona. Adventures of actors related in the "Entertaining Jour-
ney." The term autor de comedias. Relations of dramatist and
manager. The stealing of plays. Honorarium of dramatists.
Collaboration.
While some conception of the hardships suffered by actors
in Spain may be gained from what has been said in the pre-
vious chapter, we must turn once more to Agustin de Rojas
for such a graphic description of the actor's trials and suf-
ferings as we shall look for in vain elsewhere. Rojas
speaks from experience, and let us hear what he says of
the life of his fellow-players. "There is no negro in Spain
or slave in Algiers but has a better life than the actor. A
slave works all day, but he sleeps at night ; he has only one
or two masters to please, and when he does what he is com-
manded, he fulfils his duty. But actors are up at dawn and
write and study from five o'clock till nine, and from nine
till twelve they are constantly rehearsing. They dine and
then go to the comedia; leave the theater at seven, and
when they want rest they are called by the President of the
Council, or the alcaldes, whom they must serve whenever
it pleases them. I wonder how it is possible for them to
study all their lives and be constantly on the road, for there
is no labor that can equal theirs."1 And Cervantes, who
1"Porque no hay negro en Espana, El esclauo que es esclauo
Ni esclavo en Argel se vende quiero que trabaje siempre,
Que no tenga mejor vida por la manana y la tarde,
Que un farsante, si se aduierte pero por la noche duerme.
159
160 THE SPANISH STAGE
doubtless knew them well, says this of actors: Also
I can say of them that in the sweat of their brows
they gain their bread by insupportable toil, learning con-
stantly by heart, leading a gipsy life perpetually from place
to place, and from inn to tavern, staying awake to please
others, for in other men's pleasure lies their profit; they
have, besides, the merit that with their calling they deceive
nobody, for continually they bring out their wares on the
public square, submitting them to the judgment and in-
spection of everybody. The toil of the managers is incred-
ible, and their anxiety extraordinary, and they need to gain
much in order not to find themselves at the end of the year
so embarrassed that it is needful for them to call a meet-
ing of their creditors." *
But such recitals of the tribulations of the profession
never did and never will deter others from joining their
ranks. In all ages and in all countries2 the mimic life of
the stage has exercised a powerful attraction. And though
no slave in Algiers, as Rojas says, had a harder lot than
Spanish actors, their ranks were ever full, for generally
they were a careless and shiftless lot, who took the days
as they came, with little thought for the morrow. They
No tiene a quien contentar Y quando han de descansar,
sino a un amo 6 dos que tiene, los Hainan al Presidente,
y haziendo lo que le mandan los Oydores, los Alcaldes,
ya cumple con lo que deue. los Fiscales, los Regentes,
Pero estos representantes Y a todos van a seruir
antes que Dios amanece, a qualquier ora que quieren,
escriuiendo y estudiando, que es esso ayre, yo me admiro
desde las cinco a las nueue. corao es possible que pueden
Y de las nueue a las doze Estudiar toda su vida
se estan ensayando siempre, y andar caminando siempre,
comcn, vanse a la comedia, pues no ay trabajo en el mundo
y salen de alii a las siete. que puede ygualarse a este. . . ."
(Viage entretenido, pp. 368, 369.)
1 El Licenciado Fidriera, in Exemplary Novels, translated by Maccoll,
Glasgow, 1902, Vol. I, p. 191. See also Cervantes's comedia Pedro de
Urdemalas, Act III, for a description of the qualifications of a good actor.
(Ocho Comedias, etc., Madrid, 1615, fol. 217, verso.)
' In France the earliest contract with a professional actor that has been
preserved is eloquent testimony to the wretched condition of wandering
ANOTHER ENOCH ARDEN 161
were mostly drawn from the common people and were
notorious for their loose manner of living, especially the
women. To this statement, however, there were some
notable exceptions, and occasionally we find a hidalgo or a
person of the better class attracted to their number by the
glamour of the stage. Among these was Alonso de 01-
medo, afterward a distinguished actor and autor de cotne-
dias. He was born in Talavera de la Reina, the son of
the mayordomo of the Count of Oropesa, and served the
latter as a page. A theatrical company visiting his native
town one day, he fell desperately in love with one of its
members, Luisa de Robles. Olmedo joined the company
in order to follow his adorada, but unfortunately the fair
Luisa was married. However, fate decreed that her hus-
band, Juan de la Abadia, should embark for Velez Malaga,
when the vessel in which he sailed was attacked by Moors
and sunk, and the captives taken to Barbary. Believing
her husband dead, and presumably having no use for a
dead husband, Luisa married Olmedo. Three years after-
ward, much to the surprise of both, probably, the husband,
like another Enoch Arden, suddenly reappeared. Olmedo,
much of whose former enthusiasm had doubtless cooled
by this time — so we are told — with admirable resignation
said to Luisa : "My dear, it is all over with our marriage ;
you take half of my wardrobe for your first husband, and
half of the money and of the white linen for yourself, and
good-by." And, as Sr. Sanchez-Arjona tells us, to console
players in that country. It antedates by a number of years the earliest
Spanish document of a similar nature. It is dated 1545, and has already
been referred to (p. 138). In it Marie Ferre (or Fairet) binds herself to
perform in the troupe of Anthoine l'Espeyronnyere, in histories, farces, and
somersaults, "en telle maniere que chacun qui assistera prendra joyeusete
et recreation, pour gagner, amasser et lever deniers des personnes qui
vouldront voir joer pour et au proffict dudict de l'Espeyronnyere," for
which she is to receive, besides board and lodging, twelve livres Tournois
[a very small sum], and if any one during the engagement should give
her money or clothes, then "Gailharde, wife of the said l'Espeyronnyere,
shall receive one half thereof." (Creizenach, Geschichte des neueren Dra-
mas, Vol. Ill, p. 75.)
1 62 THE SPANISH STAGE
himself for his loss, he shortly afterward went to Zara-
goza, where he married a daughter of the mayordomo of
the Count of Sastago, named Jeronima [de Ornero], by
whom he had six children.1
Thus runs the story. Unfortunately, however, facts
have more recently come to light which cast some doubt
upon the tale as just related. While it may be true in its
main incidents, Luisa was certainly not the siren who first
lured Olmedo upon the stage. In a petition to the town
council of Seville in 1640,2 Olmedo says that he had
served the King at the Corpus festivals for forty years
and that he had been director of a company for twenty-
four years. This would place the beginning of his theat-
rical career in the year 1600, and his beginning as an
autor de comedias in 161 6. What we know of Luisa de
Robles is briefly this : in June, 161 8, she is described as the
widow of Juan Labadia;3 in September, 1623, she is
called a single woman over twenty-five years old, and
then belonged to Manuel Vallejo's company;4 in 1624
she was in Antonio de Prado's company in Madrid, and
in 1627 she and her husband, Juan de Labadia,5 were in
Manuel Simon's company in Seville. As Olmedo's wife
Jeronima de Ornero and his daughter Maria were act-
ing in his company in 1635, he playing old men's parts
in his own company,6 the episode related above must have
taken place about 161 8 or somewhat earlier. At this
time, however, as we have seen, Olmedo had been upon the
stage many years. Alonso de Olmedo was an hidalgo, and
by a special decree of Philip IV., dated May 20, 1647, all
the privileges of his rank were preserved to him, "although
he had been an autor de comedias." He died in 1 65 1 .
In 1630 Juan de Morales Medrano, one of the best-
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales del Teatro en Sevilla, p. 223.
2 Ibid., p. 224.
' Nuevos Datos, p. 167. * Ibid., p. 201.
The name is spelled in various ways; I have given it in each instance
as I found it. ° Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 297.
MARIA DE RIQUELME 163
known actors and theatrical directors of his time, was sued
for a debt of 1400 ducats, the balance of the purchase-
money of a house in the Calle del Prado, as well as for the
cost of improvements made on the said house. On notifi-
eationto pay the debt under threat, of arrest, he replied by
claiming the privilege of hidalguia, having received a
patent of nobility from the chancellery of Valladolid, by
virtue of which "his person could not be taken for any
debt unless it resulted from a crime, nor could his clothing
or that of his wife, nor his arms or his horses, be attached,
nor the other things which are reserved to hijosdalgo." x
Roque de Figueroa was also a celebrated actor who had
received a very careful education, "and the story is related
of him that on one occasion when a festival was to take
place in the parish of San Sebastian in Madrid, an accident
having happened to the preacher, Roque de Figueroa took
off his sword, ascended the pulpit, and delivered an oration
in Latin, much to the surprise of all present.2
Among actresses the famous Maria de Riquelme was
no less noted for her beauty than for her virtuous and ex-
emplary life. She was the wife of the autor de comedias
Manuel Vallejo, upon whose death, in 1644, she aban-
doned the stage and devoted herself to religion, dying in
Barcelona in 1656.3
Quite different had been the life of the celebrated Maria
'Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 239.
' Sanchez- Arjona, Anales, p. 254.
3 Maria de Riquelme was the second wife of Manuel Vallejo, and must
have married him after November 21, 1627, for on that date Francisca
Maria, Vallejo's first wife, died. (See Bulletin Hispanique (190S), p.
255.) In April, 1631, Maria de Riquelme was in Vallejo's company and
is called his wife. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 220.) She appeared as Casandra
in Lope de Vega's El Castigo sin Venganza as it was performed before the
King on February 3, 1632, by the company of Manuel Vallejo, who played
the part of the Duke of Ferrara. (See my Life of Lope de Vega, Glas-
gow, 1904, pp. 340, n., et passim.) In a letter dated September 4, 1633,
Lope de Vega says of her: "She is extraordinary in depicting passion in a
way that imitates nobody, nor can any one be found to imitate her." (Ibid.,
p. 350.) Caramuel says of her: "era tan impresionable por naturaleza,
que, con asombro de todos, mudaba representando el color de su rostro, de-
i64 THE SPANISH STAGE
Calderon, though it ended also in religious devotion. La
Calderona, as she was called, was one of the many favor-
ites of Philip the Fourth and the mother of his son Don
John of Austria, born April 17, 1629. After a far from
exemplary life she professed in the convent of Villaher-
moso, in the province of Guadalajara, where, "esteemed
by the whole community, she was made abbess, and re-
penting of her past errors, there are those who declare
she died in the odor of sanctity."1
The Spanish stage of this period, it is to be feared, could
boast of few such exemplars of womanly virtue as Maria de
Riquelme. But it would be most uncharitable to condemn
all actresses on the evidence that we have concerning some
of them. Still, in all probability, such incidents as the one
related in a previous chapter concerning Jacinta Herbias
and Ana de Espinosa were not rare. Indeed, as we shall
see, the conditions of the Spanish stage, the publicity of
the green-rooms, etc., rendered it almost impossible for a
decent woman to remain upon the boards. Actors were
mostly a shiftless lot recruited from the understrata of
society, of whose free and easy lives we get many a glimpse
in the work of Rojas, already cited. They were much
addicted to gambling, and the following narrative, related
mostrando sus facciones la alegria, si su papel lo demandaba, 6 la tristeza
mas profunda en Ios pasos pateticos, y figurando los afectos mas opuestos
en sus mas rapidas transiciones de tal modo que era inimitable y unica en
este genero de mimica." (Quoted by Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 318.) It
may be added that Maria de Riquelme's name does not occur among the
players of Vallejo's company in 1643, when he represented autos in Seville.
(Ibid., p. 366.)
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 286. See also an excellent work, Hume,
The Court of Philip IV., London, 1907, who characterizes Philip as:
"Weak of will, tender of conscience, sensitive of soul. A rake without
conviction, a voluptuary who sought sensuous pleasures from vicious habit
long after they had ceased to be pleasures to him, and yet expiated them
with agonies of remorse which made his soul a raging hell" (p. 171).
Hume says: "It was in the Corral de la Cruz in 1627 that Philip first set
eyes upon the girl whom one of Olivares's agents had sent from the coun-
try to act upon the Madrid stage. Her name was Maria Calderon, and at
the time she appeared in the capital she was not more than sixteen years
of age. She was no great beauty, but her grace and fascination were
GAMBLING IN THE GREEN-ROOM 165
by the actor Ramirez, occurs in the Viage entretenido
(p. 141) : "I recall a witty story which happened about
four years ago to Alcaraz [a theatrical manager] concern-
ing one of Cisneros's musicians, who, gambling with an-
other actor in the green-room (vestuario) , lost even the
clothes on his back, so that he was left with nothing but
his linen breeches. His turn came to sing in the third act.
Snatching up quickly a cloak which did not belong to him
and wrapping it about him under his arms, he sallied forth
upon the stage with the greatest unconcern. Alcaraz,
observing this shameless effrontery, determined that it
should not go unpunished, and, taking a pin, fastened the
cloak up as high as he could. The player, ignorant of
what had happened, began to sing in this fashion, while
the audience shouted. Nor did he learn the cause of the
merriment until, withdrawing quite ashamed, he became
aware of the joke that had been played upon him when he
saw his whole shirt hanging out." Rios also tells the
story of a companion of his in Antequera, who, one night,
had lost everything he had, so that he was obliged to
remain in bed until a suit of clothes was sent him with
which to go to the theater, and that night he had to go
home again and remain in bed.1
supreme, and her voice was so sweet and her speech so captivating that
Madrid fell in love with her at once." (Ibid., p. 208.) La Calderona did
not, however, retire from the stage on the birth of her son Don John of
Austria. What we know of her stage life is this: In March, 1623, she was
the wife of Pablo Sarmiento and both were acting in the company of Juan
Bautista Valenciano. (Bull. Hispanique (1908), p. 248.) In 1624 she
appeared in Lope de Vega's El Poder en el Discreto, and in 1626 she
played the part of Fenis in Lope's Amor con vista. When she was again
married we do not know, but in 1632 her husband was Tomas de Rojas,
and in this year she received 1050 reals for acting in two comedias and two
autos in the village of Pinto, besides transportation for herself, her husband
and maid, lodging and eight reals maintenance for every day she was on
the journey. (Perez Pastor, Nue-vos Datos, p. 226.) She took part in the
Corpus festival of the same year at Seville, leaving the company of Juan
Jeronimo Valenciano, of which she was then a member, for this purpose.
(Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 285.) We do not know when she retired
from the stage.
1 Viage entretenido, p. 143.
1 66 THE SPANISH STAGE
A number of ludicrous adventures of actors are related
by the same author, of which one may find a place here :
We left Valencia on account of a misfortune that befell us—
Solano and I — one on foot and without a cloak, and the other walk-
ing and with only his doublet. We gave them to a boy who got
lost in the town, and we were left gentlemen of the road. At night
we arrived at a village, worn out and with only eight quartos be-
tween us. Without supper (sin las assaduras), we went to an inn
to ask for lodging, but they told us that they could not provide for
us, nor could a lodging be found anywhere, because a fair was being;
held. Seeing the little chance there was of our finding a lodging,
I resorted to a stratagem. I went to another inn and represented
myself as a West Indian merchant (for you see I resemble one in
the face). The hostess asked whether we had any pack-animals-
I replied that we came in a cart and that, while it was coming with
our goods, she should prepare two beds for us and some supper.
She did so, and I went to the alcalde of the village and told him
that a company of players had arrived, on their way through, and
asked his permission to give a play. He inquired whether it was a
religious play, to which I answered in the affirmative. Permission
being granted, I returned to the inn and advised Solano to re-
view the auto of "Cain and Abel," and then go to a certain
place to collect the money, for we were going to play that eve-
ning. Meanwhile I went to hunt up a drum, made a beard out
of a piece of sheepskin, and went through the whole village pro-
claiming our comedia. As there were many people in the place,
we had a large audience. This done, I put by the drum, took off
my beard, returned to the hostess, and told her that my goods
were coming and asked her for the key of my room, as I wanted
to lock them up. To her question what they were, I replied
spices (especeria). She gave me the key, and hastening to the
room, I stripped the sheets from the bed, took down some old
gilt leather hangings and two or three old cloths, and in order that
she might not see me descend the stairs, I made up a bundle, threw
it out of the window, and came down the stair like a flash. As I
reached the yard, the host called me and said : "Mr. Indian, do you
want to see a comedia by some strolling players who arrived a short
time ago ? It is a very good one." I answered, "Yes," and hurried
CAIN AND ABEL 167
out to hunt up the bundle of clothes with which we were to play
the farce, anxious lest the host should see it ; but, though I searched
everywhere, I could not find it. Seeing the misfortune which faced
me, and that my back might suffer for it, I ran to the place
(hermita) where Solano was busy taking the money and told him
what had happened. He stopped "gathering," and we left with
what he had collected. Consider now the plight of all these people !
Some without merchants or bedclothes, the others deceived and
without a comedia! That night we traveled but little and that on
the by-paths. In the morning we took account of our finances and
found we had three and a half reals, all in small coppers. As you
see, we were now rich, but not a little timid, when, about a league
off, we discovered a hut, and, arriving there, we were received with
wine in a gourd, milk in a trough, and bread in a saddle-bag. We
breakfasted and left that night for another town, where we directly
took steps to get something to eat. I requested permission [to per-
form], sought out two bed-sheets, proclaimed the eclogue through the
streets, procured a guitar, invited the hostess, and told Solano to col-
lect the money. Finally, the house being full, I came out to sing the
ballad, Afuera, afuera, aparta, aparta.1 Having finished a couplet,
I could go no further, and the audience gazed in astonishment.
Then Solano began a loa with which he made some amends for the
lack of music. I wrapped one of the sheets about me and began
my part, but when Solano appeared as God the Father, with a
candle in his hand and likewise enveloped in a sheet, open in the
middle, and besmeared all around his beard with grape-skins, I
thought I should die for laughter, while the poor public (vulgo)
wondered what had happened to him. This being over, I appeared
as a fool and recited my entr ernes, then continued with the auto,
and the point arrived when I was to kill the unhappy Abel ; but I
had forgotten the knife with which I was to cut his throat, so, tear-
ing off my false beard, I cut his throat with it. Hereupon the mob
arose and shouted. I begged them to pardon our shortcomings, as
the company had not yet arrived. At last, with all the people in
an uproar, the host came in and told us that we had better get out,
and thus avoid a sound drubbing. Upon this good advice we put
distance between us, and that same night we left with more than
'A Moorish ballad printed in the Romancero General, Madrid, 1604,
fol. 25.
1 68 THE SPANISH STAGE
five reals which we had taken in. After we had spent this money
and had sold what few effects we had, eating often only the fungi
which we gathered on the road, sleeping on the ground, walking
barefoot (not on account of the mud, but because we had no shoes),
helping the mule-drivers to load their animals or fetching water for
them, and living more than four days on turnips, we arrived timidly
one night at an inn, where four drivers, who were stopping for the
night, gave us twenty maravedis and a blood-pudding (morcilla) to
play a comedia for them. After this hardship and misery we reached
the end of our journey, Solano in doublet, without ropilla1 (which
he had pawned at a tavern), and I bare-legged and shirtless, with
a large straw hat full of air-holes, dirty linen breeches, and jacket
torn and threadbare. Thus ragged, I determined to enter the
service of a pastry-cook, but Solano being a shrewd fellow, did not
take to any work, and this was the state of things when, one day,
we heard a drum beat and a boy announced the excellent comedia
Los Amigos trocados, to be performed that night in the town
hall. When I heard this my eyes began to open. We spoke
to the boy, and, recognizing us, he dropped the drum and began
to dance for joy. We asked him whether he had any small
coin about him, and he took out what he had, which was tied up
in the end of his shirt. We bought some bread and cheese and a
slice of codfish, and after our repast he took us to the autor
(who was Martinazos). I don't know whether it grieved him to
see us so ragged, but finally he embraced us, and after we had
related all our hardships to him, we dined, and he bade us rid
ourselves of our fleas, so that they might not cling to the costumes,
for we were to act in the comedia. That night, in fact, we took
part, and the next day he made an agreement with us to act in his
company, each one to receive three quartillos [= three fourths
of a real] for each representation. He now gave me a part to
study in the comedia "The Resurrection of Lazarus," and to Solano
the role of the resurrected saint. Every time the comedia was
played the autor took off a garment in the dressing-room and loaned
it to Solano, charging him especially to let no fleas get into it.
When the play was ended he returned to the dressing-room, took
off the costume, and donned his old clothes. To me he gave stock-
1 A close-fitting unbuttoned tunic reaching to the thighs, with open sleeves
hanging from the shoulder. (Hume, Philip IV., p. 447.)
ARISE, LAZARUS! 169
ings, shoes, a hat with plumes, and a long silk coat (sayo), beneath
which I wore my linen breeches (which had been washed in the
meanwhile), and thus, as I am such a handsome fellow, I came on
the stage like a gewgaw (bringuino) with my broad beaming face.
We continued this happy life for more than four weeks, eating
little, traveling much, with the theatrical baggage on our backs, and
without ever making the acquaintance of a bed. Going in this way
from one village to another, it happened to rain a good deal one
night, so, on the next day, the director told us — as it was only
a short league to where we were going — to make a litter of
our hands and carry his wife, while he and the other two men
would carry the baggage of the company, the boy taking the
drum and the other odds and ends. The woman being quite
satisfied, we made a litter with our hands, and she wearing
a beard,1 we began our journey. In this way we reached our
destination, completely worn out, foot-sore and covered with mud ;
indeed, we were half dead, for we were serving as pack-mules.
Arrived in the village, the director immediately requested permis-
sion to play, and we acted the farce of "Lazarus." My friend and
I put on our borrowed clothes, but when we arrived at the passage
concerning the sepulcher, the director, who took the part of Christ,
said several times to Lazarus, "Arise, Lazarus! surge! surge!" and
seeing that he did not arise, he approached the sepulcher, believing
that he had fallen asleep. He found, however, that Lazarus had
arisen, body and soul, without leaving a trace of the clothes behind.
Not finding the saint, the people were aroused, and it seeming that
a miracle had taken place, the director was much astonished.
Seeing the fix we were in, and that Solano had left without in-
forming me, I took the road to Zaragoza, without, however, finding
any trace of Solano, nor the director of his clothes, nor the specta-
tors of Lazarus, who, they doubtless thought, had ascended to
heaven. I then joined a good company and gave up that toilsome life.2
As already observed, the earliest theatrical managers in
Spain also frequently wrote the pieces played by their com-
panies, hence the name autor, which was originally applied
1Rojas explains that a beard and sometimes a small mask was worn as
a protection to the complexion.
1 Viage entretenido, Madrid, 1603, pp. 91-101.
170 THE SPANISH STAGE
to them and which afterward merely designated the chief
or director of a company, whether he wrote plays or not.
A manager who could not write comedias for his company
naturally cast about him for some one who could provide
them, and hence at an early period we find men traveling
with companies of players whose office it was to furnish
comedias. In France at this time we find Alexandre
Hardy, and in England many playwrights wrote for Hens-
lowe's and other companies. Sometimes these dramatists
were also professional actors; but of this class Spain has
no names among its actor-authors that will even remotely
compare with Shakespeare or Moliere.1 Its greatest
dramatists were churchmen, not players. Indeed, among
the great Spanish dramatic authors only one, Alarcon, was
not a member of the priesthood. Of actors who were also
playwrights the best-known names in Spain are Lope de
Rueda, Juan de Villegas, and Andres de Claramonte.2
In 1589, when Lope de Vega had been writing for the
public stage at least three or four years, we find Alonso del
Castillo, an actor, making an agreement with Gaspar de
Porres, a theatrical manager, to work in the company of
the latter from December 1, 1589, till Shrovetide of 1591,
"and the said Alonso del Castillo is to furnish to the said
Gaspar de Porres nine comedias composed by him, and
amongst them he is to give him the comedia Las Escuelas
1 "Son nora de theatre [Moliere] parait pour la premiere fois dans l'acte
du 28 Juin, 1644, par lequel Daniel Mallet, danseur de Rouen, s'engage
a servir la troupe 'tant en comedie que ballets,' " etc. (Soulie, Recherches
sur Moliere, Paris, 1863, p. 38.) It is possible that Moliere may have seen
the performances of the company of Spanish players headed by Pedro de la
Rosa, which made a tour through France in 1643, and which visited Paris
in that year. ( Sanchez- Arjona, Anales, p. 329.) Rosa again returned to
Paris in 1674. Sebastian de Prado was also in the French capital with his
company in 1660, on the occasion of the marriage of Louis XIV. to Maria
Teresa, daughter of Philip IV. (Ibid., p. 342.) Moliere certainly saw
the latter company, for in the Registre de La Grange, p. 22, after
"Dimanche iime Juillet, 1660," we read: "II vint en ces tems vne Troupe
de Comediens Espagnolz qui joua 3 fois a Bourbon: vne fois a demye pist,
la seconde fois a vn escu, et la 3me fois fist vn four."
1 Alonso de la Vega, a contemporary of Lope de Rueda, and also an
ALONSO DEL CASTILLO 171
de Athenas, which he is now writing, and he is to give them
to no other person, until the four years be past which begin
with Shrovetide of 1591. He is to receive five and a half
reals for acting and maintenance every day that he may be
in the company before he has delivered the said comedia.
On account of the said comedias and representations Gas-
par de Porres will give him food and drink, and clean linen
or two and a half reals per day, and is to furnish him
transportation and besides 3200 reals," paying 200 reals
on account in cash.1
This remuneration for acting was by no means liberal.
Castillo could certainly not live extravagantly even in those
days on two and a half reals per day, the usual smallest
allowance being three reals, and when we consider that
Solano, an actor, in 1595 received 3000 reals per year, it is
likely that Castillo's histrionic ability was not of a very
high order. Unfortunately, we are unable to judge of his
merits as a playwright, as neither his Escuelas de Athenas
nor any other play of his has survived, so far as I know.
On the other hand, 3200 reals for nine comedias by an
author of no more reputation than Castillo was rather
liberal, when we remember that Lope de Vega, some years
after this, received only 500 reals for a comedia.
It is probable that the more important theatrical com-
panies always contained some one capable of patching
up or remodeling a play to suit the exigencies of the
occasion, and while but few cases are cited of Spanish
actor, was the author of three plays, which were first published at Valencia
in 1566. On the title-page he is called "illustre poeta y gracioso represen-
tante." He was a Sevillan by birth and took part in the Corpus festival
in that city in 1560. His plays have been republished by Sr. Menendez y
Pelayo, Dresden, 1905. Andres de la Vega, a well-known autor de come-
dias more than half a century later, was the author of a comedia entitled
San Carlos, a manuscript of which, dated at Madrid, March 21, 1642, is
now in the Biblioteca Nacional. (Paz y Melia, Catdlogo de Comedias
manuscritas, No. 3010.)
1 Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 25. Lope de Vega had written a num-
ber of comedias for Gaspar de Porres prior to this time. See my Life of
Lope de Vega, p. 38.
1 72 THE SPANISH STAGE
actors who could also perform this function, we learn that
Pedro de Pernia, an actor in the company of Roque de
Figueroa, could, in case of accident, furnish twelve to
sixteen columns on short notice.1
As regards the relations between the dramatists and the
managers of companies, it depended entirely upon whether
the author was one of the well-known and recognized play-
wrights or whether he was an obscure poet struggling for
recognition. In the former case there was frequently great
rivalry among the autores de comedias to secure the latest
plays. Lope de Vega, because of some real or fancied
affront, had at one time ( 1614) refused to write any come-
dias for Hernan Sanchez de Vargas, one of the best-known
actors and autores of the time, while he greatly favored
Alonso de Riquelme, whom he then provided with come-
dias. Sanchez even appealed to Lope's patron, the Duke
of Sessa, to aid him in conciliating Lope, while the latter
persisted in his refusal, alleging that Sanchez had all the
poets of Andalusia, including Luis Velez de Guevara, to
write for him, while no poet would furnish comedias to
Riquelme, on account of the latter's friendship for Lope.2
On the other hand, the nascent, struggling poet was fre-
quently treated with great severity by the actors and was
often subjected to the greatest indignities by both managers
and players. Cervantes, who knew the theater well and
who would doubtless have preferred to be one of the
playwrights idolized by the mob, than be the author of
1 In an entremes written by Quinones de Benavente and performed in
Madrid by the company of Figueroa in 1628 (?), we read:
"(Sale Pernia.)
4 No es Pernia este que sale,
Que representa, que bayla,
Que hace versos, que remedia,
Si sucede una desgracia,
Doce 6 diez y seis colunas
De la noche a la manana?"
(Entremeses, ed. Rosell, Madrid, 1873, Vol. I, p. 167.)
See also the story related by Quevedo, Vida del gran Tacaho, cap. xxii.
"Rennert, Life of Lope de Vega, Glasgow, 1904, p. 222.
THE COLLOQUY OF THE DOGS 173
Don Quixote, tells a story of one of these poetasters in the
Coloquio de los Perros : "Gradually we arrived at the house
of a manager of plays, who, as far as I recollect, was called
Angulo the Bad, to distinguish him from another Angulo,
not a manager but an actor, the best comedian that plays
then had and now have. All the company was assembled
to hear the play of my master, . . . and, in the middle of
the first act, one by one and two by two they all went out
and departed, except the manager and me, who served for
listeners. The play was such that, although I was an ass
in the matter of poetry, it seemed to me that Satan himself
had composed it for the total ruin of the said poet, who
was already beginning to feel uneasy as he saw the solitude
in which his audience had left him, and it was no wonder
that his prophetic soul told him within of the calamity that
was threatening him, which was the return of all the actors,
who were more than twelve, and who, without uttering a
word, laid hold of my poet; and if it had not been that
the authority of the manager, full of entreaties and pro-
tests, interfered, without doubt they would have blanketed
him. I was in consternation at the result, the manager dis-
gusted, the players cheerful, and the poet fretful. With
much patience, although his face was somewhat contorted,
he took his play and put it in his bosom, while, muttering,
he remarked, 'It is not good to cast pearls before swine,'
and without saying a word more he quietly went off." *
But if the better-known playwrights were not subjected
to personal insult, they nevertheless frequently suffered in
their reputations at the hands of unscrupulous theatrical
directors. Even the greatest of them all, Lope de Vega,
frequently complains of his treatment by them. In the
dedication of his comedia Los Muertos vivos2 to the
1 Exemplary Novels, translated by N. Maccoll, Glasgow, 1902, Vol. II,
p. 202. See also Castillo Solorzano, Aventuras del Bachiller Trapaza,
chap, xv, ed. of Madrid, 1905 (La Enciclopedia Moderna), pp. 234 ff., and
La Garduna de Sevilla, near the end.
'Printed in Part XVII of his Comedias, Madrid, 1621.
i74 THE SPANISH STAGE
dramatic poet Salucio del Poyo, Lope expresses himself
concerning the dishonest practices of theatrical managers.
After alluding in very flattering phrases to the fame ac-
quired by Poyo, he says that this is, in another sense, a
misfortune for the dramatist, "as, on account of the good
reputation which you have in this capital, the theatrical
managers, when they have any comedia whatever with the
author of which they are not satisfied, adorn their placards
with your name, and since most of these comedias, being
written by some ignorant fellow, are detestable, you would
lose much reputation among those who know, if the injury
and its discovery did not reach those who esteem you
at the same time." He adds that "a poor comedia,
after it has run the gauntlet of villages, servants, and men
who live by stealing them and adding to them, is so dis-
figured as to be scarcely recognizable." 1
But the dramatist had other difficulties to contend with
besides the unscrupulousness of theatrical directors; I
allude to the dishonest practices of booksellers who issued
pirated editions of the comedias, to the great detriment of
the poet's reputation.2 That the playwright suffered any
financial loss through these fraudulent versions issued by
the booksellers is not very likely, for the plays were sold
by their authors to the managers of companies, except per-
haps in the rare cases of playwrights like Andres de Clara-
monte and Juan de Villegas, who were also actors and
1 Life of Lope de Vega, pp. 293, 294. See also the Prologue to Lope's
Part XVII (ibid., p. 291), in which he complains bitterly of the tricks
and deceptions of booksellers and theatrical managers.
2 Lope de Vega, as is well known, complained of the piratical booksellers
in his Peregrino (1604) and lastly in his Dorotea (1632). (See my Life of
Lope de Vega, pp. 156, 344.) So Montalvan in the Prologo to the first
volume of his Comedias, Madrid, 1635, is especially bitter against the
booksellers of Seville, "donde no ay libro ageno que no se imprima," and
says that they cut the comedias down to four pliegos although eight may
be necessary, and that they issue from the press full of errors, barbarisms,
lies, and nonsense. Calderon also frequently deplores their practices.
It is a curious fact that a comedia of Lope, Sin Secreto no ay Amor, circu-
lated as a suelta under the name of Montalvan, a disciple of Lope.
LUIS REMIREZ DE ARELLANO 175
directed their own companies. Having bought a play
from its author, it was of course to the interest of the pur-
chasing manager to prevent its appearing in print and thus
becoming common property. Besides, plays were often
acquired surreptitiously by some individual possessing a
good memory, who visited the theater and noted down what
he could, filling in the rest from memory or de su cosecha,
and then disposing of them to some bookseller or theatrical
manager. Lope de Vega alludes with bitterness to the
pirated versions of his plays as early as 1603, in the Pro-
logue to El Peregrino en su Patria, and frequently there-
after, notably in 1620 in the Prologue to Part XIII of his
Comedias. He says: "... To this must be added the
stealing of comedias by those whom the vulgar call, the one
Memorilla, and the other Gran Memoria, who, with the
few verses which they learn, mingle an infinity of their own
barbarous lines, whereby they earn a living, selling them
to the villages and to distant theatrical managers; base
people these, without a calling, and many of whom have
been jail-birds. I should like to rid myself of the care of
publishing these plays, but I cannot, for they print them
with my name while they are the work of the pseudo-poets
of whom I have spoken. Receive then, Reader, this Part,
corrected as well as it was possible to do it, and with my
good will, for the only interest it has is that you may read
these comedias with less errors, and that you may not
believe that there is any one in the world who can note
down a comedia from memory, on seeing it represented;
and if there were such a person I should praise him and
esteem him as standing alone with this power, even though
he should lack understanding, for seldom are they found
together, as philosophers declare and as experience con-
firms."1
A curious instance of this filching of plays, of which he
was an eye-witness, is related by Suarez de Figueroa:
1 Life of Lope de Vega, p. 272.
i76 THE SPANISH STAGE
"There is at present in Madrid a young man of remarkable
memory, named Luis Remirez de Arellano, a native of
Villaescusa de Haro and the son of noble parents. This
person takes from memory an entire comedia on hearing it
three times, without the slightest variation either in plot
or verses. The first day he devotes to the general dispo-
sition of the plot, the second to the variety of the composi-
tion, and the third to the exactness of the verses. In this
manner he commits to memory any comedia he desires.
He thus noted down in particular La Dama Boba, El Prin-
cipe perfeto, and La Arcadia [all comedias by Lope de
Vega], besides others. Being present on one occasion,
listening to El Galan de la Membrilla [also by Lope],
which was being represented by the company of Sanchez,
the latter began to interrupt the argument and cut short
the speeches so obviously that, being questioned as to the
cause of this hastening and mutilation of the play, he re-
plied publicly that some one was present in the audience
(and he pointed him out) who in three days took down
from memory any comedia, and that he recited the comedia
thus badly for fear that he might wrongfully get posses-
sion of it. Hereupon there was great excitement among
the auditors, who requested that the play be stopped until
Luis Remirez left the theater."1
1 Plaza universal de todas Ciencias y Artes, Perpinan, 1630, pp. 254, 255.
Espinel had mentioned this Remirez years before, in his Marcos de Obre-
gon, ed. of Barcelona, 1618, fol. 240, where he says: "There is a young
man in Madrid named Luys Remirez, who, on seeing any comedia repre-
sented, can go home and write down the whole of it without missing a
letter or mistaking a verse." This Luis Ramirez was also a poet. Mon-
talvan says of him: "Luis Ramirez, Poeta elegante, vizarro, y conceptuoso
con muchisimo estremo, y de tan rara y prodigiosa memoria, que de oir
una 0 dos vezes una comedia, la repite toda entera, cosa que no se ha
contado jamas de ningun antiguo, ni moderno." (Para Todos, Madrid,
1645, Prologue; see also ibid., fol. 273, verso. On the stealing of Mon-
talvan's plays, see ibid., Prologue.) Malone, Historical Account of the
English Stage, Basil, 1801, p. 156, remarks: "It was a common practice to
carry table-books to the theater, and either from curiosity, or enmity to the
author, or some other motive, to write down passages of the play that was
represented ; and there is reason to believe that the imperfect and mutilated
THE PRICE OF A COMEDIA 177
As to the honorarium received by dramatic poets, it of
course varied greatly, depending upon the popularity and
reputation of the writer. Moreover, about the middle of
the seventeenth century comedias commanded a much
higher price than was paid for them at the beginning of
that period. This, however, is doubtless due in no small
measure to the great depreciation in the value of money
during the reign of Philip the Fourth. In 1601 Lope de
Vega, then the undisputed ruler of the Spanish stage, re-
ceived 500 reals for his comedia La hermosa Alfreda, and
we may assume that this was the customary sum paid to the
most prominent playwrights at this time and for some
years thereafter, while the average sum received by Lope
for an auto was 300 reals.1 In 1625 Pedro de Valdes, a
theatrical manager, paid 460 reals for Guillen de Castro's
Las Maravillas de Babilonia,2 in 1627 Andres de la Vega
sold to Hernan Sanchez de Vargas eight comedias for
3600 reals,3 and in 1633 tne dramatist Don Rodrigo de
Herrera sold to Juan Martinez, theatrical manager, his
comedia Castigar por Defender for 700 reals "vellon,"4
and the same poet, in his last will and testament, dated at
Madrid, December 14, 1657, declared that 600 reals were
copies of one or two of Shakespeare's dramas, which are yet extant, were
taken down by the ear or in shorthand during the exhibition."
'As we shall see hereafter, four autos sacramentales were represented
annually in Madrid at the festival of Corpus Christi. Lope's services were
also greatly in demand for this species of dramatic composition, and in
1608 he wrote the four autos represented at Madrid in that year. They
were: El Adulterio de la Esposa, El Caballero de} Fenix, Los Casamientos
de Joseph, and La Ninez de Crista. (Perez Pastor, Bull. Hispanique
(1907), p. 374.) In 1611 Lope de Vega received 1200 reals for the four
autos which he wrote for the Corpus festival at Seville of that year.
( Sanchez- Arjona, Anales, p. 149.) Calderon, Spain's religious poet par
excellence, received much larger sums after the middle of the seventeenth
century for his autos. (See below, pp. 320, 321.)
' Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 209.
'Ibid., p. 213. It is probable that in these instances a larger sum had
been paid for these comedias originally, inasmuch as when these sales took
place the plays had already been acted upon the stage, and it was the
neia comedia which was always in greatest demand.
'Ibid., p. 232.
178 THE SPANISH STAGE
still due him for his comedia Lo Cauteloso de un Guante y
Confusion de un Papel, for which he had received 200
reals on account, as 800 reals was the sum that he had
received for the other comedias he had written.1
Concerning the honorarium received by English play-
wrights in the time of Shakespeare, it seems to have been
greater than the sums paid Spanish poets, when the rela-
tive reputations of the writers are considered. Malone
says: "The customary price of the copy of a play in the time
of Shakespeare appears to have been twenty nobles or six
pounds thirteen shillings and fourpence."2 In some cases
it seems that the poet received the profits of the second or
third performance of his play. The same writer says:
"From D'Avenant, indeed, we learn that in the latter part
of the reign of Queen Elizabeth the poet had his benefit on
the second day. As it was the general practice in the time
of Shakespeare to sell the copy of the play to the theater,
I imagine, in such cases, an author derived no other advan-
tage from his piece than what arose from the sale of It.
Sometimes, however, he found it more beneficial to retain
the copyright in his own hands; and when he did so, I
suppose he had a benefit. It is certain that the giving
authors the profits of the third exhibition of their play,
which seems to have been the usual mode during a great
part of the seventeenth century, was an established custom
in the year 161 2, for Dekker, in the prologue to one of his
comedies, printed in that year, speaks of the poet's third
day."3 He further adds : "When an author sold his piece
'Pertz Pastor, Bibliografia Madrilena, Part III, Madrid, 1907, p. 386.
'Historical Account of the English Stage, Basil, 1800, p. 178.
* Ibid.,, pp. 172, 173. Henslotve's Diary gives the most authentic infor-
mation concerning the sums received by playwrights for .their pieces. In
1598 Michael Drayton received £6 for the play of William Longsviord.
The entry is as follows: "I receued forty shillings of mr Phillip Hinslowe
in part of vi" for the playe of Willm longsword to be deliu'd prsent w"1 2
or three dayes the xxi"> of January | 1598 |. Mih Drayton." (Henslotoe's
Diary, ed. Greg, Part I, 1904, p. 59.) In 1598 Anthony Munday received
£$ for Robin Hood: "Layd owt unto antony monday the 15 of febreary
1598 for a playe boocke called the firste parte of Robyne hoode, v"."
ENGLISH DRAMATISTS 179
to the sharers or proprietors of a theater, it could not be
performed by any other company, and remained for sev-
eral years unpublished; when that was not the case, he
printed it for sale, to which many seem to have been in-
(Ibid., p. 83.) The same amount was paid for the second part of Robin
Hood, which seems to have been written by Munday, Chettle, and Shaw
(ibid., p. 84), while Drayton, Dekker, and Chettle received £4 5/. for
"the famos wares of henry the fyrste & the prynce of walles" (ibid.,
p. 85), though a payment on account may have been previously made.
Again, in 1598, Drayton, Dekker, Chettle, and Wilson received £6 "for
the boocke of goodwine & his iii sonnes" (ibid., p. 85), and Richard
Hathwaye received £5 for "his boocke of kynge arthore" (ibid., pp. 86,
87). In 1599 Dekker received £6 for his History of Fortunatus (ibid.,
pp. 114, 115), and in 1601 he was paid the same sum for Kynge Sebastian
of portyngall, while in 1602 Thomas Haywood received £6 for A Woman
killed •with Kindness (ibid., p. 189), so that £6 seems to have been the
usual price for a play at the beginning of the seventeenth century. The
following lucid statement of the matter is given by Greg (Hensloive's
Diary, II, p. 126) : "For the earlier period, that is, down to 1597, we
entirely lack evidence upon the subject, and in the absence of any reason-
able basis, conjecture would be worse than useless. From the end of 1597
onward, we have, on the contrary, very full evidence, which shows that
the sums paid to authors were gradually rising. This was only part of
the general rise in prices during this period, due to the steady deprecia-
tion of money consequent upon the continued influx of the precious metals
from the New World. The earliest play for which we have complete
records is Mother Redcap, for which Drayton and Munday received £6
in full. This appears to have been the usual sum, though it is probable
that in some cases not more than £5 was given, as for each part of Robin
Hood. The first part of Black Baldman was bought for £7, but for Part
II the authors only got the usual sum of £6. This continued the standard
for a long time, with occasional variations of £5 on the one hand and £7
on the other. We suddenly find Chapman receiving £8.10 for his World
runs on Wheels, though this may possibly include a payment for another
piece. Chapman appears, however, to have commanded prices rather
above the average, and Dekker and Jonson received £8 for Page of
Plymouth. Prices now begin to fluctuate considerably. Day and Haugh-
ton only get £5 for Cox of Collumpton and Thomas Merry, respectively,
but the authors of Sir John Oldcastle get £7 for each part, besides a
bonus of iar. on the occasion of the first performance, and Wilson £8 for
2 Henry Richmond, a play of which the first part is not recorded. The
highest price entered [in the Diary] also appears about this time, namely,
the £10 paid for Patient Grissel (Dekker). It is, however, pretty certain
that, though the company authorized the expenditure of sums amounting
to this total, the authors did not really get them, but only £6 most likely.
The prices drop again, moreover, to something between £5 and £7 till
about May, 1602, when £8 begins to be a not infrequent price. This sum
was obtained by the six or more playwrights concerned in Casar's Fall
and the three who sufficed to compose Merry as may be for court. The
prices paid by Worcester's men are exactly the same, and it may be said
180 THE SPANISH STAGE
duced from an apprehension that an imperfect copy might
be issued from the press without their consent."1
It may be observed that the custom then prevalent in
England, of two or three or even more authors collaborat-
ing in the production of a play, was also common in Spain.
Mira de Mescua claims to have been the first to introduce
this practice among his fellow-playwrights :
Porque soy el que ha inventado
El componer de consuno.2
That three poets should collaborate in writing a comedia,
each undertaking an act, was not infrequent ; in the comedia
La Luna Africana,3 eight "ingenios" took a hand, while La
Conquista de Toledo y Rey Don Alfonso el VI. was written
by eight wits in three hours,4 and it took no less than nine
poets to write Algunas Hazanas de las muchas de Don
Garcia Hurtado de Mendoza, Marques de Canete." They
were: Mira de Amescua, the Conde del Basto, Luis de
Belmonte, Juan Ruiz de Alarcon, Luis Velez de Guevara,
Fernando de Ludefia, Jacinto de Herrera, Diego de Ville-
gas, and Guillen de Castro, any one of whom alone (with
the exception, perhaps, of the Conde del Basto) could
doubtless have written a better play. *
throughout the standard price remains £6, but that while in the earlier
period £5 is not uncommon, toward the end payments of £7 and even £$
became comparatively frequent. A decade later prices had risen greatly.
A third-rate poet like Daborne, evidently deep in Henslowe's toils, gets
£10 to £20 a play, and is constantly asserting in his correspondence that
he can get £25 elsewhere."
1 Historical Account of the English Stage, p. 175.
1 Comedias de D. Juan Ruiz de Alarcon y Mendoza, ed. Hartzenbusch,
p. xxxiii (Bib. de Aut. Esp., Tomo XX).
' Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 1929.
* Ibid., No. 684.
"Published in Comedias de Alarcon, ed. Hartzenbusch, pp. 489 ff.
CHAPTER IX
The salaries of actors in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Managers turn actors. Corrales in various cities. Valencia as a
theatrical center. It is visited by players from Madrid. Sums
received by managers for the performance of a comedia. For
autos sacramentales. Receipts of a representation. The rental
of the corrales.
Actors were generally engaged by the managers of com-
panies for a period of one or two years, beginning at
Shrovetide or Ash Wednesday. They were paid every
evening, as soon as the play was over, unless there was an
express agreement to the contrary. In the comedia El
mejor Representante : San Gines, by Cancer, Rosete, and
Martinez de Meneses, we read :
Know that every night the player
Gets the wages which he earneth ;
This the autor pays, if even
In the chest there be no money.1
The salaries of actors varied greatly, of course, accord-
ing to their skill and proficiency, or the power they pos-
sessed of attracting an audience. Thanks to the investiga-
tions of that indefatigable scholar, Dr. Cristobal Perez
Pastor, to whom we owe nearly everything that has been
added to our knowledge of the old Madrid stage during
'"Un representante cobra
Cada noche lo que gana,
Y el Autor paga, aunque
No ay dinero en la caxa."
(Comedias Escogidas, Vol. XXIX, 1668, p. 199.)
181
1 82 THE SPANISH STAGE
the last half-century, we now possess a mass of material
concerning the actors of the latter part of the sixteenth
and the whole seventeenth century which is of the greatest
interest and importance. Among the documents collected
in his various publications are many contracts and agree-
ments between managers and actors which give us all de-
sirable information in regard to the salaries received by
players. As we know little or nothing concerning the rela-
tive merits of the vast majority of these more than eighteen
hundred actors, it would be useless to specify any save
those who occupied the most prominent positions in their
profession or whose names are best known in the annals
of the Spanish stage.
It is interesting, however, to give the earliest case cited
by Dr. Perez Pastor, under the year 1574, a time when
neither the Corral de la Cruz nor the Corral del Principe
had yet been established in Madrid. On May 17, 1574,
Juan de Sigura, an actor, agreed to work in the company of
Jeronimo Velazquez, "from to-day until Shrovetide of
1575, for the sum of 100 ducats [=1100 reals], and
besides he is to receive food, drink, and lodging, and to
have his clothes washed, and is to be conveyed on horse-
back, whenever necessary. And if the said Sigura should
absent himself from the company during the said time, the
autor [Velazquez] may seek another actor in the place of
the said Sigura, and the latter shall pay the costs and be-
sides a ducat for every auto or comedia which he may
miss."1
In May, 1595, Agustin Solano, a well-known actor and
one of the interlocutors in the Viage entretenido of Rojas
(1603), agrees to work in the company of Gaspar de
Porres for two years, from Shrovetide to Shrovetide, act-
ing such parts as may be assigned to him, and to receive
3000 reals per year.2
Generally, besides the amount to be received for acting,
1 Nuevos Datot, p. 334. ' Ibid., p. 42.
EARLY ACTORS 183
an additional sum was stipulated for the maintenance of
the player, and in earlier times it was also expressly stated
that the player was to be provided with clean linen, as
when, in 1595, Jusephe Gonzalez, actor, and his wife
Luisa Benzon are to receive, in addition to their wage,
"one doubloon each year to wash their clothes, as ii cus-
tomary, and as other managers give, besides mules and a
cart for them and their baggage, when they leave the
court."1
Minors were frequently bound out to the managers of
companies for a term of years, as when Francisco Ortiz,
in May, 1600, was placed with Gaspar de Porres for four
years, "to serve him and help him in his farces and autos
in everything which may be required, as well in private as
in public representations, and the said Gaspar de Porres is
to clothe, feed, and shoe him, and furnish whatever else
may be necessary, and to take care of him in his illness,
and to provide lodging and clean clothes, and to furnish
transportation when the company leaves Madrid, for
which, at the end of the said time, he [Ortiz] is to receive
90 ducats."2 This is probably the Francisco Ortiz whom
we find in 161 7 as manager of a company.3
A list of some of the more prominent players and their
salaries here follows :
On February 26, 1602, Agustin de Rojas (author of the
Viage entretenido ) agrees to act in the company of Miguel
Ramirez (an interlocutor in the Entertaining Journey)
from that date until Shrovetide, 1603, for 2800 reals.4
In March, 1604, Miguel Ruiz and his wife, the cele-
brated Baltasara de los Reyes (called la Baltasara),
agreed to act in the company of Gaspar de Porres for one
year, receiving 1 6 reals for each performance and 6 reals
daily for maintenance, besides traveling expenses.5
In September, 1604, Juan de Angulo is engaged to act
llbid., p. 39. 'Ibid., p. 53. 'Ibid., p. 161.
* Ibid., p. 3 5 1 . ' Ibid., p. 84.
i84 THE SPANISH STAGE
in the company of Antonio Granado for one year, receiv-
ing 5 reals daily for each representation and 3 reals for
maintenance.1
1606: Juan Catalan and his wife Mariana de Guevara
were engaged by Alonso Riquelme for one year from
Shrovetide to Shrovetide, "to sing, act, and help in the
entremeses," receiving 15 reals for each performance, be-
sides 6 reals daily for maintenance, while Agustin Coronel
is to receive from the same autor 7 reals for each repre-
sentation, besides 4 reals daily for maintenance. Diego
Lopez Basurto, a famous comic actor (gracioso), joined
the same company, receiving 9 reals for each performance
and 3 reals daily for maintenance.2
1610: Luis Alvarez and his wife Mariana de Herbias
agreed to act in the company of Alonso Riquelme for one
year from Shrovetide, 1610. "To Mariana Herbias are
to be assigned all the parts formerly played by Lucia de
Salcedo, for she takes the latter's place, and in the new
comedias she is to share the principal roles with another
actress. They are to receive 22 reals for each representa-
tion and 10 reals daily for maintenance."3
161 1 : Pedro Llorente and his wife Maria de Morales
agreed to act in the company of Tomas Fernandez de
Cabredo for one year, receiving 20 reals for each perform-
ance, 8 reals for maintenance, besides traveling expenses
for the couple and a servant.4
1 6 14: Luis Quifiones engaged for one year to sing
either solos or accompanied, in the troupe of Pedro de
Valdes, receiving 14 reals for each representation, 6y2
reals for maintenance, and 300 reals for Corpus. Also
1 Nuevos Datos, p. 355. This was probably the "Angulo, el malo," who
afterward became director of a company and who is mentioned by Cer-
vantes. See Don Quixote, ed. Clemencin, Vol. IV, p. 190, and also Nuevos
Datos, p. 169, where Juan de Angulo and Bernarda Gonzalez, his wife, re-
ceived (in 1619) 12 reals for each performance and 6 reals daily for main-
tenance, besides "the customary amount for the Corpus festival" and
transportation.
'Ibid., p. 93. * Ibid., p. 116. *Ibid., p. 126.
THE SALARIES OF ACTORS 185
Juan de Villanueva, to receive 10 reals for each perform-
ance and 4 for maintenance.1 Juan de Graxales and his wife
Catalina de Peralta agreed to act in the company of Alonso
de Villalba; they are to receive 22 reals for each repre-
sentation, 8 reals for maintenance, and 22 ducats for the
octave of Corpus, besides traveling expenses and costumes.2
1 619: Francisco de Castro is to receive from Tomas
Fernandez, besides his pay, transportation for himself and
wife, and if the latter do not accompany him, she is to
receive several pairs of silk stockings.3 Alonso Fernandez
de Guardo and his wife Ana Cabello agreed to act in the
company of Fernan Sanchez de Vargas for one year, "giv-
ing to the said Ana Cabello the first parts, of which she
may not be deprived, for this is the especial agreement."
They received 24 reals for each performance, 10 reals for
maintenance, and 400 reals for the Corpus festival, and
traveling expenses for the couple and servant. Bartolome
de Robles and his wife Mariana de Guevara are to go
with Maria Lopez to represent four comedias in the town
of Buendia, receiving food and lodging and 1080 reals;
700 for the married couple and 380 for Maria Lopez.4
Pedro Garcia de Salinas (a famous comic actor) and his
wife Jeronima de Valcazar are to act for two years in the
company of Sanchez, beginning at Shrovetide, 1619;
Salinas to play the part of gracioso, and Jeronima second
women's roles, receiving 24 reals for each representation
and 8 reals for maintenance, besides traveling expenses and
costumes.5
1620: Andres de la Vega and his wife, the famous
Maria de Cordoba, called Amarilis, agreed to act in the
company of Tomas Fernandez during the year 1621, re-
ceiving 36 reals for each representation and 14 reals for
maintenance, besides 600 reals for the Corpus festival and
four riding-animals for traveling.6
1Ibid., p. 138. 'Ibid., p. 141. 'Ibid., p. 169.
*Ibid., p. 171. 'Ibid., p. 172. 'Ibid., p. 187.
1 86 THE SPANISH STAGE
1623 : Juan de Villegas, actor (and also a playwright of
distinction), agreed to act in the company of Manuel
Vallejo, receiving 22 reals for each representation and 8
reals for maintenance.1 In the company of Domingo Bal-
bin in this year Roque de Figueroa (afterward a famous
director) and his wife Maria de Olivares received 22 reals
daily, besides 11 reals for maintenance. Juan de Bezon,
a well-known gracioso, and his wife Ana Maria {la
Bezona) received, in the company of Hernan Sanchez, 27
reals daily, 13 reals for maintenance, besides 700 reals for
the Corpus festival and three riding-animals for traveling.2
Bartolome Romero and his wife Antonia Manuela, in the
company of Juan Bautista Valenciano, received 24 reals
for each representation and 14 reals daily for maintenance.
1632: In December Maria Calderon {la Colder ona,
mother of Don John of Austria, born in 1629) agreed to
go to the town of Pinto to act in two autos and two come-
dias on Corpus Christi and the following day, for which
she received 1050 reals, besides traveling expenses for her-
self, her husband Tomas de Rojas, and a maid, and lodg-
ing and 8 reals daily while going and returning.3
1633 : Maria de Cordoba is to act, sing, and dance in
two comedias at Daganzo, furnishing the necessary cos-
tumes. The two comedias are to be selected from the
following: No hay Dicha ni Desdicha hasta la Muerte (by
Mescua? Rojas Zorrilla?) ; Amar como se ha de Amar
(Lope) ;ElMilagroporlos Celos (Lope) ; Sufrir mas por
querer mas (Villaizan) ; El Mariscal de Biron (Montal-
van) ; La Puente de Mantible (Calderon) ; La Dicha del
Forastero (Lope) ; and El Examen de Maridos (Alar-
con). She is to receive 800 reals, board and traveling
expenses for herself and maid. In 1639 the same actress
received 1000 reals for four comedias at Valdemoro.4
It will be seen that players generally received an extra sum
1 Nuevos Datos, p. 19a. 'Ibid., p. 203.
'Ibid., p. 226. 'Ibid., pp. 226, 30a.
THE SALARIES OF ACTORS 187
for the Corpus festival, and about this time the custom
came into vogue of also giving additional sums for other
festivals.
1634 : In the company of Pedro de la Rosa in this year
Francisco de Velasco, who played first young men's roles
(primera parte de galanes), and his wife Ana Fajardo,
who was to play any part that might be assigned to her,
received 19 reals for each performance, 4 reals for main-
tenance daily, and 400 reals for the Corpus festival, besides
three riding-animals, while Cosme Perez (called Juan
Rana), the greatest comic actor {gracioso) of his time,
received 20 reals for each performance, 10 reals for
maintenance, and 550 reals for Corpus, besides three
riding-animals. Players of old men's roles generally re-
ceived very small pay; Pedro Sanchez Baquero, who
played first old men's parts in this company ("primera
parte de" barba), getting but 5 reals daily and 5 reals for
maintenance, with one riding-animal and baggage car-
ried.1 Musicians seem to have been well paid, for in
March, 1633, Alonso Gomez Camacho agreed with the
director Sanchez to take part in the Corpus festival and
its octave, playing the violin, dancing, and directing the
music for 500 reals.2
1637 : Maria de Quinones played the principal parts in
the company of Tomas Fernandez, receiving 1 6 reals for
each representation, 9 reals for maintenance, and 500 reals
for the Corpus festival, besides three riding-animals.3
1638: Pedro Manuel de Castilla, of the company of
Antonio de Rueda, and one of the most celebrated galanes
of his time, received 20 reals daily, 10 reals for mainte-
nance, and 500 reals for Corpus, while Diego Osorio, a
famous gracioso, received 15 reals, besides 8 reals daily
for maintenance and 350 reals for Corpus.4
1639: Mariana de los Reyes played first parts in the
company of Andres de la Vega, receiving 100 ducats
1 Ibid., p. 245. 'Ibid., p. 232. 'Ibid., p. 258. * Ibid., p. 301.
1 88 THE! SPANISH STAGE
(= noo reals) tor the Corpus festival, n ducats each
for the festivals in August and September, and 7 ducats
for each of the other festivals; besides, "a trunk full of
clothes which she had pawned is to be released, she to pay
the amount due and to be allowed 5 reals daily for mainte-
nance when the company travels." x In this year the com-
pany of Antonio de Rueda contained, among others, Pedro
de Ascanio and his wife Antonia Infante ; the former was
to act, dance, and sing, the latter to play third parts and
to sing and dance the principal part in the saynetes, they
receiving 30 reals daily and 500 reals for Corpus. This
is the earliest mention of the word saynete (in the sense
of a short interlude) that I have found. In the same
company Dona Jacinta de Herbias y Flores, widow, was
engaged to act second parts, dance, and sing, receiving 21
reals daily, besides 440 reals for Corpus.2
These data are more than sufficient to show the re-
muneration received by actors and actresses in Spain dur-
ing the most flourishing period of the drama.3 If, for the
purpose of comparison, we convert these sums into Eng-
lish money, and reckon that a real at the close of the six-
1 Nuevos Datos, p. 302.
3 Ibid., p. 304. These are the actresses who figure in the episode related
on p. 127.
"Concerning the pay of English actors Malone says: "It is not easy to
ascertain what were the emoluments of a successful actor in the time of
Shakespeare. They had not then annual benefits, as at present. The clear
emoluments of the theater, after deducting the nightly expenses for lights,
men occasionally hired for the evening, etc., which in Shakespeare's house
was but forty-five shillings, were divided into shares, of which part be-
longed to the proprietors, who were called housekeepers, and the re-
mainder was divided among the actors, according to their rank and
merit." (Historical Account, p. 188.) "About twenty pounds was a con-
siderable receipt at the Blackfriars and Globe theater on any one day."
(Ibid., p. 194.) He further says that Hart, the celebrated tragedian, after
the Restoration had but three pounds per week as an actor, but he had
besides six shillings and three pence every day on which there was a
performance at the King's theater, making in all about one hundred and
forty-six pounds for a season of thirty weeks. (Ibid., p. 198.) It appears
that English actors were also frequently hired at Shrovetide. Of the
actors in the pay of Henslowe, we find a contract with Thomas Downton,
who on January 25, 1599, "ded hire as his couenante servante for ii yers
ACTRESSES WELL PAID 189
teenth century was equivalent to sixpence,1 we shall see
that their pay was large in comparison with other voca-
tions, and was probably much higher than the sums re-
ceived by English players of the same period, who were not
shareholders. The 3000 reals per year received by Agus-
tin Solano in 1595 was the equivalent of about £75, while
Agustin de Rojas in 1602 received 2800 reals, or about
£70, per annum. Where the player was paid a certain sum
for each representation, which was the almost universal
rule, as we have seen, it is much more difficult to calculate
the total sum, for representations were not given every
day and never on Saturdays, and the length of the theat-
rical season varied, though it was generally from thirty to
thirty-two weeks in a year. Still, how liberally Spain, as
poor as she was in 1632, was willing to pay for theatrical
exhibitions may be seen in the case of the great actress
Maria Calderon, who received 1050 reals for four per-
formances on two days, besides all expenses paid, the
equivalent of over £26, and Maria de Cordoba in the fol-
lowing year received 800 reals (=£20) for two repre-
sentations. Even larger sums were received by players in
to beg[a]yne at shrofe tewesday next & he to geue him viii s. a wecke as
long as they playe & after they lye stylle one fortnyght then to geue him
hallfe wages." (Henslowe's Diary, ed. Greg, p. 40.) And in a memo-
randum of July 27, 1597, we read: "I heayred Thomas hearne with ii
pence for to searve me ii yeares in the qualetie of playenge for fyve
shellynges a weacke for one yeare & vi s. viii d. for the other yeare which
he hath covenanted hime seallfe to searue me & not to departe from my com-
paney tyll this ii yeares be eanded." (Ibid., p. 201.) See also the agree-
ment of Henslowe with "John Helle the clowne" "to contenew with me
at my howsse in playinge tylle strafe tyd next after the date aboue
written" (August 3, 1597), etc., and the contract with William Borne,
ibid., p. 203. Here from Shrovetide to Shrovetide was also frequently the
term of the contract. Soulie, Recherches sur Moliere, Paris, 1863, p. 61,
prints two contracts with actors of a much later period (1664), in which
the players are obliged to be "dans la ville d' Abbeville en Picardie avec
leurs hardes, bagages et paquets pour commencer la representation des
pieces qui seront convenues entre eux du jour des fetes de Paques prochain
jusqu'au mercredi des Cendres aussi prochain." One of the actors agrees to
play the comic roles and "travailler aux decorations desdites pieces pour
les peintures qu'il y conviendra faire."
1Minsheu's Spanish Dictionary, London, 1599, ad verb.
i9o THE SPANISH STAGE
the succeeding years, though perhaps, on account of the
great depreciation in the value of money, the actual value
was no greater.
During this whole period which we have been consider-
ing the manager of every theatrical company, or autor de
comedias as he was called, was invariably also an actor.
The cases are therefore very frequent in which we find an
autor one year becoming a member of another's company
in the next, and in the succeeding year reappearing at the
head of a company, according as fortune was favorable or
adverse to him.
There is an early and interesting example in 1602, when
Jeronimo Lopez de Sustaya, autor de comedias, and his
wife Isabel Rodriguez agreed with Antonio Granado, also
an autor de comedias, to act in the latter's company for two
years, receiving 6 reals daily for maintenance and 5300
reals yearly, to be paid every four months. However,
Jeronimo Lopez is to give Granado "the comedias which
he may have, and among them the following four: San
Reymundo, Los Caballeros nuevos, La Fuensanta de Cor-
doba, and El Trato de la Aldea," all of which he declared
that "he had bought from the poets who had written them,
paying his money for them, so that the said Antonio Gra-
nado may use them as to him may seem best."1 In like
manner Francisco de Sotomayor, who had been director
of a company in 1631, and his wife Vicenta Lopez joined
the company of Roque de Figueroa in 1632, as we learn
from a Loa by Benavente :
Bezon : Who are you ?
Sotomayor: Sotomayor,
Who, an authorized director,
Have this year become a player,
Since to me players are lacking.2
'Perez Pastor, Nuevos Dales, p. 64.
' Entremeses, edited by Rosell, Vol. I, p. 231. So in 1638 Pedro Manuel
de Castilla and Tomas de Heredia, who had been directors of companies in
LOPE IN VALENCIA 191
With the establishment of fixed correles in Madrid, as
already observed, the taste for theatrical representations
grew rapidly until it became a passion with all classes, high
and low. Every large city possessed a theater, while every
town and hamlet, be it never so poor, looked forward with
eagerness to the advent of a company of strolling players,
whose visits seem to have been looked upon as the crowning
event of the year, and for whose representations, especially
those upon some festival, large sums of money were ex-
pended. We have already described the corrales of
Madrid and Seville, but Valencia, Granada,1 Valladolid,
and Salamanca must have had theaters at a very early
date. It has been already remarked that the importance
of Valencia as a theatrical center has generally been exag-
gerated. While a corral certainly existed in that city as
early as 1583 or 1584, there is no evidence of any
unusual dramatic activity in Valencia before the ar-
rival of Lope de Vega in that city in 1588. In this
year Lope was tried for criminally libeling Jeronimo
Velazquez, a theatrical director, and several members
of his family. He was convicted and sentenced to ban-
ishment for two years from the kingdom of Castile,
and for eight years from the court (Madrid) and five
leagues therefrom. The first two years of his banishment,
till 1590, he expiated in Valencia, whither he went with his
wife and family. That Lope was very active in writing
for the stage during this period is evinced by the testimony
the preceding year, belonged to the company of Rueda and Ascanio.
(Ibid., pp. 368, 369.)
'According to Pedraza, Historia ecclesiastica de Granada, quoted by
Schack, Nachtrage, p. 18, Granada possessed a permanent theater a few
years after the conquest by Ferdinand the Catholic in 1492. Representa-
tions took place in the Casa de Carbon on the Darro, until the Coliseo
was erected in the Puerta del Rastro, called now the Puerta Real. "It
was arranged in the form most suited for this purpose, with aposentos
divided for men and women, and a patio surrounded by gradas, protected
from the sun and rain, but open to the sky in the center, as was the
Amphitheater at Rome." Of the Coliseo in the Puerta Real, Pedraza
says: "El Coliseo donde se representan las comedias es un famoso teatro:
1 92 THE SPANISH STAGE
of Gaspar de Porres, a theatrical manager, who testified at
the trial for libel that he received comedias from Lope
every two months, and Porres's testimony is supplemented
by that of Quiros, another autor de comedias.1 It is to
Lope's sojourn in Valencia in 1588-90 that the powerful
impulse which the drama received in that city is wholly
due. He was the founder of the Valencian School, for we
hear nothing of it before Lope visited Valencia, and that
the latter city was always dependent upon Madrid in
theatrical matters is shown by abundant evidence. After
the capital, as already observed, the most important theat-
rical center was Seville, yet the corrales of Seville were
also frequently visited by the large theatrical companies
of Madrid. Concerning the establishment of fixed co-
rrales in the other principal cities, there are no data
at hand, so far as I know, but they certainly possessed
them before the close of the sixteenth century. In
the Archivo Historico National there is a petition, dated
1602, to establish a theater in the "Carcel vieja"
in Cordoba,2 but it is probable that a corral existed
there prior to this date. In 1606 the company of Juan
de Morales Medrano inaugurated the playhouse (casa
de comedias) in Zamora,3 and in the same year they
appeared in Segovia, though it seems doubtful whether
there was then a fixed theater in the latter city.4 In 1608
Alonso de Riquelme took his company to Toledo, to re-
main thirty days, the lessee of the casa de comedias in
Toledo, Juan Gallegos, agreeing to pay 50 ducats (= 550
apenas la fama del Romano le quita el primer lugar. Es un patio qua-
drado con dos pares de corredores que estriban sobre colunas de marmol
pardo, y debaxo gradas para el residuo del pueblo. Esta cubierto el
teatro de un cielo bolado, la entrada ornada de una portada de marmol
bianco y pardo con un escudo de las armas de Granada."
1 Life of Lope de Vega, pp. 38-40.
' Nuevos Datos, p. 79.
* Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 125. But see ibid., p. 109, note, from which
it appears that there was a casa de comedias in Zamora in 1599.
* Nuevos Datos, p. 96.
ACTORS VISIT VALENCIA 193
reals) daily "for the whole company."1 At least as early as
1584 Valencia was visited by a company of players from
Madrid, when Alonso de Cisneros represented there for
three months, prior to November 6 of that year.2 In this
same year, apparently, for the account is not clear, "N.
Velazquez," whom I take to be Jeronimo Velazquez,
had also performed in Valencia,8 while Rodrigo and Fran-
cisco Osorio were in the same city in 1588,4 Bartolome
Lopez de Quiros in 1588 or 1589, and Juan de Vergara in
1594-95. In 1601 Gaspar de Porres took his troupe
there from Toledo,5 and in 1619 we find a theatrical
manager, Hernan Sanchez de Vargas, who had always
been connected with companies organized in Madrid,
where he resided from the beginning of his career, taking •
up his residence in Valencia.6 In 1623 Cristobal de
Avendano and Maria Candau, his wife, took their com-
pany to Valencia for fifty representations, and he again
visited the city with his company in 1 63 1 , being guaranteed
a subsidy (ayuda de costa) of 140 reals of plate double
for each representation.7 In April, 1628, Juan Jeronimo
Almella or Amelia took his company to Valencia for sixty
performances,8 and in 1635' Sebastian Gonzalez and his
wife Maria Manuela went' to Valencia to give one hun-
dred and forty performances, receiving 140 reals for each
1 Ibid., p. no.
'Lamarca, El Teatro de Valencia, Valencia, 1840, p. 18.
" Ibid., p. 19.
*Cotarelb, Lope de Rueda, p. 30; Life of Lope de Vega, p. 39.
" Nuevos Datos, p. 59. 'Ibid., p. 186. ''Ibid., pp. 195, 2Zo.
8 A melancholy record of the disastrous sojourn of Amelia's company
at Valencia in this year has recently been published by Henri Merimee
(Bulletin Hispanique (1906), p. 377) ; the company came to grief in June,
when Amelia's wardrobe and comedias were seized by one Jeronimo
Alfonso, clavarius of the General Hospital of Valencia, for money ad-
vanced to and expended in behalf of Amelia. The document, dated June
14, 1628, declares that "Ego hieronimus Alfonso, etc. . . . conffiteor et in
veritate recognosco me habere in commandam et purum depositum a vobis
Hieronymo Amelia, fabularum Aucthore, et domna Emanuela Henrriques,
vidua, valentis commorantibus, presentibus, acceptantibus, et vestris pro
tuhitione et securitate quantitatum per me vobis et pro vobis solutarum,
prestitarum et bistractarum raupas et fabulas siue comedias infrascriptas
i94 THE SPANISH STAGE
performance,1 while in 1637 Pedro de la Rosa gave fifty
representations in the same city,2 followed by Bartolome
Romero in the next year, who likewise gave fifty repre-
sentations, "the amount for each comedia to be no less
than 150 reals plate."3
Not only all the large cities of Spain, but the theaters
of Lisbon also, drew upon the companies of the capital.
Of Madrid companies visiting Lisbon I have found no
earlier record than 1610, though we may be quite certain
that this was not their first advent in the Portuguese
capital. In that year the company of Alonso Riquelme
and Pedro de Villanueva went to Lisbon,4 to be followed
in 1 6 1 5 by Pedro de Valdes and Jeronima de Burgos,5 and
by Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan in 1619, who agreed with
the Royal Hospital of All Saints of Lisbon to go to the
latter city and perform during the months of October and
November, "producing new comedias, bailes, and entre-
meses." Dona Catalina de Carvajal is named as the owner
of the casa de comedias of Lisbon, and in the same year
Pedro Cebrian is to bring his company from Madrid and
to act there for three months, beginning on December r,
1619.6 In 1639 Bartolome Romero's company visited
Lisbon, and in the same year they were followed by Pedro
Ascanio and Antonio de Rueda,T while Romero again rep-
resented in Lisbon from November, 1640, till Shrovetide
of 1641.8
We have several times had occasion, in the course of
these pages, to mention the sums received by a director and
his company for a theatrical performance. This sum, of
course, not only varied greatly at different periods, being
et inmediate sequentes." A list of Amelia's theatrical costumes follows,
as well as of the comedias that constituted the repertory of his company.
This list of comedias, no less than seventy-two in number, is important,
as it appears to contain several which are otherwise unknown.
1 Nuevos Datos, p. 242.
'Ibid., p. 261. * Ibid., p. 292. * Ibid., p. 122.
'Ibid., p. 158. 'Ibid., p. 178. ''Ibid., pp. 289, 290.
'Ibid., p. 323.
SUM PAID FOR A PERFORMANCE 195
much larger as we advance further into the seventeenth
century, but at one and the same period it depended upon
the size and excellence of the company. A few examples,
in addition to those already cited, may follow here.
In 1593 Gabriel Nunez and Andres de Naxera, autores
de comedias, agreed to go to the village of Villa verde and
represent a comedia "a lo divino" and one "a lo humano,"
with their entremeses, receiving 20 ducats (= 220 reals),
besides traveling expenses, lodging, "and somebody to do
their cooking";1 and in 1602 the company of Luis de
Castro went to Salvanes to represent an auto in the morn-
ing and a comedia in the afternoon, for which they re-
ceived 900 reals, "besides twelve beds for the nights they
may spend there, a fanega of wheat baked into bread, and
three carts to take them from Torrejon to Salvanes."2
It is very probable that these were companies of the
poorer kind, but at a much later time, in 1634, we find
that one of the most famous directors, Hernan Sanchez de
Vargas, played three comedias at the town of Villarubia
de Ocafia, receiving 2000 reals, besides a sheep, eight hens,
a fanega of baked bread, and three arrobas (= about
twelve gallons) of wine.3
Generally the director's compensation was in money
only. In 1601 Pedro Jimenez de Valenzuela and Gabriel
Vaca took their company to the town of Barco and per-
formed four comedias, with their entremeses, at a festival,
receiving 3450 reals.4 This seems to be a large sum and
doubtless included all traveling and other expenses. In
the following year Pedro Rodriguez, Diego de Rojas, and
Gaspar de los Reyes, managers of the company called La
Compania Espanola, performed in the same town two
comedias "a lo divino" : El Castigo en la Vanagloria and
Los Mdrtires Japones, with two entremeses each, and two
comedias "a lo humano" : El Conde Alarcos and El Cerco
1 Ibid., p. 37. 'Ibid., p. 69. 'Ibid., p. 237.
* Ibid., p. 55.
i96 THE SPANISH STAGE
de Cordoba, with two entremeses each, music and baile, for
3630 reals ; no transportation was furnished, but the ma-
yordomos" of the village were to provide fifteen pounds of
trout.1 In 1605 Gaspar de Porres and his company repre-
sented on three consecutive days, also in Barco de Avila,
the following four comedias : La prosper a Fortuna de Rui
Lopez de Avalos (by Salustio del Poyo) ; La adversa
Fortuna de Rui Lopez de Avalos (also by Poyo) ; La Con-
desa Matilda (Lope de Vega) ; and either of the "comedias
divinas" : El Lego del Carmen or El Hermano Francisco,
and an entremes with each comedia, for 4200 reals.2 In
1 61 2 the company of Tomas Fernandez went to Torrijos,
and on June 26 and 27 represented three comedias, with
their bailes and entremeses, for 1400 reals and lodging for
sixteen persons, besides six or eight carts "to take his com-
pany to the said town and afterward to Toledo." 3 In 1 614
Juan de Morales Medrano agreed to go to Torrijos with
his company and give two representations, a comedia "alo
divino" in the morning and one "alo humano" in the after-
noon, with their bailes and entremeses, for 1250 reals;
the comedia to be La Honra hurtada, "which must not
have been represented in any of the surrounding towns."4
In 1 619 Tomas Fernandez received 2300 reals for four
comedias performed on July 6 and 7." In 1623 Juan de
Vargas and the company called Los Conformes represented
in Leganes the comedia La Morica garrida of Juan de
Villegas, with its music, entremeses, and bailes, for 450
reals.6 In 1634 Hernan Sanchez de Vargas gave four
comedias in two days at Santa Cruz de la Zarza for 2500
reals,7 and on the following day, Sunday, June 18, at
Villarubia de Ocafia he represented two comedias, and one
on the succeeding day in the morning, for 2000 reals.8 In
1636 Pedro de la Rosa and his company received 1500
1 Nuevos Datos, p. 75. 'Ibid., p. 90. 'Ibid., p. 130.
4 Ibid., p. 143. 'Ibid., p. 183. "Ibid., p. 202.
r Ibid., p. 236. 'Ibid., p. 236.
OCCUPET EXTREMUM SCABIES 197
reals for representing two comedias atTorrejon de Ardoz,1
and we find that down to about 1 640, this was the usual
amount received for performing a comedia, i.e., about 750
reals. Toward the middle of the century this sum rose and
gradually increased till 1660, after which time no data are
available. In 1648 Antonio Garcia de Prado gave four
representations in the town of Brihuela, for which he re-
ceived 4900 reals,2 and in 1655 Alonso de la Paz, autor de
comedias, represented Calderon's comedia Santa Maria
Egipciaca and two others at the town of Torija for 2850
reals and lodging for his company,3 while in 1659 Diego
Osorio and his company performed three comedias and an
auto in the villa de Sonseca for 4000 reals ;4 indeed, in the
previous year this same director had received an even
larger sum, the largest, in fact, of which I find any record,
when he represented an auto and the comedia La Dama
Corregidor, by Sebastian de Villaviciosa and Juan de Zaba-
leta, at Colmenar Viejo on June 23, receiving 5200 reals,
besides traveling expenses, food, and lodging.5
It seems that about this time the wretched condition to
which Philip the Fourth had reduced his country, which
was now entirely exhausted, and the universal poverty
and destitution of the common people, due perhaps no less
to the contempt for honest labor than to oppressive taxa-
tion, also affected the theater in no small degree. The
King continued to give great and expensive festivals and
comedias at the palace, besides spending large sums on
the yearly autos at the Corpus festival, although he was
practically bankrupt. Still, there can hardly be a doubt
that the theater was no longer in the flourishing condition
in which it was prior to the middle of the seventeenth
century. Theatrical companies seemed to be quite as much
1This village recently achieved notoriety through the dastardly attack
made upon the life of Alfonso XIII. and his bride in Madrid on June i,
1906. The assassin was killed in Torrejon.
1 Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Part I, p. 159.
'Ibid., p. 226. 'Ibid., p. 262. " Ibid., p. 256.
198 THE SPANISH STAGE
dependent upon the King for support as they were upon
the populace. Philip the Fourth interfered with the play-
houses in the most arbitrary manner, suddenly command-
ing actors and actresses or whole companies to appear at
the palace for his own private festivals or comedias, with-
out notice to the public. A comedia would be advertised
and the theater filled with spectators, when a command
would be received from the King that certain actors or
actresses in the play were to appear at the palace. As an
instance we may cite the declaration (on February 28,
1658) of the autor de comedias Francisco Garcia, called
Pupilo, who says that "there will be no representation
to-day of La Adultera penitente, because at eight o'clock
this morning, by order of the Marquis of Eliche, they
took him [Garcia] to the Buen Retiro to rehearse the
comedia which he is to represent before his Majesty on
Shrove Tuesday, the title of which is Afectos de Odio y
Amor [by Calderon]. . . . And they likewise took away
Isabel de Galvez, Maria de Escamilla, and Manuela de
Escamilla to rehearse another comedia entitled El Embus-
tero, which is to be represented before his Majesty." And
the same Francisco Garcia declared on March 4 that
"yesterday, being about to represent the comedia La
Adultera penitente, and there being many people in the
corral, at about two o'clock in the afternoon there came
an order from the Marquis of Eliche, and they took away
Isabel de Galvez and Maria and Manuela de Escamilla
and others of his company to the comedia which is to be
rehearsed in the Zarzuela for representation before his
Majesty." i A like instance occurred in the previous year,
when Francisco Garcia did not perform on February 10,
and the Teatro de la Cruz was closed, "because they had
taken the women of his company to represent the comedia
of Lazarillo before his Majesty."2
1 Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Part I, pp. 253, 254.
'Ibid., p. 244.
EMPTY THEATERS 199
An instance of the waning popularity of the theater
may be seen in the fact that on Friday, April 30, 1660,
Vallejo represented in la Cruz Juan de Zabaleta's comedia
No Amar la mayor Fineza, "never before seen or per-
formed," and which we are told was a failure "on account
of the few people who were in the theater, the lessees tak-
ing but 294 reals." "On Saturday, May 1, Vallejo did
not represent, because there was not a soul in the theater,"
while on Sunday, May 2, Vallejo again represented Zaba-
leta's comedia, when the lessees had but 203 reals. On
Thursday, May 17, Vallejo represented Montalban's Los
Amantes de Teruel in the Teatro del Principe; "the whole
receipts were given to him, and in all there were but 116
reals for the poor company." *
Where long engagements were made the lessee of the
theater generally guaranteed to the director of the com-
pany a certain amount daily as an ayuda de costa, besides
which he received a share of the receipts. In one instance,
in 1623, when the company of Cristobal de Avendario
gave fifty representations in Valencia, he received 40
ducats [=440 reals] for each performance, besides an
advance payment of 1000 ducats.2 The largest sum re-
corded as having been received by an autor de comedias
is 1000 reals for each of sixty performances at the Coliseo
in Seville, which was paid to Hernan Sanchez de Vargas
in 1619.3 If the company was inferior the remuneration
of the manager was, of course, correspondingly low, as
when Juan de Pefialosa in 1636 represented the two
famous comedias Casa con dos Puertas mala es de guar-
dar, by Calderon, and Nunca mucho costo poco, by Lope
de Vega, for 100 reals, besides traveling expenses.4 A
company must surely have been in desperate straits to act
for such a small sum.
1 Ibid., pp. 375, 276.
' Nuevos Datos, p. 195.
'Ibid., p. 177. 'Ibid., p. 256.
200 THE SPANISH STAGE
For the production of the antos sacramentales at the
festival of Corpus Christi a much larger amount was paid
to the managers of companies than was paid for the per-
formance of a comedia. This was not only on account of
the length of the festival, but also because of the greater
expense which had to be incurred for costumes and other
accessories, though the carros were at the expense of the
municipality. As early as 1 599 ( and doubtless there were
earlier instances) it is expressly stipulated in the agree-
ments made with autores de comedias for the representa-
tion of autos that no other company except the one so
chosen shall have the right to perform in Madrid from
Easter until Corpus.1
In 1578 Alonso de Cisneros represented three autos
in Madrid, for which he received 3300 reals, besides 275
reals for drawing the carts from place to place.2 In 1592
Gaspar de Porres received 600 ducats [= 6600 reals]
for representing the autos entitled Job and Santa Catalina
at the Corpus festival at Madrid in that year.3 In 1606
the four autos were represented in Madrid by the com-
panies of Juan de Morales Medrano and Baltasar Pinedo,
each representing two autos, for which each director re-
ceived 650 ducats.4 In 1609 the companies of Domingo
Balbin and Alonso de Heredia performed two autos each
at Corpus in Madrid for 600 ducats,5 and in 1610 Alonso
Riquelme agreed to represent two autos at the festival of
Corpus of that year "on Thursday and Friday until twelve
o'clock at night in such places as may be designated, re-
1('5 Abril 1599. — Obligacion de Gaspar de Porres, autor de comedias
(fiador Jeronimo Lopez) de hacer dos autos para la fiesta del Corpus con
sus entreraeses, con condicion de que desde resurreccion hasta el Corpus
no han de traer a esta Villa otra compania sino es la suya." (Perez
Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 49.) And in 1627, when Roque de Figueroa and
Andres de la Vega represented autos in Madrid, we read: "Es declaration
que no se ha de permitir trabajar a otro autor en Madrid desde fin de
Cuaresma hasta pasado el Corpus." (Bull. Hisp. (190S), p. 254.)
2 Nuevos Datos, p. 11. * Ibid., p. 31. l Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 372.
° Nuevos Datos, p. 112.
SUM FOR REPRESENTING AUTOS 201
ceiving for the said autos with their entremeses 600
ducats."1 The same sum was received by Hernan San-
chez de Vargas for representing the other two autos in
this year. In fact, 600 ducats was the amount paid to
every theatrical director for representing two autos at
Corpus in Madrid down to the year 1637. In 1615 the
autos at Madrid were given by the companies of Pedro de
Valdes and Hernan Sanchez de Vargas, and it was stipu-
lated that "before Corpus no other company was to repre-
sent in Madrid except these two,"2 and in 161 7, when
Cristobal de Leon performed them, it was agreed that he
should represent two autos at Corpus on Thursday "from
two in the afternoon till twelve at night and on Friday
from six in the morning until noon, in such places as may
be assigned to him,"3 while when Pedro de Valdes repre-
sented the autos in 1 621, he was to give them on Thursday
from two in the afternoon till twelve at night and on
Friday from six in the morning until midnight.4 In 1632
they were performed by Manuel Vallejo's company, who
received 600 ducats "for the two days, and if they should
represent on the Saturday after Corpus he is to receive
1000 reals, or 100 ducats, and besides an 100 ducats
gratuity, obliging himself to pay the half of the 100
ducats which he receives to the ganapanes who draw the
carts."6 In 1637 the companies of Pedro de la Rosa and
Tomas Fernandez Cabredo received 800 ducats each for
the Corpus festival at Madrid,6 and the same sum was
paid to Rueda and Ascanio in 1638, and to Bartolome
Romero for two autos in 1640.7 This latter document is
dated March 14, 1640. On the other hand, a document
dated March 12, 1640, states that Bartolome Romero
was to receive 950 ducats "for half the festival of Cor-
pus," i.e., for two autos, the other two autos being given
lIbid., p. 117. 'Ibid., p. 156. 'Ibid., p. 161.
'Ibid., p. 188. " Ibid., p. 224. 'Ibid., pp. 266, 369.
7 Ibid., p. 322
202 THE SPANISH STAGE
by the companies of Luis Lopez de Sustaete and Damian
Arias de Penafiel "under the same conditions."1 In 1645
each company received 925 ducats for two autos,2 and in
1655 the companies of Diego Osorio and Francisca Ver-
dugo, widow of Riquelme, each represented two autos at
Madrid, receiving 10,750 reals, or about 975 ducats.3
After 1658 only two autos were represented each year
in Madrid at Corpus. In 1 660 they were entitled La Paz
universal (El Lirio y la Azucena) and El Diablo mudo,
both written by Calderon, and they were acted by the com-
panies of Diego Osorio and Jeronimo Vallejo, who re-
ceived 950 ducats each, which amount was paid until the
death of Philip the Fourth.4
Concerning the receipts of a theatrical performance,
something has already been said.5 About 1575, before
either of the permanent theaters of Madrid were built,
the profits of a representation in one of the corrales were
from 140 or 160 to 200 reals. This was the sum received
by the hospitals to which the corrales belonged, exclusive
of the share of the autor de comedias and his company.6
On February 8, 1580, when Juan Granados was repre-
senting in one of the corrales of Madrid, he contributed
his share of the profits of the performance toward defray-
ing the expenses of the new Corral de la Cruz. This
share amounted to 200 reals vellon.7 And Alonso de
Cisneros, not to be outdone in generosity by his rival,
contributed the proceeds of a performance on October 19,
1580, to the same purpose. His share, which was the
money paid at the door (entrada), was 233 reals, while
1 Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Vol. I, p. 121.
2 Ibid., p. 126. * Ibid., p. 238.
4 Ibid., p. 269 et passim.
"See above, pp. 31, 41, 56.
0 Pellicer, Histrionismo, I, p. 56.
7 Ibid., p. 60. According to Perez Pastor, it was Cisneros who repre-
sented on that day in the Cruz, "y dio para ayuda de costa del corral 200
reales que le correspondian de su aprovechamiento como autor." (Bulle-
tin Hispanique (1906), p. 77.)
THE THEATERS OF SEVILLE 203
the deputies of the brotherhoods received 174 reals.1 It
thus appears that at this time the total receipts of a per-
formance varied from about 350 to 450 reals vellon.
About three years after this, in 1583, "on some occasions"
the hospitals realized as much as 300 reals as their share
of a single performance.2 On February 10, 1586, Jero-
nimo Velazquez gave a representation to which women
only were admitted,3 which realized 760 reals, the charge
being one real for each person. From a representation
given on August 10, 1603, the share of the brotherhoods
was 282 reals.4
The theaters of Seville furnish interesting information
upon this point. We learn that from April 3, 161 1, to
February 4, 1614, five hundred and twenty-six representa-
tions of comedias were given in that city: two hundred
and sixty-eight in Dona Elvira and two hundred and fifty-
eight in the Coliseo. During this period of nearly three
years the city received as its share of the takings of the
theaters 53,346 reals, or a little over 101 reals for each
representation.5 As the city's portion consisted of eight!
maravedis from each person who entered the theater, wel
find that the average attendance at these popular theaters
during this period, when the drama was at its height, was
about 431. We have seen above (p. 56) that in 1622
in Seville the average number of persons who paid an
admission to the theater was 350. Indeed, the renting of
the corrales in Seville seems frequently to have been a
losing speculation for the lessees, and as early as 161 9
'"Valio el aprovechamiento de la entrada de la puerta, que pertenecia
al dicho Cisneros, 233 reales . . . y para las Cofradias hubo aquel dia de
entramos tablados (gradas), corredor (de las mugeres), y ventanas (apo-
sentos) 174 reales." (Pellicer, I, p. 61.) That Cisneros represented on
October 18 is confirmed by Perez Pastor, Bull. Hisp. (1906), p. 77.
'Ibid., p. 76.
See above, p. 43.
4"De las mugeres=:97 rs.; de los hombres=ii9 rs.; de las ventanas =
48 rs.; de las celosias y sillas = i8 rs., = 283 reals." (Pellicer, Histrio-
nismo, I, p. 85.)
5 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 147.
2o4 THE SPANISH STAGE
we find that "comedias have reached such a point in this
city [Seville], that very few people come to see them, and
all autores or managers of companies who visit the city
leave it in debt and ruined." x
As regards the rental paid for the corrales, we have,
for the early period at least, some definite information.
On May 5, 1568, Jeronimo Velazquez began to represent
in one of the corrales of Madrid and paid 6 reals for
each day that he gave a performance.2 In 1574 the
Italian, Ganassa, paid 10 reals per day for the rent of the
Corral de la Pacheca,3 and in 1583 Antonio Vazquez and
Juan de Avila, who performed in the Corral del Principe,
also paid a daily rental of 10 reals.4 It seems that for
the year 1579 the sum of 6000 maravedis was paid for
the rental of the Corral de Puente.5
For a number of years following 1583 we have no
information, but it appears that even prior to 1600 the
brotherhoods had sublet various privileges. In 1602 the
bancos and ventanas of the two Madrid theaters were let
to Alonso and Juan Estebanez. Afterward, instead of a
partial renting, the deputies of the brotherhoods deter-
mined upon a total rental. This began in 161 5, accord-
ing to Pellicer, when the two corrales were rented to Juan
de Escobedo for two years for 27,000 ducats, and at the
expiration of this lease, in 161 7, to Matias Gonzalez for
four years for 105,000 ducats, and in 1621 to Luis Mon-
zon, Gabriel de la Torre, and Gabriel Gonzalez, also for
the term of four years, for 106,500 ducats, beginning on
St. John's day of that year and ending in 1625. The two
theaters were then leased to Francisco de Alegria from
1629 to 1633, for 115,400 ducats, and for the four fol-
lowing years to Juan de la Serna y Haro for 100,700
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 197.
* Pellicer, I, p. 48. * Ibid., p. 54. ' Ibid., p. 69.
'Bulletin Hispanique (1906), p. 77. This sum is almost incredibly
small, less than 200 reals, while there were at least fifty representations
in the corral during that year. {Ibid., pp. 73-75.)
THE RENTAL OF THE CORRALES 205
ducats.1 These amounts are very large compared with
the rentals of the Seville theaters. In 1585 the rent of
the Huerta de la Alcoba was 450 ducats yearly. In 161 1
that of the Coliseo was 2250 ducats, which was reduced
to 2000 ducats in 1622, though even at this figure it was
a losing enterprise for the lessee, as it was shown to be
worth only about 1600 ducats.2 That the leasing of the
Madrid theaters was not always profitable is shown by the
fact that, on the death of Francisco ;de Alegria (see
above), his widow, Dona Juana Gonzalez Carpio, de-
clared in a petition that her husband had not only left her
without means to support herself- and her four children,
but that he had also dissipated a large part of her dowry.3
'Pellicer, Histrionismo, I, pp. 96, 97, who gives the conditions of Luis
Monzon's lea%e, ibid., pp. 98 ff. I do not understand the statements in
Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, pp. 82, m, 123, 129, 134, 141, and 158. The
latter, for instance, reads: "Arrendamiento de los corrales de comedias
de la Cruz y del Principe, desde Carnestolendas de 1615 a Carnestolendas
de 1616, hecho por Cristobal Lopez en 900 ducados por tercios [i.e., in
three payments]. Madrid, 7 Abril 1615." The amount of the rent, more-
over, is so low that the persons mentioned were probably sublessees of
some privilege; in 1609 the sum specified is only 400 ducats. {Ibid., p. in.)
'Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, pp. 72, r48, 222.
'Pellicer, I, p. 98.
CHAPTER X
Character of the actors and actresses. Decrees regulating theatrical
performances. The opposition of churchmen. Decrees of 1598,
1600, 1603, 1608, and 1 61 5 for the reformation of comedias.
Despite the hardships endured by companies of strolling
players, they seem never to have had any difficulty in re-
cruiting their ranks. Looked at askance in every town
and hamlet, and often threatened at the village gates as
perverters of the public morals and promoters of idleness,
there were still, at all times, many to whom this life made
a strong appeal. Though under the ban of the church and
denied civil rights for centuries, the followers of Thespis
have continued to flourish and increase, so potent has been
the glamour of the stage and so alluring the love of a
wandering life. Even amid the trials and tribulations so
graphically described by Agustin de Rojas, their numbers
in Spain steadily multiplied, and with the increase in num-
bers the growing license of the stage kept pace. We have
already mentioned the lascivious dances, like the "pestif-
erous Zarabanda," the Chacona, Escarraman, and others
which, making their appearance about 1588, became
one of the most powerful attractions of the comedia.
Urged on by the applause of the dreaded mosquetero
and of the dissolute "noble," these dances were car-
ried to a point which sorely tried the conservers of the
public morals, which latter were by no means exalted in
that not over-scrupulous age.
The dissoluteness of the actresses, who were frequently
disguised as men upon the stage, and the dangerous influ-
206
WOMEN FORBIDDEN TO ACT 207
ence of these performances upon a people among whom
the craze for theatrical representations had become uni-
versal, caused a few eminent theologians, in 1587, to step
into the breach and attempt to stem the tide that was
sweeping everything before it. They failed, as we have
seen, for the indecent songs and dances, which the govern-
ment made a feeble effort to suppress, were succeeded by
others not more decorous, and the result was that in 1596
women were forbidden "to act in the said comedias."1
Whether this prohibition was ever enforced, however, is
open to serious doubt; at all events, the death of Princess
Catharine, Duchess of Savoy and sister of Philip the
Third, on November 6, 1597, offered an opportunity for
putting a stop to the comedia, and the King accordingly
commanded the theaters of Madrid to be closed.
The churchmen and other opponents of the theater
took advantage of this suspension of theatrical representa-
tions to renew the question of suppressing them perma-
nently. The King submitted the matter to a council of
three theologians, who, after prolonged discussion, finally
decided against the theaters, and the King concurring in
this "consulta theologica,"2 a royal rescript was issued
on May 2, 1598, declaring that thenceforth no come-
dias should be represented. Among other evils attrib-
1 See above, p. 145.
!The following is the text of this consulta, as given by Schack, and
which is contained in a MS. in the Royal Academy of History: "Consulta
que hizieron a S. M. el Rey D. Felipe II Garcia de Loaysa, Fray Diego de
Yepes y Fray Gaspar de Cordoba sobre las Comedias." After recommend-
ing the complete suppression of the comedia, they say: "Destas represen-
taciones y comedias se sigue otro gravisimo dano y es que la gente se da
al ocio, deleytes y regalo, y se divierte de la milicia, y con los bailes
deshonestos que cada dia inventan estos faranduleros y con las fiestas,
banquetes y comedias se haze la gente de Espana muelle y afeminada e
inhabil para las cosas de travajo y guerra. — . . . Pues siendo esto asi y
teniendo V. Mgd. tan precisa necesidad de hazer guerra a los enemigos de
la fe y apercebirnos para ella, bien se vee quan mal aparejo es para las
armas el uso tan ordinario de las comedias que aora se representan en
Espana. Y a juizio de personas prudentes, si el Turco o xarife o Rey de
Inglaterra quisieran buscar una invencion eficaz para arruinarnos y
destruirnos, no la hallaran mejor que la destos faranduleros, pues a guisa
208 THE SPANISH STAGE
utable to comedias, according to this consulta, was "that
they fostered habits of idleness and pleasure-seeking in the
people and turned their minds from warlike pursuits;
that the banquets, festivals, and comedias were rendering
the Spanish people effeminate and unfit for the hardships
of war, and that the King, being obliged to wage war
against the enemies of the faith, was ill prepared, as a
result of the comedias as they are now represented in
Spain. That, in the judgment of prudent persons, if the
Turk or the King of England wished to seek an efficient
device to ruin and destroy the Spanish nation, he could
find none better than that of these players," etc.
This recommendation of the council of theologians was
followed, as just stated, by a royal decree prohibiting the
representation of comedias. Perez Pastor states that the
King called this consulta of theologians at the instance of
D. Pedro de Castro, Archbishop of Granada, who had
represented to his Majesty the harm resulting from these
representations. This is borne out by the only text of the
decree of May 2, 1598, directed to the Corregidor of
Granada, which has only lately been discovered.1 That this
prohibition was not intended to be permanent is evinced
de unos manosos ladrones abrazando matan y atosigan con el sabor y
gusto de lo que representan, y hazen mugeriles y floxos los corazones de
nuestros Espafioles, para que no sigan la guerra o sean inutiles para los
trabajos y exercicios della." (Geschichte der dramatischen Literatur und
Kunst in Spanien, Vol. Ill, Nachtrage, pp. 28, 29.)
1 Bibliografia Madrileiia, Part I, Madrid, 1891, p. 308. The text of this
royal provision is : "Don Phelipe, por la gracia de Dios, etc .... A vos el
nuestro Corregidor de la ciudad de Granada: Sepades que Nos fuimos
informados que en nuestros reinos hay muchos hombres y mugeres que
andan en Companias y tienen por oficio representar comedias y no tienen
otro alguno de que sustentarse, de que se siguen inconvenientes de gran
consideracion. Y visto por los de nuestro Consejo fue acordado que de-
biamos rnandar dar esta nuestra Carta para vos en la dicha razon. E
Nos tuvimoslo por bien ; por lo qual os mandamos que, por ahora, no
consintais, ni deis lugar que en esa Ciudad ni su tierra, las dichas Com-
panias representen en los lugares publicos destinados para ello, ni en casas
particulares, ni en otra parte alguna; y no fagades ende al so pena de la
nuestra merced. Dada en la Villa de Madrid, en 2 de Mayo de 1598."
(Cotarelo y Mori, Controversias, p. 620.)
THE DECREE OF 1598 209
by its very words. It commands that the Corregidor of
Granada "for the present ("por ahora") shall not consent
or permit in the said city or its neighborhood the said com-
panies to represent in the public places destined for that
purpose, nor in private houses, nor in any other place
whatever."
This decree was doubtless intended primarily to apply
to Madrid,1 though I have been unable to find the text
which refers to the theaters of the capital. The theaters
of Madrid were, however, closed, but only for a short
time, for in the course of the same year in which the
decree was issued, the city sent a petition to the King
requesting its revocation, which petition has been pre-
served. In this Memorial the various reasons are
set forth why comedias should again be permitted in
Madrid, stating among other things that if excesses
exist in the comedias, they can readily be removed;
that comedias had been represented in the time of the
King and of his predecessors, and that they were per-
mitted and favored in all well-instituted commonwealths ;
that the comedia is "an example, notice, portrait,
mirror, model, doctrine, and warning of life, whereby
prudent and docile men may restrain their passions, flee
vices, elevate their thoughts, and learn virtues by demon-
stration, for all these are to be found in the comedia,
whence it follows that more may be apprehended by the
*It is very probable that the closing of the theaters in Madrid in 1598
was also due, in no small degree, to the prevalence of the pest in that
city. This is shown by the following work published in Madrid in that
year: Breve Tratado de Peste, con sus causas, senates y curacion: y de lo
que at presente corre en esta villa de Madrid, y sus contornos. Corapuesto
por el Doctor Antonio Perez Medico y Cirujano de su Magestad. ... En
Madrid, Por Luis Sanchez. Ano MDXCVIII. In his dedication he states
that he had undertaken to attend "assi a la formacion de la casa y hospi-
tal, para recoger los que por esta villa huuiese tocados deste mal, como a
la cura dellos, dando noticia a V. m. y al senor Corregidor don Rodrigo
del Aguila, dos veces en la semana, de lo que passa," etc. (Perez Pastor,
Bibliografia Madrilena, Part I, p. 312.) Perez Pastor {ibid., p. 308)
terms it "mal de secas que en la epoca se padecia en Madrid."
2io THE SPANISH STAGE
eyes than may be taught by the understanding. There
is represented the happy end of the just king, the reward
of virtue, the importance of prudence," etc. That those
who visit the comedia may be reduced to two classes : the
idle and vicious, and the virtuous and occupied, and the
comedia does not make the former worse nor the latter
less good (menos buenos), for to the one it serves as a
bridle and restraint upon their vices, and to the others as
a spur to virtue and labor, of which both will be deprived
if comedias be suppressed entirely. The most urgent
reason assigned is that three or four of the largest hospi-
tals of the city are supported by the comedia, the General
Hospital receiving in each year more than 8000 ducats.
Another reason is that, comedias in Spain being always
written in verse, the actor is thereby prevented from
interpolating anything he chooses ; he is obliged to speak
what the poet has written, etc. Lastly and strangely
enough, it recites that comedias had not been prohibited
elsewhere "in these kingdoms."1
It is probable that this protest was originated by the
directors of the hospitals of Madrid, who thus saw the
chief source of their income cut off. Still, this Memorial
was unavailing for the moment, though the King seems
to have been willing that the theaters should be reopened,
and an edict had been prepared to that effect, but his
confessor, Fray Diego de Yepes, opposed it so strenuously
that the order was revoked.2
Finding the King on their side, the overseers of the
hospitals, we may feel sure, did not relax their efforts to
secure the repeal of a law which stifled them out of exis-
1 Memorial de la Villa de Madrid pidiendo al Rey Felipe II. que se
abriesen los teatros, cerrados por la muerte de la Infanta D" Catalina,
Duquesa de Saboya, Madrid, 1598. Printed in full in Perez Pastor, Biblio-
grafia Madrilena, Part I, p. 304.
2 This information is furnished by Cabrera, Relaciones, etc., p. 5, where
we find the following entry: "Madrid, 16 de Enero 1599. Habiase pro-
veido a instancia de los hospitales, que se representasen comedias, por la
mucha necesidad que padecian los pobres sin el socorro que desto les
THE CORRALES OPEN AGAIN 211
tence. Accordingly, we find that on March 10, 1599, the
town council of Madrid resolved to send Sr. Gregorio de
Paz to Valencia, where the King then was, to present to
his Majesty, on the part of the city, a memorial begging
permission to have the city decked in the customary man-
ner for the reception of the Queen, and also that the King
be pleased to permit comedias and public representations.1
So strongly did this petition move Philip the Third that he
overruled the objections of his confessor, and on April 17,
1599, comedias were again allowed to be played in the
theaters of the kingdom.2
On the following day Philip the Third was betrothed to
the Archduchess Margaret at Valencia, and during these
festivities an allegorical auto by Lope de Vega, entitled
Las Bodas del Alma con el Amor divino,3 was represented
in one of the public squares of Valencia.
With this decree, however, the opponents of the thea-
ter, among whom the most influential was Don Pedro de
Castro, Archbishop of Granada, were not satisfied. They
insisted upon the evil effects of the plays, and especially
of the dances then in vogue upon the stage. Accordingly,
in April, 1600, a council, consisting of four of the King's
Council, four theologians, and Fray Gaspar de Cordoba,
Tenia, pero el Confesor de S. M. Io ha resistido de manera que se ha
mandado revocar la orden dada."
'"Acuerdo de io de Marzo de 1599: — Que el Sr. Gregorio de Paz vaya
a la ciudad de Valencia a llevar a S. M. de parte desta Villa un memorial
suplicandole de licencia a esta Villa para que para el recibimiento de la
Reyna nuestra sefiora se pueda vestir como es acostumbrado y para que
se sirva dar licencia para que haya comedias y representaciones publicas.
— Acuerdos del Ayuntamiento de Madrid, t° 24, f° 16." Sr. Perez Pastor
adds: "En este ano se dejo (sesion de 8 de Enero) para despues el nom-
brar las comisiones de Autos, danzas y toros." (Nuevos Datos, p. 49.)
'"Madrid, a 17 de Abril 1599: — Tambien se ha dado licencia para que
de aqui adelante se hagan comedias en los teatros como las solia haber,
las quales dizen que se comenzaran a representar desde el lunes." (Ca-
brera, Relaciones, etc., p. 18.)
'Published in his Peregrino en su Patria, Seville, 1604, fols. 86-108. The
memorial of Alonso de Cisneros printed by Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos,
p. 348, requesting that he be allowed to meet the new Queen with his com-
pany and to perform on the way, doubtless refers to this event.
212 THE SPANISH STAGE
the King's confessor, was called1 to determine what re-
strictions were to be imposed upon the theater, or rather
to formulate the conditions under which comedias might
be represented. The opinion of the theologians was that
"the comedias, as they had been represented up to that
time and as they were then performed in the theaters,
with the sayings, actions, gestures, bailes, and vulgar and
lascivious dances, were unlawful and that it is a mortal
sin to represent them." They resolved that the conditions
under which comedias might be represented were the fol-
lowing : ( i ) That the subject-matter of the comedia be
not evil or licentious, and that all immodest dances, say-
ings, and gestures be eliminated, as well from the come-
dias as from the entremeses. (2) That the many
companies of players be reduced to four, which companies
alone shall be licensed to represent comedias. (3) That
women should not in any circumstances be permitted on
the stage, nor should monks or prelates visit the theaters;
and if boys play female characters, wearing women's at-
tire, they must not appear rouged and must bear them-
selves with due modesty. (4) That no representations
shall take place in Lent, nor on the Sundays in Advent,
nor on the first day of the three Pasquas; nor may any
company remain in any town more than one month in each
year, nor may two companies play at the same time, and
in the said month they may play only three days in each
week — on Sunday and on two other days — which should
"Pellicer, Histrionismo, Vol. I, p. 151. Cotarelo y Mori, Controversial,
p. 208, says it was the Duke of Lerma who was favorable to the con-
tinuance of the comedia and who desired this commission to be appointed,
the text of which, directed to one of the King's Council, the Licentiate
Bohorques, is as follows: "Su Magestad ha mandado que quatro de su
Consejo se junten con quatro teologos en el aposento del P. Confesor
[Fr. Caspar de Cordoba] para conferir y ajustar la forma en que se
pueden permitir las comedias. Uno de los senalados es Vm. y el P. Con-
fesor avisara el dia en que se hubiese de hacer la junta. De Casa, 19 de
Abril de 1600." This Council, Sr. Cotarelo says, could not agree, and it
was finally increased to include eleven theologians who formulated the
dictamen.
THE DECREE OF 1600 213
be feast-days, when there are any. (5) That in churches
and convents only plays of a purely devotional character
be allowed. Further conditions were that the men should
be separated from the women and should enter by dif-
ferent doors ; that no plays should be acted in the univer-
sities of Alcala or Salamanca, except during vacation;
that all comedias and entremeses, before being acted in
public, shall be played before a number of learned per-
sons, among them at least one theologian ; that a judge be
appointed to enforce the penalties against those who
break these conditions ; and, finally, that a license to per-
form should be granted for one year only "como para
prueba y experiencia de su observancia."1
This dictamen of Fray Gaspar de Cordoba and his ten
colleagues was referred to the King's Council, who issued
it in the same year, though modified in several particulars.
After reciting in substance the opinion of the theologians
that there should be nothing improper in the comedias nor
in the songs and dances, concurring in the seasons and
times fixed by them, and adding that on the days that
comedias are given the doors of the theater shall not be
opened until two o'clock, "so that the people may not
miss the Mass, and for other reasons," the document pro-
ceeds as follows: "And since they [the theologians] like-
wise say that women shall not act because their freedom
(desenvoltura) in such public acts incites to evil, and that
if, in the place of women, boys appear on the stage in
female attire, they shall not appear rouged or in any un-
seemly make-up (compostura) , it appears to this Council
that it is much less improper that women should act than
that boys should appear in female attire, even though they
be not rouged nor made up, provided that the said women
do not appear in the habit or dress of men and be accom-
panied by their husbands or fathers, and not otherwise.
^ellicer, Histrionismo , Vol. I, p. 151. This dictamen is now reprinted
in Cotarelo y Mori, ControveTsias, p. 208.
2i4 THE SPANISH STAGE
"As regards the opinion of the churchmen that there
shall be only four companies of players in the kingdoms
and that none of them may remain in any one place
longer than a month, and that they may not perform in
any one place more than four months in any whole year,
and that two companies may not play at the same time in
one place nor act more than three days in any week, Sun-
days and feast-days included, it appears that that portion
which refers to the number of companies and to the days
on which they may represent ought to be at the disposal
of the Council, as it has always been, so that the Council
may decree as it seems proper," etc.1
That the recommendation of the theologians that there
should be but four companies of players was disregarded,
is further shown by the following autores de comedias,
whom I find mentioned between February, 1600, and
April 26, 1603 ; Melchor de Villalba, Gabriel de la Torre,
Gaspar de Porres, Juan de Villalba, Baltasar Pinedo,
Diego Lopez de Alcaraz, Pedro Jimenez de Valenzuela,
Gabriel Vaca, Antonio de Villegas, Miguel Ramirez, Juan
de Tapia, Luis de Castro, Alonso de Paniagua, Jeronimo
Lopez de Sustaya, Alonso Riquelme, Pedro Rodriguez,
Melchor de Leon, Diego de Rojas, Gaspar de los Reyes,
1 Cotarelo y Mori, Controversias sabre la Licitud del Teatro, pp. 163,
164. The resolution of this' Council as given by Cabrera de Cordoba
varies only slightly from the above, stating that permission is granted to
represent comedias de historias, but that they must not contain acts of
religion or of the saints. The passage in Cabrera, Relaciones, p. 59,
under date of February 4, 1600, is: "Solamente se ha tornado resolucion
que puedan representarse comedias en los teatros de aqui adelante, lo qual
estaba prohibido por evitar el escandalo y mal exemplo que en ellas habia ;
pero porque los hospitales no pierdan el provecho que se les sigue, sin lo
qual se padecia mucha en la cura de los pobres, y estaban para cerrarse
los hospitales porque no bastaban las limosnas, se da licencia para se
representar comedias de historias, y que no se mezclen actos de religion
ni de santos; y que las mugeres que representaren no se pongan en habito
de hombre, sino trayendo vaqueros largos, y que sean casadas con los
mismos que representaren, y que fuera de alii los unos ni los otros no
puedan andar vestidos de seda ni con guarnicion de ella ni de oro, sobre
lo qual ha habido junta de teologos, canonistas y juristas, para tomar esta
resolucion."
THE DECREE OF 1603 215
Juan de Morales Medrano, and Gabriel Nunez, no less
than twenty-one heads of companies.
By a royal rescript dated April 26, 1603, the number
of theatrical companies was limited to eight.1 The text
of this decree is as follows : "For very good and sufficient
considerations his Majesty has commanded that within
these kingdoms there may be only eight companies of play-
ers and the same number of autores or managers of them,
as follows : Gaspar de Porres, Nicolas de los Rios, Balta-
sar de Pinedo, Melchor de Leon, Antonio Granados,
Diego Lopez de Alcaraz, Antonio de Villegas, and Juan
de Morales, and that no other company may represent
within these kingdoms, and that you take notice of this,
so that you may fulfil and execute it inviolably within your
district and jurisdiction; and if any other company should
represent, you shall proceed against the manager and the
actors and punish them with due rigor ; and you shall not
in any manner permit companies to represent in the mon-
asteries of friars or in the convents of nuns, nor shall there
be any representations during Lent, even though they be
in the sacred manner; all of which you will guard and
fulfil,"2 etc.
1 It appears that such a craze for theatrical performances had seized all
classes by this time, especially artisans, that an attempt was made by the
authorities to check it in the year preceding this decree. In 1602 the Alcal-
des de Casa y Corte caused it to be proclaimed publicly that no workman
or tradesman of any occupation whatever, nor their masters, visit the
comedia on work-days, under a penalty of two years of banishment and a
fine of 2000 maravedis. (Perez Pastor, Bulletin Hispanique (1907), p.
367.) See also below, p. 220, note 2.
'This decree of April 26, 1603, is as follows: "Por muy justas causas y
consideraciones a mandado su Magestad que en todos estos reynos no
pueda auer sino ocho companias de representantes de comedias y otros
tantos autores de ellos, que son Gaspar de Porres, Nicolas de los Rios, Bal-
tasar de Pinedo, Melchor de Leon, Antonio Granados, Diego Lopez de
Alcaraz, Antonio de Villegas y Juan de Morales, y que ninguna otra
compania represente en ellos; de lo qual se adbierte a Vm. para que ansi
Io haga cumplir y executar ynviolablemente en todo su distrito y juris-
diccion, y si otra qualquiera compania representase, procedera contra el
autor della y representantes, y los castigara con el rigor necessario y en
ninguna manera permita que en ningun tiempo del ano se representen co-
medias en monasterio de frayles ni monjas, ni que en el de la quaresma
2i6 THE SPANISH STAGE
The article of this decree restricting the number of
autores de comedias to eight seems not to have been ob-
served, for, in addition to the eight enumerated above,
I find the following directors of companies between 1603
and 1 61 5: Alonso de Riquelme (especially designated as
"de su Magestad"), Antonio Ramos, Domingo Balbin,
Alonso de Heredia, Hernan Sanchez de Vargas, Alonso de
Villalba, Tomas Fernandez de Cabredo, Cristobal Rami-
rez, Pedro de Valdes (called "de su Magestad," February
2, 1614), Pedro Llorente, Andres de Claramonte ("de
los nombrados por su Magestad," March 28, 1614).
In 1608 an order for the government and regulation of
the theaters of Madrid was issued by the licentiate Juan
de Tejada, of his Majesty's Council, to whom was com-
mitted the protection and government of the General Hos-
pital of the capital, and of the other hospitals which
shared in the profits of the theaters. This order is so
important and is so clearly the basis of the subsequent
decree of 161 5 for the regulation of the theaters, that I
copy it here. It shows, among other interesting things,
that women were not confined to seats in the cazuela, but
that, besides the aposentos, they also occupied the gradas
and tarimas. These regulations are as follows: "(1)
That before a manager may enter this court [Madrid]
with his company, he must first obtain a license from that
officer of the Council who is the protector of the said
hospitals, and without this he may not enter. ( 2 ) That
before Pascua de Resurrection of each year the managers
of companies shall give to the Council an account of the
company they have, declaring that the persons whom
they bring are married and to whom they are married, and
the same before representing in this court, under penalty
of 20,000 maravedis for the hospitals and punishment
aya representaciones deltas, aunque sea a lo divino; todo lo qual hara
guardar y cumplir. Porque de lo contrario se tendra su Magestad por
deservido. De Valladolid a 26 de Abril de 1603 afios." (Schack, Nach-
trage, p. 30, and now reprinted in Cotarelo, Controversias, p. 621.)
THE DECREE OF 1608 217
besides. (3) That the manager who shall happen to be
in this court shall select his theater for the first week,
which .begins on Monday, otherwise he is estopped; and
if three autores should happen to be here, they shall
divide, each one representing two days successively (de
arreo ) , in such manner that in twelve days each one is to
represent eight comedias, four in each of the theaters.
(4) That two days before the representation of a come-
dia, entremes, or song, the said comedia, etc., is to be
taken to the officer of the Council for examination, and
until the necessary license be procured, the comedia, etc.,
is not to be assigned to the players for study, under
penalty of twenty ducats and other punishment; and no
woman shall appear to dance or act in male attire, under
the same penalty. ( 5 ) That the doors of the theaters shall
not be opened until twelve o'clock, noon, and representa-
tions shall begin during the six months from October 1
at two o'clock, and during the other six months at four
in the afternoon, so that the performance may end one
hour before nightfall ; and the commissioners and algua-
ciles shall take particular heed that this be complied with.
(6) That it be clearly indicated on the posters what
comedias are to be represented each day, and he who for
good cause shall fail to do so shall give an account of it
to the officer of the Council, under the said penalty.
(7) That the brotherhood of the Pasion and of the
Soledad shall each year name two Commissioners, satis-
factory persons, rich and unoccupied, who shall take their
turn by weeks in each theater, and before naming the
whole number they shall furnish the list to the officer of
the Council, so that he may attend, if he so desire. ( 8 )
That the said Commissioners appoint responsible and
trustworthy persons to receive the profits, who shall allow
nobody to enter without paying the required sum, and
they shall not leave the doors until at least the first act is
over, and having done so, they shall hand over the money
zi 8 THE SPANISH STAGE
to the proper person for distribution. (9) That only
the four Commissioners, the person with the book, and
the money-takers (cobradores) shall enter without paying
either for entrance or for a seat, and no other person,
either because he is an alguacil, scrivener, brother (co-
frade), or deputy, nor for any other cause, and of this
the alguaciles shall take particular heed, so that there may
be no disputes on this account, and if there be, they shall
arrest the person, etc. (10) That the said Commissioner
shall, during his week, at ten o'clock in summer and at
eleven in winter, come every day to the theater to which
he has been designated, to assign (repartir) the benches
and aposentos, preferring titled persons and the nobility
who may have sent to request them. (11) That they
allow no man to enter or remain in the gradas or tarimas
of the women, nor allow any woman to enter at the men's
entrance, nor permit any one to enter the dressing-room
or elsewhere unless he be a player, and if any one shall
do so, the alguaciles shall put him in prison and shall duly
report it, so that the person may be punished; and no friar
shall likewise be permitted to enter the corrales to see the
comedias, as hereinbefore commanded. (12) That no
man be permitted to enter the aposentos especially desig-
nated for women, unless he be known to be the husband,
father, son, or brother, etc. (13) That no banco or
aposento be given without payment for it, but the Com-
missioners may give two bancos only every day in each
theater, during the week in which they serve, to accommo-
date the money-takers and such others as are necessary,
and no aposento may be given to anybody, although it be
vacant. (14) That none of the said Commissioners may
depute another in his place; if for good reasons he be
unable to attend, he shall notify his companion. (15)
That four Commissioners shall consult concerning any re-
pairs to the theater, etc. (16) That that officer of the
THE DECREE OF 1608 219
Council who is protector of the hospitals shall name each
year a Commissioner of the said hospitals, who shall keep
the books of the profits of the said comedias and share
the same among the said hospitals as agreed upon. (17)
That the said Comissario de libro shall, on each day that
a comedia is given, go to the treasury of the theater at
three o'clock, and count what has been received from the
seats, buncos, and aposentos, as well as the quartos taken
at the doors, and shall divide it in the manner required,
etc. (18) That of the five quartos [=20 maravedis]
which are received at the entrance from each man and
woman, the manager shall take three, and the General
Hospital one, and the other hospital of the capital and that
of Anton Martin each one half a quarto; and of the
money which results from the asientos, buncos, uposentos,
ventanas, and celosius, the General Hospital shall receive
the one fourth part, that of the Ninos expositos another
fourth part and one eighth of it, and the rest to go to the
Hospital de la Pasion, as heretofore determined, etc.
(19) That of the money which proceeds from the venta-
nas, celosius, and other things of which the General Hos-
pital does not receive the quarto entrance money, one fifth
be given to the said hospital, and the remainder be divided
as profits from the asientos and aposentos. (20) That
a separate account be kept of the moneys resulting from
the renting of the corrales, the coach-house, and the six
reals which each autor gives for each representation for
repairs, and of the other things that cannot be divided
each day, and that care be taken that these sums be
collected, etc. . . . (26) That eight days before the
close of the year the Commissioners shall announce the
leasing of the corrales for the following year, etc. . . .
(29) That the lessee shall not receive for each uposento
more than twelve reals, nor for each banco more than one
real, under penalty, etc. . . . (31) That no curtains or
22o THE SPANISH STAGE
hangings may be put in the aposentos, nor benches in the
patio, unless they be fastened to the walls."1
On October 3, 161 1, Dona Margarita of Austria,
wife of Philip the Third, died, after having given birth to a
son on September 22, and the theaters were closed in con-
sequence. This was a blow not only to the players, but
also to the playwrights. Thus deprived of his immediate
source of income, we find Lope de Vega complaining of
his ill luck in a letter of October 6-8, to his patron, the
Duke of Sessa : "I have bidden good-by to the Muses on
account of the absence of comedias ; I shall feel their loss,
for, after all, they were a help in the frequent illness that
my little family suffers." Again, speaking of the same
subject, he says : "Only the comedia has felt the misfor-
tune," and adds: "with due discretion they are already
trying to resuscitate the play for the good of the hospi-
tals."2
What the result of the recommendation of D. Juan de
Tejada was we do not know, but on April 8, 1615, the
Council issued another decree for the "Reformation of
Comedias," which does not differ materially from the
decree of 1603, except that it declares that there shall be
twelve autores de comedias, instead of eight, and names
them, and reenacts the recommendation of D. Juan de
Tejada (of 1608) in many of its provisions. It declares
that there shall be no more than twelve companies of play-
ers, to be named by the Council, who shall have a certifi-
cate of their appointment signed by Juan Gallo de An-
drade, secretary of the Camara del Consejo. That the
Council appoints the following twelve autores: Alonso
1 Cotarelo y Mori, Contro-versias, pp. 622-625. In this year (1608) we
find an "Auto de los Alcaldes de Casa y Corte" forbidding all men from
stopping at the door of the theater where women enter or leave the house,
under a penalty of 200 ducats and banishment for four years from the
court and five leagues therefrom. Madrid, May 6, 1608. (Bull. Hispa-
nique (1907), p. 374.)
2Rennert, Life of Lope de Vega, p. 198. Two year; after this, on October
19, 1613, writing from Lerma to his patron, the Duke of Sessa, Lope de
THE DECREE OF 1 615 221
Riquelme, Fernan Sanchez, Tomas Fernandez, Pedro de
Valdes, Diego Lopez de Alcaraz, Pedro Cebriano, Pedro
Llorente, Juan de Morales, Juan Acacio, Antonio Grana-
dos, Alonso de Heredia, and Andres de Claramonte, who,
and no others, may conduct companies for the space of
two years next following the eighth day of April, and they
shall have in their companies persons of good lives and
habits, and shall each year furnish an account of them to
the person whom the Council may designate, and the
same shall be done by those who may be named autores
hereafter, every two years.
That the directors and married actors be accompanied
by their wives.
That they shall not wear costumes against the pragmat-
ics of the realm, except upon the stage or wherever they
may represent.
That the actresses shall appear only in decent women's
attire and shall not represent in underskirt (faldellin)
only, but shall at least wear over it a gown or loose over-
skirt {baquero 6 basquina suelta enfaldada) , and they shall
not act in male attire nor assume the roles of men,
nor shall men or youths represent women on the stage.
It prohibits all lascivious or immodest songs, dances, or
gestures, and permits only such as may be in conformity
with the old dances and bailes, and especially forbids all
the bailes de escarramanes, chaconas, zarabandas, carre-
terias, and all similar dances, concerning which it com-
mands that the autores may not make use of them in any
manner whatsoever, under the penalties declared, nor
may they invent other new and similar ones bearing dif-
ferent names. And all songs and dances must be ap-
proved by the Council, even those which are permissible.
Vega says that he had received word from Madrid that women had been
forbidden to visit the comedia. His words are : "De Madrid me han escrito
que por pregon publico se ha prohibido que las mugeres no vayan a la
comedia, no se que se murmura aqui acerca de la causa." (Schack, Nach-
trage, p. 34.) I find no mention elsewhere of such a prohibition.
222 THE SPANISH STAGE
It provides further that in each theater of Madrid an
especially appointed alguacil shall be present (besides
Juan Alicante, alguacil de la casa y corte de S. M.), and
the other two alguaciles during the time for which they
may be appointed, each to remain in the theater to which
he may be designated, and all are to take precautions that
there be no noise, uproar, or scandal; that the men be
kept separated from the women, both in the seats and in
the entrances and exits, to avoid all unseemly acts; and
they shall permit nobody except the players to enter the
dressing-rooms. They are further to see to it that the
auditors leave the theater before dark and that the thea-
ters be not opened until noon.
That the autores and their companies shall not repre-
sent in private houses in Madrid without the license of the
Council, nor shall they admit anybody to their rehearsals.
That no comedias whatever be represented from Ash
Wednesday until the first Sunday after Easter, nor on the
Sundays in Advent, nor on the first days of the Pascuas.
That all comedias, entremeses, bailes, dances, and songs,
before they are handed over to the actors to be studied,
shall be taken to the censor appointed by the Council, who
shall pass upon them and shall give a license, signed by
him, permitting their representation, and without this
license they may not be performed.
That no two companies may be in one place at the same
time except in the court [Madrid] and in Seville, nor
may they be more than two months in one place in any
year.
That no performance be given in any church or monas-
tery unless the comedia be purely one of devotion.
That the autores or players who fail to observe the
above-mentioned declarations be punished in the follow-
ing manner : For the first offense a fine of 200 ducats, to
be devoted to charitable works ; for the second the double
of this fine and banishment from the kingdom for two
AUTORES IN 1615-1640 223
years, and for the third infraction two years in the gal-
leys. The decree is signed by Juan Gallo de Andrade.1
We have seen that by the above decree of 161 5 only
twelve autores de comedias, or directors of companies,
were permitted to give theatrical performances, and that
these autores were to exercise this privilege for two years
only, except by special reappointment. Among the autores
de comedias between 161 5 and 1640 who were especially
designated as "appointed by his Majesty," I have found
the following, though there were doubtless others:
Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan (1619); Manuel Vallejo
(1623) ; Juan Bautista Valenciano (1623) ; Juan Mar-
tinez (1624) ; Bartolome Romero (1637) ; Pedro de la
Rosa (1637) ; Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla (1637) ; An-
dres de la Vega (1638) ; Juan Roman (1638) ; Francisco
Velez de Guevara (1639) ; Francisco Alvarez de Vitoria
(1639) ; Pedro de Cobaleda (1639).
Of autores de comedias not designated as appointed by
the King, the following names occur between 161 5 and
1640: Cristobal de Leon, Pedro Cerezo de Guevara,
Francisco Mudarra, Francisco Ortiz, Juan Catalan,
Alonso de Olmedo y Tofino, Cristobal de Avendano,
Jeronimo Sanchez, Antonio de Prado, Juan Jeronimo
Almella, Roque de Figueroa, Juan Vazquez (El Polio),
Lorenzo Hurtado de la Camara, Francisco Lopez, Juan
Bautista Espinola or Espinosa, Sebastiano Gonzalez,
Juan de Malaguilla, Juan Penalosa, Francisco Solano,
Segundo de Morales, Juan Rodriguez de Antriago,
Damian Arias de Penafiel, Pedro de Linares, Pedro de
Ascanio, Antonio de Rueda, Gabriel de Espinosa, Damian
de Espinosa, Luis Lopez de Sustaete, Francisco Garcia,
and Pedro Manuel de Castilla (Mudarra) .
For some time prior to 161 5, however, the question of
'Cotarelo y Mori, Controversias, etc., pp. 626, 627. This decree had
previously been published in part by Sepiilveda, El Corral de la Pacheca,,
p. 41.
224 THE SPANISH STAGE
completely suppressing the comedias must have been again
discussed, for on February 25, 161 5, a resolution was
adopted by the town council or ayuntamiento of Madrid,
which reads: "Having heard that there is a question of
prohibiting comedias, and that in lieu of the profits which
the hospitals derive from the comedias certain excises
and imposts are to be levied, ... it has been shown by
experience that it is less dangerous to have comedias than
to suppress them, for those who go to see them are thus
prevented from having recourse to other things of greater
danger and prejudice to them; ... it is therefore re-
solved that the council entreat his Majesty that comedias
may be permitted as heretofore, and that the proceeds
resulting therefrom be devoted to the hospitals," etc.1
The comedia, it seems, had not been flourishing as here-
tofore, and in the previous year (1614) there had been a
general complaint on the part of the overseers of the
charities dependent upon the theaters, in which they were
supported by the autores, that the income from the come-
dia had been greatly diminished on account of the de-
creased attendance at the theaters. The reasons assigned
were various: "because the price of admission had been
raised; because the buncos and aposentos had been
farmed out, and further restrictions had been made as to
the entrance of women into the theaters, and, finally,
because there are no good autores nor any dances by
women."2
The representation of comedias was continued under
the restrictions prescribed by the decree of 1615, but
Pellicer says that they were not so popular, "having lost
the salt and attraction of the picaresque dances, of which
the youth of both sexes are so fond."
This condition of things was not destined to continue
long. As one may readily imagine, the managers of the
1 Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 359.
'Pellicer, Histrionismo, Vol. II, pp. 159, 160.
NUMBER OF COMPANIES 225
theaters were not slow to give the public what it asked,
and gradually, one after another, every restriction that
had been placed upon the theaters was disregarded.1 Be-
sides the twelve privileged companies of players (com-
pahias reales or de titulo) numerous other companies
soon sprang up {companias de la legua, as they were
called) , which overran the peninsula and apparently took
no pains to avoid the capital. According to Pellicer,
there were no less than forty, their total membership
amounting to over one thousand persons.2
Indeed, a writer quoted by Ticknor declares that in
1636 there were as many as three hundred companies of
1 Other measures respecting the theaters were enacted in succeeding
years. In 1624 churchmen were prohibited from visiting the theaters or
bull-fights: Acuerdo de la Junta de Rcforraacion. "En 24 de Marzo 1624
acordo la Junta que los religiosos no fueran a las comedias ni a los toros."
(Perez Pastor, Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 250.) In the following year an at-
tempt was even made to prevent the printing of comedias : Acuerdo de la
Junta de Reformacion. "Y porque se ha reconocido el dano de imprimir
libros de comedias, novelas ni otros deste genero por el que blandamente
hacen a las costumbres de la juventud, se consulte a su Md ordene al Con-
sejo que en ningun manera se de licencia para imprimirlos." In the mar-
gin is the following note: "Hablose sobre deste punto a 7 de Marzo [1625]
con el sr Conde Duque, y parecio a S. Ex1 que el Presidente mi senor de su
oficio lo hiciesen, y que su S* podria mandar asi." (Ibid., p. 251.), In the
same year it was again declared that the men should be separated from the
women in the theaters and that the companies of players be reduced from
forty to twelve : Acuerdo de la Junta de Reformacion : "En la Junta de 29 de
Junio 1625 se acordo que hubiese separacion de hombres y mugeres en los
corrales de comedias, que las companias de 40 se reduzcan a 12." {Ibid.)
And in December, 1625, it was recommended that representations in Madrid
be given in only one theater : Acuerdo de la Junta de Reformacion. "En 1 1 de
Diciembre de 1625 acordo la Junta que en la corte se representase en un solo
corral cada dia." (Ibid., p. 252.) While on January n, 1626, it was
declared that but one comedia should be represented each day in Madrid.
(Ibid., p. 252.) The two latter decrees were certainly never observed.
'Cervantes, Don Quixote, Madrid, 1797-98, Vol. IV, p. no, note. Pelli-
cer's information is probably derived from a memorial presented to
Philip IV. by one Santiago Ortiz. The date of this instrument has been
fixed in 1639, though this is uncertain. Ortiz says that, in spite of the
decree of the Council that there should be no more than eight (sic) com-
panies, there were now more than forty. "Vieronse en poco tiempo dis-
currir con desvergiienza grande por el reino 40 companias, en que se
ocupaban mil 6 pocas menos personas de ambos sexos, gente bagabunda,
de vida licenciosa y casi toda de costumbres estragadas, etc. A este gente
perdida suelen agregarse hombres facinerosos, clerigos y frailes apostatas
226 THE SPANISH STAGE
players in Spain.1 That this number is greatly exag-
gerated does not admit of a doubt. It is probable that
there were not more than twenty companies of standing in
Spain in 1636. Of smaller strolling bands we have no
information, but there were doubtless many, as there had
been for years. Still, the theater was undoubtedly on the
wane.
In some parts of Spain, indeed, theatrical representa-
tions were not tolerated at all, as in Navarre, and "come-
y f ugitivos, que se acogen como asilo de estas companias para poder andar
libres y desconocidos a la sombra de ellas. Maridos que solo sirven de
excusa a sus mugeres, y mugeres que solo sirven de excusa a sus maridos,
falsos 6 verdaderos, y que con sus desenvolturas y bufonerias encantan a
los viejos y a los mozos . . . hallan valedores para todo, y nunca sus
delitos pueden refrenarse con algunas penas." (Sanchez-Arjona, Anales
del Teatro en SeiAlla, p. 282.) Pellicer states that Santiago Ortiz, the
author of this memorial, was an actor, but Cotarelo y Mori, Controversias,
p. 541, shows quite conclusively that this is an error and that he was prob-
ably "algun religioso austero," and fixes the date of the memorial in 1649.
1 History of Spanish Literature, Boston, 1888, Vol. II, p. 518, note 9. The
writer alluded to by Ticknor under the title "Pantoja, Sobre Comedies ,"
is really Simon Lopez, to whom reference has already been made. "Pan-
toja" was the name of a lady who had expressed scruples concerning the
legality of comedias, to which the work of Simon Lopez was a reply.
(Cotarelo, Controversias, p. 399, note.)
The following statement from Leon Pinelo's Anales is not without inter-
est, and is, besides, a flat contradiction of the assertion of "Pantoja." After
describing the funeral of Lope de Vega in 1635, Pinelo says, under the
year 1636: "En este insigne Ingenio [Lope] tuvieron principio las come-
dias en la forma que hasta oy permanezen, y con su muerte han ydo
descaeziendo, de modo que el Doctor Montalvan en el ano de 1632 pone
setenta y siete Poetas de que refiere los nombres, y los mas escrivian
comedias: oy no podremos senalar quatro que se apliquen a esta ocupa-
zion, y asi se van despoblando los Teatros y desaciendo las Companias
de la farsa." (Schack, Nachtrage, p. 36.) Still, one is curious to know
whom Pinelo had in mind when he says that "not four poets can be
named nowadays who devote themselves to writing plays." In 1636
Guillen de Castro was dead, but Calderon was then at the height of his
fame, and Mira de Mescua, Alarcon, Rojas, Velez de Guevara, Montal-
ban, Moreto, and Tirso de Molina were still among the living, though
perhaps the latter had then practically ceased writing for the stage. That
the companies of players were not all disbanded in 1636 is shown by the
fact that among the principal autores who had companies in that year
or shortly thereafter are the following: Pedro de la Rosa, Manuel
Vallejo, Hernan Sanchez de Vargas, Tomas Fernandez de Cabredo, Bar-
tolome Romero, Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla, Alonso de Olmedo, Antonio
DECLINE OF THE THEATER 227
dians who entered that kingdom were severely punished,"
as Crespi de Borja writes in 1649.1 The same writer also
says that comedias were at this time not often acted in
Valencia, Segorve, Jativa, and other places. And as early
as 1620 an anonymous writer says: "In other cities like
Plasencia, Burgos, Leon, Toro, Zamora, Cuenca, Ocafia,
and others, actors are rarely seen, unless it be to represent
some festival."2 Two years later, in 1622, the mayor-
domo of the hospitals of the city of Vitoria proposed that
a theater be erected in the city to provide a revenue for the
hospitals, and to this the town council assented. But the
hijosdalffo of the city and the natives of the surrounding
country objected to a theater, declaring that the inhabi-
tants were very industrious and that they would become
worthless and their business and employments would suf-
fer; moreover, a portion of the site that had been chosen
would, from its darkness, afford lurking-places for thieves
and vagabonds. The structure was begun, though it
remained unfinished and was never used as a theater.3
That for some time prior to 1634 there had been no co-
medias represented in Murcia, we learn from a letter of
Francisco de Cascales to Lope de Vega.4 And in 1694
de Prado, Roque de Figueroa, Andres de la Vega, Luis Lopez de Sustaete,
Antonio de Rueda, and others.
Since writing the above I have found that the statement of Pinelo,
though under the year 1636, was not actually written until 1658. It may
have been correct at the latter date. See Comedias de Moreto, edited by
D. Luis Fernandez Guerra, p. xii (Bibl. de Autores Espaiioles).
'"En Navarra no solo no las [i.e., comedias] hay, pero son castigados
gravemente los comediantes si entran en ella." He further says, speaking
of comedias: "en las ciudades donde no las hay continuas, como en Va-
lencia, Jativa, Segorve y otros lugares del reino, donde nunca 6 raras
veces las hay, no se ven ni se hacen mayores delitos cuando faltan estas
comedias." (Quoted by Cotarelo y Mori, Coniroversias, p. 194.) This
is a rather startling statement, if true, for it shows the early decline of
the comedia in a city — Valencia — which was one of the great theatrical
centers at the beginning of the seventeenth century.
2 Cotarelo y Mori, Controversias, p. 229.
'Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 190.
' Cartas filologicas, Murcia, 1634: "Muchos dias ha, Senor, que no tene-
228 THE SPANISH STAGE
comedias were banished from the city of Cordoba and its
theater was ordered to be torn down by the city council.1
mos en Murcia comedias; ello-deve ser porque a qui han dado en perseguir
la representacion, predicando contra ella, como si fuera alguna secta 6
gravisimo crimen." (Edition of 1779, p. 127.) I do not know the date of
this letter, but it was written after 1621. See also Schack, Nachtr'dge, p. 61.
1 Controversies, p. 209.
CHAPTER XI
Private representations before the King. Philip the Third. Philip
the Fourth. The latter's fondness for the theater. Representa-
tions in 1622. Festivals at Aranjuez. The "Buen Retiro."
Lope's Selva sin Amor. Dramatic spectacles by Calderon. De-
cree of 1 64 1 regulating plays. The theaters closed in 1646 and
again in 1682.
On March 31, 1621, the theaters of Madrid were closed
on account of the death of Philip the Third, and all come-
dias were suspended until July 28 of that year.1 The autos
were represented on Corpus Christi as usual, and in Ma-
drid they were performed by the companies of Pedro de
Valdes and Cristobal de Avendano, who were the only
autores permitted to act in Madrid "from the day the
license should be given until Corpus."2 During the autos
of this year we are told that not a castanet was heard, out
of respect for the late King. At Seville they were pre-
sented by the companies of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas
and Juan Bautista Valenciano.3
Upon the opening of the corrales of Madrid, on July
28, 1 62 1, the first comedia to be performed was Lope de
Vega's Dios haze Reyes, which was represented by the
company of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz.4
'Pellicer, Vol. I, p. 161. It is probable that this prohibition also extended
to Seville. Fernandez-Guerra (Alarcon, p. 351) states that the theaters
were closed only till May 9, 1621.
'Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 188.
3 Sanchez-Arjona, Analei, p. 217.
'Pellicer, Histrionismo, Vol. I, p. 161, says: "Comenzo Alcazar por una
comedia de Lope de Vega," etc. This is evidently a mistake for Alcaraz,
since we know that the latter, who had been an autor de comedias since
the last decade of the sixteenth century, was in Madrid in 1621 and the
229
23o THE SPANISH STAGE
Of the kings of Spain during the period with which we are
concerned, Philip the Second seems to have lent no support
to the theater nor to have favored it in any material way.
Indeed, nothing could have been more opposed to his
gloomy religious character, and while Philip the Third in-
herited much of the somberness of his father's nature,
k which toward the close of his life developed into a like re-
ligious fanaticism, he seems not to have been averse to the
stage and even had a theater built in the palace for private
representations, though this was probably due more to the
interest and delight which the Queen took in such per-
formances. As Schack has observed, it results from the
Relaciones of Cabrera that as early as the beginning of
the seventeenth century comedias were represented in the
royal palace or Alcazar, which stood upon the spot where
the royal palace stands to-day, i.e., in the west end of
Madrid, while the Buen Retiro is situated in the east end
of the city, and that Philip the Third, besides the stage
which appears to have been in one of the royal saloons,
also caused a theater to be built in the Casas del Tesoro,
near the palace.1
Many private representations of comedias before the
court doubtless took place in the years preceding the
building of this theater, of which a few are recorded.
These were all given at the instance of the Queen. On
January 30, 1603, the Queen commanded that 1500 reals
be paid to Nicolas de los Rios for five comedias acted in
her presence at Valladolid during that month, and on
beginning of 1622. (Nuevos Datos, p. 189.) The name "Alcazar" had
misled Chorley into supposing that the Alcazar theater (i.e., in the Royal
Palace) was meant. See my Life of Lope de Vega, p. 489. Lope's play
contains ho gracioso, and Chorley says that it is to be presumed that Lope
purposely refrained from introducing a comic character, as the period of
mourning for the King's death was not yet over.
1 Nachtrage, p. 26. The passage in Cabrera is as follows, under the
date, Madrid a 20 de Enero 1607: "Hase hecho en el segundo patio de las
casas del Tesoro un teatro donde vean sus Magestades las comedias,
como se representan al pueblo en los corrales que estan deputados para
ello, porque puedan gozar mejor de ellas que quando se les representa en
REPRESENTATIONS BEFORE QUEEN 231
July 14, 1603, he received 600 reals for two comedias,
one of which he represented at Burgos in June, and one
at Valladolid, where the court then was, on July 13, 1603.
Again, on August 25 of the same year Juan de Morales
Medrano received 600 reals for two comedias played
before the Queen in August, while Antonio de Villegas
was paid 1200 reals for four comedias acted in the
Queen's presence in Valladolid in September, 1603. * On
October 20, 1 604, the Queen commanded that 2000 reals
be paid to Gaspar de Porres on account of the comedias
represented before her during this year in Valladolid, and
1600 reals, the balance due him, on November 23, for
twelve comedias acted between August and the end of
November, i.e., 3600 reals for the twelve comedias.2
The autos sacramentales made a stronger appeal to \
Philip the Third than comedias, and were often repre- |
sented in private before the royal family. In 1609 Balbin~
and Heredia represented autos before the King in the
Escorial,3 and in June, 1613, Alonso de Riquelme and his
players proceeded to San Lorenzo el Real to repeat be-
fore the King the autos sacramentales which he had rep-
resented at Corpus of that year in Madrid. For this
private representation Riquelme was to have received
3100 reals, "but 200 reals were deducted as a fine, because
he did not furnish new costumes, in accordance with the
agreement which he had made."4
With the accession to the throne of Philip the Fourth,
ini62i,attheage of sixteen5 (he was born April 8, 1605 )t
su sala, y asi han hecho alrededor galerias y ventanas donde este la gente
de Palacio, y sus Magestades iran alii de su Camara por el pasadizo que
esta hecho, y las veran por unas celosias." (Relaciones de las Cosas
sucedidas en la Carte de Espana desde el ano 1599 hasta 1614, por Luis
Cabrera de Cordoba. Edited by D. Pascual de Gayangos. Madrid, 1857,
p. 298.)
'Perez Pastor, in Bull. Hispanique (1907), p. 368.
2 Ibid., p. 369. * Ibid., p. 375.
1 Nuevos Datos. p. 135.
5 Philip III. died March 30, 1621, so that, in fact, the new King was not
quite sixteen.
232 THE SPANISH STAGE
a more favorable period for the drama was inaugurated.
He was a generous patron of art and literature and was
especially an ardent admirer of the theater. As Schack
has said : "His name is indissolubly linked with the great
artists and poets who glorified his reign. Under his pro-
tection the greatest Spanish painters, led by Velazquez,
were united at Madrid to a school which will compare
favorably with that of any other country."
With Philip the Fourth the theater was a ruling pas-
sion, in which perhaps his inordinate weakness for the
comediantas played no less a part than his admiration for
the comedia. He not only greatly encouraged dramatists,1
but is said to have himself written a number of plays,
among which Dar la Vida por su Dama has been persis-
tently ascribed to him, though it is now conceded that this
comedia was written by Antonio Coello.
Philip's taste for these spectacles was developed at a
very early age, and in 1614, being then nine years old, he
appeared as Cupid in a representation given by the prince
and princesses before the King and Queen and ladies of
the court, the little Count of Pufionrostro impersonating
Venus. The movement of the car in which Cupid came
upon the stage made him ill, however, and "he vomited
twice, though no other mishap befell him, and they say
that he played his part exceedingly well," as the chronicler
gravely informs us.2
1 So we are told by all writers on the Spanish drama, but if we except
Calderon, Bocangel (an insignificant playwright), and D. Jeronimo de
Villayzan, whose career was a very short one, \ cannot recall another
instance in which this king gave any substantial aid to a dramatist.
Alarcon, it is true, held an unimportant appointment with a high-sounding
title, but this was not bestowed upon him by Philip. Nearly all the other
dramatists were priests, who depended upon the church for their sub-
sistence. The greatest of them all was sorely neglected by Philip; the only
royal favor that Lope de Vega ever received was a pension in Galicia of
250 ducats annually, granted to him a few years before his death. The
King's promise to provide for Lope's son-in-law was never kept. {Life
of Lope de Vega, pp. 376, 415. But see above, p. 37, note a.)
3"De Madrid 8 de Marzo 1614: El jueves de la semana pasada, el
A FESTIVAL AT LERMA 233
A minute account of another festival in which this
princeling took part has since been published by the Mar-
ques de la Fuensanta del Valle and D. Jose Sancho Rayon
from a manuscript in possession of the editors. It took
place at Lerma on November 3, 1614, and the comedia
represented was Lope de Vega's El Premio de la Hertno-
sura, though from the description here given the play
must have differed considerably from the version as now
printed in Lope's Comedias, Part XVI, Madrid, 1621.
The subject of the comedia, we are told, was taken from
Lope's epic La Hermosura de Angelica: the costumes,
stage machinery, and decorations are described in detail,
and a list of characters, with the names of those who im-
personated them. Here, too, the little prince represented
Cupid, and besides "he threw out the Loa."1
It would be very interesting to know the titles of the
comedias thus privately represented before the King and
Queen in the first decades of the seventeenth century.
Lists of such plays have been published for the year 1622
and for subsequent years, and doubtless the Archives of
the palace will reveal others prior to these dates.2 Be-
ginning on October 5, 1622, the private performances
given in the apartments of the Queen on Sundays, Thurs-
days, and feast-days during that year, as first published
by Schack (Nachtrage, p. 66), were as follows:
Principe Nuestro Sefior con los meninos representaron una comedia delante
del Rey y sus Altezas y las damas, sin entrar otro ninguno; represent© el
Principe al dios Cupido, y de salir en un carro se raareo y tuvo dos
vomitos, pero no se le siguio otro mal ; y dicen lo hizo bonisimamente, y el
condecito de Puno en Rostro hizo la diosa Venus, y los otros los demas
personages, y ha habido algunos a quien ha parecido que no se habia de
permitir que representase su Alteza, aunque la poca edad le disculpa; al
cual se le ha muerto el enano Bonami, que el queria mucho, y lo merecia
porque era mucho de estimar," etc. (Cabrera, Re lactones, p. 547.)
1 Comedias ineditas de Frey Lope Felix de Vega Carpio. Tomo I,
Madrid, 1873, p. 479.
2 In September, 1622, Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan had also repre-
sented three comedias in the private apartments of the Queen. (Bull.
Hisp. (1908), p. 247.)
234
THE SPANISH STAGE
COMEDIAS REPRESENTADAS EN OCTUBRE:
Autores.
Pedro de Valdes.
Los Celos en el Cab alio (Ximenez de Enciso).
La despreciada Querida (Juan Bautista de Ville-
gas).
La Perdida de Espana (D. Juan de Velasco y
Guzman?). It also bears the alternative
title La mas injusta Venganza.
"For these three comedias 900 reals were paid, or 300
reals each, at the command of the Queen, on the petition
of Jeronima de Burgos, wife of the said autor, for prior
to this only 200 reals had been paid for the representation
of a comedia."
Ganar Amigos (Alarcon).
Rodamonte Aragones (Juan Bautista
de Villegas). It also bears the
alternative title El valiente Luci-
doro. See Paz y Melia, Catalogo,
No. 3399.
Poderosa es la Ocasion(l). Repre-
sented twice.
Como se engahan los Ojos (Juan
Bautista de Villegas).
Alonso de Olmedo.
Cristobal de Avendano.
El Labrador venturoso (Lope de
Vega).
El Infante de Aragon (Andres de
Claramonte) .
El Rey Angel. Perhaps this is El
Rey Angel de Sicilia, by Juan
Antonio de Mojica. See Paz y
Melia, Catalogo, No. 2901.
The above three comedias were represented in October
and November.
COMEDIAS IN THE PALACE
235
Cristobal de Avendano.
Cristobal de Avendano.
Cristobal de Avendano.
Cautela contra Cautela (Tirso de
Molina and Alarcon).
La Perdida del Rey D. Sebastian ( ?) .
Perhaps this is El Rey Don Sebas-
tian y Portugues mas heroico, by
Juan Bautista de Villegas. See
Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 2904.
Lo que puede la Traicion( ?).
El Marido de su Hermana (Juan
Bautista de Villegas).
El Martir de Madrid (Mira de
Mescua). See Paz y Melia, Catd-
logo, No. 2029.
El Labrador venturoso (Lope de
Vega) .
El Labrador venturoso (Lope de
Vega).
San Bruno ( ?).
La Caida de Faeton{ ?). See Paz y
Melia, Catalogo, No. 1225.
Ir y quedarse( ?).
Quien no se aventura (Guillen de
Castro).
El Principe ignorante(l). Perhaps
Lope's El Principe inocente, men-
tioned in his Peregrino en su Patria
(1604).
Mas merece quien mas ama (Antonio
Hurtado de Mendoza). Acted
twice.
Las Victorias del Marques de Canete
(written by nine Ingenios). See
Barrera, Catalogo, p. 31. Acted
in conjunction with the company
of Valdes.
Trances de Amor (?). Calderon
wrote a play Lances de Amor y
Fortuna, published in 1636.
236
THE SPANISH STAGE
Juan de Morales Medrano.
[Manuel] Vallejo.
Pedro de Valdes.
ElNinodelSenado(^).
La Conquista de Jerusalen(l). See
Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 1508.
Twice represented.
Celos engendran Amor( ?).
Las Pobrezas de Reynaldos (Lopede
Vega).
La V engadora de las M.ugeres (Lope
de Vega).
El Vencedor vencido en el Torneo.
Perhaps this is El Vencedor ven-
cido, by D. Juan de Ochoa of
Seville. See Paz y Melia, Cata-
logo, No. 3428.
La milagrosa Eleccion de Put V.
(Moreto).
'La Judit Espanola( ?) .
La Romera de Santiago (Tirso de
Molina).
Las Pruebas de la Leah ad ( ?).
Las Burlas de Pedro de Urdemalas
(Lope de Vega?). See my Life
of Lope de Vega, p. 524.
La Selva de Amor(l). It cannot be
Selva de Amor y Celos, by Fran-
cisco de Rojas, who was not born
till 1607. Perhaps it is Lope's
Selvas y Bosques de Amor.
[Amor], Pleito y Desafio (Lope de
Vega).
Los Celos en el Cabal 1 0 (Ximenez de
Enciso). Represented twice.
D.SanchoelMalo(?).
Las Azanas del Marques de Cahete
(by nine Ingenios). Represented
by Valdes and Avendano. See
above.
La despreciada Querida (Juan Bau-
tista de Villegas).
PRIVATE REPRESENTATIONS 1623-54 237
The whole number of comedias represented in the
apartments of the Queen from October 5, 1622, to Feb-
ruary 8, 1623, was forty-five.
Another very important list of comedias represented
before Philip the Fourth between 1623 and 1654 was pub-
lished many years ago by Sr. Cruzada Villaamil.1 It con-
sists of about three hundred titles, beginning with five
comedias performed by the company of Juan Bautista de
Villegas, and including one (Como se engahan los Ojos)
which he himself had written. The latest play in the list
is Calderon's La Hija del Aire, acted by the company of
Adrian Lopez in November, 1653. For each of these
representations the King paid 200 reals.
Of the private representations of comedias just men-
tioned, those which took place in the autumn of 1622 and
in the early months of 1623, to the young Queen, Isabel
of Bourbon (elder daughter of Henry the Fourth, the
great Bearnais, and first wife of Philip the Fourth),
were given in her private apartments in the Alcazar,
then the royal residence in Madrid. She died on Octo-
ber 6, 1644. In appears that, before these perform-
ances were given, Philip the Fourth desired to erect
a theater in the palace, and accordingly commanded
that one should be built "near the game of pelota."
Objection was made to the King's plan by the Coun-
cil, and whether it was ever carried out in the form
proposed I do not know.2 That representations con-
tinued to be given in the Alcazar, however, for some
'In El Averiguador, Tomo I, Madrid, 1871. The great scarcity of this
publication induced me to reprint the list in the Modern Language Re-
view, Cambridge, England, Vol. II, 1907, with additions, under the title
"Notes on the Chronology of the Spanish Drama." It will be seen that
the King was less liberal than the Queen in his expenditures for this
favorite amusement.
"'31 Agosto 1622. — Habiendo entendido que su magestad quiere hacer en
Palacio un corral de comedias, se acordo que para el primero Ayunta-
miento se llame a la villa para tratar dello y se llame al Sr. Luis Hurtado
particularmente para saber del, como veedor de las obras de su magestad,
lo que en esto hay.
"Acorddse (2 Septiembre 1622) que se llame a la Villa para el lunes a
238 THE SPANISH STAGE
years, is certain. The King, prior to this, and until the
completion of the sumptuous palace, the Buen Retiro, in
1632, had festal performances given in the royal gardens
at Aranjuez, where an immense stage was constructed by
the Italian architect Cesare Fontana, the theater being
one of great magnificence. Here a splendid festival was
presented on the King's seventeenth birthday, April «8,
1622. Don Juan de Tarsis, Count of Villamediana, was
the author of the comedia, La Gloria de Niquea y De-
scription de Aranjuez, which was presented on that occa-
sion.1
In 1 63 1, on a large tract of land adjoining the royal
monastery and convent of San Jeronimo, Philip began the
erection of a new royal residence, the Buen Retiro, "a
fantastic palace of pleasure and pastime which was to
fin de tratar del nuevo corral de comedias que su magestad es servido
y manda que se haga junto al juego de pelota. En 5 de Septiembre se
acordo hablar al Presidente del Consejo exponiendole los dafios que la
Villa tendria con la instalacion del nuevo corral de comedias, pues no
podria dar a los hospitales los 60,000 (ducados) anuales que les da."
(Libros de Acuerdos del Ayuntamiento de Madrid. Perez Pastor, Nuevos
Datos, p. 191.)
1 Obras de Don Juan de Tarsis, Conde de Villamediana y Correo Mayor
de Su Magestad, Caragoca, por Juan de Lanaja y Quartanet, Inpresor del
Reino de Aragon y de la Universidad, Afio 1629, pp. 1-54. Mr. Martin
Hume gives the following account of this festival : "In the following
spring of 1622 there was a great series of festivals at Aranjuez, where
the court was then in residence, to celebrate Philip's seventeenth birthday.
Already the glamour of the stage had seized upon Philip and his wife,
and one of the attractions of the rejoicings was the representation, in a
temporary theater of canvas, erected amidst the trees on the 'island gar-
den,' and beautifully adorned, of a comedy in verse by Count de Villa
Mediana, dedicated to the Queen. The comedy was called La Gloria de
Niquea, and Isabel herself was to personate the goddess of beauty. It
was night, and the flimsy structure of silk and canvas was brilliantly lit
with wax lights when all the court had assembled to see the show; the
young King and his two brothers and sister being seated in front of the
stage, and the Queen in the retiring-room behind the scenes. The pro-
logue had been finished successfully, and the audience were awaiting the
withdrawing of the curtain that screened the stage, when a piercing shriek
went up from the back, and a moment afterward a long tongue of flame
licked up half the drapery before the stage, and immediately the whole
place was ablaze. Panic seized upon the splendid mob, and there was a
rush to escape. The King succeeded in fighting his way out with diffi-
THE "BUEN RETIRO" 239
obscure utterly the groves, gardens, and ancient palaces
of the Pardo and the Casa de Campo, which had been
the delight of Philip the Second and Philip the Third."1
The palace was surrounded by extensive gardens, groves,
and artificial lakes, and contained a magnificent theater. On
a portion of the site occupied by the Buen Retiro had for-
merly stood an aviary with a collection of poultry, belong-
ing to the Countess of Olivares,2 husband of the King's
favorite, the Count-Duke of Olivares, to whose ideas the
palace owed its origin and who was the leading spirit in its
erection and completion. As the palace and its gardens
were not finished until October, 1632, the festival, which
was one of the greatest magnificence, given to the royal
couple by the Count-Duke on St. John's eve, 1631, took
place in the gardens of the Duke of Maqueda and D. Luis
culty, and made his way to the back of the stage in search of his wife.
In the densely wooded gardens that surrounded the blazing structure he
sought for a time in vain, but at last found that Villa Mediana had been
before him, and that the half-fainting figure of the Queen was lying in
the Count's arms. Whatever may have been the truth of the matter,
this, at all events, made a delightful bonne bouche for the scandalmongers,
who hated Villa Mediana for his atrabilious gibes, and it soon became
noised abroad that the Count had planned the whole affair, and had
purposely set fire to the theater that he might gain the credit of having
clasped her in his arms, if but for a moment." (The Court of Philip IV.,
p. 58.) Four months after this, in August, 1622, Villa Mediana was
murdered in Madrid, while returning home in his coach, soon after dark.
An account of the above-mentioned festival at Aranjuez, and a descrip-
tion of the magnificent theater erected there by the skill of Capitan Julio
Cesar Fontana, together with a descriptive poem entitled Relacion de la
Fiesta de Aranjuez en Verso, by Don Antonio de Mendoza, will be found
in that author's works, entitled El Fenix Castellano, etc., Lisboa, 1690,
pp. 426 ff.
'Mesonero Romanos, El Antigua Madrid, Madrid, 1881, Vol. II, p. 163 ;
Hume, The Court of Philip IV., p. 238.
1 Hence the term gallinero sometimes applied to the palace, but gener-
ally, it seems, to the theater, for we read frequently of comedias
represented in the gallinero of the Buen Retiro. Madame d'Aulnoy's
description is as follows: "Le Buen Retiro est une maison Royale a l'une
des portes de la Ville. Le Comte-Duc y fit faire d'abord une petite
maison qu'il nomma Gallinero, pour mettre des poulets fort rares qu'on
lui avait donnees; & comrae il alloit les voir assez souvent, la situation
de ce lieu qui est sur le penchant d'une colline, & dont la vue est tres
agreable, l'engagea d'entreprendre un batiment considerable. ... La
240 THE SPANISH STAGE
Mendez de Carrion, which adjoined each other. During
this festival two comedias were represented: Quien mas
miente medra mas, written by Don Francisco de Quevedo
and D. Antonio de Mendoza, and performed by the
company of Vallejo, and Lope de Vega's sprightly com-
edy La Noche de San Juan, represented by the company
of Cristobal de Avendafio.1
In October, 1632, the completion of the Buen Retiro
was celebrated with a festival of great splendor, begin-
ning with a cane tourney in which the King and the
Count-Duke took part, followed by other sports and
entertainments. It was celebrated by Lope de Vega in a
poem entitled A la primer a Fiesta del Palacio nuevo.2 A
play for the solemnity of swearing fealty to the infant
prince Baltasar, written by the Prince of Esquilache, and
acted at the palace in this year, is mentioned by Ticknor,
as well as two other plays acted on the same occasion-
one by Antonio de Mendoza and the other by Lopez de
Enciso.3
From this time forth representations in the theater of
the Buen Retiro were of frequent occurrence, and, ac-
cording to Pellicer, in 1640 people began to visit them
in the same manner as they did those in the Corral de la
Cruz and in the Principe.4
Salle pour les Comedies est d'un beau dessin, fort grande, toute ornee de
sculpture & de dorure. L'on peut etre quinze dans chaque loge sans
s'incommoder. Elles ont toutes des jalousies, & celle ou se met le Roi est
fort doree. II n'y a ni Orchestre ni Amphitheatre. On s'assit dans le
parterre sur des bancs." (Relation du Voyage d'Espagne, La Haye,
1693, Vol. Ill, p. 6.)
1 Pellicer, Histrionismo, Vol. II, pp. 167 ff., and Hume, The Court of
Philip IV., p. 231.
2 Published in his Vega del Parnaso, Madrid, 1637, fol. 61, v. Be-
sides the magnificent theater which the King had built in the palace of
Buen Retiro, spectacles were also represented upon the pond in the gar-
dens. See below.
3 History of Spanish Literature, Vol. Ill, p. 48, note.
'Avisos de Pellicer, 7 Febrero 1640. "El Rey nuestro Sefior con toda
su casa y la Senora Princesa de Carifian esta desde el dia de San Bias
en el Buen Retiro, donde ha de tenerse hasta la Quaresma. Hase em-
LOPE'S SELFA SIN AMOR 241
Among the festal performances before the royal family
in the palace, it may not be without interest to mention
Lope de Vega's pastoral eclogue La Selva sin Amor,
which was sung before his Majesty sometime prior to
November 22, 1629. This, as Ticknor says, was the first
attempt to introduce dramatic performances with music.
The eclogue was wholly sung, and, as Lope himself says,
"it was a thing new in Spain." It was played with a
showy apparatus of scenery and stage machinery prepared
by Cosme Lotti, an Italian architect.1 It was to the latter's
great skill, moreover, that the success of many of the
sumptuous court representations given by the king were in
no small measure due. Among them may be mentioned :
"Circe. A Dramatic Spectacle which was represented on
the great pond of the Retiro, the invention of Cosme Lotti,
at the request of her most excellent Ladyship the Countess
of Olivares, Duchess of San Lucar la Mayor, on the night
pezado a representar en el teatro de las comedias que se ha fabricado
dentro y concurre la gente en la misma forma que a los de la Cruz y del
Principe, celebrandose para los Hospitales y autores de la Farsa. Es
obra grande." (Schack, Nachtrage, p. 72.) "Los Bandos de Verona, de
D. Francisco de Rojas, estrenose el 4 de Febrero de 1640, representandola
la compafiia de Bartolome Romero, y fue la primera comedia que se hizo
en el coliseo del Buen Retiro, asistiendo gente que pago la entrada corao
en los demas corrales" (Bib. Nac, MS. V-48), quoted by Julio Monreal,
Cuadros viejos, Madrid, 1878, p. 124, note.
1 History of Spanish Literature, Vol. II, p. 508. He says further that
"the earliest of the full-length plays that was ever sung was Calderon's
La Purpura de la Rosa, which was produced before the court in 1660, on
occasion of the marriage of Louis the Fourteenth with the Infanta Maria
Theresa— a compliment to the distinguished personages of France who
had come to Spain in honor of that great solemnity, and whom it was
thought no more than gallant to amuse with something like the operas
of Quinault and Lulli, which were then the most admired entertainments
at the court of France." Unfortunately a slight matter of chronology in-
terferes at this point. While Quinault and Lulli collaborated for fourteen
years, producing on an average an opera a year, the earliest, La Fete de
I Amour et de Bacchus, was not brought out until 1672, just twelve years
after Calderon's La Purpura de la Rosa. In Perez Pastor, Calderon Docu-
ments, Tomo I, p. 277, we read of a "fiesta (comedia) toda cantada,
de D. Pedro Calderon de la Barca, que se habia de hacer el domingo
28 deste mes [Noviembre 1660] a los afios del Principe, Nuestro Sefior."
This was, doubtless, La Purpura de la Rosa. Lope de Vega's dedi-
242 THE SPANISH STAGE
of St. John [June 24, 1 634 ?] ,1 Also Calderon's El mayor
Encanto Amor, "a fiesta which was represented before his
Majesty on St. John's eve in the year 1635, on the pond
of the royal palace of the Buen Retiro," and Los tres
mayores Prodigios, a festival also produced in the Retiro
on the St. John's eve of the following year. These plays
were given in the open air, and in the latter case the three
acts were represented on separate stages, beside one an-
other, each act by a different company of players : the first
act on the stage on the right hand by Tomas Fernandez,
the second act on the left by Pedro de la Rosa, and the
cation of the Selva sin Amor to the Almirante de Castilla is so im-
portant for the history of the stage of the time that I give the
most interesting parts of it: "No aviendo visto V. Excelencia esta
Egloga, que se represents cantada a sus Magestades y Altezas, cosa
nueua en Espafia, me parecio imprimirla, para que desta suerte, con
menos cuydado la imaginasse V. Excelencia, etc. ... La maquina del
Teatro hizo Cosme Lorti ingeniero Florentin, por quien su Magestad
embio a Italia, para que assistiesse a su seruicio en jardines, fuentes,
y otras cosas, en que tiene raro y excelente ingenio. ... La primera
vista del Teatro, en aviendo corrido la tienda que le cubria [it will
be observed that here there was an outer curtain], fue un Mar en
perspectiua, que descubria a los ojos (tanto puede el Arte) muchas leguas
de agua hasta la Ribera opuesta, en cuyo puerto se vian la ciudad, y el
Faro con algunas Naues, que haziendo salva disparauan, a quien tambien
de los Castillos respondian. Vianse assimismo algunos pezes, que fluc-
tuauan, segun el mouimiento de las ondas, que con la misma inconstancia,
que si fueran verdaderas, se inquietauan, todo con luz artificial, sin que
se viesse ninguna, y siendo las que formauan aquel fingido dia mas de
trezientas. ' Aqui Venus en un carro que tirauan dos Cisnes, hablo con el
Amor su hijo, que por lo alto de la maquina rebolaua. Los instrumentos
ocupauan la primera parte del Teatro, siu ser vistos, a cuya armonia
cantauan las figuras los versos, haziendo en la misma composicion de la
Musica, las admiraciones, las quexas, los amores, las iras, y los demas
afectos. Para el discurso de los Pastores se disparecio el Teatro mari-
time, sin que este mouimiento, con ser tan grande, le pudiesse penetrar la
vista, transformandose el Mar en una selva, que significaua el soto de
Mancanares, con la puente, por quien passauan en perspectiua quantas
cosas pudieron ser imitadas de las que entran y salen en la Corte: y
assimismo se vian la casa del campo y el Palacio, con quanto desde
aquella parte podia determinar la vista, . . ," etc. {Laurel de Apolo,
Madrid, 1630, fol. 103.)
1 Pellicer, Histrionismo, Vol. II, p. 14.6. A translation of this curious
document will be found in: Love the greatest Enchantment, The Sorceries
of Sin, The Devotion of the Cross, from the Spanish of Calderon, by
Denis Florence Mac-Carthy, London, 1861, p. 5.
ST. JOHN'S EVE 243
third upon the middle stage by the company of Antonio de
Prado.1
These private representations before the King by the
various theatrical companies which happened to be in
Madrid were of very frequent occurrence. Certain
actors or actresses whom the King especially desired were
called from other cities, and sometimes entire companies
were thus commanded by the King for these private func-
1 Calderon, Comedias, Part II, Madrid, 1637. My copy is of the second
edition, Madrid, 1641, where the play begins on fol. 257. It is preceded
by a Loa. These plays were produced upon a floating theater "which the
wasteful extravagance of the Count-Duke of Olivares had erected on the
artificial waters in the gardens of the Buen Retiro." In the concluding
verses of the play Calderon says that "the water was very happy on this
gracious night." Ticknor, however, states that "a storm of wind scattered
the vessels, the royal party, and a supper that was also among the floating
arrangements of the occasion, prepared by Cosme Lotti, the Florentine
architect," though the play was successfully acted several times during
the month. He fixes the date as June 12, 1639, which, however, was
certainly not its first representation. (History of Spanish Literature,
Vol. II, p. 481, note.) Ticknor's source of information was probably the
Anales de Madrid of Antonio Leon Pinelo, who, under the year 1640,
says: "La noche de San Juan hubo en el Retiro muchos festines, y entre
ellos una Comedia representada sobre el Estanque grande con maquinas,
tramoyas, luces y toldos: todo fundado sobre las barcas. Estando repre-
sentando, se levanto un torbellino de viento tan furioso, que lo desbarato
todo, y algunas personas peligraron de golpes y caidas." (Quoted by
Pellicer, Histrionismo, Vol. I, p. 193. See the very interesting note on
St. John's eve, in Don Quixote, ed. Clemencin, Vol. VI, pp. 259 ff.) A num-
ber of these particulares, as private performances were called, belonging
to a somewhat later period, are mentioned by Schack, Nachtrage, pp. 73,
74, among them being the comedia of Antonio de Solis, Psiquis y Cupido,
which was produced in the Buen Retiro on a scale of great magnificence,
the machinery for it being especially constructed by the Italian engineer
Maria Antonozzi. It appears that, beginning on October 29, 1661, the
theatrical representations in the palace were in charge of the Marquis of
Heliche, while those in the Buen Retiro were under the superintendence of
the Duke of Medina de las Torres. (Ibid., p. 74, and see especially Perez
Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Vol. I, and the Poesias de Solis, Madrid,
1692, passim.) Concerning the sums of money expended by Philip IV.
on these private representations, Barrionuevo tells us that a comedia
sometimes cost the King as much as 50,000 ducats. Under date of
January 23, 1655, he writes: "Vendra el Rey, Sabado, 30 de este, derecho
a Palacio, que no va al Retiro, como solia, por estarle preparando una
Comedia en el, de tramoyas, que dicen costard mas de 50,000 ducados ; que
por aca no se trata sino de pasar alegremente esta pobre vida, de donde
diere y quede lo que quedare." (Avisos, Vol. I, p. 213.) The same writer
also chronicles the following: "Miercoles 17 de 6ste [Enero de 1657] se
244 THE SPANISH STAGE
tions,1 though they had been announced to appear in the
public theaters, which were frequently closed on that ac-
count.2
Among the dramatists of the time an especial favorite
of the King was Don Jeronimo de Villayzan y Garces. It
«is said that Philip used to go incognito to the Corral de la
Cruz to see Villayzan's comedias acted, entering his box
by a passage from the Plazuela del Angel. It was, more-
over, the common report at the time that Villayzan aided
the King in his dramatic labors.3 Certain it is that before
January, 1623, when Villayzan was not yet nineteen years
of age, one of his comedias, Trans formaciones de Amor,
was represented privately before the King by the company
hizo en la Zarzuela la comedia grande que el de Liche tenia dispuesta
para el festejo de los Reyes. Costo 16,000 ducados, que pago de su orden
el Conde de Pezuela. . . . Todas las tramoyas y aparatos se han traido
del Retiro, al nuevo coliseo que se ha hecho en la ermita de San Pablo,
para tornarla a hacer este Carnaval. . . . Dio Liche a D. Pedro Calderon
200 doblones por la comedia," etc. (Avisos, Vol. Ill, p. 176.)
1 See above, p. 198.
' "Madrid, 20 Diciembre 1656. — Peticion de los arrendadores de los
corrales contra Pedro de la Rosa, que no represento en los dias 15 y 16 de
Diciembre porque, segun confiesa, estuvo estudiando y ensayando la fiesta
de los anos de la Reina, que se ha de hacer el 22 del presente mes.
Tampoco represento el dia 18, aunque tenia puesto carteles para hacer la
comedia El Conde Lucanor [atribuida a Calderon]. (Perez Pastor, Calde-
ron Documentos, Vol. I, p. 243.) Again, we read in a notarial certificate
dated Madrid, February 24, 1657: "Y ansimismo doy fee vi cerrados los
corrales el lunes de Carnestolendas, doze de dicho mes, por haber ido al
Retiro las companias de Pedro de la Rosa y Diego Osorio a hacer la
fiesta de la Zarzuela conducidos por el alguacil de corte Joseph Caballero
y vi conducir las dichas companias, y este dia no represento Francisco
Garcia por haberle llevado las mugeres al ensayo de la comedia de Don
Pedro Calderon, que se hizo el martes siguiente a Su Magestad." (Ibid.,
p. 244. See also pp. 277, 280, et passim.) It appears that the King did
not always go to the theater for the sole purpose of seeing the play.
The following curious bit of news is chronicled by Barrionuevo under
date of February 27, 1656: "S. M. ha mandado no vayan mafiana a la
Comedia sino solas mujeres, sin guarda-infantes, porque quepan mas, y
se dice la quiere ver con la Reina en las celosias, y que tienen algunas
ratoneras con mas de 100 ratones cebados en ellas para soltarlos en lo
mejor de la fiesta, asi en cazuela como en patio, que si sucede, sera mucho
de ver, y entretenimiento para SS. MM." (Avisos, Vol. II, p. 308.)
8 Barrera, Catdlogo bibliogrdfico y biografico del Teatro antiguo es-
panol, p. 491.
JERONIMO DE VILLAYZAN 245
of Juan Bautista de Villegas.1 Another, Sufrir mas por
Querer mas, was acted before the King some time prior to
November, 1632, and again on October 17, 1637, and it
pleased the King so greatly that he commanded that it
should not at that time be represented elsewhere.2 Still
another of his comedias, Ofender con las Finezas, was
played before the King by the company of Manuel
Vallejo on February 5, 1632, and again on November
13, 1633.3 Villayzan died at the early age of twenty-
nine, in 1633, in which year his friend Lope de Vega
published an elegy on his death.4
During the first twenty years of the reign of Philip
the Fourth, comedias continued to be represented, pre-
sumably, in accordance with the restrictions prescribed
by the decree of 161 5. That this decree was a dead
letter is evinced by the fact that a new series of regu-
lations for the theater was issued in 1641, at the in-
stance of D. Antonio de Contreras, "of the Council
and Chamber of his Majesty." These regulations, how-
ever, did not differ in any essential particular from those
of 1 61 5 ; indeed, most of the articles were a literal repeti-
tion of the previous decree. Here and there slight
changes were made, as, for instance, no woman above the
age of twelve years shall be allowed to act unless she be
married, nor shall any manager permit her to be in his
company, if she be unmarried ; also that no person, what-
ever be his quality or condition, be allowed to enter the
retiring-room of the players, under penalty of 20,000
1 See my "Notes on the Chronology of the Spanish Drama,'' in Modern
Language Review," Vol. Ill (1907).
2Barrera, Catdlogo, p. 492. The play must have been originally repre-
sented before the King some time prior to 1632, for in November of that
year it belonged to the repertory of Andres de la Vega, a theatrical
manager. (Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 226.)
'Modern Language Review, Vol. Ill (1907), p. 48.
Elegia a la Muerte de D. Gerdnimo de Villais&an, por su amigo Frey
Lope Felix de Vega Carpio. — En Madrid por Francisco Martinez, ano
1633. See Gallardo, Ensayo de una Biblioteca espanola, Tomo IV, p. 977.
246 THE SPANISH STAGE
maravedis for the first offense, and for a second infraction
under such penalty as the Consejo Protector may declare.
A like penalty is provided in the case of men found in the
entrances or exits of the women.1
According to an Aviso dated March i, 1644,2 the chief
subject of gossip in Madrid at that time was the restric-
tions and regulations imposed upon comedias and players
by D. Antonio de Contreras. Provisions are, however,
alluded to which are not contained in the above-mentioned
decree of 164.1, among them that "henceforth no comedia
which is the author's own invention may be represented,3
but only histories or the lives of saints," and that no actor
or actress may appear upon the stage in costumes of gold or
telas. Moreover, a new comedia, never seen before, may
be represented only every eight days, and "the Senores
may not visit any actress more than twice."4
On the death of the Queen, Isabel of Bourbon, first
wife of Philip the Fourth, on October 6, 1644, the thea-
ters were again closed. How long this interruption lasted
in Madrid, I do not know. In Seville, at all events, repre-
sentations were given in 1645, f°r m May of that year the
companies of Luis Lopez and Lorenzo Hurtado de la
Camara were acting in that city.5 The autos were regu-
"This regulation of 1641 was first published by Sepulveda, El Corral de
la Pacheca, pp. 556 ff. It is now reprinted in full in Cotarelo y Mori,
Controversial, pp. 632, 633.
2 In a MS. Cod. 12 of the National Library. Pellicer, Histrionismo,
Vol. I, p. 220.
3 This provision, Pellicer states, was intended to prohibit the writing of
"comedias de amores y de galanteos, las quales se llamaban Comedias
de capa y espada."
4 How this last regulation was to be enforced against the Senores we
are not told, but as very few of the provisions of these theatrical ordinances
seem ever to have been observed, this one, which allowed the Senores
but two visits to an actress, was quite gratuitous. Still, as this provision
doubtless concerned a very large class, it offered the more timid admirers
a loophole of escape in the very remote contingency of their being appre-
hended on a second visit.
6 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 374.
DEATH OF PRINCE BALTASAR 247
larly presented in Madrid in 1645, Calderon receiving
300 ducats vellon for writing them.1
Once more, on October 9, 1646, the theaters were
closed on account of the death of Prince Baltasar. This
again raised the question of whether comedias should be
permitted, and, according to Pellicer, a council of theo-
logians again submitted some regulations — "bastante di-
fusas" — to the King, recommending that for the present
comedias be suspended, beginning with "Pasqua de Flo-
res." They explain what they mean by "for the present,"
alleging, among other reasons, "until God may be pleased
to put an end to the wars with Portugal in which Castile
is now engaged." Among the conditions recommended
by them were : "That the companies should be reduced to
the number of six or eight, and that the compaiiias de la
legua, which are composed of gente perdida, who travel
through the smaller towns, should be prohibited ; that the
comedias to be represented relate to some proper and
moral subject or concern the life or death of some exem-
plary person or some noble deed, and that they should be
without intermixture of any love-affair, and that, in order
to attain this end, nearly all the comedias that had been
represented down to that time should be prohibited, espe-
cially those of Lope de Vega, which had worked such
harm in the customs of the people." They provided,
further, that no comedia may be represented without
previously obtaining a license; that the costumes of the
players be reformed, especially the guar dainf antes (very
wide hoop-skirts (of the women and the decollete gowns2
1 Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Vol. I, p. 126.
2 Pellicer (Histrionismo , Vol. I, p. 218, note) says: "Esta moda llamada
el Degollado continuo con el nombre de el Escotado, porque consistia en
usar las mugeres unos jubones escotados, que daban lugar a descubrir la
garganta, la espalda y los pechos, cuyo escandaloso uso, despues de haber
dado copioso materia a los Teologos moralistas, dio motivo a un Real
Decreto, que le prohibio, permitiendole solamente a las mugeres publicas."
248 THE SPANISH STAGE
and strange head-dresses; that players be permitted to
wear only one costume in any one play, except where the
change is exacted by the comedia, nor shall women wear
men's attire, and their skirts, moreover, must reach to the
feet, etc. Dances also were regulated; only married
women were allowed to act or dance, only players were
permitted to enter the green-rooms, and comedias were to
be begun at two o'clock in winter and at three in summer,
so that the play may be over before dark.1
There is much uncertainty concerning the date on which
comedias were again allowed to be represented upon the
public stage at Madrid after the death of Prince Balta-
sar. It appears there had been no plays acted in the
theaters of Seville and Madrid, at all events, even for
some time prior to the Prince's death, — since Shrovetide,
1 646.2
We know that the autos were represented in Madrid as
usual in 1648, for Calderon wrote them and received 300
ducats for them;3 the theaters of Seville were also open in
this year,4 though there had been no representations dur-
ing the preceding year, as we have just seen, nor were any
autos presented in Seville in 1648, the theaters not re-
suming until September 15, when the company of Esteban
Nunez began forty performances in the Coliseo. The
pest was prevalent in Andalucia during the years 1646-49,
the theaters being finally closed in the latter year on ac-
count of the havoc wrought by the contagion, though rep-
resentations were resumed in Seville in 1650.5
Sometime during the period 1646-47 a number of
1Pellicer, Histrionismo, Vol. I, pp. 217-220.
* "En el raanuscrito de Noticias y casos memorahles de la ciudad de
Sevilla, que procedente de la biblioteca del senor Conde del Aguila se
conserva en el Ayuntamiento, se dice: — 1646. Este ano prohibio el Con-
sejo las comedias; a lo menos en Sevilla y Madrid no las hubo desde
Carnestolendas." (Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 379.)
' Calderon Documentos, Vol. I, p. 163.
4 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 380.
'Ibid., pp. 383-386.
THE THEATERS CLOSED 249
autores de comedias petitioned the King for permission
to again represent comedias, alleging various reasons and
requesting the King to command that comedias be freed
of all indecent or objectionable features, etc.1
According to Pellicer, the cities that were most in-
sistent upon the reopening of the theaters were Zaragoza
and Valencia. Already in 1650 and 1651, he continues,
comedias were again being acted in the King's palace2 in
Madrid, and in the other chief cities of Castile, and now
this permission was extended to Zaragoza. With this
example before it, the city of Valencia renewed its peti-
1 "Peticion hecha en Cortes a S. M. para que no se prohiban las Come-
dias:— Por algunos autores de Comedias se a significado al Reyno = El
Reyno haviendo reconocido que la mayor parte de lo que se saca de las
comedias se convierte en diferentes obras pias como son Hospitales . . .
y importar en cada un ano mas de 80 mil ducados y ser evidente que
zesando el uso dellas, las ciudades an de eligir otros medios para
suplirlos (por ser tan preziso y nezessario no faltar a cosa tan meneste-
rosa) y que estos recarguen sobre los muchos que estan impuestos y que
los pobres bengan a ser gravados en ellos, quando eran exemptos de lo
que se sacava de las comedias y que cada uno lo pagava voluntariamente, y
generalmente ser los mas acomodados y.llegarse asta aver sido de general
desconsuelo para todos el que se aya mandado zesen las comedias porque
como ordinariamente no tenian otro divertimiento y que en lo aparente
siempre se a tenido por licito y no perjudicial ni danoso a la Republics,
pues a averlo sido en tantos anos como ha que se introdujeron asi en
estos Reynos como en todos los de Europa, se hubiera rresuelto zesasen, y
por ser un tiempo en que todos se hallan con tantos rrogos y afligiones, les
es mas sensible el que les falte este entretenimiento ; por cuyas rracones
suplica el Reyno a V. Md. se sirva de mandar se continuen y hagan las
dichas comedias dando orden se reforme la parte que tuvieren de pro-
fanidad 6 indecencia 6 que mirasen a dar mal exemplo y que las justicias
pongan particular cuidado en que se escusen las disensiones y alborotos,
que suelen ofrecerse entre la gente ogiosa y mal entretenida con que
pareze se rrepararan los danos que de hazerse las comedias se an experi-
mentado rresultan; y porque las personas de quien se componen no se
dividan ni ausenten destos Reynos en caso que V. Md. tenga por bien
de condezender con esta suplica, convendra que con toda brevedad se
tome rresolucion a ella porque de dilatarse sea muy dificil el bolverse a
juntar este genero de gente. V. Md. mandara lo que mas convenga," etc.
(Archivo general Central, entre los papeles correspondientes a los anos
1646-1647. Reirista de Archivo* (1883), pp. 179, 180.)
2 Two years before, in 1648, Antonio de Prado had represented eleven
comedias privately before the King and Queen, and the company of
Juana de Espinosa had performed eight before March, 1647. (El Averi-
guador, Tomo I (1871), p. 170.)
25o THE SPANISH STAGE
tion and induced the Council to consult the King on Feb-
ruary 15, 165 1. To this consulta the King replied with
a decree permitting "comedias de historias, as they are
represented in Madrid," to be performed in Valencia
also.1
The first comedia represented in Madrid when the
theaters were reopened was Santa Maria Magdalena.2
That theatrical companies, however, were acting in other
parts of Spain prior to 1650 is a well-attested fact. In
1649, during the journey of the new Queen, Dona Mari-
ana de Austria, from Vienna, the company of Roque de
Figueroa represented a comedy before the King on one of
the royal vessels lying at Tarragona.3
Another royal order, chiefly concerning the abuses that
had gradually been introduced in the matter of women's
costumes on the public stage, and which the decree of 1646
had been intended to remedy, was issued on January 1,
1 653.* On the death of Philip the Fourth (Septem-
ber 17, 1665), the theaters were once more closed, and a
1 "En esta Corte se ha ido tolerando el que haya Comedias de historias,
y en la forma que el Consejo tendra entendido; y si este afio se per-
mitieren, podra correr en Valencia lo mismo, precediendo su examen y
moderacion al exemplo de lo que se hiciese aqui; pues el conceder a los
pueblos algun licito desahogo parece preciso." (Pellicer, Histrionismo,
Tomo I, p. 223.)
2 Loc. cit., p. 223. A number of comedias bearing this title have
survived, and it is impossible to determine which one is here meant.
The thirst for novelty would preclude Lope's play, which was written
before 1618. The comedia so entitled by Luis Velez de Guevara (who
died in 1644) is of unknown date. It may be Jacinto Maluenda's La
Magdalena. See Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 704.
8 "Mientras los esclavos hizieron aguada, entretuvo S. M. el tiempo,
oyendo una comedia que Roque de Figueroa, Autor dellas, represento en
la Antepopa de la Real con su Compania, que entonces acaso se hallava
en Tarragona." (Real Viage de la Reyna N. S. Dona Mariana de Austria
desde la Corte de Viena hasta estos sus Reynos de Espana, Madrid, 1649,
quoted by Schack, Nachtrdge, p. 73.)
*This decree was first published by Schack (Nachtrdge, p. 80) from
a MS. in the Royal Academy of History at Madrid. It is as follows:
"Quando permiti que volviesen las comedias (que se avian suspendido
por los desordenes y relaxacion de trages y representaciones que se avian
esperimentado) fue con orden preciso que eso se executase con atencion
muy particular a la reformacion de los trages y a la decencia de las
THE THEATERS OPENED IN 1666 251
decree was issued by the Queen, Dona Mariana of Aus-
tria, on September 22, 1665, prohibiting the representa-
tion of comedias throughout the kingdom, and declaring
"that they shall cease entirely until the King, my son, shall
be of an age to enjoy them."1 The theaters remained
closed, however, but little more than a year, when the city
of Madrid, on November 17, 1666, petitioned the Queen
Regent that they be reopened. The question was again
referred to the Council, who threshed the whole matter
over once more, with the inevitable result that a decree
was issued, on November 30, again permitting the repre-
sentation of comedias,2 which were continued until July
14, 1682, when the theaters were again closed on account
of the pest.
representaciones que se havra de obserbar, de suerte que no hubiese, ni
en lo uno ni en lo otro, cosa alguna que ofendiese la publica honestidad.
Y porque he entendido que en esto se falta gravemente en las partes donde
se representa y que los trages no son con la moderacion y ajustamiento
que se deve, os ordeno que embieis ordenes a la Corona en todo aprieto
(de suerte que se observen precisa y indispensablemente) que ninguna
muger pueda salir al teatro en havito de hombre, y que si huviere de
ser preciso para la representacion que hagan estos papeles, sea con trage
tan ajustado y modesto, que de ninguna manera se les descubran las
piernas ni los pies, sino que esto este siempre cubierto con los vestidos 6
trages, que ordinariamente usan, o con alguna sotana, de manera que
solo se diferenzie el trage de la cintura arriba imponiendoles las penas
que os pareciere y disponiendo que inviolablemente se executen en las
que contravinieren al cumplimiento de la orden referida. — Rubricado de
la real mano de S. M. — Madrid, a i° de Enero de 1653. — Al Vicecanciller
de Aragon." This decree is also now printed in Cotarelo, Controversial,
P- 635-
1"E1 sentimiento a que ha obligado la falta del Rey nuestro Senor, pide
que prohiba generalmente en todos estos Reynos el representar Comedias,
y asi mando se den luego por el Consejo las ordenes necesarias para que
cesen enteramente, hasta que el Rey mi hijo tenga edad para gustar de
ellas." (Pellicer, Histrionismo, Vol. I, p. 270.)
2 Ibid., pp. 271-374.
CHAPTER XII
The "Partidas" of Alfonso the Learned concerning secular plays.
The church and the theater. Public players declared infamous.
Opposition of the clergy to the theater. It is mostly due to the
players. Character of the actresses.
The fact that the modern theater had its origin in the
liturgical services of the early Christian church naturally
induced that body, as the great conservator of public
morals, to keep a watchful eye on the growing popularity
and development of the religious celebrations and repre-
sentations, which finally culminated in the profane thea-
ter.
The Partidas of Alfonso the Learned, written between
1252 and 1257, had already declared what part the clergy
might take in these representations, namely: "that re-
ligious persons ( clerigos ) may not be actors in the farcical
plays (juegos de escarnios),1 so that people come to
see them, how they are acted. And if other persons rep-
resent them, the clergy shall not come to see them, for
much clownishness and lewdness are committed in them.
Nor shall these things be done in the church; rather do
we declare that those who do these things shall be driven
from the church in disgrace, for the church of God is in-
tended for prayers and not for lewd plays. But the clergy
may represent such matters as the birth of our Lord Jesus
Christ, in which is shown how the angel descended to the
1Ticknor, History of Spanish Literature, Vol. I, p. 269, translates juegos
de escarnios = buffoon plays; Wolf translates "Spottspiele." See also the
note in Ticknor, ibid. Doubtless rude farces with their accompaniment of
horse-play are meant.
252
THE COUNCIL OF ARANDA 253
shepherds and told them of the birth of Christ. And
likewise of his appearance and how the three Magi came
to adore him ; and of his resurrection, which shows how
he was crucified and arose on the third day. Such things
as these, which move men to do good and to have devo-
tion in the faith, may be represented, and, besides, so that
men may remember that just as here the things have, in
truth, happened. But these things must be done with
decorum and with great devotion, and in the large cities,
where there are archbishops and bishops, and by their
authority or that of their representatives, and they must
not be performed in villages or in mean places, nor fori
the purpose of gaining money." 1
Dramatic representations continued to flourish in the
churches, but, through the laxity of the clergy, the abuses
increased to such an extent that the council of Aranda, in
1473, enacted a decree, similar to the law just mentioned,
to regulate these performances, and strongly condemning
"the abuses which had crept into the festivals of the birth
of Christ, that of St. Stephen, St. John, the feast of the
Innocents," etc., and forbidding other festivals in which
theatrical plays, masks, monsters, shows, and many de-
'"Los clerigos ... no deben ser facedores de juegos de escarnios
porque los vengan a ver gentes, como se facen. E si otros omes los
ficieren, non deben los clerigos hi venir, porque facen hi muchas villanias
e desaposturas. Ni deben otrosi estas cosas facer en las eglesias: antes
decimos que los deben echar de ellas deshonradamente a los que lo
ficieren: ca la eglesia de Dios es fecha para orar e non para facer
escarnios en ella. . . . Pero representacion hay que pueden los clerigos
facer, asi como de la nacencia de nuestro Senor Jesucristo en que muestra
como el angel vino a los pastores, e como les dijo como era Jesu Cristo
nacido. £ otrosi de su aparicion como los tres reyes magos le vinieron a
adorar. E de su resurreccion que muestra que fue crucificado e resucito
al tercero dia: tales cosas como estas que mueven al ome a facer bien
e a haber devocion en la fe, pueden las facer, e demas, porque los omes
hayan remembranza que segun aquellas fueron las otras fechas de verdad.
Mas esto deben facer apuestamente e con muy grand devocion e en las
cibdades grandes donde oviere arzobispos 6 obispos, e con su mandado
de ellos 6 de los otros que tovieren sus veces, e non lo deben facer en las
aldeas, nin en los lugares viles, nin por ganar dinero con ellas." (Partida
I, tit. vi, leg. 34.)
254 THE SPANISH STAGE
vices and lewd figures are brought into the churches, thus
creating a tumult; besides, it forbade "all derisive
speeches or the recitation of lewd verses, which interfere
with the divine offices and make the people unmindful of
their devotions," etc. However, decorous and devout
representations which move people to devotion are not
prohibited.1
Those persons who, outside the church, made a living
by playing in the public squares — the singers and players
of instruments (juglares) and mimic players (remeda-
dores) — had been declared infamous by the Partidas of
Alfonso X.,2 and the church declared them without civil
rights, a stigma under which all public players rested in
France until 1642,3 while their ecclesiastical rehabilita-
1 "Quia quaedam tarn in metropolitan's quam in cathedralibus et aliis
ecclesiis nostrae provinciae consuetudo inolevit et videlicet in festis Nativi-
tatis Domini nostri Jesu Christi, et sanctorum Stephani, Ioannis et Inno-
centium aliisque certis diebus festivis, etiam in solemnitatibus missarum
novarum (dum divina aguntur) ludi theatrales, larvae, monstra, spec-
tacula, nee non quam plurima inhonesta et diversa figmenta in ecclesiis
introducuntur, tumultuationes quoque et turpia carmina et derisorii ser-
mones dicuntur, adeo quod divinum officium impediunt et populum reddunt
indevotum: nos hanc corruptelam sacro approbante consilio, revocantes
hujusmodi larvas, ludos, monstra, spectacula, figmenta, tumultuationes
fieri, carmina quoque turpia et sermones illicitos dici, tarn in metropoli-
tanis quam cathedralibus ceterisque nostrae provinciae ecclesiis dum
divina celebrantur praesentium serie omnino prohibemus: statuentes
nihilominus, ut clerici, qui praemissa ludibria et inhonesta figmenta
officiis divinis immiscuerint aut immisceri permiserint, se in praefatis
metropolitanis seu cathedralibus ecclesiis beneficiati exstiterint, ex ipso
per mensem portitionibus suis mulctentur: si vero in parochial ibus fuerint
beneficiati triginta et si non fuerint quindecim regalium poenam incurrant
fabricis ecclesiarum et tertio synodali aequaliter applicandam. Per hoc
tamen honestas representationes et devota quae populum ad devotionem
movent, tarn in praefatis diebus quam in aliis non intendimus prohibere."
(Quoted by Schack, Geschichte der dramatischen Lit. u. Kunst in Spanien,
Vol. I, p. 136.)
'"Otrosi [son infamados] los que son juglares e los remedadores e los
facedores de los zaharrones que publicamente andan por el pueblo 6 can-
tan 6 facen juegos por precio, esto es porque se envilecen ante otros por
aquel precio que les dan. Mas los que taneren estrumentos 6 cantasen por
facer solaz a si mesmos, 6 por facer placer a sus amigos 6 dar solaz a los
reyes 6 a los otros senores, non serian por ende enfamados." (Partida VII,
tit. vi, leg. 4.)
""Die Kirche erklart ihn (den Jongleur) fur infam, fur ehr- und
THE ACTOR'S PROFESSION 255
tion was only effected by the great Revolution, and in
Spain to this day an actor who dies in his profession can-
not be buried in soil consecrated by the church.
Speaking of the actor's profession in England, Collier
says: "It was a profession in bad repute before Elizabeth
came to the throne, and long afterward; and poverty,
peculiar circumstances of position, or a strong passion for
theatrical performances, could alone have induced an in-
dividual to attach himself to it."1 In 1572 a statute was
enacted in England declaring that common players in in-
terludes, etc., not belonging to a baron or higher per-
sonage, or not having a license from two justices of
the peace, should be dealt with as rogues and vaga-
bonds.2
The church, as Cotarelo says, "put an end to pagan
spectacles; but the church itself, in the obscurity of the
Middle Ages, gave origin and birth to the modern drama.
At first forming part of the liturgy, in alternating chants,
dialogues, and choruses, with some sort of scenic appara-
tus; then amplifying and complicating these true repre-
sentations with events in the life of Jesus Christ, of his
saints, or of the heroes of the Old Testament, and after-
ward by permitting, within or without the churches, these
embryonic dramas to be enacted in the vulgar tongue,
with great apparatus, and with music, songs, and other
popular pastimes, the church greatly facilitated their
growth. And when, on account of the abuses which this
rechtlos, und unter dem Einflusse des kanonischen Rechts spricht ihm auch
das biirgerliche Gesetz die Handlungsfahigkeit ab. Diese Infamierung
hat in Frankreich die Jahrhunderte uberdauert: jene Schauspieler, welche
in 1637 Corneilles Cid kreirten, waren noch biirgerlich und kirchlich
ehrlos. Erst 1642 hob eine konigliche Verfugung die biirgerliche Infa-
mierung auf. Die kirchliche Rehabilitierung hat dem franzosischen
Schauspieler erst die grosze Revolution gebracht. Erst sie hat diesem
tausendjahrigen Zweikampf zwischen Kirche und Spielmann ein Ende
gemacht." (Morf, Aus Dichtung u. Sprache der Romanen, p. 153.)
1 Memoirs of the Principal Actors in the Plays of Shakespear, London,
Shakspeare Soc, 1846, p. 3.
' Fleay, A Chronicle History of the London Stage, London, 1890, p. 44.
256 THE SPANISH STAGE
tolerance necessarily produced, it closed its doors to every
profane element, we see the modern theater created.
While the church, "ever vigilant for the decorum of its
ceremonies," as the same writer says, "tried to extirpate
every kind of excess and evil practice," we know that its
success was only partial. Moreover, at the beginning of
the sixteenth century this vigilance of the church, at its
fountain-head at all events, had very much relaxed, so far
as dramatic representations are concerned. Alexander
VI. and his court were certainly not inclined to guard the
stage or protect it from abuse because of any moral or
religious scruples they may have had. It is ques-
tionable, indeed, whether the stage had ever sunk to a
lower depth than it did under their august patronage.2
Nevertheless, the actor remained under the ban of the
church, and this lasted in some countries, as we have seen,
until late in the eighteenth century : the great Moliere was
denied the rights of sepulture by the Catholic Church and
was buried at night, like a criminal.
1 Controversias, etc., p. 9.
"At the court of Alexander VI., besides the commedie, other spectacles
were prepared for the delectation of these noble personages, as "lo
spettacolo de' cavalli e cavalle in amore, goduto dal Papa e da Madonna
Lucrezia cum magnu risu et delectationc, da una finestra del palagio"
(D'Ancona, Origini del Teatro Italiano, Vol. II, p. 71, note), and the
"ballo delle raeretrici," etc. And we mention only in passing the comedy
ha Calandra, by Cardinal Bibbiena — performed before sua santa at Rome
in 1514 — in order to record a matter which concerns us much' more nearly.
Cardinals and pontifical secretaries were not ashamed to travel in the
company of prostitutes and to entertain them at their tables. On the
evening of August 10, 1513, the Marquis Federico Gonzaga, being only
twelve years old, supped at the house of the Cardinal of Mantua, his
uncle, with the Cardinal d'Aragona., Cardinal Sauli, Cardinal Cornaro,
several bishops and noblemen, and the' courtesan Albina ; on the preceding
Thursday he had been at the house of the Cardinal of Arborea, where
there was recited, in Spanish, a comedia of Juan de la Enzina, and where
were gathered together piu putane spagnole che omini italiani. (Graf,
Attraverso il Cinquecento, Roma, 1888, p. 265. See also D'Ancona,
Origini, Vol. II, p. 82.) The play by Enzina was probably Placida y
Victoriano, which, according to Moratin, was printed in Rome in 1514.
It is evident that the "vigilance," at this time, must have originated else-
where than at Rome.
THE BAN ON ACTORS 257
In Spain, as late as 1789, two members of the theatri-
cal profession, Cristobal Garrigo and Antonia Lopez
Antolin, were refused the "sacrament of marriage" by the
church, because they were actors, "their profession of
acting making them unworthy of the sacraments, they
being ipso facto infamous and public sinners" j1 and in the
following year communion (la comunion pascal) was re-
fused to the actor (primer galan) Antonio Cabanas and
to his son. In Spain, to this day, as already remarked,
an actor who dies in his profession cannot be buried in
soil consecrated by the church, because, as Sr. Cotarelo
says, "ecclesiastical sepulture is due only to those who die
in the communion of the church, and because the rituals,
not excluding the Roman, prohibit it to public sinners,
which actors are."2
It is doubtful, however, whether, except in rare cases,
the sacraments of the Catholic Church were refused to a
player. In 1590 Fray Manuel Rodriguez, in his Obras
morales en Romance, says : "The priests are obliged to
deny communion to actors, as they are defined in the
Council of Basle, because they are public sinners. And
observe that we do not speak here of the actors of farces
and comedias, because they are not public sinners, but we
speak of such players who publicly teach others to do evil
things, such as those who do publicly things that pertain
to the magic arts, tumblers," etc.3
This is substantially repeated by Fr. Alonso de Vega in
1 "El cuia, entendiendo que eran de oficio comico, se nego a conf erirles
el Sacramento del matrimonio, representando al sefior gobernador del
obispado que su ejercicio de representantes los hacia indignos de los sacra-
mentos, siendo por el infames y pecadores publicos." (Cotarelo y Mori,
Controversias, etc., p. 400.)
2 "Los comicos que mueren en el oficio no pueden ser enterrados en
sagrado, porque la sepultura eclesiastica solo se debe a los que mueren en
la comunion de la Iglesia, y porque los rituales, sin excluir el romano, la
prohiben a los pecadores publicos, cuales son los comicos. Ni vale alegar
la costumbre contraria, porque como dice Inocente III.: Consuetudo, quae
canonicis oviat instituis, nullius debet esse momenti." (Controversial,
etc., p. 405.) * Ibid., p. 525.
258 THE SPANISH STAGE
1609, who says: "Priests are obliged to deny communion
to actors who teach others publicly to do evil things, etc. ;
. . . but players do not sin in practising their profession,
for it is not unlawful in itself."1 Indeed, in 15981 D.
Pedro Vaca de Castro, Archbishop of Granada and Se-
ville, who had opposed the representation of comedias as
"a fountain of great evil," inquired very particularly con-
cerning players as to whether "they fulfil the precepts of
the church, especially those of confession and holy com-
munion."2 And in 1614 it was the opinion of Francisco
Ortiz, who wrote an Apologia en defensa de las Come-
dias que se representan en Espana, that the sacraments
should be given to actors, because the prohibitory canons
refer only to the Roman mimes, not to modern autos?
None of these prohibitions of the church was observed
in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, so far as we
can judge by such records of the marriages and deaths of
players as have come down to us. In 1596, for example,
Ana Ortiz requests that she be buried in the parish of
Santa Cruz, in the tomb of her husband, Pedro Paez de
Sotomayor (an autor de comedias), "who is buried near
the altar of San Cosme and San Damian."4 And on the
death of Pedro Llorente, an autor de comedias, on Janu-
ary 30, 1 62 1, we read: "He received the holy sacraments
at the hands of the licentiate Corralan, and requested in
his will that twelve masses for his soul (misas de alma)
and three hundred ordinary ones be said."5 In like man-
ner Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan, an autor de comedias, on
his death, on July 1, 1626, received the holy sacraments,
and Jeronima de Burgos, who died on March 27, 1641,
and whose life had been far from exemplary, received the
holy sacraments and was buried by the Brotherhood of
Our Lady of the Novena.6
1 Controversies, etc., p. 584. * Ibid., p. 578. s Ibid., p. 491.
4 Pirez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 44. B Ibid., p. 360.
° Ibid., p. 327. The only exception that I have found is the following,
THE CHURCH AND THE STAGE 259
During the long conflict in Spain between the theater
and the church, besides the many opponents of the theater
—who, almost without exception, flayed the actors with-
out mercy— there were also a few clerical defenders of
the histrionic art. These controversies have been col-
lected with great diligence by Sr. Cotarelo y Mori, in the
large volume from which we have frequently quoted, and
while many are mere diatribes against the comedia and
the players, not infrequently, as it seems, by men who had
never seen a comedia performed — to judge by the general
terms in which their arguments are framed — others con-
tain observations which are not without interest in our
present purpose. One of the earliest defenders of the
stage was Diego de Cabranes, in his Armadura espiritual,
the privilege of which is dated 1525. His opinion is that
fineries (atavios) for the representation of farces for
recreation only are not unlawful. His work is of im-
portance as a proof of the early date at which farces were
acted in public.
In 1559 Fray Francisco de Alcocer, in his Tratado del
Juego, says: "The representation of farces and inven-
tions is another kind of play which, when they are stories
from the sacred scriptures {sagrada escritura), or con-
cerning other devout things, and are performed by persons
who represent them with the grace which such matters
require, is a good and honest pastime and conducive to
devotion. And one should always take care that the per-
sons who represent the plays should likewise understand
what they are representing, and that they should be so
skilful in what they do and should know so well what they
and it happens to be the case of a famous autor de comedias: "29 Marzo
1610. Partida de defuncion de Nicolas de los Rios. — En Madrid, en veinte
y nueve de Marzo de 1610 afios raurio de aplopegia {sic) en la calle de
las guertas, Nicolas de los Rios, autor de comedias, casado con Ines de
Lara. No recibio el viatico ni texto, enterrole su muxer en San Sebastian
en orden de quarenta reales." (Archivo parroquial de San Sebastian.
Perez Pastor, Nucvos Datos, p. 118.)
z6o THE SPANISH STAGE
say that the people present be edified and moved to devo-
tion. This is often lacking, and the actors are sometimes
so vulgar and act so badly that it rather provokes to
laughter, although they should not be condemned on this
account, provided their intention be good. Other histor-
ical farces there are, and also those invented by their
authors, which, provided there be nothing unseemly (des-
honesto) in them which is provocative of sin, are not to
be condemned, while those farces which are lewd and im-
moral should not be represented."1 This, it will be re-
membered, was in the period of Lope de Rueda.
On the other hand, the opponents of the comedia
among theological writers are legion. One of the most
important as well as one of the earliest is Fr. Juan
de Pineda, the editor of the famous Paso honroso def en-
dido for Suero de Quinones. His Dialogos de la Agri-
cultura were written in 1581, just prior to the time of
Lope de Vega's first attempts at writing for the public
stage. He says : "Turning now to our own actors, inciters
to evil lives, I should like to know what law of reason can
give consent to them or what king should permit them,
and especially those foreigners [the Italians] who carry
away many thousands of ducats from Spain every year."
That these actors employed their mother tongue, we learn
from one of the interlocutors in the dialogue, who says
that he went several times to the comedia, "especially to
that of the Italians, who better understood the expression
of the emotions," and that he took his wife with him, "she
being a person of almost as good sense as I am, and who
even understands Italian." "What could married men
say, who take or send their wives and daughters to such
spectacles, even if they should not return home at
night?"2
Pedro de Ribadeneira, a Jesuit priest, in his Tratado
1 Cotarelo y Mori, Controversias, p. 55.
1 Controversias, p. 505.
ARGENSOLA ON THE COMEDIA 261
de la Tribulation (1589), is most bitter in his denuncia-
tion of actresses. "The low women {mugercillas) who
ordinarily act are beautiful, lewd, and have bartered their
virtue, and with gestures and movements of the whole
body, and with voices bland and suave, with beautiful cos-
tumes, like the sirens they charm and transform men into
beasts and lure them the more easily to destruction, as
they themselves are more wicked and lost to every sense
of virtue."1
And not only theologians opposed the comedia, but no
less a person than Lupercio Leonardo de Argensola, who
had himself written three tragedies, La Isabela, La Alex-
andra (so much praised by Cervantes), and La Fills,
which is now lost. Why Argensola should oppose the
comedia, it is not easy to say. Perhaps he was piqued at
the failure of his tragedies, which are very mediocre and
extremely sanguinary productions, to judge by the two
which have survived. At all events, Lupercio's brother,
Bartolome, who was a priest as well as poet, never ex-
pressed any opposition to the stage of his day. In 1598
Lupercio addressed a memorial to Philip II. in which he
vehemently protested against the comedia as then acted,
which was the comedia of Lope de Vega. Speaking of
actresses, he says: "The lure which the devil used was
their singing, dancing, and exquisite costumes, and the
various personages whom they represented every day,
attiring themselves as queens, goddesses, shepherdesses,
and as men; and the representation of the most pure
Queen of the Angels has been profaned by them. And so
true is this, that in presenting a comedia of the life of Our
Lady in this capital, the actor who played the part of St.
Joseph was living in concubinage with the woman who
represented Our Lady, and this was so notorious that
many were scandalized and laughed when they heard the
words which the most pure Virgin replied to the angel's
1Ibid., p. 523.
262 THE SPANISH STAGE
question: Quomodo fiet istud, etc. And in this same
comedia, arriving at the mystery of the birth of Our Sa-
viour, this same actor who played the part of Joseph re-
proved the woman in a low voice because she was looking,
as he thought, at a man of whom he was jealous, calling
her by a most vile name which is wont to be applied to
evil women."1 Argensola likewise speaks of the scandal
of these actors wearing priestly vestments at the festival
of Corpus, and, "what is worse than all, to see the wounds
of Our Saviour painted on those hands which a short time
before were occupied in playing cards or the guitar."
Fray Jose de Jesus Maria, writing in 1600, says: "The
comedias as they are represented nowadays are most in-
decent and prejudicial to all classes of people, because
they nearly all treat of lascivious things or dishonest love-
affairs."2 He says further: "What pleasure or what
edification can it give to the spectator to see (as I have
seen in this capital) an actor embrace and kiss publicly
in the theater the very wife of the autor de comedias?"3
He alludes to the gross impropriety of having common
players perform the autos of Corpus Christi, saying : "If
there be anything in Spain which offends strangers and
pious natures at this festival, it is to see vile men (sucios)
and infamous, accustomed all their lives to representing
obscene and hideous things (cosas torpes y feas), repre-
senting mysteries so lofty and ineffable; and that the
woman who represents the lewdness (torpezas) of
Venus, as well in comedias as in her private life, should
represent the purity of the Sovereign Virgin in an act so
divine and solemn." (Ibid.)
One of the most distinguished among the opponents of
the theater was the historian Padre Juan de Mariana.
He had denounced it as early as 1599 in the treatise De
Rege, and again in his De Spectaculis, ten years later.
In his work Contra los Juegos publicos, a translation
1 Controversias, p. 67. * Ibid., p. 370. * Ibid., p. 377.
MARIANA ON THE THEATER 263
which, it is said, he himself made of his De Spectaculis,
with amplifications, he opposes the theater with great vehe-
mence.1 He would particularly exclude all players from
taking part in religious "festivals in the churches or in the
public autos at Corpus, and expresses his horror at hav-
ing heard the most gross and indecent entremeses recited
in churches, and dwells upon the great prejudice to re-
ligion and morals that low-lived players should represent
the lives of saints, etc. All actors should be banished
from public and church festivals, from which also, in his
opinion, all dances should be eliminated.2
Again, in the Didlogos de las Comedias (1620), by an
anonymous writer, we read: "An actress appears upon
the stage to represent a Magdalen or the Mother of
God, and an actor to represent the Saviour, and the first
thing you see is that the greater part of the audience
recognizes this woman as a prostitute (ramera) and the
man as a bully. Could there be a greater indecency in the
1 It is not certain that Mariana himself translated the De Spectaculis
into Spanish. Cirot, in his excellent work, Mariana, Historien, Paris,
1905, nowhere says so. Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. II, Index of MSS. at the
end, p. 100, mentions the "Tratado De Spectaculis, traducido en castellano
por el mismo (Q. 41)." See below, p. 294. Mariana died in 1623.
""Pretendo empero que los faranduleros se deben de todo punto
desterrar de las fiestas del pueblo cristiano y de los templos. . . . Pues
I con que cara los cristianos faranduleros tornados de la plaza y de
los mesones los meten en los templos para que por ellos se augmente la
sagrada alegria de las fiestas? . . . Pero diras por ventura que en los
templos no tratan de cosas torpes, sino que representan historias sagradas
tomadas 6 de los libros divinos, 6 de las historias de los sanctos, lo cual
pluguiese a Dios fuese verdad, y no antes para mover al pueblo a risa
tratasen de cosas torpisimas. Y es cosa muy grave no poder negar lo que
confesar es grande vergiienza; sabemos muchas veces en los templos
sanctisimos, principalmente en los entremeses, que son a manera de coros,
recitarse adulterios, amores torpes y otras deshonestidades, de manera
que cualquier hombre honesto esta obligado a huir tales espectaculos y
fiestas si quiere mirar por el decoro de su persona y por su vergiienza ;
y i creeremos con todo esto que las cosas que huyen los hombres modestos
son agradables a los sanctos? Yo antes creeria que todos estos juegos se
debrian desterrar de los templos sanctisimos como estiercol y burla de la
religion, principalmente cuando se hacen por publicos faranduleros, porque
siendo su vida torpe, parece que con su misma afrenta afean antes la
religion . . . y i sufriremos que una muger deshonesta represente a la
264 THE SPANISH STAGE
world? Having finished this part, the same actress ap-
pears in an entremes, representing an innkeeper's wife or
a prostitute, simply by putting on a bonnet or tucking up a
skirt, and then comes out in a wicked baile and dances
and sings a carrateria which they call 'The Clothes Laun-
dry,' in which all the unseemly occurrences in a laundry
are represented; and he who played the part of the Sa-
viour in a beard takes it off and comes out and sings or
dances or performs the baile of 'There goes Molly'
(Alia va Marica) . Does this not show the greatest in-
decency and mockery of our faith?"1 The same Didlogo
tells us that "actors are the filth and scum of the world
(la horrura y hez del mundo), and very rarely are good
people found among them" ; that "very often they can
neither read nor write, and they are wicked people who
have an aversion to work," etc., but "by dint of industry
and perseverance, here and there one becomes eminent,
like Cisneros, Leoncillo, Granados, Morales, Villegas,
Rios, and others."
The shafts of Fray Jeronimo de la Cruz, in his lob
evangelico stoyco ilustrado (1638), are directed not so
much at the players as at the comedias — at their plots and
subject-matter. "In the comedia is represented, with the
brilliant colors which the devil knows how to give to idle
thoughts and a wanton heart, how the married woman
may betray her husband: it [the comedia J facilitates the
deed and diminishes fidelity with the example it sets before
virgen Maria 6 Sancta Catalina, y un hombre infame se vista de las
personas de san Agustin y san Antonio? . . . creeria yo que por la misma
razon se deben echar dellos [los templos] las danzas, que conforme a la
costurabre de Espafia, con gran ruido y estruendo, moviendo los pies y
manos al son del tamboril por hombres enmascarados se hacen ; porque
i de que otra cosa sirven sino de perturbar a los que rezan y oran y a los
que cantan en comun?" Mariana, Contra los Juegos publico*, chap, vii,
pp. 422, 423 (Bibl. de Autores Espanoles, Vol. XXXI), and see also
chap, xii of the same work, which is devoted wholly to the bayle y cantar
llamado Zarabanda. {Ibid., p. 433.) The latter chapter, Pellicer says,
was added in the Spanish translation. (Histrionismo, Vol. I, p. 128, note.)
1Ibid., p. 218.
GENUS IMPROBUM 265
one of how others have done so. It incites the maiden to
thoughts which she knows not, and to desires which she
does not understand. It furnishes a means to outwit the
severity of the father and the precaution of the mother.
It teaches her to receive secret letters, to reply to them,
and what she has to do in any conjecture to attain an end :
to feign in public and to lose her fears in secret ; to make
false keys, to seek hidden doors and windows; not to fear
the darkness of the night nor the dangers of the house.
To the young it teaches liberties, boldness, and insolence ;
the plausible excuse, the bland speech, the deceptive
sigh," etc.1
Especially was the opposition most bitter to the repre-
sentation of religious and sacred comedias (comedias a lo
divino) and to the autos sacramentales, when performed
by the actors of the public theaters, for here the charac-
ters of saints and of the Virgin Mary were frequently
assumed by players whose lives were notoriously im-
moral.2 In addition to the instances already given, many
more could be cited from the work of Sr. Cotarelo, but
enough has been adduced to show the nature and extent
of the opposition to plays of this character.
Amid the great mass of controversy upon the question
1 Ibid., p. 203.
'See above, the excerpt from Mariana. Nearly two hundred years
later, in 1789, Don Simon Lopez, speaking of the comedias de santos, says:
"What matters it that the comedia be on a sacred subject, if those who
represent it be consummate rogues? What matters it if the life of the
saint, which is the theme of the comedia, be good, if in the very same
narration are mingled a hundred evil things; if there be interjected
sainetes, tonadillas, obscene witticisms, and low innuendos to please the
taste of the audience and to attract them, with the object of gaining more
money? Because the rascally actors know very well that if all were
devout and Christian the crowds would soon be lacking." He cites as an
example the priest Montalvan's Santa Maria Egipciaca (La Gitana de
Menfis). This, which is a comedia de santos, he says is wholly a tissue
of lies, perjuries, blasphemies, false testimony, jealousies, suspicions, gal-
lantries, solicitations, low puns, vile allusions, and inciting gestures. "In
it are depicted murder, robbery, and revenge. In it at every step the
names of God, Jesus, and Mary are profaned. In it miracles, prayers,
sanctity, and penitence are ridiculed. In it wickedness and effrontery
266 THE SPANISH STAGE
of the lawfulness of the comedia which has been collected
by Sr. Cotarelo, the voices of the defenders of the theater
make but a feeble outcry, which is drowned and over-
whelmed by their opponents.1 There can be little doubt
that the latter had good grounds for their protests, due
not so much to the plays themselves as to the character
of the players, for the Spanish comedia, especially as it is
represented by three of its greatest writers, Lope de
Vega, Alarcon, and Calderon, compares very favorably^
as regards its moral tone, with the contemporary plays
of England, Italy, or France,2 as we have already re-
marked.
Indeed, it is almost certain that the strong feeling
against the comedia, which found its expression in the
utterances of the theologians and the various decrees of
the government concerning the regulation of the stage,
was mostly due to the excesses of the players themselves.
As a body they seem to have been anything but respecta-
are lauded, and procurers and go-betweens are introduced. In It a public
woman is deified, giving her the divine name of Mary. And even more:
in it an actor who a short time before took the part of a gay gallant is
seen transformed into a hermit in a religious habit, imitating all the most
sacred ceremonies," etc. All this, he says, was seen in the public theater
of Murcia on August 16, 1789, performed on a Sunday by the company of
Francisco Baus. (Cotarelo, Controversial, p. 410.)
1 Among the later defenders of the stage was the well-known dramatist
Francisco Bances Candamo, in an inedited work formerly in the possession
of Don Pascual de Gayangos, entitled Teatro de lot Teatros de los
pasados y presentes Sighs: Historia escenica griega, romana y castellana.
Sr. Gayangos gives a long excerpt from this work in his Spanish transla-
tion of Ticknor's History. Tomo III, pp. 454 ff.
* Even taking the Spanish dramatists of a lesser order — among whose
works occasionally we find plays unsurpassed by the best — it may be said
that there is little, on the whole, which calls for our censure, when com-
pared with the rest of the drama of the time. Nowhere, for example, so
far as my reading goes, do we meet with the brutality and utter lack of
a sense of decency that is only too often exhibited in the Elizabethan
drama. Its relatively high moral plane is, indeed, one of the distinguish-
ing marks of the Spanish national drama. Only one offender need be
named here, and he, unfortunately, one of the greatest dramatists of them
all, and a priest, besides, like many of his fellow-playwrights: Tirso de
Molina. He seems to have been constitutionally incapacitated from allow-
ing a play to leave his hands without a slight smudge, at all events. In
ARIAS, FAMOUS ACTOR 267
ble, being mostly from the lower walks of life, though
there were not a few exceptions, as we have seen. In the
vast army of players which Spain produced in little more
than half a century — nearly two thousand names are
known to us— many became famous. A number are
highly praised by Lope de Vega, among them Alonso de
Cisneros, Agustin Solano, Melchor de Villalba, Nicolas
de los Rios, Antonio de Villegas, Luis de Vergara, Balta-
sar Pinedo, Juan de Morales Medrano, Sanchez de Var-
gas, Alonso de Olmedo, and others. Damian Arias de
Peiianel was universally regarded as the greatest Spanish
actor of his time. Of him Caramuel says: "Arias pos-
sesses a clear, pure voice, a tenacious memory, and viva-
cious manner, and in whatever he said it seemed that
the Graces were revealed in every movement of his
tongue and Apollo in every gesture. The most famous
orators came to hear him in order to acquire perfection
of diction and gesture. At Madrid one day Arias came
upon the stage reading a letter; for a long time he held
the audience in suspense; he was filled with emotion at
every line, and finally, aroused with fury, he tore the let-
ter to shreds and began to declaim his lines with great
vehemence, and though he was praised by all, he won
greater admiration on that day by his action than by his
speech."1
fact, on account of "the evil example and tendency of his profane corae-
dias," the Junta de Reformacion, in 1625, urged his banishment to one of
the most remote monasteries of his order and that he be excommunicated
latae sententiae, "so that he may write no more comedias or profane verses."
Acuerdo de la Junta de Reformacion: "Tratose del escandalo que causa
un fraile mercenario que se llama M° Tellez par otro nombre Tirso, con
comedias que hace profanas y de malos incentivos y exemplos y por ser
caso notorio se acordo que se consulte a Su Magestad mande que el Pe
confesor diga al Nuncio le eche de aqui a uno de los Monasterios mas
remotos de su Religion y le imponga excomunion latae sententiae para que
no haga comedias ni otro ningun genero de versos profanos y que esto sea
luego." (Perez Pastor, Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 250.)
"Arias habet vocem claram et puram, memoriam firmam et actionem
vivacem, et quidquid ipse diceret in singulis linguae motibus Charites et
in singulis manuum videbatur habere Apollines. Ad eum audiendum
268 THE SPANISH STAGE
Of comic actors, Cosme Perez, called Juan Rana, was
without a peer in his day. Among the celebrated ac-
tresses who were deceased in 1615, Suarez de Figueroa1
mentions Ana de Velasco, Mariana Paez, Mariana Ortiz,
Mariana Vaca, and Jeronima de Salzedo. Of those living
at that date he mentions Juana de Villalba, Mariflores,
Michaela de Luxan [the amiga of Lope de Vega J, Ana
Mufioz, Jusepa Vaca, Jeronima de Burgos, Polonia Perez,
Maria de los Angeles, and Maria de Morales. Of these ac-
tresses perhaps the widest celebrity was gained by Jusepa
Vaca, wife of Juan de Morales Medrano. She was much
favored by Lope de Vega, who wrote for her— "la ga-
Uarda Jusepa Vaca," as he calls her — the comedia Las
Almenas de Toro. Michaela de Luxan was the mother
of four of Lope's children: Mariana and Angelilla, of
whom we know nothing, Marcela, who became a nun,
and the son Lope Felix.2 Jeronima de Burgos, wife of
the actor Pedro de Valdes, also enjoyed the friendship of
the great dramatist for years, and for her he wrote the
comedia La Dama boba in 1613, though when he fell out
with her he was unkind enough to accuse her of having
once sold hot rolls in Valladolid. Of Maria de los Ange-
les, wife of Jeronimo Sanchez, actor, Lope, in a letter
written in May, 1614, in a fit of ill will, says that she was
brought up in the Rastro of Toledo, among the tripe-
venders (mondongueras) . Several other actresses ac-
quired great renown at a somewhat later date, among
them Maria de Cordoba y de la Vega (Amarilis),3 Ma-
confluebant excellentissimi concionatores, ut dictionis et actionis perfec-
tionem addiscerent. Matriti semel Arias sibi Iegens epistulam in the-
atrum ingressus, longo tempore habuit Auditores suspensos, ad sin-
gulas lineas percellebatur, et demum furore percitus Iaceravit epistulam
et incepit exclamare vehementissima carmina. Et tametsi Iaudaretur ab
omnibus, majorem ilia die agendo quam loquendo admirationem extorsit."
(Rkytkmica, editio altera, Campaniae, 1668, p. 706, quoted by Schaclc,
Nachtrdge, p. 64.)
1 Plaza Universal, ed. of 1630, p. 336.
2 See my Life of Lope de Vega, passim.
" Caramuel says of her: "Sub idem tempus [16243 Amaryllis (sic earn
COLLUVIES VITIORUM 269
ria Calderon {La C 'alder ona), the favorite of Philip the
Fourth, and mother of his son, Don John of Austria, and
Maria de Riquelme, who shines with especial splendor in
this fragile company, as a woman of unblemished reputa-
tion and an actress of singular gifts and attainments.1 "She
possessed great beauty and was of so lively an imagina-
tion that, to the astonishment of all, she could entirely
change the color of her countenance while speaking. At
the narration of some happy incident her face was suf-
fused with a rosy tint, but if an unfortunate circum-
stance intervened, she suddenly became deathly pale ; and
in this she was alone and inimitable."2
These and some others "enjoyed, no doubt," as Tick-
nor says, "that ephemeral, but brilliant, reputation which
is generally the best reward of the best of their class;
and enjoyed it to as high a degree, perhaps, as any per-
sons that have appeared on the stage in more modern
times."3
While it is true that the comedia was endangered by
the loose and vicious lives of the players, the temptations
to which the latter were subjected were, on the other
hand, so great that their conduct need cause us little sur-
prise. This is especially true after the accession to the
throne of Philip the Fourth. The court of that monarch
was, without doubt, one of the most dissolute in Europe.
From his early years he had shown an extreme fondness
vocabant) inter Comicas floruit, quae erat prodigiosa in sua arte. EIo-
quebatur, canebat, musicis instruments ludebat, tripudiabat, et nihil erat,
quod cum laude et applausu non faceret." (Schack, Nachtrage, p. 64.)
'See above, pp. 163, 164.
2 "Paucis post annis theatra adsurgebat Riquelmae, adolescenti pulchrae,
apprehensiva tarn forti praeditae, ut inter loquendum vultus colorem cum
omnium admiratione mutaret: nam, si in theatro fausta et felicia narra-
rentur, roseo colore suffusa auscultabat; si autem aliqua infausta circum-
stantia intercurreret, illico pallida reddebatur. Et in hoc erat unica,
quam nemo valeret imitari." (Caramuel, quoted by Schack.) A contem-
porary Italian actress, Virginia Andreini (1583-1638), is also said to have
possessed this power of changing the color of her face at will. (Rasi,
/ Comici Italiani, Vol. I, p. 147.)
'History of Spanish Literature, Vol. II, p. 519.
270 THE SPANISH STAGE
for the stage and especially for actresses.1 Few could
withstand the all-powerful influences of this royal rake,
and his idle and dissolute courtiers eagerly followed the
example set by their master. Only a woman of extraor-
dinary strength of character could avoid falling a vic-
tim to this horde of inveterate debauches. They wran-
gled and fought for the favors of the frail comediantes.
We need not be surprised at the words of Madame
d'Aulnoy, who, writing some years later than the period
which chiefly occupies us (but in which, in all probability,
matters had little changed), says: "One can say that ac-
tresses are worshiped at this court. There is not one who
is not the mistress of some great lord and for whom quar-
rels have not taken place and men have not been killed.
I do not know what may be the attraction of their speech,
but in truth they are the ugliest carcasses in the world.
They are frightfully extravagant, and one would rather
let a whole family perish of hunger than permit one of
these beggarly comediennes to lack the most superfluous
thing."2
1 Sepulveda has truly said : "Don Felipe IV f ue rey, poeta y galan
enamoradisimo, un tanto calavera al uso de los Lindos, . . . romantico en
sus inclinaciones y novelesco en sus aventuras. A no haber nacido rey
hubiera sido histrion." (El Corral de la Pacheca, p. 261.)
"Relation du Voyage d'Espagne, La Haye, 1693, Tome III, p. 23. This
statement of Madame d'Aulnoy's is supported by the testimony of an
anonymous writer of a much earlier date (1620), who says: "... pues
sin ser muy viejo he visto tantos caballeros y senores perdidos por estas
mugercillas comediantes: uno que se va con una; otro que lleva a otra a
sus Iugares; uno que les da las galas y trata como a reina; otro que la
pone casa y estrado y gasta con ella, aunque lo quite de su muger e hijos,
y el ande tratandose inf amemente ; otro que con publicidad celebro en igle-
sia publica el baptizo de un hijo de una destas farsantas, colgando la iglesia
y haciendo un excesivo gasto con musica de capilla y con convite. No hay
compania destas que lleve consigo cebados de la desenvoltura muchos destos
grandes peces 6 Cuervos que se van tras la came muerta. Sabemos por
nuestros pecados todos tanto destos infortunios que es una de las mayores
infamias de nuestra nacion. Oimos decir que el otro senor salio desterrado
por la otra Amarilis; otro por la otra Maritardia 6 Maricandado, que
le dieron un faldellin que costo mil ducados, un vestido que costo dos mil,
una joya de diamantes rica; y todo esto se escribe y gacetea en otros reinos
y se pierda mucha honra, y aun se desacredita la cristiandad." (Cota-
IN ARDUIS VIRTUS 271
The utter lack of privacy in the dressing-rooms of the
theaters, which were used indiscriminately by both sexes,
could not fail to have a most demoralizing influence.
Here the actresses received the visits of nobles and other
idle and dissolute hangers-on, for whom the rear entrance
of a theater has ever had a powerful attraction.1 The
fact that they consorted with nobles and grandees and
received their protection inspired in these actresses an
insolence and effrontery that sorely tried the respectable
portion of the community. An honest woman ventured
with diffidence upon the public streets, especially upon
those which had become the recognized walks of these
favored creatures.2 Their unseemly conduct contributed
in no small degree to the general demoralization which a
love of idleness, a contempt for honest labor, and an in-
ordinate desire for ostentatious extravagance were rapidly
spreading through all classes of the capital. The Avisos
or news-letters of various writers of this period show
only too plainly the havoc which idleness and immorality
had made in all ranks of society.
relo, Controversial, p. 215.) This statement has an additional interest
from the fact that the actresses here mentioned, Amarilis (Maria de
Cordoba y la Vega), Maritardia (or Maria Tardia, wife of Cebrian
Dominguez), and Maricandado (Maria Candau, wife of Cristobal de
Avendano), were at this time at the height of their theatrical careers.
'The same conditions prevailed in France as late as 1639. "En 1639
encore, les comediens, hommes et femmes, n'avaient pour s'habiller et se
deshabiller au theatre qu'une seule chambre: encore y fallait-il recevoir
les importuns, qu'il eut ete imprudent d'econduire." (Rigal, /. c, p. 167.)
2 Their favorite resort in Madrid was the Mentidero de los Repre-
sentantes, or Liars' Walk of the Players — a small square with trees,
situated in the Calle del Leon, between the Calle de las Huertas and the
Calle del Prado, in the immediate neighborhood of which most of the
actors and actresses lived, and which they visited daily to discuss their
engagements and other matters of interest to the theatrical world. "For-
merly the Calle del Leon, beginning at the Calle del Prado and continuing
to the Calle de Francos and Calle de Cantarranas, was somewhat wider
than at present and formed a small square surrounded by trees, called the
Mentidero de los Representantes." (Schack, Nachtrage, p. 63.) It was
within a few yards of the house, situated in the Calle de Francos, be-
tween the Calle del Leon and the Calle del Nino, which Lope de Vega
occupied for a quarter of a century (1610-35) and in which he died.
272 THE SPANISH STAGE
But while players were frequently on terms of intimacy
with the nobility, they were nevertheless often treated in
a manner which showed that the grandee had by no means
lost the lofty conception he had always entertained of
himself as the representative of the absoluteness of divine
right. An instance occurred on February 8, 1637. Don
Juan Pacheco, eldest son of the Marquis of Cerralbo,
wanted Tomas Fernandez, a well-known autor de come-
dias, to give a new comedia on the day of San Bias, to
celebrate the recovery from a quartan fever of a daughter
of the Marquis of Cadreita, whom Don Juan at that time
was courting (galanteaba) . As Fernandez refused to do
this, the nobleman hired an assassin to stab him, and while
this stabbing was going on, we are told that Don Juan
was walking up and down in the cemetery of San Sebas-
tian, awaiting the outcome. "That is the way these ras-
cals (picaros) ought to be treated," he remarked, an
action, as the chronicler quietly observes, "which ap-
peared wrong to nearly all, because, besides the fact that
there were few people in the theaters on that day, the
Lope's house was in the very heart of the players' quarter and may be
seen on the map of 1656. It is not without interest to note that on July 13,
1674, the celebrated actress Mariana Romero, bought from Luis de Usa-
tegui, son-in-law of Lope de Vega, the house in the Calle de Francos in
which Lope died in 1635. On a plan of Madrid published in 1800, the
street is still called the Calle de Francos, though its name has since been
changed to the Calle de Cervantes. It seems that in the latter half of the
seventeenth century the Mentidero was shifted to the Calle de Cantarranas.
"Calle de Cantarranas
y Mentidero
para los Comediantes
todo es lo mismo."
(Loa para la compania de Felix Pascual, in Migaxas
del Ingenio, Zaragosa (no date), fol. 33, v.)
There was another Mentidero in Madrid, "Las Gradas de San Felipe,
Conuento de San Agustin, que es el mentidero de los soldados, de adonde
salen las nueuas primero que los sucessos." (Guevara, Diablo Cojuelo,
Tranco III. See also Mesonero Romanos, El Antiguo Madrid, 1881,
Vol. I, p. 261, and Vol. II, p. 44; and Sepulveda, Madrid vie jo, Madrid,
1887, pp. 1 and 335.) Clemencin says: "En tiempos antiguos la Puerta de
Guadalajara era, como ahora la del Sol, el sitio adonde concurria la
AVISOS AND AN ALES 273
lessees were interested in them [the actors] as well as the
General Hospital." 1
Nowhere else can the reader gain a more vivid concep-
tion of life in the Spanish capital during the golden age of
the drama than in these Avisos and Anales, the forerun-
ners of the modern newspaper. They reveal an extraor-
dinary condition of moral obliquity among all classes,
but especially among the nobility, headed by the weak,
profligate, and very pious King — El Catolico Monarca,
Felipe IV., as he was called, and one of whose proudest
titles was "Defender of the Faith." It would have been
a miracle indeed if the stage had been able to resist this
general contamination.2
gente ociosa, y el mentidero de Madrid. Despues se traslado a las gradas
de San Felipe." (Don Quixote, ed. Clemencin, Part II, chap, xlviii, Vol. V,
p. 465.)
1 La Corte y Monarquia de Espaiia en los Aiios 1636 y 1637, edited by
Ant. Rodriguez Villa, Madrid, 1886, p. 90.
'The license permitted in the public processions during carnival seems
almost incredible. See ibid., pp. 107-110. On this occasion, as usual, the
festival concluded with a famosa comedia which was represented in the
salon of the King. "And these fiestas ordinarily not being free from
unfortunate incidents which happen on such occasions, so in this one there
was much rowdyism; many were beaten and wounded, and a soldier of
the guard was stabbed." (Ibid., p. no.)
CHAPTER XIII
The term comedia defined. The various kinds of comedias. The
licensing of comedias. The representation of a comedia. Loas,
Entremeses, Jdcaras, Sainetes, Mogigangas.
The term comedia as used by Spanish dramatists is not
the equivalent of our word "comedy." "Since the time
of Lope de Vega every play in three acts or jornadas and
in verse is called a comedia. Both these requisites were
essential to a comedia. Of the conception of comedy as
we have received it from the ancients, and of its meaning
as opposed to tragedy, we must free ourselves entirely.
The Spanish comedia is a species which embraces these
differences and in which they are resolved. Here both
these elements mutually interpenetrate one another and
are transfused, i.e., romantic dramas result, which are
neither comedies nor tragedies, but combine both; or
either element may predominate, in which case pieces are
produced which, according to our current conception, are
sometimes comedies, sometimes tragedies, but which
nevertheless do not cease to be comedias in the Spanish
sense. In other words, the comedia may have either a
tragic or comic effect, but it is not confined to either."1
As Morel-Fatio has clearly and briefly defined it : "La
comedia designe une action dramatique quelconque, sans
egard pour les effets qu'elle doit produire dans l'ame du
* Geschichte der drama&schen Literatur und Kunst in Spanien, Vol. II,
p. 74. Ricardo de Turia, in the "Apologetico de las Comedias espanolas,"
says: Ninguna Comedia de quantas se representan en Espana lo es, sino
Tragicomedia, que es un mixto formado de lo Comico y lo Tragico, etc.
He further says that Spaniards want their comedias "abivado con say-
netes de bayles y danzas que mezclan en ellas." Norte de la Poesia
espanola, etc. Valencia, 1616.
274
SUAREZ DE FIGUEROA 275
spectateur, mais une action dramatique telle seulement
que les Espagnols l'ont concjie; la comedia est le drame
espagnol et n'est que cela." The same author says that
comedia is identical with our "play" or the German
Schauspiel. "Les drames les plus noirs de Calderon sont
encore des comedias."1
Attempts have frequently been made to define more
clearly the various kinds of comedias, but it cannot be said,
that, upon the whole, they have resulted satisfactorily.
The earliest of these essays was made by a dramatist
who was the first to write comedias in Spain in the manner
which, as afterward perfected by Lope de Vega, became
the comedia par excellence. I allude to Bartolome de
Torres Naharro, whose volume of plays, under the title
Propaladia, was first published at Naples in 1517. He
divides comedias into two classes: Comedias a noticia, or
such as treat of events which have actually happened, and
Comedias a fantasia, or such the action of which is the
pure invention of the author.2
Suarez de Figueroa, who possessed an intimate know-
ledge of the theater of his time, writing in 1617, distin-
guishes two kinds of comedias : ( 1 ) Comedias de cuerpo
and (2) Comedias de Ingenio or de Capa y Espada. The
latter division he does not define ; of the former he says :
"Comedias de cuerpo (if we except those about the kings
of Hungary or princes of Transylvania) are such as treat
of the life of some saint and which employ all kinds of
machinery and stage artifices to attract the rabble."3
These are generally called comedias de santos.
1La Comedia espagnol e du XVUe Steele, par Alfred Morel-Fatio, Paris,
1885, pp. 10, 13.
2 "Cuanto a los generos de comedias: a mi parece que bastarian dos
para en nuestra Iengua castellana. Comedia a noticia y comedia a fan-
tasia. A noticia se entiende: de cosa nota y vista en realidad de verdad:
como son Soldadesca y Tinellaria [two of his plays] : a fantasia, de cosa
fantastica o fingida que tenga color de verdad aunque no lo sea, como son
Serafina, Ymenea," etc.
'El Passagero, Madrid, 1617, Alivio III, fol. 104. Comedias de cuerpo,
276 THE SPANISH STAGE
Comedias de Capa y Espada have been defined as plays
that are based upon events and occurrences in ordinary
daily life and in which no higher personages intervene
than noblemen or gentlemen, and which are acted in the
ordinary costume of the time. They derived their name
from this costume, the cloak and sword, the dress of the
higher ranks of society in Spain; only the subordinate
characters, the servants and peasants, were represented in
the costume of the lower classes.1 They generally re-
quired little or no scenery for their representation.
Schack says, moreover, that the distinguishing character-
istics of the Comedia de Capa y Espada are based entirely
upon external circumstances (auszerliche Umstande) and
that it is erroneous to introduce into the definition any
inner motive of the action. They have been defined as
dramas of intrigue, but they may just as well, in certain
instances, be denominated dramas of character.2 It is
indeed futile to attempt, in this general division of the
comedia, to draw any sharp dividing line. On the other
hand, those comedias the action of which is not laid in
ordinary domestic life, and in which kings and princes
intervene, and which required a greater display of scenery
or costume and machinery, were called Comedias de Tea-
tro, de ruido, or de cuerpo. To this class belonged his-
torical or mythological dramas, those based upon legends
Figueroa says, are excellently suited to beginners, for, however worthless
they may turn out, the audience will not dare to hiss them, out of respect
for the saint. They are, moreover, the easiest to write, for he states that
he knew a tailor in Toledo who had composed several of these plays
which had been represented fifteen or twenty times. This man could
neither read nor write, but made his verses on the street and would re-
quest an apothecary, or any other shopkeeper in whose shop he happened
to be, to write his verses down upon scraps of paper.
1 Schack, op. cit., Vol. II, p. 96.
2 The dramatist Francisco Bances Candamo, in an inedited work already
cited (p. 266, note i), ascribes the invention of Comedias de Capa y Espada
to Don Diego [Ximenez] de Enciso: "Este erapezo las que llaman de
capa y espada: siguieronle despues D.' Pedro Rosete, D. Francisco de
Rojas, D. Pedro Calderon de la Barca," etc. (Ticknor, History of Spanish
Literature, tr. by Gayangos, Tome II, p. 553.)
THE LICENSING OF COMEDIAS 277
or the lives of saints, etc., in which the scene of action was
laid in some remote country or period. But here again it
is useless to attempt any sharp distinction, which, as a
matter of fact, the dramatists themselves never attempted.
Let us new turn to the representation of a comedia.
Before a theatrical performance could be given in any
town or municipality, a license had to be obtained, and
sometimes, before this was granted, a gratuitous repre-
sentation of the comedia had to be given to the authori-
ties.1 Moreover, every time a comedia was represented, a
special license was necessary, which was written upon the
manuscript used by the players. Among the early manu-
scripts of Lope de Vega containing such licenses are El
Leal Criado, dated at Alba, June 24, 1594, which con-
tains, among others, a license to Luis de Vergara to repre-
sent it in Granada, dated October 30, 1595.2
1This "representation speciale et gratuite" was also frequently exacted
in France, as in the case of Roland Guibert and his company before they
were permitted to act in Amiens in 1559. (Rigal, he Thiatre Franfais avant
la periode classigue, Paris, 1901, p. 17.) Likewise the English comedians
who traveled through Germany in the latter part of the sixteenth and in
the seventeenth century were frequently obliged to give a trial perform-
ance before receiving a license to act; to this performance the wives
and children, of the members of the Council were admitted free. This
' occurred, for instance, in Frankfort in 159s. A list of the plays to be
given also had to be furnished to the city authorities, as was done at Ulm
in 1603 and 1609. Plays were announced by drums and trumpets, the
company parading the streets. In 1613 the players went through Niirn-
berg with two drums and four trumpets, stopping in the squares, though in
this year they were forbidden to halt in the Hay Market. In those cities
in which the public theater belonged to the municipality, a lease was
entered into between the manager of the company and the civil authorities.
In Regensburg in 1613, Spencer, who is said to have taken in 500 gulden
at the first representation, had to pay a weekly rental of 22 florins. That
these visits of the English players were profitable is shown by the fact
that for eight representations in Niirnberg, from July 15 to July 31, 1628,
the receipts were 661 florins 7 kreutzers and 3 pfennigs, and the number of
spectators varied from 2665 to 515, though this latter case was the only
one in which the number fell below one thousand. (Creizenach, Die
Schauspiele der Englischen Komodianten, Berlin and Stuttgart (no date),
p. xx et passim.) The fee for licensing a play for performance in England
at the close of the sixteenth and in the early seventeenth century was inva-
riably seven shillings. Hensloive's Diary, ed. Greg, Vol. II, 1908, p. 115.
2 This play contains another license dated at Granada, November^ 1603,
278 THE SPANISH STAGE
Representations in the Madrid theaters, as already ob-
served, began at two in the afternoon during the six
months beginning with October i, and at four during the
remaining six months. The fee paid at the door entitled
the person to admission only — to the run of the house.
He could stand in the patio or pit with the mosqueteros or
groundlings, as they were called in the Elizabethan thea-
ter; but if he wanted a seat, an extra sum must be paid.
Those who desired seats naturally came early, especially
if a new comedia was to be given, and at one time they
must have resorted to the theater so early in the day that
this matter required regulation by the government, and
the theaters were not allowed to open their doors before
noon.1
While waiting for the musicians with guitars and harps
to appear, the sellers of fruit, confections, aloja (a kind of
mead), barquillos (a thin rolled wafer), etc., were busy
passing around among the spectators.2 The unruly and
showing that a new license had to be obtained every time the piece was
performed. Other early plays by Lope containing licenses are Laura
perseguida, dated at Alba, October 12, 1594; El Mason de.los Chaves,
dated at Chinchon, August 20, 1599; and Carlos V. en Francia, Toledo,
November 20, 1604. These licenses are all printed in Comedias Escogidas
de Lope de Vega, ed. Hartzenbusch, Vol. IV, pp. xvi, xvii (Bibl. de
Autores Esp.).
1Quevedo, Vida del gran Tacano, Cap. XXII, says that when a new
comedia was played, it was necessary to send at twelve o'clock for a seat:
"Era menester enviar a tomar lugar a las doce, como para Comedia
nueva." The nobility, who were favored by government regulation in the
choice of seats, used to send their servants to secure them.
aA vivid picture of the interior of a Spanish theater at this time is
given in the comedia La Baltasara, "Comedia famosa," the first act of
which was written by Luis Velez de Guevara, the second by Don Antonio
Coello, and the third by Don Francisco de Roxas. The first act represents
the interior of the Corral de la Olivera in Valencia. A bill-poster ap-
pears, who pastes up a placard announcing the performance of "la gran
comedia del Saladino" by the licentiate Poyo, to be given by the company
of Heredia. The dialogue is carried on by spectators in the theater.
Presently the fruit-sellers appear (they are designated by numbers) ; the
stage direction is: Los companeros repartidos par el patio, dizen;
"1. Avellanas.
2. Pinanes mondados. 3. Peros de Aragon.
4. Turron. 5. Membrillos.
LOAS 279
boisterous audience signified its impatience by hissing,
whistling upon keys, shouting, and noises of every con-
ceivable kind. Presently the musicians could be heard
templando los instrumentos ; the hour for beginning the
performance had at last arrived, and the musicians ap-
peared upon the stage and sang a ballad or seguidilla,
after which some member of the company entered to
echar la loa, i.e., "throw out the loa" or compliment, as it
was called in technical phrase.1
Loas occur in two forms, either (1) as monologues,
bearing generally but a very imperfect relation to the fol-
lowing play and frequently no relation whatever, or ( 2 )
as short, slight dramatic sketches which may be prefaced
to any comedia, like the loas of Rojas Villandrando or
Quifiones de Benavente; sometimes the loa directs the
mind of the auditor to what is to follow, as the loas to
Calderon's autos, or much more rarely it may be essential
to the comprehension of the play which it precedes, as in
the loa to Calderon's Los tres mayores Prodigios.
6. Suplicaciones, barquillos.
7. Agua de Anis, Cavalleros.
8. Aloja de nieve fria.
9. Datiles de Berberia.
Vejete: Que confusion, que locura !
Viuda: Todo esto hermosura causa,
Que es de la naturaleza
La variedad lo mejor.
Vejete: Los mocos de la comedia
Vienen ya con sus guitarras,
Con harpas, y con diversas
Galas que el Abril embidia," etc.
(Comedias Escogidas, Vol. I, Madrid, 1652.)
The date of this play is not known. Baltasara de los Reyes, in whose
honor it was written, was a famous actress and 'the wife of Miguel Ruiz,
actor, who is also one of the characters in the play. Both were acting in
the company of Gaspar de Porres in 1604, in that of Melchor de Leon in
1607, ar»d in that of Pedro de Valdes in 1614. The play was composed
after she had retired from the stage, which she is said to have done at
the height of her success, to enter a hermitage dedicated to St. John the
Baptist, near Cartagena. It is probable that La Baltasara was written
about 1630, when the memory of the actress was still fresh in the minds
of theater-goers.
"Caramuel says: "Hodie Prologus Comoediis Hispanis praemittitur et
28o THE SPANISH STAGE
Originally the loa was recited for the purpose of gain-
ing the good will and attention of the audience, which, we
are told, could be done in four ways : " ( i ) By commending
the plot, story, poet, or the autor who represented the
play. (2) By censuring or upbraiding the fault-finder or
giving thanks to the kindly disposed auditors. (3) The
third manner is argumentative, in which is declared the
history or fable which is to be represented, and this, justly,
is little used in Spain, because it deprives the listener of
much of the pleasure of the comedia to know beforehand
the outcome of the story to be represented. (4) The
fourth is called mixed; it is styled introito because it ap-
pears at the beginning, faraute because it explains the ar-
gument, and now they call it loa because in it the comedia
or the audience or the festivity during which it is given is
praised; . . . but all is directed to the one end: to gain
the good will and attention of the audience."1
vocatur Loa, quia profunditur in Auditorura laudes: et recitare prologum
est echar la loa, quasi laudes non tam dicantur quam in Auditores pro-
fundantur." (Rhythmica (1668), quoted by Schack, Nachtrage, p. 26.)
'"La loa o prologo de la comedia, que otros llaman introito o faraute,
a mi opinion no es parte de la comedia, sino distinto y apartado, y asi dire
aora lo que del se puede dezir. Al principio de cada comedia sale un
personage a procurar y captar la benevolencia y atencion del auditorio,
y esto haze en una de quarto maneras comendativamente, encomendando
la fabula, historia, poeta o autor que la representa. El segundo modo es
relativo en el qual se zayere y vitupera el murmurador o se rinde gracias
a los benevolos oyentes. El tercero modo es argumentative, en el qual se
declara la historia o fabula que se representa, y este con razon en Espafia
es poco usado, por quitar mucho gusto a la comedia, sabiendose antes que
se represente el sucesso de la histpria. Llamase el quarto modo misto por
particular de los tres ya dichos, llamaronle introito por entrar al principio:
faraute por declarar el argumento, y aora le llaman loa por loar en el la
comedia, el auditorio o festividad en que se hace. Mas ya le podremos asi
llamar, porque han dado los poetas en alabar alguna cosa como el silencio,
un numero, lo negro, lo pequeno y otras cosas en que se quieren sefialar y
mostrar sus ingenios, aunque todo deve ir ordenado al fin que yo dixe,
que es captar la benevolencia y atencion del auditorio." (Cisne de Apolo,
de las excelencias y dignidad y todo lo que al Arte poetico y versificatorio
pertenece. Los metodos y estylos que en sus obras deve seguir el poeta.
Por Luys Alfonso de Carvallo, Clerigo. Medina del Campo, 1602, p. 124.
Schack, Nachtrage, p. 23.) This is essentially what Alonso Lopez Pin-
ciano had said some years before, in his Bhilosophia Antigua, Madrid,
THE INTROITO 281
This peculiarly Spanish form of prologue is a develop-
ment of the introito, in vogue as early as the time of
Torres Naharro, whose Propaladia was first published in
15 17. Here, however, the introito was merely a sort of
argument of the play that follows. Likewise each of the
later pieces of Lope de Rueda, the Colloquio de Camila,
Colloquio de Timbria, etc., is prefaced by an introito or
argumento, a brief resume of the following play. This is
also the case in his comedias, which are accompanied by
short prefatory notes, spoken generally by Lope de Rueda
himself, for they are called Introito que hace el Autor.
But the later loas, beginning with those of Lope de Vega,
rarely have any connection whatever with the comedia
which follows. Generally they are merely the relation of
some trivial incident, nearly always in a playful, humorous
vein, and conclude with an appeal to the good will and
attention of the audience.1 Lope de Vega must have
written a great many of these slight pieces, nearly all of
which have disappeared. They are generally in the ro-
mance or ballad measure, sometimes in redondillas, and
vary in length from a little more than a hundred lines to
three or four times that number.
Among the best known loas are those written by Agustin
de Rojas and printed in his Entertaining Journey; they
1596, p. 413. He calls the lua "prologo": "Ay un prologo, que es dicho
comendatiuo: porque en el o la fabula, o el autor es alabado. Y ay pro-
logo relatiuo, adonde el Poeta da gracias al pueblo, o habla contra algun
aduersario. Ay le tambien argumentatiuo, que es el que diximos daua luz,
por lo passado a lo porvenir. Y ay prologo de todos mezclado, que no
tiene nombre y se podria llamar prologo misto."
1The first volume of Lope de Vega's Comedias, Valladolid, 1604, con-
tains eleven loas. Some doubt has been caet upon the authorship of these
loas. The fact, however, that they were printed at this early date rather
favors their authenticity, as no other writer of loas was prominent at this
time, excepting Rojas. Indeed, some of them, notably the one begin-
ning Vemos con lobregas nubes and the seventh, Quien dize que las
mugeres, seem like Lope's in his best vein. There are also five loas in the
spurious Part III (1612) of Lope's Comedias and four in Part VII, Barce-
lona, 1617, and in the Fiestas del Santissimo Sacramento, £aragoca, 1644.
See below.
282 THE SPANISH STAGE
embrace both monologues and small dramatic sketches in
which a whole company took part. It is hard to see
wherein these longer has, performed by several actors
or by a whole company, differed from the entremeses.
Rojas's has are upon every conceivable subject; one is in
praise of Seville, the city in which the company was about
to perform,1 while another extols the company of Antonio
de Villegas.2 The most famous of them all is the Loa en
Alabanza de la Comedia,3 to which reference has already
been made. Having passed in review the most distin-
guished dramatists, the loa concludes :
Who with these is not acquainted ?
Who, whom fame of them not reacheth?
Who in wonderment beholds not
Their rare wit and sounding phrases ?
And allowing that 't is true,
'T is not strange that I should venture
In their name now to entreat you
That, because of the great rev'rence
Which to their rare works is owing,
While their plays are represented,
You may pardon the shortcomings
Of the players who perform them.4
And so nearly all of them conclude with a similar ap-
peal. To give a conception of the diversity of subjects
1 El Viage entretenido, Madrid, 1603, pp. 9-20.
'Ibid., pp. 48-55. 'Ibid., pp. 1 18-132.
4 "Quien a todos no conoce ?
quien a su fama no llega?
quien no se admira de ver
sus ingenios y elocuencia ?
Supuesto que esto es assi,
no es mucho que yo me atreva
a pediros en su nombre,
que por la gran reuerencia
Que se les deue a sus obras,
mientras se hazen sus comedias,
que las faltas perdoneys
de los que las represenran."
(Ibid., pp. 131, 132.)
THE LOAS OF ROJAS 283
treated by Rojas in his loas, we may add that there is one
in praise of thieves;1 in praise of Tuesday ("el soberano
dia Martes") ;2 on beautiful teeth ("colmillos y mueles")
and how to preserve them;3 one extolling the swine
("puerco"), which is very witty, and ends:
And if long have been my praises
Of an animal so lovely,
May he who should be one pardon
Me, and therefore not feel shameful.4
Rojas well describes the loa in one which he wrote in
praise of Sunday, and in it he tells us, moreover, that even
in his day every conceivable subject had been exhausted
and that it was impossible to write what had not already
been written :
So many and so varied are the dramas,
So great, indeed, the multitude of ballads,
So varied, too, the subjects of the loas
That have been written hitherto, I wonder
How one can write what 's not already written,
Or we say what has not been said already.
Some make their farces of involved inventions,
Others of stories fabulous and fictions,
Loas that sing the praises of the letters,
Of plants and animals and varied colors.
One what is black, the other white extolleth,
Silence this one, humility that other,
And many more which I fail to remember.
And 't is a labor now as ill requited,
This writing loas, as in times now distant
It by all men was held in estimation, etc.6
1Ibid., p. 681. ' Ibid., p. 597.
' Ibid., p. 377. * Ibid., p. 693.
""Son tantas y tan varias las coraedias,
tanta la muchedumbre de romances,
y tan grande el discurso de las loas,
que hasta agora se han hecho, que me espanto
284 THE SPANISH STAGE
He declares that has were written :
In both the ancient comedy and modern
To gain the list'ner's ear and kindly favor, . . .
To sing the praises of its gallant spirits,
And to exalt its wits in their due measure.
Rojas excelled in writing these slight pieces; his are
among the very best that have come down to us, and it is
interesting to know that he was the member of the com-
pany who not only wrote the has, but who also invariably
recited them.
To about the same period or a little later belongs the
well-known collection of has and entremeses of Luis
Quiiiones de Benavente, first published under the title
Joco Seria, Burlas Veras, etc., Madrid, 1645. In these
several actors always take part and sometimes the entire
company for which they were written. A number of them
serve as a kind of introduction of the company to the audi-
ence ; the peculiarities of the actors are hit off, their ability
is praised, and the new comedias which the company
brings are mentioned ; like all these compositions, they are
written in a jovial, humorous vein, intended to put the
audience in good spirits.1
que nadie pueda hazer mas de lo hecho,
ni nosotros dezir mas de lo dicho.
Unos hazen las farsas de maranas,
otros de historias fabulas, ficciones,
las loas de alabancas de las letras,
de plantas, animates, de colores,
uno alaua lo negro, otro lo bianco,
este el silencio, la huraildad el otro,
sin otras muchas, de que no me acuerdo.
Y es trabajo tan mal agradecido,
esto de loas, como en otro tiempo
fue de todos los hombres estimado," etc
(El Viage entretenido, Madrid, 1603, pp. 569, 570.)
1 They have been republished by Don Cayetano Rosell, Entremeses, Loas
y Jdcaras, escritas por el Licenciado Luis Quihones de Benavente,
Madrid, 1872, 1874, 2 vols. Many of them are of especial importance as
furnishing interesting information concerning some of the most prominent
players of the time.
THE LOAS OF BENAVENTE 285
It appears that the loa had lost much of its vogue be-
fore the end of the second decade of the seventeenth cen-
tury. Indeed, according to Suarez de Figueroa, loas had
already ceased to be recited in 1617. He says: "In the
farces which are ordinarily .represented they have already
discontinued that part called the loa, and from the slight
purpose which it served and the fact that it was wholly
foreign to the subject-matter of the play, it was certainly
an advantage to suppress it."1 It is difficult to reconcile
Figueroa's statement, however, with the known fact that
has continued to accompany the comedia, though not with
the frequency of former years, long after the date men-
tioned; indeed, some of Quifiones de Benavente's loas
were written twenty years after this.
These loas, as already stated, from being simple recitals
by a single member of the company, gradually became
short, humorous pieces which did not differ essentially
from the entremeses or short interludes which always ac-
companied the comedia, except that they were wholly
without plot and consisted merely of dialogue held to-
gether by the loosest thread. They were generally accom-
panied by music and singing. Some were sung .in part, as
the loa with which Antonio de Rueda and Pedro Ascanio
began to represent in Madrid in i638.a Here the loa
opens with Borja, an actor, who enters with a harp, fol-
lowed by Maria de Heredia, both singing. The scene
upon the stage at the beginning of another loa with
which Tomas Fernandez began at Madrid in 1636 is
indicated at the opening : "Enter the whole company two
by two, with hands joined, dancing to the sound of instru-
'"En las farsas que comunmente se representan, han quitado ya esta
parte que llaman Loa. Y segun de lo poco que servia, y quan fuera de
propositi) era su tenor, anduvieron acertados. Salia un farandulero, y
despues de pintar largaraente una nave con borrasca, 6 la disposicion de
un exercito, su acometer y pelear, concluia con pedir atencion y silencio,
sin inferirse por ningun caso de lo uno lo otro." (El Passagero, Madrid,
1 617, fol. 109.)
1 Entremeses, etc., de Quinones de Benavente, ed. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 366.
286 THE SPANISH STAGE
merits and bearing torches; making a reverence, they
sing. Juanico, the son of Bernardo, is to be on the stage
before the loa begins, playing with two other boys, and as
soon as his father enters he is to tell him (Juanico) to
keep quiet."1
The loa with which Roque de Figueroa's company re-
turned to Madrid in 1633(7) appears to have been
whollysung, except the autor's introductory dialogue with
the actor Bezon. It is entitled "Loa segunda que canto
Roque de Figueroa," etc.2
The loa being concluded, the first act or Jornada3 of the
comedia followed, though, as Ticknor says, "in some in-
stances a dance was interposed, and sometimes even a
ballad followed this, so importunate was the audience for
what was lightest and most amusing." After the first act
an entremes followed, and perhaps another bayle or
dance.
The name entremeses (French entremets, a side-dish),
applied to festal pieces accompanied by singing, is found
1 Entremeses, etc., de Quinones de Benavente, ed. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 288.
'Ibid., p. 224. In a loa represented by Lorenzo Hurtado in Madrid
(i632(?) or 1635(F)) the direction is given at the opening: "Enter
Bernardo -without singing, to throw out the loa."
' While the term Jornada instead of act had been commonly employed
in the religious plays of the Middle Ages, which often lasted several days,
and was also used by Torres Naharro as early as 1517, that word is not
found in the manuscripts of Lope de Vega, who always uses Ado instead,
and this seems to have been the custom of Tirso de Molina, to judge from
the only autograph of his, La Tercera de la Sancta Juana (1613), that I
have seen. That the term Jornada, however, was well known at the
beginning of the seventeenth century, is shown by the definition of Luys
Alfonso de Carvallo: "Jornada es nombre Italiano, quiere decir cosa de
un dia, porque giorno significa al dia. Y tomase por la distincion y
mudanga que se hace en la comedia de cosas sucedidas en diferentes
tiempos y dias, como si queriendo representar la vida de un Santo hiciese-
mos de la nifiez una Jornada, de la edad perfecta otra, y otra de la vejez."
(Cisne de A polo, etc., Medina del Campo, 1602, quoted by Schack, Nach-
trdge, p. 23.) Jornada seems to have been reintroduced into current usage
by Calderon and his school. Virues, Obras trdgicas, etc., Madrid, 1609,
uses both terms. Caramuel says: "Actus est id, quod hodie vocamus Jor-
nada: et jam praescripsit consuetudo, ut Comoedia nonnisi tres actus
habeat et duabus horis repraesentetur." (Schack, Nachtrage, p. 26.)
ENTREMESES 287
as early as 141 2 in the Archives of Valencia, and, as we
have seen,1 Lamarca claims a Valencian origin for these
entremesos, as they were called.2 It is very probable that
entremeses, originally perhaps of a quasi-religious char-
acter, formed a part of the great church festivals from the
earliest times. But these short pieces were gradually
stripped of any religious significance they may have had,
and finally every short farce or interlude was called an
entremes. Such pieces, especially designated as entre-
meses, were brought out at festivals by the great Consta-
ble Don Alvaro de Luna.3 Lope de Vega, in his Arte
nuevo de hacer Comedias, speaking of Lope de Rueda,
says that "from him has remained the custom of calling
1 Introduction, p. xi.
"Wolf speaks of "jene Festschaustiicke mit Gesang, die, wie bei den
Nordfranzosen Entremets, damals auch in Spanien 'Entramesos' oder
Entremeses genannt wurden" (Studien, p. 585), and discussing the six-
teenth-century MSS. of Autos and Farsas, since published by Rouanet (see
above, p. 7, note 2), he remarks concerning the Entremes de las Ester as,
contained therein: "Dass dieses Stuck schon zu den Entremeses in der
spatern allgemein iiblich gewordenen Bedeutung dieses Gattungsnamens
gehort habe, wird aus dem Personenverzeichniss (figuras) wahrschein-
lich; denn es treten darin auf : 'Melchora, Antona, un hobo, un lacayo,
un bachiller, el amo de las mozas.' Hier hatten wir also das alteste
Document fur den Gebrauch von 'Entremes' in dieser Bedetung." (Ibid.,
p. 598, note.) An entremes belonging to the middle of the sixteenth cen-
tury, written by Sebastian de Horozco of Toledo, is now printed in his
Cancionero, Seville, 1874, pp. 167 ft. It is entitled: "Un Entremes que
hizo el auctor a ruego de una Monja parienta suya evangelista para
representarse como se represento en un Monasterio de esta Cibdad
(Toledo) dia de Sant Ju° Evangelista." "Introduzense quatro personas. —
Un villano que viene a comprar al alcana [antigua calle de Toledo
donde se conservaban las tiendas a la usanza morisca] ciertas cosas para
dar a una zagala; — y un Pregonero que entra pregonando, una moga de
veinte afios perdida; — y un Fraile que pide para las animas del purga-
torio, a quien los otros cuelgan porque los combide, porque dizen que se
llama fray Ju° evangelista; — y un Bunolero que pregona bunuelos
calientes. Comen los bunuelos y despues mantean al fraile sobre la paga.
Y vanse todos a beber a una taberna y asi se acaba."
Ticknor, Vol. I, p. 271, note. "Fue muy inventivo e mucho dado a
fallar invenciones, e sacar entremeses en fiestas," etc. Cronica de D.
Alvaro de Luna, Madrid, 1784, p. 182. As Ticknor remarks : "It is not to be
supposed that these were like the gay farces that have since passed under
the same name, but there can be little doubt that they were poetical and
were exhibited." Don Alvaro was executed in 1453.
288 THE SPANISH STAGE
the old comedias entremeses."1 Entremeses, the editor
of Quinones de Benavente observes, were for the pur-
pose of avoiding the tedium between the acts, for with-
out them "la mejor comedia tiene hoy el peligro de
los desaires que padece entre Jornada y Jornada." "And
so," he continues, "a manager who had a poor comedia,
by putting in two entremeses of this kind, gave it crutches
to prevent it from falling, and he who had a good one
put wings to it, to raise it still higher."2
Lope de Vega, alluding to his youthful efforts in writing
comedias, says :
And some I wrote at eleven years and at twelve,
Each of four acts as well as of four sheets,
For each act was contained within a sheet,
And in the spaces three that came between,
Three little entremeses then were made,
Though now there 's scarce one,- and a bayle too,8 etc
Of these entremeses Lope certainly wrote a great many;
whether those printed in the volumes of his Comedias
are really his, it is impossible to decide, nor can the
entremeses contained in the Fiestas del Santissimo Sacra-
mento, Zaragoza, 1644, be ascribed to him with cer-
tainty.4 They are of varying length and character, some
being dramatic, some lyrical.
1 Edition of Milan, 1611, p. 363. Ticknor rightly traces the entremeses
of Lope de Vega back to Lope de Rueda, whose short farces were of the
same nature, while into his longer pieces Rueda introduced pasos or pas-
sages, which might be detached from them and used as entremeses. They
were short and lively dialogues in prose without plot "and merely in-
tended to amuse an idle audience for a few moments." History of Spanish
Literature, Vol. II, p. 63. Timoneda published an entremes in 1565, which
Barrera says is "la mas antigua obra de teatro asi denominada." Cata-
log", p. 393-
2 Entremeses, etc., de Quinones de Benavente, ed. Rosell, Vol. I, p. xx.
"Entremes apud Hispanos est Comoedia brevis, in qua Actores ingeniose
nugantur." Caramuel, Rhythmica, Campaniae, 1668, quoted by Schack,
Nachtrage, p. 26.
'Arte nue<vo de hacer Comedias, Madrid, 1609, fol. 206.
* Of the various editions of Part I of Lope's Comedias which I possess,
LOPE DE VEGA'S ENTREMESES 289
Many collections of entremeses were published in the
seventeenth century; the earliest and one of the best is
that by Luis Quinones de Benavente, so often mentioned
those of Valladolid, 1604; Amberes, 1607, and Milan, 1619, contain the
has only, while that of Valladolid, 1609, contains both the loas and
entremeses, the latter at the end of the volume. The title is: Primera
Parte de Entremeses de las Comedias de Lope de Vega. As but few
copies of this first part contain these entremeses, I give a list of them:
(1) Entremes primero de Melisendra. It is divided into two jornadas and
is preceded by a "loa muy graciosa"; the entremes is in verse and
occupies nine pages; it is, in fact, a burlesque comedy. (2) Entremes
segundo del Padre enganado. (3) Entremes tercero del Capeador.
(4) Entremes quarto del Doctor Simple. (5) Entremes quinto de Pedro
Hernandez y el Corregidor. (6) Entremes sexto de los Alimentos.
(7) Entremes septimo de los Negros de Santo Thome. (8) Entremes
octauo del Indiana. (9) Entremes noveno de la Cuna. (10) Entremes
decimo de los Ladrones enganados. (11) Entremes undeeimo de la
Dama fingida. (12) Entremes duodecimo de la Endemoniada. All these
except the first are in prose. The so-called third part of Lope's Comedias
— Tercera Parte de las Comedias de Lope de Vega, y otros Autores, con
sus Loas y Entremeses, etc., Madrid, En casa de Miguel Serrano de Vargas,
Afio 1613 — contains the following entremeses: (1) Entremes famoso del
Sacristan Soguijo, (2) Entremes famoso de los Romanos (should be los
Romances), (3) Entremes famoso de los Huebos, and these loas: En Ala-
hanca de la Espada, De las Calidades de las Mugeres, La Batalla Nabal,
De las Letras del a. b. c, Del suntuoso Escurial. These entremeses are very
witty, especially the second, the subject being a peasant who has been
driven mad by reading the Romancero. Part VII of Lope's Comedias,
Barcelona, 1617, also contains three entremeses: Los Habladores, La
Carcel de Sovilla, and El Hospital de los Podridos, which are, however,
now generally ascribed to Cervantes. It should be stated that Lope ex-
pressly denies the authorship of the loas and entremeses contained in
the volumes which preceded Part IX of his Comedias. In the pro-
logue to Part XV, Madrid, 1621, he alludes to them as those "loas
y entremeses que el no imagino en su vida," while the entremeses
in Part VIII are expressly declared in the volume itself to be the
work of Francisco de Avila and of Barrionuevo. The fact, how-
ever, that Lope denies his authorship should not be taken too seri-
ously. He also asserted that all the volumes of his Comedias preced-
ing. Part IX were published without his knowledge, though for some of
the volumes, at least, this can be disproved; (See my Life of Lope de
Vega, p. 253.) Concerning the rare volume, of which I possess a copy,
entitled Fiestas del Santissimo Sacramento, which also contains loas and
entremeses attributed to Lope, a word may be said here. Menendez y
Pelayo writes: "Es cierto que las loas y los entremeses no son de Lope,
a lo menos en su totalidad, pero tampoco el colector los di6 por tales,
limitandose a decir que se habian representado en la Corte con los autos."
(Lope de Vega, ed. Spanish' Academy, Vol II, p. 2.) Of these Sr.
Menendez ascribes without qualification to Benavente: La Muestra de los
Carros, Los Organos, and El Remediador; he states that La Hechizera
290 THE SPANISH STAGE
in these pages.1 Among these a number were wholly sung,
while others were partly sung and partly recited. Among
the former, called Entremeses cantados, like that of La
Puente Segoviana, La Guar dainf ante, and others, some
are so short that it could have taken but a few minutes to
perform them. Others are dramatic in character and con-
tain the liveliest dialogue in the language of the barrios
bajos.
Generally two entremeses accompanied a comedia,2
though sometimes even three were played, one following
may be by Lope and that the loa en Morisco is also probably Lope's, be-
cause the Moor who recites it is named Ametillo, who was a slave of
Lope's friend Gaspar de Barrionuevo in Seville in 1603. (See also Life
of Lope de Vega, pp. 112, 113.) It seems that some objection might be
made to the ascription of La Muestra de los Carros to Benavente. It does
not appear in the latter's Joco Seria, published in 1645 (the year following
the appearance of the Fiestas del Santissimo Sacramento), and was not
again printed, to my knowledge, until 1658, in the Teatro poetico, at Zara-
goza. Moreover, its general style and the reference to the actress la Bezona
seem more in the manner of Lope. Los Organos, ascribed above to Bena-
vente, was written by Braones. (See below, p. 295, note 2.) For an excellent
account of the entremeses, see Intermedes espagnols du XVIle Steele, par
Leo Rouanet, Paris, 1897. Cervantes excelled all others in this species of
composition.
1A list of the various collections of entremeses will be found in the
preliminary pages of Rosell's edition, though I miss the following: Migaxas
del Ingenio, y Apacible Entretenimienio, en varios Entremeses, Bayles, y
Loas, escogidas de los mejores Ingenios de Espan . . . Impresso por
Diego Dormer Impressor de la Ciudad, y del Hospital Real, y General
de nuestra Senora de Gracia, de la Ciudad de Zaragoca. A Costa de
Juan Martinez de Ribera Martel, Mercader de Libros. iv + 96 fols. i6mo.
It bears no date, but was probably printed between 1670 and 1675. It
contains two entremeses by Benavente (Los Escuderos y el Lacayo and
El Desengano), one by Monteser, and a loa by Zaualeta; all the rest are
by Lanini. I am indebted to my colleague, Dr. Crawford, for the use of
this little book, which is excessively rare. For a description of this collec-
tion, see Modern Language Notes, 1907, p. 52. Since the above was written
this volume has been republished (Madrid, 1909) with excellent notes by
Cotarelo y Mori.
In some instances, however, only one entremes is specified to be repre-
sented with a comedia, as in August, 1603, when Nicolas de los Rios
represented at Fuenlabrada an auto with two entremeses and a comedia
with its entremes, music, and bayle. (Nuevos Datos, p. 81.) In 1604
Gaspar de Porres represented in Esquivias an auto with three entremeses
and a comedia with three other entremeses. (Ibid., p. 87. See also ibid.,
pp. 90, 98.) It will be noticed that these were all representations in small
towns.
JACARAS 291
the loa, and the play always concluded with a bayle or
dance :
Y al fin con un baylecito
yua la gente contenta.1
Besides the entremeses and bayles, short pieces called
jdcaras were also sung between the acts of a comedia.
Pellicer describes these jdcaras cantadas as ballads set to
music.2
The volume of loas and entremeses written by Bena-
vente also contains six jdcaras. Some were sung by a
single actress, as the Jdcara de Doha Isabel, la Ladrona,
que azotaron y cortaron las orejas en Madrid, sung by
Francisca Paula, which contains two hundred odd verses
written in ballad measure; others were sung by several
members of the company, not only upon the stage, but, to
add zest to them, they were sung from different parts of
the theater, for, as Pellicer says, the public "was crazy
about them" (era perdido por ellas). In the jdcara that
was sung by the company of Bartolome Romero (1637-
1643 (?) )i Tomas, the gracioso, stood upon the stage,
Juliana in the cazueld or women's gallery, Maria de
Valcazar in the uppermost gallery (en lo alto del teatro) ,
Pedro Real in the gradas, Pedro de Valcazar in the
grada segunda, and Ines in the desvan.3 In another
jdcara, sung by the same company, Maria de Valcazar
appeared in the patio, or pit, on horseback.4
"Rojas, Viage Entretenido, ed. 1603, p. 126.
' "Jdcaras cantadas, que eran los Romances puestos en musica." (His-
trionismo, I, p. 164.) Ticknor defines them as "roistering ballads, in the
dialect of the rogues, which took their name from the bullies who sang
them, and were at one time rivals for favor with the regular entremeses."
(Vol. II, p. 533.)
'Entremeses de Benavente, ed. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 220.
'Ibid., p. 286. The Diccionario de Autoridades thus defines the Xacara:
"Composicion Poetica, que se forma en el que Ilaman Romance, y regular-
mente se refiere en ella algun sucesso particular, 6 extrano. Usase mucho
el cantarla entre los que Ilaman Xaques, de donde pudo tomar el nombre.
■ . . Xaque en la Germania significa el Rufian."
292 THE SPANISH STAGE
The requests for jdcaras generally came from the occu-
pants of the pit or patio, and in case the audience did not
demand them, a player was sometimes stationed in the
patio, who called for a jdcara, as in the one which Fran-
cisca Paula sang in the company of Bartolome Romero
(in 1638(7) or 1640(7) ), where we read: "Pide en el
patio jacara un representante."1 In the jdcara which
Antonia Infanta sang in the company of Alonso de 01-
medo (in 1636 or 1637), the stage direction is: Dan
voces en el patio pidiendo jdcaras, y sale Antonia Infanta,
y dice representando:
Antonia: Entendamonos, senores,
i Cuerpo de diez con sus vidas,
De catorce con sus almas,
Y de veinte con su grita !
,; Regodeo cada hora ?
i Perejil cada comida ?
I Sainete cada bocado ?
I Novedad cada visita ?
Medraremos en corcova.
,: Jacarita cada dia?2 etc.
The piece concluding with the players singing :
Jacara nos pedistes,
Ya os la servimos ;
Y si pidierais ciento,
Fuera lo mismo.
And in a jdcara, also sung in the company of Romero, the
gracioso Tomas begins :
;Que tanta jacara quieres,
Patio mal contentadizo !
Ayer i no te la cantamos
Por todo cuanto distrito
Tiene este pobre corral ?
1 Entremeses de Benavente, ed. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 163.
' Ibid., p. 90.
SAINETES 293
Pues si no quedo resquicio
Por donde no se cantasen,
I Que habemos de hacer contigo ?
Las novedades no duran
Por los siglos de los siglos.
i Por donde 6 que han de cantar
Que no este ya hecho 6 dicho?1
One can readily imagine the confusion and uproar
caused in the theaters by the turbulent mob of mosqueteros
shouting for jdcaras. Indeed, it finally became an intol-
erable nuisance in Seville, and in 1 648 the city authorities
threatened all such disturbers with fine and imprison-
ment.2
These slight pieces, overflowing with mirth and ex-
uberant spirits, rarely consumed more than ten or fifteen
minutes. They find their modern congeners in the Tona-
dilla.
Sainete, a word meaning a delicacy or relish, came into
vogue as the appellation of a one-act farce toward the
middle of the seventeenth century. The term sainete, it
is true, is found in Mariana's treatise Contra los Juegos
publicos, which originally appeared in Latin, in 1609,
1 Ibid., p. 284, and see p. 443, the jdcara that was sung in Ortegon's com-
pany in 1635.
' "En la ciudad de Sevilla, a diez y nueve dias del mes de noviembre de
mil y seiscientos y cuarenta y ocho anos, el Sr. D. Antonio de Mendoza,
Marques de San Miguel, . . . Teniente de Alcaide destos Alcazares Reales
de Sevilla, dijo que por cuanto en el corral de La Monteria ha habido y
hay mucho ruido, alboroto y quistiones por causa de pedir a I09 repre-
sentantes bailes y jacaras y otras cosas fuera de la representacion, mando
se pregone en el dicho corral de La Monteria que ninguna persona de
cualquier estado y calidad que sea no inquiete ni alborote las comedias
que se representan en la dicha Monteria pidiendo jdcaras ni bailes ni otras
palabras, sino que dejen representar a su voluntad lo que quisiere el autor
y su compania; pena que el que contraviniere a ello, si la persona fuese
ordinaria, de vergiienza publica y dos anos de servicio de mamora, y las
demas personas de cien mil maravedis y dos anos de un presidio: y asi
lo mando. — El Marques de San Miguel." (Sanchez-Arjona, Anales del
Teatro en Sevilla, p. 381. See also the excellent work of E. Merimee, La
Vie et les Oeuvres de Francisco de Quevedo, Paris, 1885, pp. 386 ff.)
294 THE SPANISH STAGE
under the title De Spectaculis.1 However, the chapter of
the Spanish translation (xii) containing the word is said
to be a later addition.2 It occurs in the jdcara sung in
Olmedo's company in Madrid, in 1636, as the quota-
tion above shows; but here the word is used in its
ordinary meaning, not as a theatrical term. The earliest
mention of the word in its present sense, that I have
found, is in 1639, when Antonia Infante was engaged to
play the "primera parte del saynete," in the company of
Antonio de Rueda.3 The sainete did not differ in any
essential particular from the entremes. It was slightly
longer and commonly contained more characters than the
majority of the entremeses, but it was of the same general
type.4
Vera Tassis, in his "Life of Calderon" prefixed to the
first volume of the Comedias, says that Calderon wrote
"cien Saynetes varios," but none has apparently been pre-
served. Hartzenbusch5 has published a number of en-
1 The word saynete occurs in a ballad printed in the Romancero General,
ed. of 1604, fol. 497, beginning:
"Mancebito de buen rostro
No se come ya tan rancio
que aun las de catorze enfadan,
y Ies piden por saynete [i.e., as a relish]
la Chacona, y Qarauanda."
Doubtless from such association as this the word acquired its later mean-
ing. The above ballad is contained in the "Parte Trezena" of the
Romancero, which, according to Wolf, Studien, p. 349, is merely » reprint
of the second part of the Manojuelo de Romances of Gabriel Laso de la
Vega, Zaragoza, 1603.
2 See above, p. 264, end of note. s Nucvos Datos, p. 304.
1 Schack says : "Nichts Anderes als solche Entremeses unter verandertem
Titel sind denn im Grunde auch die sogenannten Sainetes, die seit der
Mitte des 17, Jahrhunderts haufig vorkommen. Man pflegt ihren Unter-
schied von jenen dahin zu bestimmen, dasz sie mit Musik und kleinem Ballet
begleitet und von complicierter Handlung seien; allein ohne ausreichenden
Grund, denn Gesang und Tanz bildet gewohnlich auch den Schlusz der
Entremeses, und was den dramatischen Plan anlangt, so halt das Sainete
es hiermit ebenso nach Belieben wie die altere Art des Zwischenspiels."
(Geschichte der dramatischen Literatur und Kunst in Spanien, Bd. II,
p. 108. See also Rouanet, Intermedes Espagnols du XVII" Steele, p. 39.)
0 Comedias de Calderon, Vol. IV, at the end.
MOGIGANGAS 295
tremeses, two mogigangas, and two jdearas entremesadas
which have been ascribed to Calderon, but their author-
ship is doubtful. It is probable that Vera Tassis applied
the term then most current to the entremeses which Calde-
ron had written, for toward the close of Calderon's life
the sainete became very popular. Among the expenses
for the Corpus festival at Madrid in 1675, we find 150
ducados (= 1650 reals) paid for four sainetes written by
Don Manuel de Leon Marchante, who seems to have
been the most successful writer of this species of dramatic
composition at that time.1 He continued to write sainetes
for this festival till the death of Calderon in 1681, when,
for the composition of two sainetes and for finishing an
auto which Calderon had left unfinished, he received 1000
reals vellon.2 It was not till after the middle of the
eighteenth century that the sainete reached the height of
its popularity at the hands of Ramon de la Cruz.
The mogiganga (masquerade, mummery) "contains a
greater number of episodic personages than the entremes;
it is sometimes intermingled with dances."3 As it be-
1 Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Vol. I, p. 342.
'Ibid., p. 372. In 1656 Moreto wrote loas and sainetes for the Corpus
festival at Seville. During the next decade Alonso Martin de Braones
was a well-known writer of sainetes and mogigangas in the same city.
He wrote the entremes entitled Los Organos, which has been ascribed to
Lope de Vega. (Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, pp. 411, 439.)
"Rouanet, /. c, p. 39. In Don Quixote (Part II, chap, xi) a company of
players is met upon the road, one of whom, we are told, "venia vestido
de boxiganga con muchos cascabeles," etc. A boxiganga, Rojas tells us,
was a small company of strolling players, who, as Clemencin observes:
"en algunas ocasiones se vestirian 6 disfrazarian con vestidos ridiculos
para divertir a Ios expectadores ; esto seria <vestir de boxiganga. De esta
palabra hubo de derivarse la de mogiganga [cf. inmen — bimbre, mimbre"],
que no se encuentra entonces y si despues en significacion de fiesta en que
concurren varias personas disfrazadas con trages ridiculos." Andres del
Castillo entitled the six short novels which he published in 1641 La
Mogiganga del Gusto (The Masquerade of Taste). They have been
republished by Sr. Cotarelo (Madrid, 1908). Toward the close of Cal-
deron's career we read of sainetes and mogigangas as regular accompani-
ments of the autos at Corpus. Thus in 1680 Don Manuel de Leon
Marchante received 1600 reals for the entremeses and mogigangas at
Corpus in Madrid, and in 1681 Francisco de la Calle was paid 1500 reals
296 THE SPANISH STAGE
longs to the latter half of the seventeenth and especially
to the eighteenth century, it falls without the limits of
this work.1
vellon for a saynete and mogiganga. (Perez Pastor, Caldcron Docu-
mentos, Vol. I, pp. 368, 373.)
1 The earliest use of mogiganga in its present sense, that has come to
my notice, is in 1659. — "Mande V. m. dar ... a Pedro de la Rosa, autor
de comedias, por si y su compania 8400 reales . . . los 7700 en que se
concertaron los dos autos que se an de hacer, con los entremeses, bayles y
mojigangas ... y los 700 reales para el vestuario de entremeses y moji-
gangas. — 29 Mayo, 1659." Marti y Monso, E studios historico-artisticos,
Zaragoza, 1902(F), p. 567.
CHAPTER XIV
The representation of atttos sacramentales. Description of the
autos at Madrid. The carros. Abuse of the representation of
autos. Protests of churchmen. Sums paid for the representation
of autos. Autos in the theaters. Great expense of these festivals.
The autos sacramentales1 were performed at the instance
of the municipalities of the various cities and towns at
the festival of Corpus Christi. As Ticknor says, they
were in the height of their success in the age of Lope de
Vega and in that immediately following, and had become
an important part of the religious ceremonies arranged
for the solemn sacramental festival to which they were
devoted, not only in Madrid, but throughout Spain, the
'The meaning of this term has been given above (Chapter I). This
is not the place for an esthetic appreciation of the autos sacramentales.
For this the reader is referred to the works of Schack, Ticknor, Gonzalez
Pedroso, and others. Ticknor's criticism (Vol. II, p. 293, note) "that,
at all periods, from first to last, the proper autos were rude, gross, and
indecent" is much too severe and too sweeping. There are doubtless
passages in some of these autos which seem irreverent to a Protestant,
and of one, La Araucana, by Lope de Vega, so orthodox a Catholic
as Sr. Menendez y Pelayo has remarked: "Muy robusta debia de ser
la fe del pueblo que tolero farsa tan irreverente y brutal," and to enjoy
many of these productions they must be viewed "con los ojos de la Fe,"
to use Lope's own words. La Puente del Mundo, cited by Ticknor, is
hardly a fair specimen of Lope's autos. It is an absurdly extravagant
and irreverent production, as Menendez y Pelayo admits, and is nothing
more than a parody a lo divino of La Puente de Mantible, an episode of
the French poem Fierabras (Academy's edition of Lope de Vega, Vol. II,
p. lxxvi). What finally led to the suppression of the autos sacramentales
by Charles III., in 1765, was, in all probability, not because of the autos
themselves, but of the inevitable accompaniments of the auto: the proces-
sion and the has, entremeses, and bayles. These frequently degenerated
into a spirit of irreverence and brutality that is shocking. We need only
cite as an instance that the very auto just mentioned, La Puente del
297
29 8 THE SPANISH STAGE
theaters being closed while they were represented.1 From
the earliest times they seem to have been accompanied by
dancing, and since the time of Lope by a loa and an entre-
mes.2 These autos were acted upon movable cars
(carros) which passed through the city to the various
stations where the representation was to take place, and
hence this was called La Fiesta de los Carros.3 Preceding
these cars, strange figures were paraded in the procession
— the Tarasca,* a sort of serpent surmounted by a figure
portraying the "Woman of Babylon," and huge figures
representing Moorish or negro giants, called Gigantones,
etc.5
The theatrical managers whose companies were to
represent the autos were selected by the "comisarios" ap-
Mundo, is preceded by a Loa del Escarraman, of which Sr. Menendez y
Pelayo says: "Incredible as it may seem, this is a paraphrase a lo divino
of the famous jdcara of Quevedo, Carta de Escarraman a la Mendez,"
Escarraman having been a notorious bully of Seville who served ten
years in the galleys for his crimes.
Juan de Mariana, in his treatise Contra los Juegos publicos (chap, xii),
says that the Zarabanda, the most indecent of these bayles, was danced
in the representations of the autos at Corpus Christi and also in the
nunneries. (See above, p. 71, note 4.)
1 Vol. II, p. a93.
2 See above, pp. 67 ff., and Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 117.
3 In 1586 Jeronimo Velazquez represented three autos at Corpus, in
Madrid, the painter Rui Lopez de Avalos agreeing to paint three triumphal
cars, "las verjas donde se ha de poner el S. Sacramento y los carros donde
se han de representar los autos de este ano." Perez Pastor, Bulletin His-
panique, 1906, p. 366. See also below, p. 310.
'Benavente describes it as half serpent and half woman:
"La tarasca,
Que ya sale por el Corpus,
Medio sierpe y medio dama."
(Entremeses, etc., Vol. I, p. 13?.)
See Covarrubias, Tesoro, ad verb.
5 For a description of this procession, see Schack, Vol. II, pp. 128, 129,
and Ticknor, Vol. II, pp. 293-295. In the succeeding chapter will be
found the accounts of eye-witnesses. Ticknor describes the procession as a .
"sort of rude mumming, which certainly had nothing grave about it," in
which we quite agree, and we shall see that it finally degenerated into
such license that it called forth the earnest protests of churchmen.
AUTOS SACRAMENTALES 299
pointed by the city for that purpose, who generally in-
cluded the "regidores" and "corregidor" of the city,1 and
who, it seems, had to be approved by the ordinary.2
The earliest autos sacramentales performed in Madrid,
of which we have any detailed description (so far as I
am aware), were those represented in 1574 by the com-
pany of Jeronimo Velazquez. At this time and for some
years thereafter, three autos were represented each year
at Madrid. In 1587 there were three autores de come-
dias: Nicolas de los Rios, Miguel Ramirez, and Juan de
Alcozer, each of whom represented an auto at the Corpus
festival in Madrid.3 In 1592 four autos were repre-
sented, two (Job and Santa Catalina) by the company of
Gaspar de Porres, and two (titles not given) by Rodrigo
de Saavedra.4
There is recorded an obligation dated March 3, 1574,
by Jeronimo Velazquez, to represent at the festival of
the Holy Sacrament of that year at Madrid three autos:
La Pesca de San Pedro, La Vendimia celestial, and El
Rey Baltasar quando en sus Convites profano los Vasos
del Templo, and to provide all the personages and
costumes and all other things necessary for the said
representations, "and he shall take part in the said repre-
sentations himself and shall provide the other necessary
persons; the city to furnish him with three cars (carros),
constructed with all the necessary devices and artifices,
without the said Jeronimo Velazquez providing anything
concerning the preparation and machinery of the said
cars, he only to furnish the persons and costumes, and
to provide people to move the said cars from place to
place. The city is to pay him 130 ducats, besides 20 reals
for the persons who move each car, i.e., 60 reals in all.
. . . He is to represent only on the day of Corpus along
1 Perez Pastor, Nucvoi Datos, pp. aio, 216.
'Ibid., p. 117. 'Ibid., p. 18. * Ibid., p. 29.
3oo THE SPANISH STAGE
the route of the procession and afterward where the
"comisarios" may order."1
The autor de comedias thus appointed to represent the
autos was obliged to give a trial performance before the
"comisarios," generally twenty days before the festival,
and the "comisarios" always reserved the right of insisting
upon the appearance of such players as they thought espe-
cially desirable and obliging the autor to hire players for
this purpose. Thus in 1585, when Gaspar de Porres was
to represent the three autos in Madrid, the "comisarios"
agreed to furnish him with the three cars provided with
invenciones, etc., in such manner as the said Porres may
require, but "he is to provide the personages and figures
which are to represent in the said autos with new cos-
tumes, and if necessary to provide another simple [a char-
acter which afterward developed into the gracioso~\ besides
the one whom he has in his company, and he must give a
trial performance of the said autos twenty days before
the said festival, for all of which he is to receive 400
ducats. . . . And besides this he is to receive a license
from the Council to represent two days in each week (not
counting feast-days) from Easter (Pascua de Resurrec-
tion) till Corpus Christi, and no other autor de comedias,
Spaniard or foreigner, shall be permitted to represent in
Madrid during the said time."2 Moreover, the "comisa-
rios" were to be furnished with a list of the players in the
company, and they could compel any player whom they
desired to be brought from wherever he might be, to take
part in the autos, and this was to be done at the expense
of the manager of the company.3 Frequently a player
'Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, pp. 333, 334. 2 Ibid., pp. 335, 336.
3 "En la villa de Madrid a quince dias del mes de Marzo de mil y
seiscientos y veinte y nueve afios, los senores Licenciado Melchor de
Molina, del Consejo y Camara de su Magestad, D. Francisco de Brizuela
y Cardenas, Corregidor de la dicha villa, Francisco Enriquez de Villa-
corte y Don Francisco de Sardeneta y Mendoza, regidores de la dicha villa
y comisarios para las fiestas del Santisimo Sacramento de este afio. —
Acordaron que los autos que se han de hacer para el dicho dia se den a
AUTOS IN 1592 301
bound himself not to leave Madrid, but to "remain in
his house as a prison, so that he may take part in the
Corpus festival."1
A minute description of the autos entitled Job and
Santa Catalina, represented by the company of Gaspar
de Porres at Madrid in 1592, is given by Perez Pastor.
The costumes to be worn are described in great detail :
Job is to wear a long coat of purple damask and a hat
of taffeta, and buskins; God the Father appears in a
tunic of sateen or taffeta of gold and purple, with a
cloak of white taffeta, etc.; and in the auto of Santa
Catalina there are to be three gallants dressed in the
Roman fashion, with coats of mail, etc. It is agreed
that the rehearsal is to be given twenty days before
Corpus, and each auto is to have an entremes; the city to
furnish the cars, prepared and painted at its own cost,
with all the inventions necessary for the representation,
and the wheels greased with lard or tallow, so that the
cars can be moved from place to place. Porres received
600 ducats for the representation, and each player was
furnished with a candle.2
Bartolome Romero y Roque de Figueroa, autores de comedias, a cada uno
los dos, obligandose y dando fianzas de que haran los dichos autos en la
forma acostumbrada y con que para la Pascua de Resurreccion, antes 6
despues, quando se les mandare, hayan de dar quenta de sus companias,
y si para hacer las dichas fiestas les faltare 6 paresciere a los dichos
senores son necesarios algunos personajes, hombres 6 mugeres, hayan de
recibir los que se les ordenare, trayendolos a su costa de qualesquier partes
donde estuvieren, dandoles despachos para ello, y lo senalaron." (Ibid.,
p. 216.) Three years before this, at the Corpus festival of 1626, Andres
de la Vega, an autor de comedias, was required to provide another
gracioso in the place of the one then in his company, and Cristobal de
Avendano, the other autor representing the festival, had to substitute
another actress. (Ibid., p. 210.)
1 In 1621 Bartolome de Robles and Micaela Lopez, his wife, were en-
gaged to act in the autos of Corpus of that year in Madrid, and bound
themselves not to leave the city "dejando el primero su casa por carcel,
para trabajar ambos durante las fiestas del Corpus en la corte." (Ibid.,
p. 189.)
sThe importance of this document may justify its insertion here in full:
"2 Marzo 1592. Obligacion de Gaspar de Porres para hacer dos autos.
En la villa de Madrid a dos dias del mes de Marzo de mil y quinientos y
302 THE SPANISH STAGE
Of these autos sacramentales four were represented
annually at Madrid, beginning with this year (1592),
as nearly as we can determine ; prior to this, as we have
seen, the number varied. Two autores de comedias were
chosen by the "comisarios," each company representing two
autos, which took place at Corpus Christi on the evenings
of Thursday and Friday, and for which each autor (dur-
noventa y dos afios por ante mi el escribano publico e testigos de yuso
escritos parecieron presentes Gaspar de Porres, autor de comedias, estante
en esta corte coma principal deudor y obligado, y Geronimo Velazquez
desta villa de Madrid como su fiador y principal pagador, y ambos a
dos juntamente y de mancomun. . . . Otorgaron que se obligaban y obli-
garon que el dicho Gaspar de Porres hard para la fiesta del Santisimo
Sacramento deste presente ano de noventa y dos, dos autos, el uno de
Job en que entren su figura con un gaban de damasco morado y un
sombrero de tafetan y sus borceguies, quatro hijos con quatro baqueros de
damasco y brocatel con sus mantos de colores con sus tocados y borceguies
y un criado con una tunicela de damasco con su tocado, y los demas
sirvientes que son tres pastores con sus pellicos de damasco de colores,
caperucas de lo mismo y caragiielles y camisas de caniqui blancas; tres
amigos con tres tunicelas de damasco y sus mantos de tafetan y tocados
y borceguies, y quatro virtudes con quatro tunicelas de tafetan con cotas y
faldones y sus tocados y calcadillas; su muger de Job con un mongil a lo
judaico de raso leonado con sus tocas, el demonio principal con una
tunicela de tafetan negro, cota, faldin y calcadilla, y los otros tres de-
monios con tres ropas largas muy bien pintadas de bocas, y una figura de
Dios Padre con una tunicela de raso o tafetan que tenga oro y morado
y una capa de tafetan bianco, y una figura de un angel como se suele
vestir : y otro auto de Santa Catalina, en que haya tres galanes vestidos a
lo romano con cotas y faldones y tocados con monteras de terciopelo y raso
con sus mantos y calcadillas y borceguies: la figura de Catalina con un
vestido a lo romano corto de tela y tocado a lo romano; la criada tambien
a lo romano de damasco o de raso; dos senadores con dos tunicelas de
damasco y encima dos ropas de terciopelo de colores con sus tocados a lo
romano o gorras ; otras dos con dos baqueros y mantos y tocados y borce-
guies; y una figura de Santo Domingo y su companero con sus habitos
acostumbrados de estamena ; una figura de Christo con un sayo baquero
bordado con unas cifras que declaren la figura, y el tocado ni mas ni
menos, y un angel en habito de paxe de la misma manera que saliere el
christo salvo que no ha de llevar bordado el baquero. — Una figura del
nino Jesus con su tunicela de tafetan o raso que tenga oro con las insignias
de la pasion, y la misma figura de Christo ha de salir otra vez de resur-
reccion de la forma que se pinta, y una figura de la madre de Dios como
se pinta la imagen del rosario vestida de damasco: los quales dichos autos
vestidos los dichos personajes como esta dicho ha de ser a contento y
satisfaccion del Sefior Licenciado Alonso Nunez de Bbhorques del Consejo
de su magestad y comisario de las cosas de esta villa y de los senores
corregidor y comisarios por ella nombrados y ha de dar las muestras
THE REPRESENTATION OF AUTOS 303
ing the first half of the seventeenth century, at least) re-
ceived 600 ducats.1
It appears that at first (in Madrid, at all events) the
autos were represented in the morning, and that a change
was made by the Council in 1586, which commanded that
the performances at the festival of Corpus Christi be held
in the afternoon. On April 17, 1587, the President of
the Council was, however, petitioned to continue the order
of the preceding year, "as experience had shown how
much more advantageous this was, and with how much
greater solemnity the procession and the divine offices
were conducted, which took place on that day." On May
25, 1587, however, it was resolved that the representation
veinte dias antes de la dicha fiesta o el dia que el dicho sefior comisario
les ordenare y en cada auto ha de hacer un entremes a contento de los
dichos senores y ha de representar el dicho dia del Sacramento en la parte
y lugar que los senores del Consejo les ordenaren y mandaren ora sea por
la manana ora por la tarde, y de alii ha de ir a las demas partes y
lugares donde el dicho sefior comisario le ordenare por sus autos sin salir
del ambitu de la procesion y el viernes siguiente ha de representar a esta
villa en la plaza de San Salvador y de alii adonde le mandare el dicho
sefior comisario, y le ha de dar esta villa los carros aderezados y pintados
a costa della con las invenciones que fueren necesarias para las dichas
representaciones y untados con sebo o manteca para que puedan andar
dicho dia por las partes que han de andar y de alii los ha de hacer sacar
el dicho Gaspar de Porres y traerlos por las partes y lugares que se le
ordenare y mandare y volvellos a la dicha obreria el viernes en la noche
y entregallos a Pedro de la Puente obrero della, y demas desto le ha de
dar la dicha villa seiscientos ducados en dineros pagados los dos partes
luego y la otra tercia parte la mitad el dia que diere la muestra y la
otra mitad acabada la dicha fiesta, ye le han de dar una vela para cada
uno de los representantes que hicieren las dichas representaciones, y
demas desto han de representar en esta corte el dicho Gaspar de Porres y
Rodrigo de Saavedra que tiene los otros dos carros, desde el lunes de
Casimodo hasta el dicho dia del Sacramento sin que otro ningun autor
pueda representar, y se ha de procurar licencia del Consejo para que
representen desde el segundo dia de Pascua de Resurreccion hasta el
domingo de Casimodo, y se obligaron de hacer y que haran la dicha fiesta
de la manera que dicha es sin que haya falta alguna y si alguna hubiere
que a su costa se pueda hacer y haga y se busquen vestidos y personas que
hagan las dichas figuras, y por lo que costare se les pueda executar y
execute por solo el juramento de qualquiera de los dichos senores comisa-
rios de la dicha villa (siguen las seguridad.es) ." (Perez Pastor, Nuevos
Datos,j>p. 29-31.)
1 See above, p. 200.
304 THE SPANISH STAGE
on Friday should take place before the Ayuntamiento of
the city in the morning, beginning at seven o'clock.1 In
1600, when the autos of Madrid were presented by the
companies of Melchor de Villalba and Gabriel de la
Torre, the performance on Thursday took place in
the afternoon, first before the Council, and afterward
"wherever they may be ordered to perform."2 Begin-
ning on the afternoon of Corpus Christi, the autos con-
tinued through the whole of the following day (Friday).
In 1609, when Alonso de Heredia represented the autos
in Madrid, he was required to perform them until two
o'clock in the morning. With each auto an entremes
was to be given,3 and in 161 8, when the autos were
presented by Baltasar Pinedo and Hernan Sanchez de
Vargas, it was agreed that "each one of the autores
was to produce two autos and to have them composed
at his own cost and approved by the ordinary, fur-
nishing also with each auto an entremes, and presenting
them with new costumes." They were to give a re-
hearsal ten days before Corpus, and on that day they
1 Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 19.
'Ibid., p. 52. It appears that at the Corpus festival in Seville in 1582
no less than seven autos were represented: El Testamento del Senor by the
company of Alonso de Capilla; El Cowvite que hizo el Rey Salomon a la
Reina Saba by Juan Bautista ; El Triunfo de la Verdad by Diego Pineda ;
Santa Felicitas y otros Mdrtires by Marcos de Cardenal ; La Muerte
de Orias y Casamiento de David con Bethsabee by Tomas Gutierrez;
Cuando Nuesira Seiiora salio de Egipto para Galilea by the com-
pany of Juan Gonzalez; and Cosme de Oviedo represented El Estaio
del Hombre desde su Juventud hasta que triunfa la Muerte. (Sanchez-
Arjona, Anales, p. 68.) In 1585 five autos were represented: two by
Pedro de Saldana, two by Alonso de Cisneros, and one by Tomas Gutie-
rrez. (Ibid., p. 74.) In general, however, four autos were represented
here also each year. In 1591 there appeared in the representation at
Corpus, in addition to the autos, a "carro de apariencias," brought out by
Juan Bautista de Aguilar, on which Juan Agustin de Torres and Antonio
Veloco "performed sleight-of-hand tricks with living birds, in the manner
of the Italians," "y con una armada de galeras y otras piezas de fuego
muy curiosas, con su musica y romances y letras a lo divino con un en-
tremes gracioso." (Ibid., p. 82.) For four autos represented by Diego
de Santander in 1596, he received 1200 ducats. (Ibid., p. 94.)
'Ibid., p. 112.
THE REPRESENTATION OF AUTOS 305
were to represent from noon until ten o'clock at night,
and on Friday from ten in the morning till midnight, in
such places as should be assigned to them. In this case,
besides providing the cars (carros) and paying to the
autores 600 ducats each, the city agreed to furnish a wax
candle of half a pound to each actor and two wax candles
of one pound each to the autor and autora.1 In 1621 it
was stipulated that Pedro de Valdes, who presented two
of the autos, "is to represent on Corpus day from two
in the afternoon till midnight, and on Friday from six
o'clock in the morning until midnight, and if he repre-
sent on Saturday, he is to receive the customary gra-
tuity." Besides, his company and that of Cristobal de
Avendafio (who presented the other two autos) were to
have the exclusive right of performing in the theaters of
Madrid from the date of granting the license until Corpus
Christi.2
As already stated, the Corpus Christi celebration al-
ways began with a procession through the streets of the
city, and the stopping-places where the autos were to be
represented were designated by the civic authorities, who
provided the carros. In Seville, in 1609, the autos were
first to be represented "before the Most Holy Sacra-
ment, and afterward, during the whole of that day until
the bell for evening prayers rings, going through the
streets along which the procession passes, and if any car
should break down, the actors and all the paraphernalia
for the representation are to wait on the spot for two
hours until the car be repaired," and the places for repre-
sentation are designated "in case a car cannot proceed
because one in front of it be broken down." 3 Besides the
'Perez Pastor, Nue-vos Datos, p. 166. 'Ibid., p. 188.
*"Si en algun carro se quebrase alguna rueda viniendo detras otro
carro que haya menester pasar adelante, si se quebrase en la calle de
Genova, le hayan de sacar a la plaza de San Francisco; y si en la calle
de la Sierpe, a la entrada de lo ancho de la carcel 6 a la dicha plaza de
San Francisco; y si fuere a los Sileros, le saquen a la plazuela que esta
306 THE SPANISH STAGE
representations which were to be given on the day of
Corpus, another was to be given in the Plaza de San
Francisco on the following Monday, and it was expressly
provided that no player was to pass from one car to
another, but that each car be furnished with all necessary
actors. Each auto had to be accompanied by a new en-
tremes, and a rehearsal had to be given thirty days before
Corpus.
In addition to the 600 ducats received by each autor
(sometimes this sum was 350 ducats for each auto, as in
Seville in 1609) for his two autos, a prize of 100 ducats
was generally awarded by the city to the autor de come-
dias whose company gave the best representations with
the finest costumes, and sometimes various sums were
awarded to individual players.
It was greatly to the advantage of the manager of a
company to be selected to represent the autos in Madrid,
for besides the large sum received therefor, he and the
other manager so selected were also granted the sole and
exclusive privilege of representing comedias in the
Madrid theaters from the day on which he received the
license (generally Easter) until Corpus Christi.1 When
the court was in Madrid it was generally necessary to
give additional representations of the autos on the fol-
lowing Saturday, for which a gratuity was always received
by the manager of the company.2 It was an invariable
condition that the autos represented in Madrid and Seville
should be new and should never have been seen before.3
The remuneration received by poets for writing autos
doubtless varied, as did their honorarium for comedias,
but, being a shorter composition, the amount paid was
f rente de la botica; y si en la calle de Carpinteros, a la plazuela de San
Salvador, para que se aderecen y prosigan la representation." (Sanchez-
Arjona, Anales, p. 137.)
1 Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, pp. 4.9, 52, 123, 132, T62, 188 et passim.
'Ibid., pp. 112, 123, 129 et passim.
' Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, pp. 125, 136, 215.
AUTOS BY LOPE DE VEGA 307
much less than for a comedia. In 161 1 Lope de Vega,
then at the height of his popularity, received 1200 reals
for four autos represented at the Corpus festival of that
year in Seville.1 In 161 8 Bartolome de Enciso received
200 reals for an auto entitled La Montanesa, while Jusepa,
'Three years before, in 1608, Lope had also written the four autos which
were represented at Madrid in that year: El Adulterio de la Esposa and
El Caballero del Fenix, performed by the company of Juan de Morales
Medrano, and Los Casamientos de Joseph and La Ninez de Crista, by the
company of Alonso Riquelme. The scenic appliances of the carros are
thus described:
"Para el auto del Adulterio de la Esposa:
—En el medio carro en lo alto ha de haber una nube 6 globo que se abra
en quartos a modo de azucena que sea bastante para que quepan tres per-
sonas dentro: ha de estar pintado de azul y estrellas, en este medio carro
ha de haber pintados algunos pesos y llamas de fuego porque es el carro
de la Justicia divina.
—En el otro medio carro ha de haber en lo alto un trono a modo de
capilla 6 yglesia, porque aqui se ha de representar la Iglesia; ha de haber
un dragon de siete cabezas, si pudiere ser, echando fuego por las bocas,
y si no pudiere ser vivo, sea pintado: este capilla ha de ser bastante para
que e'n ella este una muger sobre este dragon.
—En este medio carro ha de haber dos bofetones que salgan con dos
hombres hasta la mitad de los carros y los vuelvan arriba
—Ha de haber unas plomadas para subir una muger arriba. Dira el
modo de esta invencion Jaraba, cobrador de la comedia.
"Para el auto del Caballero del Fenix:
—En el medio carro sean quatro bastidores sobre la casa, que se abran
en la frente del carro: este una mesa con asiento y sea todo lo alto un
guerto con una pena sobre que pueda estar un Angel.
— EI otro medio carro sea un Globo pintado de mar y tierra por defuera
y por dentro de tinieblas, con un sol y luna eclisados y sangrientos, una
cruz grande en medio sobre un calvario, bastante a que este echada en el
una figura.
"Para el auto de Los Casamientos de Joseph:
—El medio carro sea un Palacio con un corredor y un altar con unos
ydolos: sea el Palacio el mas rico que sea posible, y si puede estar en
medio de quatro corredores la capilla del altar que dije, sera mejor.
— El otro medio carro tenga un cielo sobre la casa con una subida por
donde pueda descender del y volver a el una figura. Si hubiere pintura
por defuera sea el Carro de Pharaon y Joseph en el vestido de Rey.
Haya una mesa con invencion para que los platos que esten en ella se
desaparezcan a la vista.
"Para el auto de La Ninez deXpo:
—En el medio carro sea un templo con asientos y una silla en medio:
hanle de cubrir quatro bastidores que se caygan a su tiempo.
—El otro medio carro ha de ser un jardin y una palma en medio del con
308 THE SPANISH STAGE
Vaca and her daughter Mariana de Morales were paid a
gratuity of 300 reals "por lo bien que en el trabajaron, x
and in the same year Salustio del Poyo received 200 reals
for Las Fuerzas de Sanson.2
No expense seems to have been spared in the prepara-
tion of the autos, which were presented with a splendor
of decoration and costume that must have greatly pleased
the populacho, especially as these representations, being
on the streets and in the public squares, were free to all.
For the representation of El Naufragio de Jonas pro-
feta, at Plasencia in 1578, a large stage was built in the
square of the city, and upon it a tank was constructed sixty
todos los pasos de la Pasion por razimos 6 en cada razimo de datiles el
suyo: tenga el tronco como escalera por que se pueda subir, y sea muy alta:
este una cabana paxiza a un Iado y una fuente. Pongase cuydado en este
porque es notable. Si hubiere pintura por de fuera, sea toda de nifios
angelitos, ocupados en diversos juegos de muchachos.
"Pintura de los carros para la fiesta del Santisimo Sacramento deste afio
de 1608.
"Condiciones de la pintura de los carros:
— Hanse de pintar los carros a contento del senor Corregidor y comisa-
rios, etc.
— Hanse de pintar ocho medios carros conforme los autos lo requieren
dellos de arquitectura bien ordenada y compuesta y colorida de colores
finos y a cada arquitectura de carro conforme la historia del auto lo re-
quiere.
— Hanse de pintar todas las apariencias dentro y fuera de los carros y
todo lo que se hubiere de hacer demas de lo dicho conforme las memorias
que tienen dadas Riquelme y Morales, autores.
— Han de ir las puertas de los carros pintadas conforme los carros lo
requieren, cada una diferente de la otra, con sus peinazos y cruzeros con-'
trahechas al natural, y las ventanas han de ir contrahecbas a ventanas
naturales, unas diferentes de otras.
— Han de ir los rodapies de los carros pintados cada uno conforme al
carro que ha de ir puesto y que sea conforme a lo de arriba.
— Hanse de dorar todos los remates de los carros y pintar los balustres
y verjuelas de azul fino, y dorar los botoncillos deltas.
— Han de ir enlosados de pintura y enladriHados con sus colores los
suelos de los carros donde se han de representar altos y baxos, y los dos
medios carros que se afiaden se ha de hacer lo mismo.
— Hase de dar de azul la reja donde se pone la Custodia en la Plaza
de Santa Maria y dorar las manzanas della," etc. (Perez Pastor, Nuevos
Datos, pp. 106-109.)
1 Sanchez- Arjona, El Teatro en Sevilla, Madrid, 1887, p. 303.
'Ibid., p. 293,
LOS MEDIOS CARROS 309
feet long and twenty feet wide, which was filled with
water, upon which a ship floated, with its sails and tackle,
large enough to hold a number of sailors and passengers.1
At an early period, however, the autos, besides being
performed in the public squares, were also represented
at the theaters. On June 22, 1601, we find that Gaspar
de Porres presented autos in one of the theaters of
Madrid, and on the next two following days we read:
"Autos a los semaneros en el teatro."2 Besides, autos
were frequently represented privately before the King, as
in June, 1609, when Domingo Balbin and Alonso de
Heredia presented the autos of that year before Philip
the Third in the Escurial.3
The cars were beautifully painted and were frequently
of great magnificence; in 161 1 the amount paid for paint-
ing them was 1350 reals.4
The number of cars for the autos seems to have varied :
to represent four autos, eight medios carros were re-
quired, as we have seen above, in the case of the autos of
1608. In 1619 we read of "eight medios carros on which
the representation is to be given, to be handsomely
painted, and . . . likewise the four medios carrillos
which are put in between for the representations,".5 and
1 "En las fiestas del dia de Corpus Christi de aquel ano se hizo en
medio de la plaza un gran tablado, que parecia hecho para muchos
dias, y en lo alto un mar de sesenta pies de longitud y veinte de lati-
tud, con abundancia de agua que con mucho artificio habian hecho
subir alii. En el mar estaba una muy lucida nave, con sus velas y jarcias,
de tanta grandeza que estaban dentro muchos marineros y pasajeros
vestidos de librea. Aqui se represento el Naufragio de Jonas prof eta, y se
vio la nao ir por el agua, con la qual hubo gran conmocion y tormenta
con artificio de polvora que debajo del tablado se encendio." (Sanchez-
Arjona, p. 97.)
'Bulletin Hispanique (1907), p. 365.
'Bulletin Hispanique (1907), p. 375.
* Nuevos Datos, p. 125.
'"Se obliga a pintar los ocho medios carros, en que se hace la represen-
tacion, de pinturas finas . . . y tambien en los quatro medios carrillos que
se meten en medio para las representaciones." (Ibid., p. 182.) The term
medio carro (middle car) is explained by a document dated Madrid, May
T5> 1593 : "Obligacion de Nicolas Granelo, criado de S. M.. pintor resi-
310 THE SPANISH STAGE
in 1620 a medio carro was built "with its two bridges,
upon which the stage is to be placed, and the stage is to
have the same form as it has in the others [i.e., cars]
with its balustrades and railings."1
That a stage was built at the various points along the
streets . where the auto was to be represented, and that
the carros were grouped around this stage, is evident from
many descriptions of the autos. Still, the word here used
for stage ( tablado ) seems sometimes to have the meaning
of scaffold or stand for spectators.2 It is probable that
representations also took place upon one of the carros, so,
at all events, we should infer from the fact that in 1593
eight cars were ordered to be painted for the festival of
Corpus, beside "the one in the middle which serves for
the representations."3 Moreover, above (p. 308) we
read of the "floors of the cars on which they are to act."
Perhaps it was the custom to set up the stage on the
bridges of one of the cars, as was done in 1620, as we
have just seen. When Rios represented a comedia and
dente en Madrid, de hacer la pintura de los S carros que esta Villa hace
para la fiesta del Santisimo y la del 'que sirve en medio para las repre-
sentaciones,' en precio de 230 ducados" (ibid., p. 35), and another record
dated Madrid, April 5, 1595: "Fianza de Pedro de la Puente, obrero de
la villa de Madrid, en favor de Fabricio Castello, pintor de su Magestad,
que hara la pintura de los ocho carros que esta villa hace para la fiesta
del Santisimo Sacramento deste presente ano de noventa y cinco, asi los
cuerpos principales como el que sirve en medio para las representaciones."'
(Ibid., p. 343.) For the auto entitled El Meson del Alma, represented at
Seville in 1607 by the company of Riquelme, the following description of
the medio carro was furnished by the city authorities: "Para el auto Et
Meson del Alma se dispuso que en un medio carro ha de haber una casa
grande, donde va toda la compania deste auto, con sus torres, chapiteles y
remates, en la qual han de ir pintados atributos de la Gracia y Virtudes
y lo demas que dijere el poeta. Item esta casa ha de tener quatro lienzos
en quadrado con la largura y anchura que le convenga." (Sanchez-
Arjona, Anales, p. 128.)
Ibid., p. 186. 3 Junio 1620. — Condiciones de un medio carro que se
ha de hacer para las fiestas del Santisimo Sacramento del ano 1620, "con
sus dos puentes en que ha de ir el tablado encima y el tablado ha de ser
de la misma forma que esta en los otros con sus balustres y antepechos."
* See Nuevos Datos, pp. 13, 14, 17.
* Nuevos Datos, p. 35, and ibid., p. 40: Abril 1595. "Fianza para los
8 carros triunfales y el de las representaciones en las fiestas del Corpus."
EL TABLADO 311
an auto in the village of Fuenlabrada in August, 1603, it
was especially stipulated that "el tablado se ha de pagar y
aderezar por cuenta de la Cofradia."1 Here tablado
could only have meant the acting stage. At the close of
the first scene of Josef de Valdivielso's El Peregrino, an
auto published in 1622, is the direction "Cierrase el
tablado, y queda dentro la Tierra."2
Calderon's autos show clearly that there were fixed
stages or tablados, the cars being arranged around them,
the actors facing the select company before which the
auto is presented, while the great mass of the populace
see only their backs. In Calderon's El sacro Parnaso
(1659) the stage is referred to as "el tablado de la repre-
sentacion," and in the same author's Quien hallard Mujer
fuerte (1672), in the "Memoria de las Apariencias," we
read: "El segundo carro ha de tener tambien bajada para
el tablado, por donde pueda subir una muger."3
The properties on these cars were of pasteboard
{pasta) and were made "as the poets requested" {con-
forme lo pidieren los poetas).4 The costumes worn by
the players were of the richest and costliest stuffs. In
1624, when Antonio de Prado represented two of the
autos at Madrid, it was especially stipulated that "he
shall provide the costumes for the said autos and entre-
meses, and they are to be of brocatel and velvet and
damask and sateen, trimmed with gold passementerie,
all new and to the satisfaction of the comisarios."6
Like the comedia, the autos sacrament ales were inva-
riably accompanied by bayles and entremeses. Cervantes
1 Nuevos Datos, p. 81.
2 Gonzalez Pedroso, in Bibl. de Autores Esp., Vol. 58, p. 203.
'Ibid., p. 403. See also Calderon's La Nave del Mercader: "baja la
Culpa al tablado." Ibid., p. 441, and La Vina del Seizor. Ibid., pp. 464,
475. For an account of the autos and their representation, see Schack,
Geschichte, etc., Vol. II, p. 129, and Julio Monreal, Cuadros viejos, pp.
203 ff., and especially p. 230.
"Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 182.
5 Ibid., p. 205, and see above, p. 107.
312 THE SPANISH STAGE
gives a description of a traveling company which was
representing the auto entitled Las Cortes de la Muerte
in various small towns during the octave of Corpus
Christi (we copy from the excellent translation of John
Ormsby) x :
Don Quixote was about to reply to Sancho Panza, but he was
prevented by a cart crossing the road full of the most diverse and
strange personages and figures that could be imagined. He who
led the mules and acted as carter was a hideous demon; the cart
was open to the sky, with a tilt or cane roof, and the first figure
that presented itself to Don Quixote's eyes was that of Death
itself with a human face ; next to it was an angel with large painted
wings, and at one side an emperor, with a crown, to all appearance
of gold, on his head. At the feet of Death was the god called
Cupid, without his bandage, but with his bow, quiver, and arrows ;
there was also a knight in full armour, except that he had no
morion or helmet, but only a hat decked with plumes of divers
colours; and along with these there were others with a variety of
costumes and faces. All this, unexpectedly encountered, took Don
Quixote somewhat aback, and struck terror into the heart of
Sancho ; but the next instant Don Quixote was glad of it, believing
that some new perilous adventure was presenting itself to him, and
under this impression, and with a spirit prepared to face any dan-
ger, he planted himself in front of the cart, and, in a loud and
menacing tone, exclaimed, "Carter or coachman, or devil, or what-
ever thou art, tell me at once who thou art, whither thou art going,
and who these folk are thou earnest in thy waggon, which looks
more like Charon's boat than an ordinary cart." To which the
devil, stopping the cart, answered quietly, "Senor, we are players
of Angulo el Malo's company [a theatrical manager and dramatist
who flourished about 1580] ; we have been acting the auto of 'The
Cortes of Death' this morning, which is the octave of Corpus
Christi, in a village behind that hill, and we have to act it this
afternoon in that village which you can see from this; and as it is
so near, and to save the trouble of undressing and dressing again,
we go in the costumes in which we perform. That lad there ap-
pears as Death, that other as an angel, that woman, the manager's
1 Don Quixote, Part II, chap. xi.
MISERABILE VULGUS
p-c3
wife, plays the queen, this one the soldier, that the emperor, and I
the devil ; and I am one of tile principal characters of the auto, for
in this company I take the leading parts. If you want to know
anything more about us, ask n\e, and I will answer with the utmost
exactitude, for, as I am a devilAI am up to everything." Belonging
to this company also was "a mWry-andrew, in a mummer's dress
with a great number of bells, \nd armed with three blown ox-
bladders at the end of a stick."
The above-mentioned Cortes Me la Muerte was probably
the auto which, begun by Migilel de Carvajal and finished
by Luis Hurtado de ToledoV was published in 1557,
and represented in Seville in V570 and again in 1571.1
As in the performance of qpmedias, there was also,
even on such solemn occasions! as the representation of
autos sacrament ales at Corpus IChristi, much noise and
disorder among the motley crowds that thronged the
streets and the public squares to see them. Nor was this
disorder confined to the mob (populacho) . Under date
of June 16, 1615, we read the following: "In this Council
[Madrid] attention being drawn to the disorder which is
wont to be created on the stage ( tablado ) erected for the
purpose of enabling the wives of the regidores to view the
autos at the festival of the Holy Sacrament, the corregi-
dor commands that the said s|age or stand be apportioned
in the same manner as4ffewindows in the plaza are as-
signed for the bull-fights, according to seniority (por su
antiguedad) , beginning from the middle of the stage and
giving to the four most ancient gentlemen five, feet of
stage, and in this manner to continue the apportionment
on both sides, . . . making the division by means of
wooden frames," etc.2
How these processions degenerated into mere mum-
mery through the license and abuse of the participants,
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 44. It has been republished by Don Justo
de Sancha in Vol. XXXV of the Biblioteca de Autores Espaholes.
' Nuevos Datos, p. 158.
314 THE SPANISH STAGE
and how the religious significance and solemnity or the
representations was greatly impaired and almost de-
stroyed by the boisterous and unruly conduct of the
crowd, is shown by an edict of the Bishop of Badajoz in
1605. To this decree the city of Badajoz objected, and
petitioned the King that the comedias and dances on the
day of Corpus should be allowed, as heretofore, "upon
a stage erected for that purpose, on which is revealed the
Most Holy Sacrament, and that the Corregidor, Bishop,
Dean, and Chapter of the said church take part."
Among other things, the edict of the Bishop1 pro-
hibited the clothing of the image of Our Lady in bor-
rowed bridal garments; "(1) that no ruffed collars or
other adornments in fashion among women be put on
such images, under penalty of excommunication and a
fine of 20 ducats. (2) That no one dress himself as a
saint or take part as such in any procession or on a car
unless he be acting in some devotional auto in which a
saint takes part, and then he must have a license to do so ;
nor shall he stand at an altar or in any other place, unless
in some devotional auto that is being acted, for besides
the great indecency of such an action, we have seen and
know that for the said representations beautiful girls are
sought, who, as they are generally poor and are seen
1The Bishop's edict contains the following prohibitions:
(1) "Que se vistan las imageries de Nuestra Senora con prestados que
llevan puestos para los casamientos las desposadas, que no se le pongan
lechuguillos ni otros adornos de moda entre las mugeres, so pena de ex-
comunion mayor, 20 ducados para la guerra contra infieles y perdida de
los tales vestidos."
(2) Que ninguno se vista de santo y a'sista vestido de tal, "en procesion
alguna ni en carro si no fuere habiendo de representar algun auto de
deuocion en que intervenga algun santo, y esto con licencia de nuestro
provisor dada en escrito, mas que de ninguna manera no puedan estar en
altares ni en otros puestos no habiendo auto en que se hable y represente
algo de devocion, porque fuera de la grande indecencia que esto tiene,
avemos visto y sabido que se andan buscando muchachas hermosas y de
buenos pareceres para las dichas representaciones, las quales, como ordina-
riamente son pobres, y son vistas de todo el pueblo, somos informado de
las ofensas a Dios y pecados que resultan dello."
THE BISHOP OF BADAJOZ 315
by all the people, we are informed that offenses to God
and sins result therefrom. (3) That no cars in these pro-
cessions be drawn by oxen, mules, or horses, on account of
the shouts of the drivers and the disorder resulting from
the confusion of the cars with the saints who are carried
on litters, and the disputes which arise, as in the past year,
when swords were drawn and blows were exchanged, pro-
ducing great scandal; wherefore the said cars may be
brought out and the representations made to the people
either before or after the procession. (4) That no pro-
fane comedia be performed at the festival of Corpus
Christi, but only devout autos, without profane entre-
meses, nor any other thing that may divert the people
from the devotion and adoration of the Holy Sacrament
or from the reverence which is due to the presence of so
great a Lord [the Host], or which may incite the people
to laughter, shouts, or any other unseemly actions which
are repugnant to representations of this kind."
Down to the year 1635 these Corpus processions in
Seville had always taken place in the morning, but in this
year they were changed to the afternoon, and the autos
were represented on the cars in the morning, after high
mass.1
We have, in a previous chapter, referred to the objec-
(3) "Que no se saquen para esta procesion carros con bueyes, mulas o
caballos, por los gritos que dan los carreteros y por el desorden que hay
en ello por estar a veces confundidos los carros con los santos que van en
andas y promoverse questiones como la del ano anterior en que se sacaron
las espadas y andaron a cuchilladas, promoviendo un fuerte escandalo;
por lo qual podrian salir dichos carros y hacer las representaciones al
pueblo antes o despues de la procesion."
(4) "Que en las fiestas del Corpus Christi no se haga comedia ninguna
profana sino algunos autos devotos sin mezcla de entremeses profanos ni
de cosa que no sea para mejor enderezar el pueblo a devocion y adorar al
Santisimo Sacramento, e conforme a la reuerencia que se debe en presencia
de tan gran Senor e no para mover el pueblo a risa y hacer otras descom-
posiciones, gritos, ruidos y alborotos indebidos con semej antes representa-
ciones." Todo esto so pena de excomunion mayor, 20 ducados para la
cera del Santisimo. (Ibid., pp. 103, 104.)
1 Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 353.
316 THE SPANISH STAGE
tions and protests of the historian Padre Juan de Mariana
to the manner in which the autos sacramentales were
represented, and to these the testimony of many other
writers might be added. In 1600 Fray Jose de Jesus
Mariana, a barefoot Carmelite of Madrid,1 objects not
only, as we have seen,2 to "vile and infamous men," as he
calls them, representing the autos sacramentales, but pro-
tests earnestly against the introduction of worldly and ir-
reverent entremeses into such sacred representations. He
says that these actors, "accustomed to their evil manner of
living, frequently do and say things before the Holy Sac-
rament which are wholly foreign to the name of Christian
and worthy of severe punishment. And even if it were
tolerable that persons so infamous should represent such
lofty mysteries, what have holy festivals to do with en-
tremeses treating of robberies and adulteries, which are
ordinarily mingled with the autos sacramentales? If this
is justly intolerable in profane comedias, how can it be
endured in those which treat of sacred subjects? It is
this admixture, in Spain, of the sacred and profane, which
offends all foreigners and all good and pious natives."
Despite these protests, of which we might cite many
more from the work of Sr. Cotarelo, autos sacramentales
continued to be represented in the public squares and
theaters of the principal cities until 1765. On June 10
of that year a royal decree was issued declaring that the
theaters were not proper places and the comedians were
unfit and unworthy persons to represent the sacred mys-
teries of which the autos sacramentales treat, and that
the King has therefore determined to prohibit absolutely
all representations of autos sacramentales and to renew
the prohibition of comedias de santos? Thus there
passed from the popular stage a kind of religious drama
1 In his Primera Parte de las Excelencias de la Virtud de la Castidad,
Alcala, 1601, chap, xvii; see Cotarelo y Mori, Conlroversias, p. 377.
2 Above, p. 262. 3 Controversias, p. 657.
AUTOS IN THE THEATERS 317
that was peculiar to Spain and which, in the hands of
some of its dramatists, notably Calderon, had reached
the highest point of beauty and perfection.
We have already1 alluded to the fact that autos sacra-
mentales were not only represented in the public squares,
but also in the theaters of Madrid as early as 1601.
Under what conditions these autos in the theaters took
place, we do not know. That an admission fee was
paid, however, in this event, is certain. It appears
that originally the autos were represented on only two
days: Corpus Christi day and the next day (Friday).
In 1574 Jeronimo Velazquez stipulated to represent three
autos "only on Corpus day and afterward wherever he
may be commanded."2 But all the representations were
confined to these two days. So in 1594 the representa-
tions were to be on Corpus and the day following,3 and
in 1599, when Gaspar de Porres presented the autos,
they were to be performed only on Corpus day and on the
following day, and it was expressly agreed that the carros
were to be returned on Saturday.4 In 1600, when Mel-
chor de Villalba and Gabriel de la Torre represented the
autos at Madrid, they received for two autos each 650
ducats, to be represented on Thursday and Friday,6
and in 1609, when the autos in Madrid were in charge
of Alonso de Heredia and Domingo Balbin, each was
to represent two autos on Thursday and Friday for
600 ducats, and if the court should be in Madrid on
Saturday they were to receive a gratuity for the rep-
resentations on that day.6 This latter stipulation occurs
constantly in the succeeding years down to 1638.7 In
1 61 2 Juan de Morales Medrano and Tomas Fernandez
de Cabredo represented the autos, and "because they had
1 P. zso.
2 Nuevos Dalos, p. 334.
5 Ibid., p. 38. 4 Ibid., p. 49. = Ibid., p. 52.
'Ibid., p. 112. See also above, p. 200.
7 Nuevos Datos, pp. 132, 134, 156, 160, 161, 166, 188, 206, 224.
3i 8 THE SPANISH STAGE
given more representations than they were obliged to
give (Morales five and Cabredo seven) on Saturday,
besides those on Thursday and Friday," the former re-
ceived 700 and the latter 800 reals extra.1
In 1639 the autos were represented in Madrid in the
following order : On Thursday afternoon ( Corpus day) all
four autos were to be given in the presence of the King be-
fore the royal palace at such an hour as the King should
fix; then the four autos were to be performed before the
Princess of Carignan, wife of Prince Thomas, in front of
the monastery of the Incarnation. On Friday before
the "casas del Ayuntamiento" in the Plazuela de San
Salvador, then two autos before the Council of Aragon
and two before the Council of Italy. On Saturday be-
fore the "Consejos de Inquisicion y Cruzada," and in the
afternoon to the Villa de Madrid, before the "casas del
Ayuntamiento," etc., and on Sunday, in the afternoon,
before the Archbishop of Granada, etc.2
In 1649 there is specific information of the representa-
tion of autos in the public theaters. In that year "Diego
Osorio began to represent the auto sacramental which
fell to the lot of his company in the Corral del Principe,
on Wednesday, June 23, and he gave twelve repre-
sentations in the theater until July 4. The said Osorio
ceased to perform in the said Corral del Principe, and
Antonio de Prado entered it and began on Saturday,
July 10, giving fifteen representations of the auto sacra-
mental which he was to give, until July 25, for on July
24 there was no representation. Osorio did not [again]
represent until July 16, when he began in the Corral de la
Cruz, where he gave thirteen representations until July
30. On August 5 Prado began to represent the auto La
Vacante in the Principe, where he gave nine representa-
tions of the said auto until August 13, and then rested
1 Nuevos Da/os, p. 130.
'Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Vol. I, p. 119.
EXPENSE OF AUTOS 319
until the 24th, when he began in the said corral the auto
La Magdalena, of which he alone gave in this corral
fifteen representations until September 8, so that there
were twenty-four representations of the said two autos in
the said corral. Between September 14 and September
29 Prado gave ten representations. From October 3 to
October 16 he alone represented and then ceased. On
August 6 Osorio began in La Cruz and gave two repre-
sentations to August 10. On September 20 he again
represented in the Corral del Principe and gave seven
representations. From October 16 to November 1 Osorio
gave twelve representations." l
Whether the autos were afterward conducted on the
scale of magnificence which they attained in 1649, or
whether they were represented for as long a period as
they were given in the theaters in this year, we have no
means of determining. The Dutch traveler Francis van
Aerssen, who visited Spain in 1655, te^s us tnat when
'Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Vol. I, pp. 166, 167. It is inter-
esting to add a list of the expenses incurred for the autos at Madrid in
this year, 1649, showing the enormous costs which these entertainments,
fostered by the idle and show-loving Philip IV, brought upon his exhausted
country.
Fiesta del Santisimo Sacramento. Ano 1649.
Gastos :
A los autores por las representaciones 710,600 mrs.
Al que compone los autos 112,200
Al cerero *>44>47°
A Juan de Caramanchel para hacer los carros 319,600
A Gaspar Flores y compania por las danzas 421,600
A Adrian Lopez por el lienzo de los toldos 366,656
Por traer la Tarasca 27,200
Hermanos de la Dotrina 112,200
La musica 76,296
Por llevar los carros y aderezos para ellos 14,012
Al mayordomo de propios para gastos menudos i7>76o
Al obrero para unos palos 21,760
. Al dicho para coser los toldos y hacerlos 105,944
A Juan Blanco por el tablado de la plaza 127,500 "
Tablado de Palacio 51,000 "
Carried forward 3,128,798 mrs.
320 THE SPANISH STAGE
the autos were represented the theaters were closed
for a month. The money derived from the entrance
fees to the theaters during these representations may
have helped to defray the expenses of these festivals;
it was undoubtedly a source of profit for the autores
who represented the autos, for the sum of 950 ducats,
which they received, could only have compensated them
for the free representations on the first three days of the
Corpus festival.
These festivals were a very considerable financial help
to Calderon. Acknowledged as the foremost religious
poet of Spain, his services were in great demand on
these occasions, and he received a much larger hono-
rarium for his autos sacramentales than any other poet
had yet obtained. In 1639 he wrote for the Corpus
celebration of that year two autos: Santa Maria
Egipciaca and El mejor Huesped de Espana, and
in 1640 Los Misterios de la Misa and El Juicio final.
In 1645 ne wrote the four autos for the festival, re-.
Brought forward 3,128,798 rars.
A Francisco de Mena, por la escalera que se hace en casa
del Marques de Cafiete 22,200 "
Por poner los toldos 95,2°° "
De colgar el tablado 34,000 "
Atajos 11,050 "
A los escuderos de a pie 11,220 "
Traer los Gigantes 37,944 "
Puntas y valonas para los Gigantes 14.416 "
Atajo priraero de Santa Maria 6,800 "
Ministriles 5i58o "
Alguaciles 13,056 "
Limpiar la custodia 17,000 "
A los porteros que se ocupan 9,5*° "
Al alguacil mayor 6,800 "
Al cura de Santa Maria 3,400 "
Tablados para representar a el pueblo 6,732 "
Propina a los senores del Consejo y a la Villa 710,100 "
Total 4,133,816 mrs.
From this it will be seen that Calderon, who wrote the four aulas for the
festival of this year, received 112,200 maravedis = 300 ducats, and the
autores de comedias each 950 ducats.
AUTOS BY CALDERON 321
ceiving 3300 reals vellon (copper), which sum was also
paid him in the years 1648 to 1653, while in 1654 to
1656 he received 4000 reals.1 During this time and, I
believe, thereafter until his death, he alone was honored
with the privilege of writing the autos for the Madrid
festival. But besides the 3300 reals vellon which Calde-
ron received from the city for the autos, a document of
1652 shows that each of the two autores de comedias who
represented them was obliged to pay him 700 reals, i.e.,
he then received 4700 reals.2 In 1654-56 he was paid
4000 reals vellon,3 while from 1657 to 1665 he received
4400 reals, i.e., 3000 from the city and 1400 from the
autores. In the latter year the sum paid him was 5800
reals, and this sum he continued to receive until 1680, the
year before his death, when 5500 reals were paid him for
two autos.* It appears that as early as 1658,5 and per-
haps in the previous year, only two autos sacramentales
were represented each year at Madrid, and this was the
rule thereafter until the death of Calderon. Four autos
were also represented annually in Seville down to the year
1648, when only two were given, and the same number
thereafter.6 Calderon continued to write the autos for
the Madrid festival until 1681, the year of his death,
when he left an auto unfinished, which was completed by
Don Manuel de Leon Marchante.7
1 Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Vol. I, pp. 120, 122, 127, 163, 168,
187, 196, 206, 224, 240.
'Ibid., pp. 196, 333, 337. 'Ibid., pp. 224, 238, 240.
'Ibid., pp. 249, 315, 336 et passim. 'Ibid., p. 257.
* Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 449.
7 See above, p. 295.
CHAPTER XV
Contemporary accounts of the representation of comedias and
autos. Francis van Aerssen. The Comtesse d'Aulnoy. The
behavior of audiences. Scenes in the theaters. Spanish players
abroad. Conclusion.
The accounts of persons who were eye-witnesses of the
representation of a comedia at a time when some of the
great dramatists were still living and when several of
the greatest among them had not long since passed away,
always possess an exceeding interest. When these ac-
counts are due to the pen of a foreigner, some allowance
must necessarily be made, not only for national prejudice,
which is apt to warp his judgment somewhat, but also for
a more or less imperfect knowledge of the language.
Nevertheless, they furnish us with a living picture of the
scene as it passed before the eyes of the spectator, and
herein they possess the definite value of contemporary
documents. With their aid it requires no very great flight
of the imagination to picture ourselves in one of the co-
rrales of Madrid, in the very place and atmosphere in
which these immortal productions of the great masters of
the Spanish drama were enacted, and to view them once
more, through the long vista of nearly three hundred
years. The very realistic description of the interior of the
Corral de la Olivera in Valencia, given in the comedia La
Baltasara, has already been alluded to in a previous chap-
ter. The other accounts which we possess belong, with two
exceptions, to the middle of the seventeenth century or
somewhat later. It may not be without interest, however, to
322
"THE WHEEL OF FORTUNE" 323
give the earliest of these contemporary notices, slight as it
is. The simple narrative is taken from a MS. formerly in
the possession of Don Pascual de Gayangos — a name
ever to be recorded with gratitude in the annals of Span-
ish literature. This manuscript, written by a Morisco
of the time of Philip the Third, contains all sorts of moral
observations mingled with other matters and descriptions
of passing events, among them an account of a representa-
tion of Mira de Mescua's comedia La Rueda de la For-
tuna, which our author had witnessed. We do not know
when Mescua's play was written, but Lope de Vega, in
a letter to a friend, mentions that it was acted in Toledo
by the company of Juan de Morales before August,
1604.1
The Morisco's account is as follows :
I passed through the door of a house which I saw many people
entering — men as well as women. Having gone in, I saw a large
patio, where, upon chairs and benches, men and women were sit-
ting; in a gallery sat the women of the common people, and there
were, besides, a number of balconies occupied by the distinguished
persons with their wives. In the patio a stage was erected, upon
which all eyes were fixed, and when the house was full, I saw two
ladies (damas) and two gallants (galanes) come out upon the stage
with their vihuelas, who sang these decimas:
"Quien se bio en prosperidad
Y se be en misero estado
Considere ques prestado
El bien y la adbersidad," etc.
Having finished singing, they retired, and an actor entered, clad
in a garment of damask, and recited the loa. After he had finished
and had withdrawn, other players entered to represent "The Wheel
"See the writer's Life of Lope de Vega, pp. 153, 154. As now printed
the loa shows that the comedia was also acted by the company of
Riquelme. (Dramaticos contemporaneos de Lope de Vega, Tomo II, Bibl.
de Aut. Esp.)
324 THE SPANISH STAGE
of Fortune," which sets forth the various conditions of the world,
and how they are subject to change, etc.
A detailed description of the comedia follows.1
Among the narratives of travelers in Spain who have
left any account of theatrical representations, one of the
most interesting is that of a Dutchman, Francis van Aers-
sen, who visited Spain in 1654-55, though his account2
was not published till eleven years afterward. In 1670
an English translation of this work appeared in London,
entitled A Journey into Spain, though it is nowhere indi-
cated that this little book is a translation.3 I shall quote
from this English version :
On one side of the Town [Madrid] is the Prado, a large Walk
made use of for the Tour; near it is a great Fabrick, but low, called
Buen Retiro. The Duke of Olivares, during his administration,
spent many Millions on a Structure that is not very considerable:
I saw but part of it, where a Comedy was preparing with Scenes,
that would amount to a great expence ; a Florentine was the Under-
taker. For ordinary Comedies here are two Theaters, where they
act every day. The Players have to themselves not above three half
pence for every person, the Hospital as much, and as much the
Town-house; [the French original says: and for a seat on the
benches one pays besides about two sous, which are for the city, to
which the theaters belong] ; to set down costs seven pence, the
whole amounting to fifteen pence. I can say litde to the Lines or
Plots, not being skilful enough in the language to understand
1 Schack, Nachtrage, p. 57.
1 Voyage d'Espagne, Contenant entre plusieurs particularitez de ce
Royaume, trois Discours Politique!, etc., avec une Relation de I'Estat fif
Gouvernement de cette Monarchic ; & une Relation particuliere de
Madrid. A Cologne, chez Pierre Marteau, 1666. The real author of this
work, according to R. Foulche-Delbosc, was Antoine de Brunei. (See
Revue Hispanique, Vol. Ill, p. 65.)
'A Journey into Spain. (Here follows a quotation from Seneca, de Vita
beata.) London. Printed for Henry Herringman, and are to be sold at
the Sign of the Blew Anchor in the Lower Walk of the Ne<w Exchange,
1670. 6 + 247 pp.
FRANCIS VAN AERSSEN 325
Poetry, nor the figurative fashion of speaking that belongs to it : but
know they play their parts ill, few or none having either the meen
or genius of true Actors. [They do not play by the light of torches,
but] They present by day-light, so that their Scenes appear not
with advantage. Their Clothes are neither rich, nor appropriated
to their Subject; and the Spanish habit serves where the Scene is
Greece or Rome. The Playes I have seen have but three Acts,
called Jornadas. They usually begin by a Prologue in Musick, but
sing so ill, that their harmony resembles little Childrens whinings.
Between the Acts there is some little Farce, Dance, or Intrigue,
the most diverting of the whole Piece. The People are* so taken
with them it is hard to get a place, the best being bespoken, and the
excessive idleness of this Country is made evident in that in Paris
it self, though there are not Playes every day, there is no such
crowding to them.1
The Dutch traveler's description of the Corpus Christ!
procession and the autos is as follows :
As the publick sports, the Moors introduced in Spain, whilst they
possessed it, continue after their exile ; the Church also retains some-
thing of their superstition, especially on Corpus Christi day. The
Twenty seventh of May we saw all its Ceremonies, which are-
many, and last long; they begin by a procession, whose first ranks
are intermixed with several Hoboies, Tabors, and Castanettas; a
great many habited in party coloured clothes, skip and dance as
extravagantly as at a Morrice. The King goes to St Maries
Church not far from his Palace, and after Mass, returns with a
Torch in his hand, following a silver Tabernacle, in which is the
Holy Wafer, attended by the Grandes of Spain, and his several
Councils. This day to avoid dispute, they observe not order, so
that the Counsellors de la Hazienda, joyn with those of the Indies;
before these Counsellors and certain other persons, move Machines,
representing Giants; these are Statues of Pasboard carried by men
concealed under them: they are of several shapes, some very
hideous,; all of them represent Femals, except the first, which is
only the Figure of a great head painted, within which is concealed
1A Journey into Spain, pp. 19-21 ; Voyage d'Espagne, pp. 29, 30.
326 THE SPANISH STAGE
a little man that gives it meen and motion : it being a Colossus over
the body of a Pigmie. Amongst these chimerical Monsters, there
is one which represents two Giantesses, Moors, or Aethiopians,
such having really been if we may beleeve the vulgar, who call them
Hijos de Vecinos, that is, neighbors children. The people are so-
taken with these Gothick figures, that there is scarce any Village
without them. They report the Giantesses to have lived in the
time of King Mammelin, and on that account sometimes call them
Mammelins, after the name of that Gothick or Moorish King who
once Reigned in Spain. I was told of another terrible Pageant
(machine epouvantable qui roule ce jour la) which they call
Tarasca, from a wood that was formerly in Province, where at
present stands the City of Tarascon on the banks of Rosne, over
against Beaucaire. They fancy that in this place was once a Ser-
pent (no less enemy of Mankind, then that which seduced our first
Ancestors in Paradise) called Behemoth, and report that St Martha
by oraisons triumphed over it, leading it prisoner in her apron
strings. Be this History or Fable, the Tarasca is a Serpent of enor-
mous greatness in form of a Woman, moving on wheels, the body
covered with scales, a vast belly, long tail, short feet, sharp talons,
fiery eyes, gaping mouth, out of which extend three tongues, and
long tusks. This Bulbegger stalks up and down and they which are.
under the pastboard and paper, of which it is composed, by certain
Springs, cause it to move so dexterously, that it puts off the Hat to
the Sots that stare at it, and sometimes lays hold on Countrey fel-
lows, whose fright moves laughter amongst the people. Such as-
please themselves in telling wonders of this foppery, relate that a
certain Town having sent to some of its neighbors six of these paper
Giants, two Pigmies and the Tarasca to be made use of on Corpus
Christi day, they which give them their motion being entered, to
divert themselves in the passage, caused them to dance as at pro-
cessions by couples : they were met by certain Muliters or Carriers,
who (Moonshine discovering at a distance, these imaginary Mon-
sters,) marching with a great deal of prattle and loud laughter,
(for their merrier passing two or three Leagues) not recollecting"
what was to be done the day after, were so affrighted, that the ter-
ror still augmenting, by their contemplating those fantasiries, they
at last run away with all their might. The conductors of the
Monsters perceiving this, casting off their Vizards, went out of the-
THE FESTIVAL OF CORPUS CHRISTI 327
Machines to disabuse them, running after them to cause them to
come back to their Mules and charges; this increased their aston-
ishment, and hastened their pace, which aided by the wings of fear,
soon transported them cross the fields to a village, which they
allarmed to free the Countrey of highway men, so hideous, they
could be little less then Devils : the other in the mean time slipping
their cases, and perceiving themselves masters of the spoils, the
muletiers had abandoned, began to visit the baggage, and finding
Wine, drank so much they fell fast asleep till morning. The
Muletiers after their raising the Village, and bringing the Justice
to the place, perceived their mistake, and the Countrey fellows
laughing heartily at them, drank the remainder of the Wine in
recompence of their trouble. The Village of the solemnity, a great
while waited for those grim Puppets, which came too late, and by
their excuse and relation of what had happened, disordered the
whole procession, changing it into a Ring of such as abandoned
the Cross and Banner, to hearken to their story. The pleasantest
posture of these Mammelinas that I saw was, when they made their
salutes before the Queens Balcony, besides some feats of activity by
address of those that danced them. The King passing by it, salutes
the Queen with a smile, and the Queen and Infanta rise a little
before he comes at them, to return his compliment. The Procession
having filed to the Piazza, returns by the High street or Calle
Mayor, adorned by many Tapestries waving on the Balconies,
filled with men and women of all conditions : the crowd is so great
one cannot pass without difficulty, and we had much ado to return
to St Maries Church where the procession ended. As soon as free
from it we went to the Palace, and there saw the King, Queen, and
Infanta, return with all the Court Ladies. I think I have men-
tioned all that is worth notice, unless it be that as on this day all
the men put on Summer cloaths, so do all the Ladies, and those new
and very rich, of several fashions and colours. In the afternoon
about five a clock, Autos are represented: these are ghostly Come-
dies (Comedies spirituelles) , with interludes, very ridiculous to
give rellish to what is serious and tedious in the pieces themselves.
The two companies of Players that belong to Madrid at this
time, shut their theatres, and for a month represent these Holy
Poems: this they do every evening in publick on Scaffolds erected
to that purpose in the streets before the houses of the Presidents of
328 THE SPANISH STAGE
several Councils. They begin at Court the day of the Solemnity,
when a seat under a State is provided for their Majesties: the Stage
is at the foot of these Scaffolds, and [because the players act with
their backs turned toward the crowd, which is in the square] little
painted Booths are rowled to it, environ it [the stage] and serve
as tiring houses [where they dress, from which they enter upon the
stage and to which they retire at the end of each scene]. This is
continued certain days, every President having one [day] and a
Stage and Scaffold erected before his house. Before these Autos
begin, all the foppery of the Procession dances, and the Gigantine
Machines make the people sport ; but what I most admired in that
which I saw at a distance in the old Prado, is, that in the streets
and open air they use Torches to those pieces, which in the daily
Theaters, and within doors, they represent without other light then
that of the Sun: all these antick ceremonies appeared much more
ridiculous to those that beheld them, then they can possibly do in
my describing them, and confirm me in what I often observed, that
the Spaniards, and other wise and grave nations seem fondest in
their diversions, as Misers at their feasts sometimes become most
prodigal.1
In a little work entitled Relation de I'Estat cif Gou-
vernement d'Espagne, printed at Cologne in 1666, and
generally bound in the above-mentioned Voyage d'Es-
pagne, the author, Francois Bertaut,2 who accompanied
the Marechal de Gramont to Spain in 1659, gives a de-
scription of the Madrid theaters, which I here copy :
Concerning the Comedia, there are troupes of players in nearly
all the towns, and they are better, in comparison, than our own,
but there are none in the pay of the King. They represent in a
court-yard, where a number of private houses join together, so
that the windows of the rooms, which they call rexas, because the
most of them are provided with iron gratings, do not belong to
them [the players] but to the owners of the houses. They repre-
1 A Journey into Spain, pp. 83-88; Voyage d'Espagne, pp. 1 18-124.
2 See the excellent Bibliography of works of Travel in Spain by R.
Foulche-Delbosc, in the Revue Hispanique, Vol. Ill, pp. 65, 69.
MADAME DE MOTTEVILLE 329
sent by day and without torches, and their theaters (except in the
Buen Retiro, where there are three or four distinct salons) have
not such fine decorations as ours, but they have an amphitheater and
a parterre. There are two places or Salles in Madrid, which they
call Corrales, and which are always filled with merchants and
artisans, who leave their shops and repair thither with cloak, sword,
and poniard, and who all call themselves Cavalleros, even down to
the cobblers, and it is these who decide whether the comedia is good
or not. And because they now hiss and now applaud the play and
are drawn up on both sides in ranks, and as this is a sort of salvo,
they are called Mosqueteros. It is on these that the fortune of the
author depends. . . . Some of the spectators have seats close to the
stage, which places they preserve from father to son like an entailed
estate (mayorazgo) , which cannot be sold or pledged, so great a
passion have they for the theater. The women all sit together in a
gallery at one end [of the theater], which the men are not allowed
to enter.1
The Memoirs de Madame de Motteville (Francoise
Bertaut) contain a letter written to her from Madrid, on
October 21, 1659, by her brother, Frangois Bertaut,
who, as already noted, accompanied the Marechal de
Gramont on his mission to Spain in reference to the
Peace of the Pyrenees and the marriage of Louis the
Fourteenth to the Infanta Maria Teresa, daughter of
Philip the Fourth of Spain. In this letter Bertaut gives a
brief account of a play which he saw performed before the
royal family at the Buen Retiro :
The best thing of all and the most interesting, I reserve for the
last ; it was the comedia which was acted at the palace by the light
of six large torches of white wax, contained in huge silver candle-
sticks. On the two sides of the room were two alcoves, closed by
a curtain. In one of them were the Infantas and other persons of
the palace, while in the other one opposite was the Marechal.
Along the two sides were only two long benches covered with
Persian carpets. The ladies, to the number of ten or twelve, took
1 Relation de I'Estat & Gouvernement d'Espagne, pp, 59, 60.
33Q THE SPANISH STAGE
seats upon these carpets on both sides, their backs leaning against
the bench. Behind them, on the side where the Infanta sat, but
further on, toward where the players were, and almost behind
them, some gentlemen were standing, and a grandee was on the
side where the Marechal sat. The rest of us Frenchmen stood
behind the benches against which the ladies were leaning. The
King, Queen, and Infanta entered after one of the ladies who bore
a torch. As the King entered he took off his hat to all these ladies
and then took a seat in front of a screen, the Queen on his left and
the Infanta on the left of the Queen. During the whole comedy,
save a single word which he spoke to the Queen, the King moved
neither foot, hand, nor head, only casting his eyes about once in a
while, nobody being near him except a dwarf. When the comedy
was over, all the ladies arose and left their places one by one, assem-
bling in the middle of the room like canons leaving their seats after
a service, and joining hands they made their reverences, which
lasted for some minutes ; then they went out one after another, while
the King was still uncovered. Finally he arose and made a mod-
erate bow (une reverence raisonnable) to the Queen, the latter
bowed to the Infanta, and taking one another by the hand, as it
seemed to me, they went out.1
In 1679 the Comtesse d'Aulnoy journeyed through
Spain, and in her second letter, dated at San Sebastian.
writes :
After I had rested somewhat from the fatigue of the journey, it
was proposed that we go to the comedia. . . . When I entered the
theater there was a cry of mira! mira! i.e., look! look! The decora-
tions of the theater were not brilliant. The stage was raised, rest-
ing upon barrels, over which were boards, ill arranged. The
windows were all open, for they do not use torches, and you can im-
lMemoirs, etc., Maestricht, 1782, Vol. V, pp. 360, 361. The Infanta was
Dona Maria Teresa, the bride of Louis XIV., and the comedia, from the
fact that the galan was an Archbishop of Toledo, was probably, according
to Pellicer (Vol. I, p. 192), La Conquisla de Oran, which he ascribes to
Lope de Vega. Doubtless this is the comedia by Luis Velez de Guevara,
La Conquista de Oran, 6 El Gran Cardenal de Espana Fray Francisco
Jimenez de Cisneros, published in Comedias Escogidas, Part XXXV,
Madrid, 1671. When the Prince of Wales, afterward Charles L, "under-
took his romantic wooing journey" to Spain with Buckingham, the con-
temporary account of the royal entry into Madrid, on March 23, 1623,
informs us that: "in the streets of the passage divers representations were
MADAME D'AULNOY 331
agine how much this detracts from the spectacle. They represented
the "Life of St. Anthony," and when the players said anything
which pleased the audience, everybody cried out victor! victot I I
learned that this was the custom in this country. I noticed that the
devil was not dressed differently from the other actors, save that
his hose were flame-colored and that he wore a pair of horns, to
distinguish him from the rest. The comedia was in three acts, as
they all are. At the end of each serious act they played a farce
with some pleasantries, in which the gracioso or clown appeared,
who, amid a great number of dull jests, occasionally uttered some
that were not so bad. These interludes were mingled with dances
to the music of harps and guitars. The actresses had castanets and
wore little hats. This is the custom when they dance, and when
they dance the Zarabanda, it seemed that they did not touch the
ground, so lightly did they glide. Their manner is quite different
from ours; they move their arms too much, and often pass their
hands over their hats and faces with a very pleasing grace, and they
play the castanets admirably.
Moreover, one must not think that these players — because San
Sebastian is a small place — are very different from those of Madrid.
I have been told that the King's players are somewhat better, for,
after all, they, too, play what they call Comedias famosas, that is,
the best and most famous comedies, and in truth the greater part
of them are quite ridiculous. For example, when St. Anthony said
the confiteor, which was quite frequent, everybody kneeled, and
each one gave himself such a violent mea culpa that one thought
they would crush their breasts.1
In her tenth letter, written from Madrid on May 29,
1679, Madame d'Aulnoy gives the following description
of the opera of Alcina,2 which she witnessed:
made of the best comedians, dancers and men of musicke, to give con-
tentment to the Royal paire [Charles and Philip IV.] as they passed it."
The scene is presented in a rare German print in the Grenville library,
which shows the players on a rude platform or stage raised about five
feet from the ground, with a curtain at the back and on the sides. (See
W. B. Rye, England as seen by Foreigners in the Days of Elizabeth and
James I., etc., London, 1865, p. ex. Also Nichols, The Progress of James
I., Vol. IV, pp. 824 and 877.)
1 Relation du Voyage d'Espagne, a La Haye, chez Henry van Bulderen,
Tome Premier, 1693, P- 55-
2 Founded on an episode in the Orlando Furioso.
332 THE SPANISH STAGE
I never saw such wretched machinery. The gods descended on
horseback upon a beam which extended from one end of the stage
to the other ; the sun was lighted up by means of a dozen lanterns
of oiled paper in each of which was a lamp. When Alcina prac-
tised her enchantments and evoked the demons, the latter arose
leisurely out of hell upon ladders. The gracioso or clown made
countless rude jests. The musicians have rather good voices, but
sing too much from the throat. Formerly all sorts of persons were
permitted to enter [the Buen Retiro, where the opera of Alcina
was presented before the King], although the King was present,
but this custom is changed now and only great lords, or at least
titled persons or knights of the three military orders, are admitted.
The building is certainly very beautiful and handsomely painted and
gilded; the boxes are furnished with blinds (grillees de jalousies)
like those we have at the Opera, but they reach from top to bottom,
so that they seem to form a kind of room. The side on which the
King sits is magnificent. Moreover, the finest comedy in the world,
I mean of those which they play in the city [i.e., in the public
theaters], is often approved or hissed, according to the caprice of
some wretch.
At this time, as already related,1 the fate of a new come-
dia on the Madrid boards generally depended upon the
whim of a shoemaker.
The writer continues :
There is a certain place in the theater, a kind of amphitheater,
called the cazuela. Hither flock all the women of a mediocre
virtue, and all the great lords also repair to it to speak with them.
Sometimes so much noise is made there that the thunder cannot be
heard. They say so many witty things that one almost dies of
laughter, for their vivacity is not restrained by good breeding.2
Madame dAulnoy gives a brief account of an auto which
she saw represented in Madrid in June, 1679. After de-
scribing summarily the procession which always precedes
1 See above, pp. iai, 122.
2 Relation du Voyage d'Espagne, La Haye, 1693, Tome III, p. 21.
ALONSO LOPEZ PINCIANO 333
the auto, she says that the King went to the church of
Santa Maria, near the palace, to meet the procession.
On that day all the ladies put on their summer clothes and ap-
pear in all their finery on the balconies, with baskets of flowers and
bottles of scented water, which they throw down when the pro-
cession passes. . . . When the Holy Sacrament, which had been
carried in the procession, is returned to the church, the people repair
to their houses to dine and then to attend the auto. . . . These are
tragedies upon sacred subjects, the execution of which is very
bizarre. They are represented in the yard or in the street of the
President of each Council, to whom this is due. The King comes
there, and all the persons of quality receive tickets on the previous
evening. We were also invited, and I was surprised that they
should have lighted an extraordinary number of torches while the
sun was shining brightly on the comedians, and made the candles
melt like butter. They played the most absurd piece that I have
ever seen. Here is the plot of it: The Knights of St. James are
assembled, and our Lord comes to beg them to receive him into
their order. There are several who are quite willing, but the elders
represent to the others the wrong which they would commit by
admitting among their number a person of lowly birth, for St.
Joseph, his father, was a poor carpenter and the Holy Virgin had
worked as a seamstress. Our Lord awaits the decision with much
anxiety, and is at length refused, but the Order of Christ is
finally instituted for him, and all are satisfied. This is a Portuguese
order. . . . These autos last a month.1
Of the character of Spanish audiences and of their be-
havior, we have already spoken. Alonso Lopez Pinciano
gives an amusing account of the scenes enacted among the
spectators in the Corral de la Cruz about 1595 or per-
haps earlier. With his friends Ugo and Fadrique, the
Pincian had gone to see a tragedy of Euripides at the
above theater. While waiting for the performance to
begin, Fadrique says : "This is by no means a poor pastime,
—for here we can enjoy many and various things, observ-
1 Ibid., p. 55.
334 THE SPANISH STAGE
ing these people gathered together. One throws a hand-
kerchief from above into the patio, and a seller of fruits
or confections picks it up, unties the knot in the corner,
takes out the coin and, wrapping in it the fruit demanded,
tosses it up and perchance it alights in the mouth of some
one for whom it was not intended, who involuntarily bites
into it— handkerchief and all. Then, to watch the wran-
gling over the bancos: this banco is mine; this seat
was reserved by my servant, etc., and the arguments pro
and contra. To watch some fellow cross the whole thea-
ter to reach his seat, and see how they shout at him and
twit him. Or to see blows exchanged in the women's
gallery in a quarrel over a seat or in a fit of jealousy," x etc.
A very animated description of the scenes in a Spanish
theater at about the middle of the seventeenth century
is given by the dramatist Juan de Zabaleta, in his Dia de
Fiesta por la Tarde, Madrid, 1692, p. 236 (the first
edition is of Zaragoza, 1666). He says:
He must dine hurriedly at noon, who intends to go to the
comedia in the afternoon. His anxiety to get a good seat hardly
permits him to warm the chair at the dinner-table. He reaches the
door of the theater, and the first thing he does is to try to enter
without paying. The first misfortune of players is to work much
and to have but few persons pay. For twenty persons to enter on
three quartos would not do much harm if it were not an occasion
for many others to do the same. For if only one has not paid,
countless others will also refuse to pay. All wish to enjoy the
privilege of free admission in order that others may see that they
are worthy of it. This they desire with such intense eagerness that
they will fight to obtain it, and by fighting they achieve their object.
Rarely does a man who has once quarreled to avoid paying ever
pay at any subsequent time. A fine reason to quarrel, in order to
profit by the sweat of those who labor to entertain one ! And then,
because he does not pay, will he be easy to please? On the con-
trary, if a player wears a poor costume he insults him or hisses him.
1 Philosophia Antigua, Madrid, 1596, pp. 529, 530.
JUAN DE ZABALETA 335
I should like to know how this fellow and those who imitate him
can expect a player to wear fine clothes, when they refuse to pay
him. . . . Our idler moves on into the theater and approaches the
person who assigns the seats and benches, and asks for a place.1 He
is met with the reply that there are none, but that a certain seat
which has been engaged has not yet been occupied, and that he
should wait until the guitar-players appear, and if it be still vacant,
he may then occupy it. Our man argues, but to amuse himself, in the
meanwhile, he goes to the dressing-room. There he finds women
taking off their street clothes and putting on their theatrical cos-
tumes. Some are so far disrobed as though they were about to
retire to bed. He takes his place in front of a woman who, having
come to the theater on foot, is having her shoes and stockings put
on by her maid. This cannot be done without some sacrifice of
modesty. The poor actress must suffer this and does not dare to
protest, for, as her chief object is to win applause, she is afraid to
offend any one. A hiss, no matter how unjust, discredits her, since
all believe that the judgment of him who accuses is better than
their own. The actress continues to dress, enduring his presence
with patience. The most indecorous woman on the stage has some
modesty in the green-room, for here her immodesty is a vice, while
there it is of her profession.
The fellow never takes his eyes off her. . . . He approaches the
hangings (panos) to see whether the doubtful seat is occupied, and
finds it vacant. As it appears that the owner will not come, he
goes and takes the seat. Scarcely has he been seated when the
owner arrives and defends his claim. The one already seated re-
sists, and a quarrel ensues. Did this fellow not come to amuse
himself, when he left his home? And what has quarreling to do
with amusement ? . . . Finally the quarrel is adjusted, and the one
who has paid for the seat yields and takes another place which has
been offered him by the peacemakers. The commotion caused by
the struggle having subsided, our intruder is also quieted and now
turns his eyes to the gallery occupied by the women {cazuela),
carefully scrutinizing their faces until he finds one who particularly
strikes his fancy, and guardedly makes signs to her.
The cazuela, my dear sir, is not what you came to see, but the
"The sura paid at the door (entrada) only entitles the person to admis-
sion, not to a seat, for which an extra sum must be paid.
336 THE SPANISH STAGE
comedia. . . . He is looking round in every direction, when he
feels some one pull his cloak from behind. He turns and sees a
fruit-seller, who, leaning forward between two men, whispers to
him that the woman who is tapping her knee with her fan says that
she has much admired the spirit which he has shown in the quarrel
and asks him to pay for a dozen oranges for her. The fellow looks
again at the cazuela, sees that the woman is the one that caught his
fancy before, pays the money for the fruit, and sends word that she
may have anything else she pleases. As the fruit-seller leaves, the
fellow immediately plans that he will wait for the woman at the
exit of the theater, and he begins to think that there is an inter-
minable delay in beginning the play. In a loud and peevish manner
he signifies his disapproval, exciting the mosqueteros, who are stand-
ing below, to break forth with insulting shouts, in order to hasten
the players. Why do they do this ? . . . Not one of those who are
shouting would run the risk of saying a word to a player in the
street. And besides being foolish and cowardly to treat them thus,
it is most ungrateful, for of all people actors are those who strive
hardest to please. The rehearsals for a comedia are so frequent and
so long that it is often a positive torment. And when the time for
the first performance arrives, every one of them would willingly
give a year's pay to make a good appearance on that day. And
when they come upon the stage, what fatigue, what loss would they
not willingly undergo to acquit themselves well of their task? If
they are to cast themselves from a rock they do it with the fear-
lessness of despair, yet their bodies are human, and they feel pain
like any other. And if in a comedia a death-struggle is to be repre-
sented, the actor to whose lot it falls writhes upon the dirty stage,
which is full of projecting nails and splinters, with no more regard
for his costume than if it were the coarsest leather, while often it is
very costly. . . . And I have seen an actress of great repute (who
died only a short while ago) representing a passage where, in a
rage, she tears a garment to tatters to heighten the effect of her
acting, though the article torn may cost twice as much as the money
she receives for the performance. . . .
But women also go to see the comedia. On feast-days men go to
the play after lunching, but women go before. The woman who
goes to the comedia on a holiday generally makes it an affair of a
whole day. She meets one of her friends, and they take a bite of
AMAZONS IN THE STEWPAN 337
breakfast, reserving the midday meal for the evening. Then they
go to mass, and from the church straight to the cazuela to get a
good seat. There is no money-taker at the door yet. They enter
and find a sprinkling of women as foolish as themselves already in
the cazuela. They avoid the front seats, for these are for the
women who come to see and be seen ; so they take a modest seat in
the middle. They express their pleasure at having found so com-
fortable a place and cast their eyes about for some pastime. Finding
none, the rest from the hurry of the morning serves as a satisfaction.
Other women enter, and some of the more brazen sit by the front
railing of the cazuela, thus shutting out the light from those in the
middle. Now the merry-making is let loose. The money-takers
enter. One of our friends draws a handkerchief from beneath the
folds of her petticoat, and with her teeth looses a knot tied in the
corner of it, and takes out a real (34 maravedis) and asks for the
return of ten maravedis. While she is doing this the other takes
from her bosom a paper containing ten quartos (40 maravedis), and
hands her money to the doorkeeper, who passes on. The one with
the ten maravedis in her hand now buys a package of filberts for
two quartos, and, like a child, does not know what to do with the
remaining ochavo (2 maravedis) which she has received in change;
finally she drops it in her bosom, with the remark that it is for the
poor. Now the two friends begin to crack the filberts, and you can
hear them munching them; but one of the filberts is full of dust,
the other contains a dry kernel, while another has an oily taste. . . .
Now more women are crowding in. One of those who are in front
makes signs to two others who are standing behind our two friends,
and without asking permission the newcomers pass between the two,
stepping on their skirts and disarranging their cloaks, which pro-
vokes the exclamation : "Did you ever see such rudeness !" and they
begin to shake and fleck the dust from their skirts. Those in the
front seats begin to eat sandwiches, and presently one of the two
friends remarks: "Do you see that man down there with grayish
hair who is taking a seat on one of the benches on the left ?" etc. . . .
Here follows some scandal, for which she is reproved by another
woman sitting near. . . .
The cazuela being now full, the apretador enters (he is the door-
keeper, who makes the women sit closer so that they may make more
room), accompanied by four women, well dressed and thickly
338 THE SPANISH STAGE
veiled, whom he wants to accommodate, for they have given him
eight quartos. He approaches our friends and tells them to sit
closer; they protest; he insists, and they reply that the women
should have come earlier, when they would have found seats.
Finally the newcomers let themselves fall upon those already seated,
who, to get away from under them, unconsciously make room.
There is grumbling on all sides, but at last quiet is restored. . . .
It is now half-past two o'clock, and the friends, who had not dined,
begin to get hungry. At length one of the women who had been
accommodated by the apretador gives to our friends each a handful
of prunes and some candied yolks of eggs, with the remark : "Come,
let us be friends and eat these sweets which some booby gave me."
They begin to eat and want to strike up a conversation, but say
nothing, as they cannot stop eating. Presently there is an alterca-
tion at the door of the cazuela between the doorkeeper and a num-
ber of youths who want some women to enter free, and they burst
into the cazuela quarreling. A great commotion and uproar ensues.
The women rise excitedly, and in their anxiety to avoid those who
are quarreling they fall over one another. . . . Those who rush up
from the patio to lend aid or restore order push into the jumbling
mass and bowl the women over. All now take to the corners as
the best place in the cazuela, and some on all fours and others run-
ning seek a place of safety. Finally the police expel the men, and
every woman takes a seat where she happens to be, none occupying
the one she had at first. One of the two friends is now on the
last bench, while the other is near the door. The former has
lost her gloves and finds that her gown is torn ; her friend is bleed-
ing at the nose as the result of the scuffle, and, having lost her hand-
kerchief, makes use of her petticoat. All is lamentation, when the
guitar-players enter, and quiet is once more restored. . . ,1
In no country, as already observed, had the drama re-
ceived greater encouragement than in Spain, nor was its
popularity limited to any one class, but all, from the
highest to the lowest, favored and supported it. As de-
veloped and perfected by the great Phenix, Lope de Vega,
1 Obras de D. Juan de Zabalela, Madrid, 1692, "El Dia de Fiesta por la
Tarde," pp. 296 ff.
SPANISH PLAYERS ABROAD 339
it was a genuine product of the Spanish soil. Whatever
its subject-matter, whether mythology, history, or legend,
all was translated into the Spain of the day; its characters
not only spoke Spanish, but they were Spaniards in every
vein and fiber. In a word, it was truly national in char-
acter, and herein lies one of the chief glories of the
Spanish drama, which is shared only by England among
the countries of modern Europe. Such a rapid and
extraordinary development of the drama necessitated a
vast number of players for its exposition, and the names
of nearly two thousand actors have come down to us,
who, from the rude beginnings of Lope de Rueda upon
an improvised stage in the public square, to the magnificent
and costly entertainments of Philip the Fourth in the Buen
Retiro, represented the uninterrupted productions of the
Spanish Muse, from the simple pasos, eglogas, and farsas
to the great masterpieces of Lope de Vega and his host
of followers. And yet, great as was the number of
Spanish players, they seem to have limited their sphere
of action almost exclusively to their own country or to
the Spanish possessions in Italy. During the long occu-
pation of the Netherlands by Spain the Spanish language
gained great currency through that country,1 and Spanish
players certainly visited the Netherlands frequently.2
Our information as to their journeys in the remaining
countries of Europe is also very slight when compared
with the records left by the many companies of traveling
players from England and Italy during the latter part of
1 "In de zestiende en zeventiende eeuw was de Spaansche taal in ons
vaterland bijna zoo gemeenzaam als tegenwoordig de Fransche." (Geys-
beek, Anthologisch en Critisch Woordenboek, Bd. Ill, quoted by Schwe-
ring, Zur Geschichte des niederlandischen und spanischen Dramas in
Deulschland, Miinster, 1895, p. 76.)
' I have been unable to consult the following article, which may contain
some information on this point: Te Winkel, "De invloed der Spaansche
Letterkunde op de Nederlandsche in de zeventiende eeuw," in the Tijd-
schrift -voor Nederlandsche Taal- en Letterkunde, Eerste Jaargang, Leiden,
1881, S. 59. Melchor de Leon seems to have been in Brussels with his com-
pany in 1629. See Appendix, — List of Actors and Actresses.
34o THE SPANISH STAGE
the sixteenth and beginning of the seventeenth centuries.
The earliest notice of Spanish players abroad that I have
found falls in the year 1604. On August 2 of that year
a Spanish actress was found murdered at Saint-Germain-
des-Pres, and two Spanish actors were convicted of the
crime and executed.1 Some Spanish players also ap-
peared at the Port Saint-Germain on October 27, 1613,
but met with no success.2 A company also visited Paris
in 1 61 8, but we know nothing further about them.3 In
1643 Pedro de la Rosa and his company visited Paris,
and returned thither in 1674, and in 1660 Sebastian de
Prado took a troupe of players to Paris at the instance
of Maria Teresa, daughter of Philip IV. and wife of
Louis XIV., whom she had married the previous year.
Some members of this company are said to have re-
mained in France twelve years ; Prado certainly did not,
for we find him in Spain in the following year. In 1666
we again hear of Spanish players who gave a Ballet des
Muses at Saint-Germain-en-Laye on December 2, among
them Jeronima de Olmedo and Maria de Anaya.4
The only record of the visit of a Spanish company to
London has already been mentioned (above, p. 139,
1 Memoires et Journal de Pierre de I'Estoile, ed. Michaud et Poujolat,
Paris, 1857, p. 378. See Rigal, Le Theatre Francais avant la periode
classique, Paris, 1901, p. 50, note 3.
2 In a letter dated October 27, 1613, Malherbe says: "Je viens tout a
cette heure de la comedie des Espagnols, qui ont aujourd'hui commence a
jouer a la porte Saint-Germain dans le faubourg; ils ont fait des mer-
veilles en sottises et impertinences, et n'y a eu personne qui ne s'en soit
revenu avec mal de tete ; mais pour une fois il n'y a point eu de mal de
savoir ce que c'est. Je suis de ceux qui s'y sont excellemment ennuyes,"
etc. {Lettres de Malherbe, ed. Lalanne (Grands Ecrivains), Paris, 1862,
Vol. Ill, p. 350.) And in a letter of November 24 (p. 358) he remarks:
"Les Espagnols ne plaisent a personne; ils jouent au faubourg Saint-
Germain, mais ils ne gagnent pas le louage du jeu de paume oil ils
jouent."
'Memoires du Marechal de Bassompierre, ed. Petitot, Tome XX, Paris,
1822, p. 157, who merely remarks: "Nous eumes les comedies espagnoles
cet hiver-la."
'Rouanet, Intermedes Espagnols, Paris, 1897, p. 316, quoting Fournel,
Les Contemporains de Moliere, Tome II.
DECLINE OF THE DRAMA 341
note 1 ) , when Juan Navarro Oliver represented a play
before the King on December 23, 1635, for which he re-
ceived ten pounds.
But great as the popularity of the drama was in Spain,
and rapid as was its rise, its decline and fall were almost
equally rapid, and by the middle of the seventeenth cen-
tury it was clearly on the wane. Indeed, a change is
perceptible a decade earlier. The death of the great
founder of the national drama, Lope de Vega, in 1635,
withdrew from it a support which caused the magnificent
structure to waver. By the middle of the century all the
greatest dramatists, with the single exception of Calderon,
were dead. Guillen de Castro died in 1631; Alarcon's
death occurred in 1639, followed by Mira de Mescua in
1644. Tirso de Molina died in 1648, although he had
ceased to write for the stage even before Lope's death.
Of the lesser lights of the drama, Montalvan died in
1638, and Luis Velez de Guevara in 1644. All these had
passed from the stage of life, and Calderon alone, of
those who had helped to rear the imposing fabric of the
drama, was still writing comedias after the middle of the
century, and even of his followers, Rojas and Moreto had
written their best plays by that time. No great Spanish
comedia dates after 1650. And here, once more, at the
close as at the beginning, the Spanish national drama
exhibits a striking parallel to the English, which had also
produced all that was best in it before the closing of the
theaters in 1642.
That the Spanish theater was on the decline by 1650,
a glance at the list of the great leaders of the theatrical
companies convincingly shows. The older ones, who had
taken part in the great renascence under the magical
touch of Lope — Velazquez, Cisneros, Rios, Porres, An-
tonio de Villegas, Vergara, Melchor de Villalba, etc. —
had long been dead, while those who shared in the greatest
glory of the stage — Baltasar Pinedo, Domingo Balbin,
342 THE SPANISH STAGE
Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan, Alonso de Riquelme, Cristo-
bal de Avendafio, Tomas Fernandez de Cabredo, Manuel
Vallejo, Antonio Granados, Pedro de Valdes, Hernan
Sanchez de Vargas, and Juan de Morales Medrano — had
also passed away, and Antonio de Prado, Alonso de
Olmedo, and Roque de Figueroa all died in 1651. Those
who were left, like the surviving dramatists, were but the
smaller lights that still shone for a while in the glow cast
behind them as the great stars one by one disappeared be-
neath the horizon.
And it was, perhaps, not unfitting that this should be so.
These famous autores had been the friends and associates
of the great poets who created this vast and wonderful
drama ; for particular players of their companies many of
the most celebrated comedias had been written; the re-
hearsals were often conducted in the presence of the poet,
and the parts perfected under his eye. For them the
business of the stage was an actual and living thing, not
a dead and dry tradition. But the sun had set, and while
one great star was still refulgent in the gathering gloom,
it was only a question of a little while when it, too, should
disappear, and all be enveloped in darkness.
APPENDIX
APPENDIX A
REPRESENTATIONS IN THE CORRALES OF MADRID,
1 579 -1 602.
(From an article by Sr. Perez Pastor, in the Bulletin Hispanique (1906).)
1579
Producto de comedias para el Hospital civil de la Pasion desde
JO de Mayo de IS79 hasta 31 de Diciembre de el:
Mayo. — "En treinta de Mayo de 1579 anos se nombro por
comisario de las comedias al senor Francisco de Prado el qual ha
de usar desta comision desde 7 de Junio del dicho afio por dexacion
que hizo dello Luis de Barahona, comisario que fue de las dichas
comedias hasta este dicho dia."
Junio. — "En 7 dia del mes de Junio del dicho afio estando en
el Hospital de la Sagrada Pasion juntos en su cabildo D. Alonso
Enriquez, Pedro de Ledesma y Gonzalo de Monzon, diputados, y
Juan Lopez y Pedro Alvarez de 'Casasola y Gaspar de la Torre
y Valdivieso y Juan Diaz, cofrades, Francisco de Prado, comisario
de las comedias, dixo que Francisco Osorio, autor de comedias, ha
venido a esta corte y le ha pedido le de corral en que represente sus
comedias, y que el le ha senalado el corral de Valdivieso, y que el
dicho Francisco Osorio se ha obligado a hacer el teatro y dos
tablados a los lados a su costa y que el aprovechamiento dellos sea
para los Hospitales sin que se les descuente cosa alguna, y demas
desto le da el dicho Francisco Osorio diez reales cada dia que
representare y destos diez reales se dan siete reales a la de
Valdivieso cada dia que se representare, y hoy dicho dia es el
primero que representa el dicho Osorio y que ansi mesmo halla que
en el corral de la Pacheca esta Salcedo y en el de Puente Ganasa
que ansi mesmo representan hoy dicho dia y firmaron de sus
nombres. — Juan Lopez — Gonzalo de Monzon."
345
346 APPENDIX A
"El dicho Osorio comediante represento en el dicho corral de
la de Valdivieso segundo y tercero dia de Pascua que fueron a los
ocho y nueve de Junio del dicho ano y por respeto de la poca gente
que tuvo no hubo aprovechamiento ninguno mas de los diez reales
que dio del corral, de los quales de los dichos dos dias se dieron a
la de Valdivieso catorce reales y quedaron seis y cupo a esta casa
quatro, los quales se metieron con la quenta de Salcedo y el susdicho
Osorio se fue luego sin representar mas. — Francisco dc Prado —
Gonzalo de Monzon."
Domingo 7 de Junio de 1579 representaron Ganasa y Salcedo,
y el Hospital de la Pasion tuvo de aprovechamiento de las dos
comedias 221 reales y 10 maravedises de las dos tercias partes qup le
pertenecen.
En 8 de Junio segundo dia de pascua, 156 reales y 12 maravedis
de las comedias de Ganasa y Salcedo.
En 8 de Junio pago Ganasa 20 reales de las representaciones de
los dias i° y 2° de Pascua.
En 9 de Junio 195 reales y 10 maravedises de las comedias que
en dicho dia hicieron Ganasa y Salcedo.
1 1 de Junio. Representaron Ganasa y Salcedo.
14 de Junio, domingo de la Trinidad. Representaron Ganasa y
Salcedo.
"Jueves dia del Corpus Christi diez y ocho del mes de Junio de
1579 anos, de pedimento de Francisco de Prado, vecino desta villa
de Madrid, comisario nombrado para los aprovechamientos que
procedieren de las comedias tocantes al Hospital de la Pasion desta
corte, yo el presente escribano fui al corral de Puente, que es en
la calle del Lobo, donde representa hasta ahora Ganasa, italiano, y
al corral de la Pacheca para ver si habia representacion e pidio
por testimonio como no habia representacion en el un corral ni en
el otro porque Ganasa es ido a Toledo y Salcedo tiene las fiestas del
Corpus que se hicieron hoy en esta villa, y de su pedimento doy
fee que hoy dicho dia a las quatro de la tarde al punto fui a los
dichos corrales y no habia gente en ellos y estaban vacios de manera
que se entiende no haber comedias este dia, y yo el presente escri-
bano doy fee que en la sala de los senores alcaldes de la casa y corte
de su Magestad anteayer martes de manana se dixo que por man-
dado de su Magestad llevaban a Toledo al dicho Ganasa y sus
companeros para la fiesta de hoy dicho dia y ansi por mandado de
APPENDIX A 347
los dichos senores alcaldes se les dieron mulas para el dicho efecto,
y doy fee que el dicho Salcedo ha fecho hoy las fiestas desta villa,
y de pedimento del dicho Francisco de Prado lo firme y signe. —
Diego Verdugo de Leon."
En 21 de Junio de 1579 Francisco de Prado hace saber a los
diputados de la Pasion que Ganasa no ha vuelto de Toledo, ni sabe
quando vendra Salcedo y que no hay comedias en la corte.
En 24 de Junio Ganasa, vuelto ya de Toledo, represento en el
corral de Puente.
En 28 y 29 Junio represento Ganasa en el corral de la Pacheca.
Julio, 2. — "Yo Alonso de Robles, escribano de su majestad en la
sii corte, doy fee que Ganasa, italiano, represento en el corral de la
Pacheca hoy Jueves dos del mes de Julio deste ano de setenta y
nueve dia de trabajo, y que en la dicha representacion declaro que
se le habia dado licencia de representar dos dias en la semana por
los Senores del Consejo de su Magestad, y en fee de ello di esta el
dicho dia mes y ano de pedimento de Francisco de Prado y lo firme
de mi nombre. — Alonso de Robles, escribano."
5 de Julio, Domingo. Represento Ganasa en la Pacheca. (Id.
martes 7 Julio.)
"Domingo 12 de Julio. Represento Cisneros en el corral de la
calle del Lobo, que es el de Puente, y fue la primera representacion
que hizo en Madrid despues que salio de la corte."
En el mismo dia represento Ganasa en el corral de la Pacheca.
16 de Julio. Represento Ganasa en la Pacheca.
22 de Julio. Representaron Ganasa y Cisneros cada uno una
comedia. (Id. 25 y domingo 26.)
28 y 30. Ganasa.
Agosto.— Domingo 2. Ganasa y Cisneros. {Id. 5, 6, 9 y 10.)
15 Agosto. Alonso Rodriguez, el Toledano, represento en el
corral de Puente porque Cisneros no estaba en la corte. Repre-
sento tambien Ganasa en la Pacheca.
Domingo 16 de Agosto. Represento Ganasa. No hubo repre-
sentacion en el corral de Cristobal de Puente por no haber autor
en Madrid.
18 de Agosto de 1579. No hubo representacion en la Pacheca
por estar fuera de Madrid los italianos, ni en el corral de Puente
por no haber autor en Madrid.
20 Agosto. Represento Ganasa en la Pacheca.
348 APPENDIX A
Domingo 23. Representaron Ganasa y Cisneros. (Id. 24.)
27 de Agosto. No hubo representacion en la calle del Lobo
porque Cisneros estaba ausente, ni en el de la Pacheca porque
Ganasa no quiso representar al ver que habia poca gente en el
corral, y se devolvio el dinero a las personas que habian entrado.
30 Agosto. Represents Ganasa en la Pacheca y hubo un voltea-
dor en la calle del Lobo.
Setiembre. — En 6 de Setiembre de 1579 represento Velazquez la
primera vez de esta temporada en el corral de Puente; y los dias
anteriores no hubo representacion porque la licencia que se dio a
los autores para representar dos dias de trabajo fue solamente para
los meses de Julio y Agosto. En el mismo dia represento Ganasa
en la Pacheca.
8 de Setiembre. Hubo dos comedias una de Ganasa y otra de
Velazquez.
10 de Setiembre. Represento Velazquez. (Id. 15.)
13 de Setiembre. Ganasa y Velazquez.
17 de Setiembre. Represento Ganasa aunque fue dia de trabajo
y es la primera vez que lo hace en este mes.
20 de Setiembre, Domingo. Hubo comedia de Ganasa y de
Velazquez. (Id. 21 y 24.)
27. Velazquez en la calle del Lobo. En el corral de la Pacheca
hubo mucha gente y mucha mas en la calle esperando la repre-
sentacion que no se hizo porque Juan Alberto Ganasa no habia
tenido licencia para ello.
29. Ganasa y Velazquez.
Octubre. — 10. Ganasa y Velazquez. (Id. 4, 6, 8 y 11.)
13. Ganasa en la Pacheca. Velazquez estaba fuera de Madrid.
15. No hubo representacion en la Pacheca "por lo mucho que
llovio."
18 y 20. Ganasa.
22. "No hubo comedia a causa de los toros que hubo."
25 Octubre. Represento por primera vez en el corral de Puente
Rivas, maestro de comedias y no represento mas que este dia.
Ganasa represento en la Pacheca.
28 y 29. Ganasa.
Noviembre. — Domingo i°. Represento Ganasa. (Id. 3, 7, 8,
10, 12, 15.)
18. Ganasa y Salcedo ( 1" dia). (Id. Domingo 22.)
APPENDIX A 349
24 y 26. Ganasa.
Domingo 29. Ganasa, Salcedo y Granado.
"Yo Francisco de Olea doy fee ... en como hoy domingo 29
dias del mes de Noviembre de 1579 afios fue el primero dia que se
represento en el corral que las cofradias de la Sagrada Pasion y
Nuestra Senora de la Soledad tienen en esta dicha villa en la calle
de la Cruz, en el qual asi mismo represento la primera vez Juan
Granado e Galvez, autores de comedias, esta ultima vez que vinie-
ron a esta corte sin que hubiesen representado en el ni en otro corral
donde se acostumbra hacer las dichas comedias otra vez desta
postrera venida . . . Francisco de Olea."
Lunes 30 de Noviembre. Representaron Ganasa, Salcedo y
Granado.
Diciembre. — 3. Represento Ganasa.
Domingo 6. Ganasa, Salcedo y Granado.
8. Ganasa y Velazquez. En este dia se notifico a Cristobal de
Puente dueno del corral de la calle del Lobo, que tenian al-
quilado las cofradias, que cesaba este arrendamiento y que los
asientos, tablados y pertrechos que a costa de las cofradias se habian
hecho en dicho corral se transladarian al nuevo teatro de la calle de
la Cruz ya por evitar gastos ya tambien porque Francisco Salcedo,
que representaba en la calle del Lobo, se ha ausentado.
10. No hubo representacion en ningun corral por haber Uovido
mucho.
13. Representaron Ganasa y Granado;
17. Representaron Ganasa y Granado y fue la primera vez que
se represento por Granado en la Cruz en dia de trabajo.
18. Ganasa en la Pacheca y Granado en la Cruz.
20. Ganasa y Granado.
21. Ganasa.
22 y 23. Granado.
25 y 26. Granado y Ganasa.
Domingo 27. No representaron los Italianos ni Granado en los
corrales publicos porque lo hicieron a los senores del Consejo de
S. M.
28. Ganasa y Granado.
29. Se dio licencia a Granado y Galvez para que pudiesen rep-
resentar todos los dias hasta el de Reyes proximo.
29 y 30. Represento Granado en el corral de la Cruz.
350 APPENDIX A
31. Ganasa en la Pacheca "y no represento Granado en la
Cruz." {Archivo de la Diputacion provincial de Madrid. Ltbros
de cuent as del Hospital de la Pasion, VII, 115, 2-)
— "Razon puntual de la ejecucion del corral de la Cruz para las
comedias el afio 1579": Empezo la obra el 13 de Octubre de 1579
por cuenta de las dos obras pias, la Sagrada Pasion y Nuestra
Sefiora de la Soledad. El edificio y gastos del mismo estuvieron a
cargo de Getino de Guzman, fiador que habia sido de D" Leonor de
Cortinas para el rescate de Miguel de Cervantes.
1580
Cargo de las comedias del aho 1580 para el Hospital de la
Pasion :
Enero. — En I0 de Enero hubo representacion por Ganasa. {Id.
3, 5, 6.) 10. Granado. 12. Ganasa. 14. Ganasa y Granado.
{Id. 17 y 20.) 23. Cisneros y Ganasa. 24. Ganasa y Granado.
{Id. 26 y 27.) 28. Empezo Cisneros a representar en el corral de
Puente que habia estado desbaratado; y ademas trabajaron hasta
Carnestolendas Granado en la Cruz y Ganasa en la Pacheca. 29.
Cisneros y Granado. 31. Cisneros, Granado y Ganasa.
Febrero.— 3. Cisneros y Granado. 4. Cisneros, Granado y
Ganasa. 5. Cisneros en la Cruz. 7. Cisneros, Granado y Ga-
nasa. 8. Cisneros en la Cruz y dio "para ayuda de costa del
corral" 200 reales que le correspondian de su aprovechamiento como
autor. 9. Ganasa y Granado (Cisneros se habia ido a Alcala de
Henares). 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 y 16. Ganasa y Granado. 17,
miercoles de Ceniza. Se suspenden las representaciones.
Septiembre. — 11. Empezo a representar Rivas en la Pacheca.
12. Rivas. 14. Empieza Cisneros en la Pacheca. 15 a 25. Cis-
neros. 26, 28. No hubo representacion. 27, 29 y 30. "Cisneros.
Octubre. — 1° a 10, 16 a 19. Cisneros. 20 a 22. No hubo
comedia. 23 a 25. Represento Juan Granado. 26. No hubo
comedia. 27. Granado. 28. Juan Granado y Alonso Rodri-
guez. Se suspenden las representaciones por muerte de la Reina
Da Ana. {Archivo de la Diputacion provincial, VII, 115, 2.)
APPENDIX A 351
1581
Cargo de las comedias del ano 15S1 para el Hospital de la Pasion
y cof radio de la Soledad :
30 noviembre 1581. — Ganasa represento en la Cruz y fue el
primer dia que hubo comedia despues de la muerte de la Reina
Ana. "Y de todo el aprovechamiento de la comedia, sin la repre-
sentacion, se allegaron ducientos y setenta reales y medio de que
cupo a la cofradia de la Soledad de la tercia parte que lleva noventa
reales y cinco maravedis, y a la Pasion le cupo de sus dos tercias
partes ciento y ochenta reales y doce maravedis."
Diciembre. — 3. No represento Ganasa en el teatro de la Cruz
porque lo hizo al Consejo de Cruzada en casa del Comisario ge-
neral; Galvez represento en el corral de la Pacheca "la primera
comedia que en este ano hizo." 4. Ganasa en la Cruz. 5, 7, 8.
Ganasa en la Cruz y Galvez en la Pacheca. 10. Id. "Este dia
represento Alonso Rodriguez, el de Toledo, la primera farsa en el
corral de Puente y envio de todo aprovechamiento, con la repre-
sentacion, 54 reales." 12, 14 y 16. Ganasa en la Cruz, y Galvez
en la Pacheca. 17, 18. Ganasa en la Cruz, Galvez en la Pacheca,
y Rodriguez en el Puente. 19, 20 y 21. Ganasa en la Cruz, y
Galvez en la Pacheca. 22. Granado en la Pacheca. 23. Saldana
en la Cruz. 24. Ganasa en la Cruz, Galvez en la Pacheca y Sal-
dana, por primera vez, en el corral de Puente. 25. Ganasa, Gal-
vez y Saldana en la Cruz, Pacheca y Puente. 26. Saldana en la
Cruz, Galvez en la Pacheca. Ganasa represento al presidente del
Consejo. 27 y 28. Ganasa, Galvez y Saldana. 29. Saldana. 30.
Ganasa, Galvez y Saldana. 31. Ganasa y Galvez. "No repre-
sento Saldana porque el y su compafiia estuvieron en la Cruz
viendo a los Italianos." (Archivo de la Diputacion, VII, 115, 2,
y 59, 2, XII, 17.)
1582
Cargo de las comedias del ano 1582 para el Hospital de la Pasion
y cofradia de la Soledad:
Enero. — 1. Representaron Ganasa, Galvez y Saldana. 2. Gal-
vez. 3 y 4. Ganasa y Galvez. 5. Saldana en la Pacheca. 6.
Ganasa, Galvez y Saldana. 7. Ganasa y Galvez. 8. Saldana en
la Cruz. Galvez y Juan Granado salieron para Valladolid. 9.
352 APPENDIX A
Ganasa en la Cruz. 10. Saldafia en la Cruz. II. Ganasa en la
Cruz. 12. Saldafia en la Pacheca. 14. Saldafia en la Cruz. No
representaron los Italianos por estar enfermos algunos de ellos.
15. Saldafia en la Pacheca, Velazquez en la Cruz "y fue su primera
representacion." 16. Ganasa en la Cruz, "que es el de las obras
pias"; Saldafia en la Pacheca. 17. Velazquez en la Cruz. 20.
Velazquez en la Cruz, Saldafia en la Pacheca. No representaron
los Italianos en la Cruz por estar en Guadalajara a la boda de
D. Rodrigo de Mendoza.1 21. Saldafia en la Cruz, Velazquez en
la Pacheca. 22. Velazquez en la Cruz. 23. Velazquez en la
Cruz, Saldafia en la Pacheca. 24. Saldafia en la Cruz. 25.
Velazquez en la Cruz. 26. Saldafia en la Cruz. 28 y 29. Sal-
dafia en la Cruz, Velazquez en la Pacheca. 30. Velazquez en la
Cruz. 31. Saldafia en la Cruz.
Febrero. — 2. Saldafia en la Cruz. 4. No hubo representaciones
por la procesion general para recoger los pobres mendigos en el
Hospital general. 5. Velazquez en la Cruz. 6. Ganasa en la
Cruz "y fue la primera que hizo despues que vino de Guadalajara.''
7. Saldafia en la Cruz. 8. Ganasa en la Cruz. 9. Velazquez en
la Cruz. 10. Saldafia en la Cruz. 11. Domingo. Velazquez
en la Pacheca, Ganasa en la Cruz y Saldafia en el corral de
Puente. 12. Velazquez en la Cruz. 13. Ganasa en la Cruz.
14. Saldafia en la Cruz. 15. Ganasa en la Cruz. 16. Velaz-
quez en la Cruz. 17. Saldafia en la Cruz. 18. Domingo.
Ganasa en la Cruz, Velazquez en el Puente, y Saldafia en la
Pacheca. 19. Ganasa en la Cruz, Velazquez en la Pacheca. 20.
Ganasa en la Cruz, Saldafia en la Pacheca. 21. Velazquez en la
Pacheca, Ganasa en la Cruz. 22. Ganasa en la Cruz, Saldafia en
la Pacheca. 23. Ganasa en la Cruz, Velazquez en la Pacheca.
24. Velazquez en la Cruz, Saldafia en la Pacheca. 25 y 26. Sal-
dafia en la Cruz, Velazquez en la Pacheca. 27. Saldafia en la
1 (Enero 1582, sabado.) "Salio a representar Ganasa el italiano una
comedia, la qual . . . oyeron con mucho aplauso y por haber tanta gente
no se pudo representar en el tablado que para ello estaba hecho . . ." —
"Domingo siguiente ... a la nocbe represento Ganasa el italiano, con
que se entretuvieron hasta fue hora de cenar." (Relacion de todo lo
sucedido en los casamientos de los senores Don Rodrigo y Dona Ana de
Mendoza, hijo y hermano del senor Marques de Cenete y Duque del
Infantado, que se celebraron en la ciudad de Guadalajara a 20 de Enero
de 1582. Relaciones historicas de los sigloi XVI y XVII, Madrid, 1896.)
APPENDIX A 353
Pacheca, Velazquez en la Cruz. "No represento Ganasa a causa
de su prision."
Abril. — 1 6. Segundo dia de Pascua. Velazquez en la Cruz "y
fue el primero dia de representacion despues de la quaresma deste
dicho ano." 17. Cisneros en la Cruz, Velazquez en la Pacheca.
18. Cisneros en la Cruz. 19. Velazquez en la Cruz. 20. Cis-
neros en la Cruz. 21, 22 y 23. Velazquez en la Cruz. 24. Cis-
neros en la Cruz. 25. Cisneros en la Cruz, Velazquez en la
Pacheca. 26. Velazquez en la Cruz. 27. Cisneros en la Cruz.
29. Velazquez en la Cruz, Cisneros en la Pacheca. 30. Cisneros
en la Cruz.
Mayo. — 1. Cisneros en la Cruz, Velazquez en la Pacheca.
2 y 3. Velazquez en la Cruz. 4. Cisneros en la Cruz. 5. Velaz-
quez en la Cruz. 6. Cisneros en la Cruz, Velazquez en la
Pacheca. 7. Cisneros en la Cruz. 8 y 10. Velazquez en la
Cruz. 11. Cisneros en la Cruz. 13. Velazquez en la Cruz,
Cisneros en la Pacheca. 14. Velazquez en la Cruz. 15. Cis-
neros en la Cruz. 16. Velazquez en la Cruz. 17. Cisneros en
la Cruz. 20. Cisneros en la Cruz, Velazquez en la Pacheca.
21. Cisneros en la Cruz. 23. Velazquez en la Cruz. 24. Velaz-
quez en la Cruz, Cisneros en la Pacheca. 25. Cisneros en la
Cruz. 26. Velazquez en la Cruz. 27. Velazquez en la Pa-
checa, Cisneros en la Cruz. 28. Velazquez en la Cruz. 29. Cis-
neros en la Cruz.
Junio. — 1. Cisneros en la Cruz. 2. Velazquez en la Cruz.
3. Velazquez en la Cruz, Cisneros en la Pacheca. 4. Velazquez
en la Cruz. 5 y 6. Cisneros en la Cruz. 7. Velazquez en la
Cruz. 8. Cisneros en la Cruz. 9. Velazquez en la Cruz. 10.
Velazquez en la Pacheca, Cisneros en la Cruz. 1 1 . Velazquez en
la Cruz, Cisneros en la Pacheca. 19 y 20. Cisneros en la Cruz.
29. Un italiano volteo en la Pacheca y siguio trabajando con sus
volteadores hasta el dia de Santiago.
Julio. — En 29 de Julio hubo juego de manos y siguio durante
algunos dias.
Agosto. — 5. Hizo Saldana "una comedia en el teatro de las
obras pias, que fue la primera que represento despues de la tasa del
quartillo." El volteador trabajo en la Pacheca. 6. Saldana en la
Cruz. El volteador en la Pacheca. 10, 13 y 15. Saldana hizo
comedia en la Cruz. El volteador trabajo en la Pacheca. 16 y 19.
354 APPENDIX A
Saldana en la Cruz. 24. Saldafia represento en la Cruz y los
Italianos nuevos hicieron otra comedia en la Pacheca. 26. Saldana
en la Cruz y los Corteses en la Pacheca.
Septiembre.— 2, 8, 9, 16, 21 y 23. Saldana en la Cruz y los
Corteses en la Pacheca. 29 y 30. Los Italianos nuevos.
Octubre.— 17 y 18. Los Italianos. 28. Osorio y los Italianos.
3 1 . Osorio y los Italianos.
Noviembre. — 1. Osorio y los Italianos. 7, 14 y 15. Angulo y
los Corteses.
Diciembre. — 12. Alonso Rodriguez. 18 y 19. Alonso Rodri-
guez. Hubo titeres en la Pacheca. 21, 25, 26, 27, 28. Alonso
Rodriguez. (Archivo de la Diputacion provincial, VII, 115, 2,
y 59, 2, XII (2400), 17.)
1590
Aprovechamiento de las comedias para el Hospital general:
Enero, lunes 1° — Entraron 458 reales de las dos comedias de
Velazquez y Rios. 2. Velazquez y Cisneros. 3. Rios y Cis-
neros. 4. Velazquez y Rios. 5. Cisneros y Rios. 6. Cisneros y
Velazquez. 7. Velazquez y Rios. 9. Velazquez y Cisneros.
nyi2. Velazquez y Rios. 13. Rios y Cisneros. I4yi5. Velaz-
quez y Rios. 16. Rios y Cisneros. 17 a 31. Velazquez y Rios.
Febrero. — 2, 3, 4 y 5. Velazquez y Rios. 6. Porras, Velazquez
y Rios. 7, 8 y 9. Velazquez y Rios. 10. Velazquez. 11 a 20.
Rios y Velazquez. 21. Velazquez y Cisneros. 22. Velazquez y
Rios. 23. Velazquez y Cisneros. 24. Rios y Cisneros. 25. Ve-
lazquez y Cisneros. 26. Velazquez y Rios. 27. Rios y Cisneros.
Marzo. — 1° Velazquez y Rios. 2. Rios y Cisneros. 3. Ve-
lazquez. 5. Rios y Velazquez. 6. Velazquez y Cisneros.
Mayo. — 3 a 7. Cisneros. 9. Rios. 11 y 12. Cisneros. 13 a
3 1 . Cisneros y Rios.
Junio. — 1, 2 y 3. Rios y Cisneros. 6. Cisneros. 7. Rios. 10
a 16. Rios y Cisneros. 18 y 19. Cisneros.
Julio.— 15. Alcocer. 17. Villalba. 19. Alcocer y Villalba.
20. Alcocer. 21. Villalba y Alcocer. 23. Alcocer. 24, 25, 28
y 31. Villalba.
Agosto. — 2. Villalba. 4 y 5. Villalba. 19 a 31. Osorio.
Septiembre. — 2 a 30. Osorio.
APPENDIX A 355
Octubre. — 2 a 30. Osorio.
Noviembre. — 1 a 25. Osorio. 26 a 30. Cisneros.
Diciembre. — 1° Cisneros. 2. Osorio. 3. Cisneros. 4 y 5.
Cisneros. 6 y 7. Melchor de Leon. 8 a 15. Cisneros y Leon.
17. Cisneros y Osorio. 18 y 19. Leon y Cisneros. 20. Cisneros.
21. Leon y Cisneros. Trabajo tambien un volador. 23. Cisne-
ros y Leon. 25. Cisneros. 26 y 27. Cisneros y Leon. 28.
Leon. Hubo comedia en casa de Gonzalo de Monzon. 30. Cis-
neros y Leon.
Total de ingresos en el ano 1590: 1,840,613 maravedis. Gastos:
igual cantidad. {Archivo de la Diputacion. Manual del Hos-
pital general, II, 158, 8.)
1601
Enero. — 1° Gaspar de Porres y Baltasar Pinedo. 3 a 24.
Porres y Pinedo. 25 y 26. Pinedo. 28, 30 y 31. Porres y
Pinedo.
Febrero. — 1° Porres y Diego Lopez de Alcaraz. 2. Porres y
Pinedo. 3. Alcaraz. 4. Porres y Pinedo. 5 a 8. Porres y Al-
caraz. 9. Pinedo y Alcaraz. 10. Porres y Pinedo. 11. Pinedo
y Alcaraz. 13 a 16. Porres y Alcaraz. 17 y 18. Porres y
Pinedo. 19. Porres y Alcaraz. 20. Porres y Pinedo. 21.
Porres y Alcaraz. 22. Porres y Pinedo. 23 a 25. Pinedo y Alca-
raz. 26 y 27. Porres y Pinedo. 28. Alcaraz y Pinedo.
Marzo. — 1° Porres y Pinedo. 2. Porres y Alcaraz. 3. Pinedo
y Alcaraz. 4. Porres y Pinedo. 5. Porres y Alcaraz. 6. Pinedo
y Alcaraz.
Abril. — 29 a 30. Gaspar de Porres.
Mayo. — 1° a 7. Gaspar de Porres. 9. Pedro Jimenez de Va-
lenzuela. 10 y 11. Porres y Gabriel Vaca. 12. Porres. 13 a
15. Porres y Vaca. 16. Vaca. 18. Porres. 19 a 22. Porres y
Vaca. 232131. Porres.
Junio. — 3 a 17. Gaspar de Porres. 22. Porres (Autos en el
teatro). 23 y 24. Autos a los semaneros en el teatro.
Julio.— 12, 13, 18 y 22. Gabriel de la Torre. 23 y 30. Anto-
nio de Villegas.
Agosto.— 3 a 31. Villegas.
Septiembre. — 3 a 30. Villegas.
356 APPENDIX A
Octubre. — 2 a 18. Villegas. 19. Los Franceses. 20 y 21.
Villegas. 26, 27 y 28. Gabriel de la Torre.
Noviembre. — 2 a 13. Gabriel de la Torre. 14 a 23. Gabriel
Vaca y Pedro Jimenez de Valenzuela [these two autores managed,
a company in partnership].
Diciembre. — 2 a 18. Vaca y Jimenez de Valenzuela. 21 a 31.
Villegas. (Archivo de la Diputacion. Manual del Hospital
general, II, 158, 8.)
1602
Enero. — 4 a 29. Jeronimo Lopez.
Abril. — 8 y 9. Pedro Jimenez de Valenzuela.
Mayo. — 3. Pedro Jimenez de Valenzuela. 23, 24. Los Es-
panoles [this company was formed by Pedro Rodriguez, Diego de
Rojas, and Gaspar de los Reyes]. 26 a 28. Pedro Jimenez de
Valenzuela.
Junio. — 16 y 18. Los Espanoles.
Agosto. — 11 a 30. Villegas.
Septiembre. — 3 a 30. Villegas.
Octubre. — 1 a 9. Villegas. 31. Villegas.
Noviembre. — 1 a 7. Antonio Granados. 8. Gabriel de la
Torre. 10 a 27. Granados.
Diciembre. — 4 a 29. Juan de Morales. (Archivo de la Dipu-
tacion. Manual del Hospital general, II, 198, 8.)
APPENDIX B
AUTORES DE COMEDIAS WHO REPRESENTED THE
AUTOS SACRAMENTALES IN MADRID
1574 Jeronimo Velazquez represented three autos at the Corpus
festival of this year.
1578 Alonso de Cisneros, three autos.
1579 Mateo de Salcedo.
1580 Alonso de Cisneros.
1 58 1 Jeronimo Velazquez.
1582 Alonso de Cisneros and Jeronimo Velazquez.
1585 Gaspar de Porres, three autos.
1586 Jeronimo Velazquez represented three autos.
1587 Nicolas de los Rios, Miguel Ramirez, and Juan de Alcozer.
1589 Jeronimo Velazquez, three autos.
1590 Nicolas de los Rios and Alonso de Cisneros.
1 59 1 Alonso de Cisneros.
1592 Gaspar de Porres and Rodrigo de Saavedra, each two autos.
1593 Alonso de Cisneros and Gaspar de Porres.
J594 Jeronimo Velazquez, two autos.
1595 Alonso de Cisneros and Antonio de Villegas. [Porres?]
1596 Nicolas de los Rios and Antonio de Villegas, each two autos.
1597 Nicolas de los Rios.
1598 Antonio de Villegas and Diego Lopez de Alcaraz.
1599 Gaspar de Porres (two autos) ; Diego Lopez de Alcaraz
and Luis de Vergara, each an auto.
1600 Melchor de Villalba and Gabriel de la Torre, each two
autos.
1602 Pedro Jimenez de Valenzuela.
1603 Juan de Morales Medrano.
1604 Gaspar de Porres.
357
358 APPENDIX B
1605 Gaspar de Porres. In this year only two autos were repre-
sented, both by Porres. For these he received 3700
reals. {Bull Hisp. (1907), p. 372.)
1606 Baltasar Pinedo and Juan de Morales Medrano.
1607 Baltasar Pinedo and Nicolas de los Rios.
1608 Alonso Riquelme and Juan de Morales Medrano.
1609 Alonso de Heredia and Domingo Balbin.
1610 Alonso Riquelme and Hernan Sanchez de Vargas.
161 1 Hernan Sanchez de Vargas and Tomas Fernandez de
Cabredo.
1 612 Juan de Morales Medrano and Tomas Fernandez de
Cabredo.
1613 Alonso de Riquelme and Antonio de Villegas.
1614 Juan de Morales Medrano and Baltasar Pinedo. (Bull.
Hisp. (1907), P. 379-)
161 5 Hernan Sanchez de Vargas and Pedro de Valdes.
1 61 6 Pedro Cebrian and Pedro Cerezo de Guevara. In Paz y
Melia, Catalogo, No. 1641, we read that Alonso de
Riquelme represented Lope's auto La Isla del Sol in this
year.
1617 Cristobal de Leon and Baltasar Pinedo.
1618 Baltasar Pinedo and Hernan Sanchez de Vargas.
1 619 Baltasar Pinedo and Hernan Sanchez de Vargas.
1620 Alonso de Olmedo and Cristobal de Avendano.
1 62 1 Pedro de Valdes and Cristobal de Avendano. (Bull. Hisp.
(1908), p. 244.)
1622 Manuel Vallejo.
1623 Juan de Morales Medrano and Antonio de Prado.
1624 Juan de Morales Medrano and Antonio de Prado.
1625 Andres de la Vega, Tomas Fernandez de Cabredo, and
Juan de Morales Medrano. In this year each autor rep-
resented one auto and a part of the fourth auto. (Bull.
Hisp. (1908), p. 252.)
1626 Cristobal de Avendano and Andres de la Vega.
1627 Roque de Figueroa and Andres de la Vega.
1628 Andres de la Vega and Bartolome Romero.
1629 Bartolome Romero and Roque de Figueroa.
1 630 Andres de la Vega and Roque de Figueroa.
1632 Manuel Vallejo and Francisco Lopez.
APPENDIX B 359
1633 Antonio de Prado and Manuel Vallejo.
1637 Pedro de la Rosa and Tomas Fernandez de Cabredo.
1638 Bartolome Romero (two autos) and Antonio de Rueda and
Pedro Ascanio (each one).
1639 Antonio de Rueda and Manuel Vallejo.
1640 Bartolome Romero.
APPENDIX C
CASTS OF COMEDIAS
The following casts of comedias of the seventeenth century have
been collected from various sources, the most of them from manu-
scripts in the Biblioteca Nacional. They are arranged in chrono-
logical order.
La bella Ester (1610)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. in British Museum, dated at
Madrid, April 5, 1610. This comedia was afterward published in
Part XV of Lope's Comedias under the title La hermosa Ester.
Bassan Morales
Egeo Vicente
Tarses Torres
Marsanes Carrillo
Adamasa Fuentes
Setar Morales
El Rey Assuero Sanchez
Un Capitan Carrillo
Mardoqueo Toledo
La Reyna Vasti
Ester Sa Polonia
Selvagio Vicente
Sirena, labradora Clara
Musica Villaverde
Aman Rosales
In Act III the part of Marsanes is assigned to Antonio. This
is the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas.
360
APPENDIX C 361
La buena Guarda 6 la Encomienda bien guardada (1610)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. dated at Madrid, April 16, 1610,
formerly in the possession of the Marquis Pidal.
Personas del P° Acto :
Leonarda Catalina [de Valcazar]
Dona Luisa Mariana [de Herbias?]
Un Escudero [Martin de ?] Vivar
Don Juan Luis
Don Luis [Pedro de] Espana
El hermano Carrizo, sacristan [Diego Lopez] Basurto
Felix, mayordomo [Alonso de] Olmedo
Dona Clara Maria de Argiiello
Dona Elena Catalina
Don Pedro, su padre [Luis de] Quinones
Ricardo, viejo Espana
Don Carlos Benito [de Castro]
Musicos
Hablan en el Segundo Acto :
Felix [Alonso de] Olmedo
Carrizo [Diego Lopez] Basurto
Dona Clara Maria de Argiiello
Un Angel Mariana
Una Voz Catalina Valcacer
Portera
Don Carlos Benito [de Castro]
Gines [Agustin] Coronel
Carrizo, fingido Vivar
Un pastor [Alonso de] Riquelme
Un huesped [Pedro de] Callenueva
' Hablan en el 30 Acto :
Carrizo Basurto
Felix Olmedo
Tres bandoleros Coronel, Espana, Callenueva
362 APPENDIX C
Liseno > ... Argiiello
Cosme}*"7^0' Luis
( Catalina
Dos damas s T „' • „
(.Jeronima
C Espafia
Dos Salanes i Luis
Dos musicos ,
Dos nadadores •>,-,„
i Callenueva
Don Carlos Benito
Un pastor Riquelme
Un Angel Mariana
Don Pedro Quinones
Gines Coronel
La hortelana Jeronima
La portera Catalina
Carrizo, fingido Vivar
Un platero Callenueva
This is the company of Alonso Riquelme. Comedias escogidas
de Lope de Vega, ed. Hartzenbusch (Bibl. de Jut. Esp.), Vol. Ill,
p. 326.
La Discordia en los Casados (1611)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. (Osuna) dated at Madrid, August
2, 161 1, with licenses to 1618. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 933.
Alberto Arellano. Soria
Aurelio Quinones
Musico Quinones
Personas del 30 Acto:
Cenardo Arellano. Soria
Panfilo Herrera
APPENDIX C 363
El Bastardo Mudarra (161 2)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. signed at Madrid, April 27, 1612,
formerly in the possession of Sr. Olozaga. I have an excellent
photo-zincograph of it, published in 1886.
Personas del P° Acto :
Dona Alanbra Ana Maria
Gonzalo Bustos Cintor
Rui Velazquez Benito
Gonzalo Gonzalez Cintorico
The remaining characters are unassigned. The MS. contains
licenses to represent dated Madrid, May 17, 1612; Caragoca,
January 29, 1 61 3, and Antequera, May 13, 1616, and in 161 7.
La Dama boba (1613)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. (Osuna) dated at Madrid, April
28, 1 61 3. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 810.
Liseo, caballero Ortiz [de Villazan]
Leandro, caballero Almonte
Turin, lacayo [Baltasar de?] Carvajal
Octavio, viejo [Luis de] Quifiones
Miseno, su amigo [Juan de] Villanueva
Duardo Guebara
Laurencio Benito [de Castro]
Feniso, caballero [Manuel] Simon
Rufino, maestro [Pedro] Aguado
Nise, dama Jeronima [de Burgos]
Finea, su hermana Maria [de los Angeles?]
Celia, criada Isabel [Rodriguez?]
Clara, criada Ana Maria [de Ribero]
This is the company of Pedro de Valdes. Perhaps the "Isabel"
is Isabel de Velasco, who married Luis Quifiones in 1614.
364 APPENDIX C
La Tercera de la Sancta Juana (1614)
Tirso de Molina. Autog. MS. inedited [since published by Sr.
Cotarelo], dated at Toledo, August 6, 1614. Catalogo, No. 3035.
I have a copy of this MS. made years ago. The cast is in Tirso's
hand. It was represented, apparently, by two companies. The
characters of the play are in the middle column :
Bernardo Don Luis [Luis de] Toledo
[Inigo de] Loaisa Cesar [Juan de] Montemayor
Diego Don Diego, viejo Cristobal
Nauarete Lillo [Antonio de] Sanpayo
Xpo. nfb Sr Montemayor
M" La Sancta Ma de Morales
Lorenzo S. Laruel Ant" de Prado
Ana Ma Aldonca . La Sa Petronila[deLoaysa]
Peynado, pastor [Pedro] Aguado
Isabel Dona Ines
La Sa Ana Maria [de Ulloa?]
Montemayor Crespo, pastor Aguado
Mingo, pastor . . [Cristobal de] S. Pedro
Berrueco pastor Juan Ximenez
2° Acto. Personas :
Don Luis Toledo
Aldonca la Srl Petronila
Don Diego S. Pedro
Lillo Sanpayo
D. Jorge Xpobal
Maria, monja la Sra Anna Maria
Dona Ines la dicha
Cesar Montemayor
Nfa Senora la Sra Petronila
El nino Jesus Sanpaico
El Angel Antonio del Prado
3° Acto. Personas de el :
D. Diego Alonso fre. [Alonso Fernandez de Guardo?]
D. Luis Toledo
APPENDIX C 365
Lillo Sanpayo. Guardia
Crespo Aguado
Berrueco Ju° Ximenez
Mingo S. P° [i.e. San Pedro]
Cesar Mtemayor
Dona Ynes Ana Cabello
La Santa Ma de Morales
El Angel Antonio de Prado. Juan de Madrid
Nuestra Seriora la Sa Petronila [de Loaysa]
Jesus Nino Sanpaico
Maria, monja la Sa Ana Maria
Otra monja la Sa Madalena [de Oviedo]
Una nifia Sanpaico
Un Alma Ju° Ximenez
En Toledo, a 24 de Agosto de 161 4 afios.
El Sembrar en buena Tierra (1616)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. in British Museum, dated Madrid,
January 6, 1616. It contains a license to perform, signed by
Tomas Gracian Dantisco on January 12, 1616.
Personas del P° Acto :
Don Felix [Cristobal] Ortiz [de Villazan]
Florencio Benito
Galindo, criado Sanchez
Dona Prudencia Eugenia [de Villegas ?]
Ynes
Celia Lugia
Elena
Fabio [Francisco Mufioz de la] Plaza
Felino [Antonio] Ramos
Don Alonso [Juan de] Valdivieso
Lizardo Herrera
Liseo Escruela[ ?]
Fidelio Ra
366 APPENDIX C
Personas del 2° Acto:
Arseno Cemela
Otavio Ramon
Un escriuano Ramos
Un alguacil Plaza
The other characters are unassigned.
3° Acto :
Florencio Benito
The name of one of these actors once appears as Escruela, then as
Ceruela. This name is otherwise unknown. Escoriguela was a
well-known player.
Quien mas no puede (1616)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. dated at Madrid, September i,
1616, in the possession of Mr. John Murray.
Personas del P° Acto :
Ramiro, Rey de Nauarra Zancado
Don Beltran, criado suyo Bernardino
El Conde Henrriq Xpobal
Nufio, criado del Conde Ossorio
Dona Eluira, ynfanta Ana
Lucinda, donzella suya Francisca
Ordofio, Rey de Leon P° Zebrian
Laynez, criado del Rey Cuebas
Ynigo, criado del Conde el q bayla, Al°
Dona Blanca, herm" del Conde Maritardia
Personas del 2° Acto :
Dona Blanca
Don Ynigo
Celio Antonio
Laynez
Don Sancho Cuebas
APPENDIX C 367
Don Arias Antonio
Lisis Francisca o Ana Mufioz
Riselo o Cuebas o Bernardino
Menandro Villanas el q bayle q no se el nonbre
Luzinda, El Conde Henrriq, Dona. Eluira, Nuno, Rey Ramiro,
Don Beltran, unassigned. In the third act only one character is
assigned : Estela to Francisca.
Las Paredes oyen' (161 7)
Juan Ruiz de Alarcon. D. Luis Fernandez Guerra, D. Juan
Ruiz de Alarcon, Madrid, 1 87 1, p. 257, says that the MS., appar-
ently an autograph, is preserved in the Osuna library. But be?
tween this date and 1882, when Rocamora published his Catalogue
of the Osuna manuscripts, it must have disappeared, for it is not
mentioned by Rocamora and never passed into the possession of
the Biblioteca Nacional. See ibid., p. 497.
Celia Dorotea [de Sierra]
D. Juan [Damian] Arias
Beltran Pedro de Villegas
Dona Ana Maria de Cordoba
Ortiz Frasquito
D. Mendo [Luis Bernardo de] Bobadilla
Lucrecia Maria de Vitoria
Conde Azua
Duque [Gabriel] Cintor
Escudero
Marcelo
Leonido Francisco de Robles
Un arriero Bernardino [Alvarez?]
Una musica Maria de Vitoria
Otro musico [Juan] Mazana
Otro musico Navarrete
La Guarda cuidadosa
Miguel Sanchez, el Divino. The comedia was first printed at
Alcala in 161 5. The manuscript from which the following cast is
368 APPENDIX C
taken, and which was formerly in the Osuna collection, is now in
the Biblioteca Nacional. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. I431- ^ >s
of the early seventeenth century. See La Isla barbara and La
Guarda cuidadosa, two comedies by Miguel Sanchez (el Divino),
ed. by H. A. Rennert, Boston and Halle, 1896.
Trebacio Lorenzo [Hurtado ?]
Leucato Diego
Principe [Juan de] Montemayor
Roberto [Inigo de] Loaysa
Nisea Maria [de Jesus? de Vitoria?]
Arsinda Ana Maria [de Ulloa?]
Florela, labradora Isabelica
Ariadeno Navarrete
Fileno Mifiano
Florencio Bernardo
In a MS. comedia of the beginning of the seventeenth century,
Como a de usarse del Bien y a de preuenirse el Mai, existing in the
Biblioteca Palatina at Parma and described by Professor Restori in
Studj di Filologia Romanza, fasc. 15, Roma, 1891, p. 129, occur
the names of the following players: Sotomayor, Olmedo(?), Isa-
belica, Naba[rrete], La Sa Bernarda, Tapia, Perez, and Loaysa.
This comedia, which was afterward published (Halle, 1899) by
Professor Restori with the title :
Los Guzmanes de Toral,
was written by Lope de Vega, and, as the title1 occurs in the first
list of his Peregrino en su F 'atria, is prior to 1604. The third act
is in Lope's hand and has the following cast :
Rey Don Alfonso Sotomayor
Dona Greida Ma
Don Payo Obredo [Olmedo?]
Dona Aldonza Isabelica
Tirso Trebino
Godinez, lacayo Naba[rrete]
Urgel Diego
Alvaro Olmedo
APPENDIX C 369
Pascuala la S" Bernarda
Dona Ana de Haro Isabel ba
Don Garcia
Don Lope Diaz de Haro Diego
Sancho Manrique Diego
Verveco Tapia
Mireno Juanico
Soldado i° Tapia
Soldado 2° Juanico
Soldado 30 Perez
Alonso Ansurez Loaisa
El Desden vengado ( 1 6 1 7 )
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. signed at Madrid, August 4, 1617,
formerly in the Osuna library, now in the Biblioteca Nacional.
Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 871.
El Conde Lucindo , Fadrique
Tomin, criado [Agustin] Coronel
Feniso Juan Jeronimo [Valenciano]
Roberto, caballero Juan de Vargas
Leonardo Cosme
Rugero, Rey de Napoles Juan Bautista [Valenciano]
Lisena, damn Da Maria [Coronel ?]
Celia, dama Manuela [Enriquez]
Evandro, su padre
Ynarda, criada Vincenta [de Borja?]
Schack, Nachtr'dge,. p. 46. This is probably the company of
Juan Bautista Valenciano.
El Martir de Madrid ( 1619)
Mira de Amescua. Partly autograph, with a license to perform
dated 161 9. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2029. There are other
licenses as late as 1 641.
Alvaro Ramirez Jusepe
D. Fernando Lorenzo [Hurtado] el autor
370 APPENDIX C
La infelice Dorotea (1620)
Andres de Claramonte wrote it for Juan Bautista Valenciano.
Sanchez-Arjona, Anales del Teatro en Seville p. 214. MS. copy
in the Biblioteca Nacional. Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 1594-
D. Garcinunez Fadrique
El Rey Juan Jeronimo [Valenciano]
D. Fernando Juan Bautista [Valenciano]
Nuno de Lemos Andres [de Claramonte?]
Arnao [Agustin] Coronel
Solano Miguel
Layn [Cristobal de?] Avendano
Mendo Jusepe
Teodora S' Maria [Candau?]
Dorotea Sa Manuela [Enriquez]
Leonor S™ Maria de los Angeles
D. Juan Manuel de Coca
Amor, Pleito y Desafio (1621)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. dated at Madrid, November 23,
1 62 1, with a license of January 14, 1622. Formerly in the Duran
collection and now in the Biblioteca Nacional. Catalogo, No. 171.
D. Alvaro de Rojas [Pedro] Maldonado
D. Juan de Padilla Lorenzo Hurtado
D. Juan de Aragon Francisco Trivino
El Rey Alfonso Juan Bautista [Valenciano]
Dona Beatriz la Senora Angela [de Toledo ?]
Da Ana la Sra Francisca de Soria( ?)
Martin, escudero Antonio Rodriguez
Tello, criado Vicente
Sancho, criado Pedro de Valdes
Leonor la Senora Jeronima [de Burgos]
APPENDIX C 371
La nueva Victoria de D. Gonzalo de Cordoba (1622)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. in the Biblioteca Nacional, dated
at Madrid, October 8, 1622. Catalogo, No. 2409.
Lisarda, dama la Sra Manuela [Enriquez]
Fulgencia, criada Sra Ana
D. Juan Ramirez Fadrique
Bernabe, lacayo [Agustin] Coronel
EI Capitan Medrano Cosme
Estevan, criado Jusepe
El Bastardo Juan Jeronimo [Valenciano]
El Obispo de Holstad [Juan de] Vargas
El Duque de Bullon Jusepe
D. Gonzalo de Cordoba Juan Bautista [Valenciano]
D. Francisco de Harras Manuel
El Baron de Tili Naruaez
Musico [Manuel] Simon
El Poder en el Discreto (1623)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. in the Biblioteca Nacional, dated at
Madrid, May 8, 1623. Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 2649. There
are two casts given in the MS.
Serafina, dama Maria Calderon Josef a [Vaca?]
Rosela, criada D" Isabel
Teodosio, Rey de Sicilia . . . Lezcano Bracamonte
Celio, de su camara Morales Arias
Alejo, criado de Celio Castro Trivino
El Conde de Augusta Suarez Morales
Flora, dama Mariana [Vaca] Mariana [Vaca]
The MS. contains a license dated 1624, and the company on the
right was in all probability that of Juan de Morales Medrano, in
which both his wife and his daughter Mariana appeared. My copy
gives the name "Bracamonte," not Vacamonte.
372 APPENDIX C
Celos con Celos se cur an ( 1625)
Tirso de Molina. MS. copy, formerly in the Osuna collection,
now in the Biblioteca Nacional. Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 563.
It contains licenses dated 1625. There are two casts:
Cesar [Cristobal] de Avendafio Gutierrez
Carlos Viera Segobia
Gascon Bernardo Matias
Sirena Maria de Montesinos . . Juana de los Reyes
Diana Catalina Moreno Ines
Marco Antonio Lezcano Francisco Alonso
Alejandro [ ?] Juan Alonso
Narcisa Ma Candau Luisa
Un grande chico [Bait.] Moreno [ ?]
Un jardinero Ordonez Marcos
The first of these companies seems to be that of Cristobal de
Avendafio about the year 1632.
El Brasil restituido (1625)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. dated at Madrid, October 23, 1625,
now in the Lenox Library, New York.
Personas del P° Acto :
Dona Guiomar Ma de Vitoria
Don Diego [Gabriel?] Cintor
Bernardo Bernardino [Alvarez?]
Laurencio [Juan] Antonio
Leonardo [Luis Bernardo de] Bobadilla
El Coronel de Olanda Arias con barba Frangesa
Alberto, su hijo El Spir santo del Auto
El Gobernador El Autor
Machado Pedro [de Villegas?]
La Monarquia de Espafia
Ongol
Darin
Soldados
El Brasil Maria de Cordoba
APPENDIX C 373
Personas del 2° Acto :
La religion Catolica Dorotea [de Sierra]
El Brasil La Autora
D. Manuel de Meneses Musico
D. Fadrique de Toledo Arias
Leonardo Bobadilla
Machado Pedro
D* Guiomar M" de Vitoria
D. Juan de Orellana [Juan] Mazana
D. Diego Ramirez
El Coronel electo Bernardino
Don Enrique de Alagon Cintor
Don Diego de Espinosa Antonio
Don Pedro de Santisteban .... frc0 de rro [Francisco de Robles?]
Apolo Arias
La heregia M" de Vitoria
Un soldado el nino
This is probably the company of Andres de la Vega. See my
article in the Mod. Lang. Review for January, 1906, p. 108.
El piadoso Aragones (1626)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. dated at Madrid, August 17, 1626,
now in the Biblioteca Nacional. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2607.
Licenses of Madrid, September 15, 1626; Zaragoza, 1627, and Lis-
bon, 1 63 1.
Almirante Vicente
D. Bernardo [Pedro ?] Jordan
D. Pedro Agramonte Quadrado
Alcalde Lorenzo
These names are crossed out, and the following are added :
D. Pedro Agramonte Felipe
Bernardo Jordan
Raymundo de Luna Mateo
Mendoza Tapia
374 APPENDIX C
Musico Leon
D. Juan de Beamonte Max"
El Favor en la Sentencia ( 1626)
Jacinto Cordeiro. Autog. MS. in the Biblioteca Nacional. Paz
y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 1242. Written for Bartolome Romero.
Porcia la Autora [Antonia Manuela Catalan]
Arminda Dorotea
Rey Estrada[ ?]
El Principe [Gabriel] Zintor
Conde [Alonso de] Osuna
Rosando Autor [Bartolome Romero]
Da Linda Micaela
Gascon Tomas [Enriquez?]
Sanchez- Arjona, Anales, p. 272.
Amor con vista (1626)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. signed at Madrid on December 10,
1626. Licenses to perform in Madrid, of 1627, and in Lisbon,
1630. In the Biblioteca Nacional. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No.
149.
El Conde Otabio Autor [Antonio de Prado]
Tome, criado suyo [Luis Bernardo de] Bobadilla
Celia Ma de Calderon [this is crossed out] Vitoria
Lisena Autora [Mariana Vaca de Morales]
2° Acto :
Julio Jeronimo
Sin Secreto no ay Amor (1626)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. signed at Madrid, July 18, 1626,
with licenses to perform of Madrid, August 2, 1626; Zaragoza,
October 13, 1626, and Granada, April 28, 1630. British Museum.
Published by me, Baltimore, 1894 (Mod. Lang. Assoc).
Celio Tapia
Fabricio Jeronimo
APPENDIX C 375
Del Monte sale quien el Monte quema (1627)
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. signed at Madrid, October 20,
1627. Licenses of Madrid, May 17, 1628; Valencia, September
28, 1628; Granada, October 1, 1636. In the Biblioteca Nacional.
Catalogo, No. 848.
El Conde Henrrique Arias
Feliciano Jusepe
Narcisa, labradora Sra Maria de Heredia
Tirso, villano Heredia
Juana, labradora Sra Catalina [de Medina ?]
Celia, dama Sra Ana Maria [de Ulloa?]
Clara, criada Sra Francisca
El Rey de Francia [Francisco de] Salas
Mauricio, Gobernador [Juan de] Montemayor
El Marques Roselo Sr Marcos. Rueda
Leonelo, Capitan Alvarez
The names Valdes, Mencos, and Francisca also occur.
La Conpetencia en los Nobles (1628?)
Lope de Vega. MS. in the British Museum with corrections
supposed to be in the hand of Lope.
Acto 2°:
D. Juan [Juan] Antonio
D. Pedro [Manuel] Simon
Hernando Autor
Guzman Canobas
Don Luis Damian [Arias ?]
Don Diego Luis de Salacar
El Rey Nabarrete
Beltran Saqedo
Dona Juana Ana de Moya
Dona Maria Catalina [de Peralta?]
Leonor su muger de Nabarrete
Toreadores Marcos y Grajales
According to the suelta of this comedia, it was first represented
by Tomas Fernandez. It was in the repertory of the companies
376 APPENDIX C
of Rueda and Ascanio in 1638-40. See Rosell, Entremeses de
Benavente, Vol. I, p. 377.
La gran Columna fogosa (1629?)
Lope de Vega. MS. copy in Biblioteca Nacional. Paz y Melia,
Catdlogo, No. 1412. The MS. contains original licenses dated at
Plasencia, 1629.
El Enperador Valente, ereje Al° Gomez
Pretoriano, ereje P° Goncalez
Agustulo, ereje Dominguez
Posidonio, ereje .Domingo Hernandez
San Basio, Obispo Fernando Lopez
Eraclio, cauallero biejo Gaspar Serrano
Antonia, hija de Eraclio Antonio
Sabina, criada de Ant" Martin
Patricio P° de Bonilla
Un encantador Diego Lopez
Satan Juan Martinez
Otro demonio Diego Lopez
Emerencio, biejo Diego Lopez
Leonicio, criado Juan Martinez
Fulbino, criado Domingo Hernandez
Telemarco Francisco Rodriguez
Decio, criado Luis
Un hebreo Dominguez
El Castigo sin Venganza ( 1 63 1 )
Lope de Vega. Autog. MS. dated at Madrid, August I, 1631,
in the Ticknor Library, Boston. See my article, "Ueber Lope de
Vega's El Castigo sin Venganza" in Zeitschrift fiir Rom. Phil.,
1901, p. 411.
El Duque de Ferrara Autor [Manuel Vallejo]
El Conde Federico Arias
Albano
Rutilio
Floro
Luzindo
APPENDIX C 377
El Marques Gonzaga [Francisco de] Salas
Casandra Autora [Maria de Riquelme]
Aurora Ber[nar]da
Lucrezia Geronima [de Valcazar]
Batin [Pedro Garcia] Salinas
Cintia Maria de Ceballos
Febo y Ricardo
The Bernarda mentioned above is probably Bernarda Ramirez
de Robles.
Peligrar en los Remedios (1634)
D. Francisco de Rojas Zorrilla. MS. partly autog. in Biblioteca
Nacional. Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 2552. At the end, in the
hand of Rojas: "Finished on Saturday, December 9, 1634, Ior
Roque de Figueroa."
La Duquesa Violante la Senora Isabel [Blanco ?]
Celia, criada Bernarda [Ramirez?]
Bojeton, criado [Francisco] Tribino
Conde Federico [Manuel] Coca
El Almirante de Sicilia Paz
El Marques Alberto, privado Roque [de Figueroa]
El Rey de Napoles Sigismundo Francisco de la Calle
Carlos, su hermano Jacinto Varela
Infanta de Sicilia Maria de San Pedro
Duque Conrado Bargas
La Desdicha de la Voz (1639)
Calderon. Autog. MS. dated at Madrid, May 14, 1639; with
licenses of June 1 and November 3, 1639. In the Biblioteca
Nacional. Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 873.
Don Juan Pedro Manuel de Castilla
Don Pedro el Autor [Antonio de Rueda]
Don Diego [Diego de] Leon
Don Luis, viejo Jusepe [de Carrion]
Feliciano Pedro [Ascanio]
378 APPENDIX C
Luquete [Diego] Ossorio
D* Beatriz Ma. de [Heredia]
Schack, Nachtrdge, p. 87. This is the company of Antonio de
Rueda.
A un tiempo Rey y Vasallo (1642)
Comedia de Luis de Belmonte Bermudez, del Dr. Manuel Anto-
nio de Vargas y de D MS. of the first act in the hand of
Vargas and nearly the whole third act in the hand of Belmonte.
See Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 19. The author of the second act
is probably Geronimo Cancer; v. Stiefel, in Ztft. fur Roman.
Philol., XXXII, p. 486; Sanchez-Arjona, Anales, p. 295.
Rey de Sicilia Inigo
Duque de Calabria Francisco Garcia
Almirante Mejia
La Infanta Beatriz la Sra Maria de Jesus
Belisarda, labradora Jusepa de Salazar
Silena Sra Antonia de Santiago
Laura, dama Jusepa Roman
Pasquin, gracioso Bernardo
Julio, cr'tado Salvador
Principe, 7 anos Sra Francisca Berdugo
This is the company of Pedro de la Rosa. This play was written
for Juana de Espinosa, then (1642) the widow of Tomas Fernan-
dez, and the manager of a company.
La belligera Espanola (?)
Pedro Juan de Rejaule y Toledo (who wrote under the pseudo-
nym Ricardo de Turia). MS. copy in the Palatina at Parma,
belonging to the early seventeenth century. The play was first
printed in the Norte de la Poesia espanola, at Valencia, in 1616,
a copy of which I possess. See A. Restori in Studj di Filologia
Romanza, fasc. 15, Roma, 1891, p. 92.
Guacolda la Sra Ana Maria
D* Mencia la S™ Juana [de Espinosa? or de Segura?]
D. Pedro Tomas Fernandez
Lantaro Aldana [Aldama?]
APPENDIX C 379
Rengo Simon Gutierrez
Valdiuia Pedro Maldonado
Laupi y Aluarado Villanueva
Rauco Lastra
Pillan y Bouadilla Barco
Gracolano y ofro Indio mocp Aranda
Paciencia en la Fortune ( ?)
Anonymous. Copy of the first half of the seventeenth century
in the Biblioteca Palatina at Parma. See Restori, ibid., p. 143.
The names of the actors are :
Luis de Estrada, Carlos, Juan Goncalez, Pedro Perez, Cuebas,
Nabarete, Berio, Belasco, Caceres, Barionuebo, and Juan Mazana
(added in a different hand).
Troya abrasada (1644)
Calderon. Autog. MS. in the Biblioteca Nacional, Madrid.
Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 337 1.
Paris Pedro Manuel
Hector -. D" Veatriz
Priamo
Rey de Troya, varba Juan Matias
Casandra Maria Macana
Elena Autora
Ismenia, criada Jusepa
Achiles Najara
Sinon Francisco Albarez
Menelao, Rey de Esparto Mexia
Agamemnon, Rey de Atenas Juan Antonio
Un criado de Ector
Viznaga Marin
INDEX
INDEX
Abadia, Juan de la, 161, 162
Acacio, Juan, 52, 53, 63, 133, 221
Academia degli Intronati, 22 and n. 1
Actors and Actresses: dissoluteness
of the latter causes women to be
banished from the stage, 145 ;
number of actors in a company,
145, 146 ; actors in Moliere's com-
pany, 145, n. 3 ; actors take several
parts. 146; hardships of the pro-
fession, 159; Rojas's account of,
159-160; Cervantes on, 160; ac-
tors in France, 160, n. 2; addicted
to gambling, 164-165 ; account of
his adventures related by Rojas,
166-169; actors sometimes patched
up plays, 171-172; they ill-treat
the poetasters, 172-173 ; engaged
at Shrovetide, 181; the salaries
of actors, 1 81-188; actors from
Madrid visit Valencia, 193-194;
Spanish actors in Paris, 170, n.,
339-341 ; character of actresses,
206-207 ; women forbidden to act,
207; forbidden on the stage in
i6i3(?), 220, n. 2; when actresses
may be visited, 246 ; the Partidas
of Alfonso on actors, 254; with-
out civil rights in France, 254;
the profession of acting, 255; un-
der the ban of the church, 256-
257; their general bad character,
266-267; celebrated actresses,
268-269; temptations of, 269-
270; Madame d'Aulnoy on, 270;
anonymous writer on, 270, n. 2 ;
visit other countries, 339-341
Admission to the theater, price of,
112-115
Adultera (La) penitente, 198
Adulterio (El) de la Esposa, 177,
n. 1, 307, n.
Adiiersa (La) Fortuna de Rui Lo-
pez de Avalos, 196
Aerssen, Francis van, 99, 319; his
account of autos and comedias,
324-328
Afectos de Odio y Amor, 198
Aguado, Andres, 40, n. 1
Aguilar, Francisco de, 83, n.
Alarcon, Juan Ruiz de, 84, n. 2,
89, n., 93, n. 3, 94, n. ; prologue to
his Comedias, 117; 180, 186, 226,
n. 1, 232, n., 341
Alcaraz, Diego Lopez de, 107, 109,
n., no, 165, 214, 215, 221-229
Alcayde (El) de si mismo, 86, 87,
89
Alcazar, royal palace, 230; theater
in, 230; representations in, 237
Alcina, opera, 331
Alcocer, Fr. Francisco de, 259
Alcozer, Juan de, 299
Aldea Gallega, 155
Alegria, Francisco de, 41, 204, 205
Alenian, Mateo, 154, n.
Alemana (La), dance, 74, n. 2
Alexander VI., Pope, 256, n. 2
Alfonso the Learned, his Siete Par-
tidas, 4, n. 1, 252-253, 254
Algunas Hazanas de D. Garcia
Hurtado de Mendoza, 180
Allen, H. Warner, 121, n. 2, 129,
n. 2
Alleyn, Edward, no, n. 1
Almenas (Las) de Toro, 268
Almenda, Antonio de, 68, n. 2
Almonacid, Diego de, 50, 55, 57
Almonacid, Diego de (el mozo), 57
Alvarez, Luis, 184
Alvarez de Vitoria, Francisco, 223
Amante (El) agradecido, 93, n. 3
Amantes (Los) de Teruel, 199
Amar como se ha de amar, 186
Amelia, Juan Jeronimo, no, n. 2,
193 and n. 8, 223
Amor con Vista, 165, n.
Amor, Pleito y Desafio (Lope de
Vega), 236
Amor (El) vandolero, 94, n. 1
Anaya, Maria de, 340
Andaluces, Los, 150, n.
Andreini, Virginia, 269, n. 2
Angeles, Maria le los, 63, 268
383
384
INDEX
Angulo, Juan de, 183, 184, n. 1
Animal (El) de Ungria, 95, n. 4
Antonia Infante, 127, 188, 292, 294
Antonia Manuela, 155, 186
Antonozzi, Maria, engineer, 243, n.
"Apariencias," 52, 80, 97-98
"Appearances," 98, 99
Aranjuez, representations at, 238
Araucana (La), 297, n.
Arauco domado, 90
Arbeau's Orchesographie, 74, n. 2
Arcadia (La), 176
Archduchess Margaret, Queen of
Philip IV., 211; comedias repre-
sented before, 230-231
Archer, William, 91, n. 2
Argensola, Lupercio Leonardo de,
261, 262
Arias de Penafiel, Damian, 202,
223 ; greatest of actors, 267
Ariosto, his comedias represented in
Spain, 21
Armona, Antonio, 36, n. 2, in, n. 3
"Arte nuevo de hacer Comedias,
105, 287, 288
Artieda, Andres Rey de, 79, n. 1
Asalto (El) de Mastrique, 84, n. 1
Ascanio, Pedro de, 188, 190, n. 2,
194,223,285
Audiences in the corrales, 117; mo-
rality of, 120-121 ; in France, Ger-
many, and Italy, 120-121 ; ap-
proval of, indicated by shouting
Victor! 121-124; enter without
paying, 124-126; ruffianism of,
125-130; show disapproval by
hissing, etc., 279; account of Lo-
pez Pinciano, 333-334; account
of Juan de Zabaleta, 334-338
Aulnoy, Countess of, 99, 121, 239,
n. 2, 270 and n. 2, 330, 331-333
Auto de San Martinho, 7, n. 1,
48, n. 1
"Autor de Comedias," meaning of,
9> 32. 33. n- 1, 169-170; dishonest
practices of, 173-174; become
members of other companies, 190 ;
sums received for a performance,
194-197; guaranteed an ayuda
de costa, 199; amount received for
representing an auto, 200-202;
autor es between 1600 and 1603,
214; number limited to eight by
the decree of 1603, 215-216;
autores between 1603 and 1615,
216; twelve permitted by decree
of 161 5, 220; autores between 161 5
and 1640, 223 ; appointed to rep-
resent autos, 300, 302; when au-
tos were represented, 3°3_3°5>
number of autos represented, 303-
304; amount received for repre-
senting autos, 305-30*
Autos, earliest, 6; represented by-
guilds, 7; representations in the
sixteenth century, 23, 24; mean-
ing of auto, 48, n. 1 ; Auto de la
Ungion de David, 65, n. 1 ; Auto
de Santa Maria Egipciaca, 80
Autos, Farsas, etc., Coleccion de, ed.
Rouanet, 7, n. 2, 10, u. 3, 65, n. i,
287, n. 2
Autos Sacramentales, earliest, 7, n.
1 ; distinguished from autos, 7,
n. 1 and 2, 9; at Toledo in
1580, 10; represented in the
corrales of Seville, 53; apa-
riencias in, 97, 98; costumes for,
107—108 ; four represented annu-
ally in Madrid, 177, n. 1; autos
written by Lope de Vega, 177,
n. 1 ; amount paid for, 177, n. 1 ;
sums paid for representing an
auto, 200-202; represented be-
fore Philip III., 231; again pre-
sented after the death of Prince
Baltasar, 248; opposition of the_
church to, 261-266, 316; the rep-
resentation of autos, 297-312;
suppressed by Charles III, 297,
n. ; earliest autos represented
in Madrid, 299 ; Job, Santa Cata-
lina, La Pesca de S. Pedro, La
Vendimia Celestial, El Rey Bal-
tasar, 299; description of the
autos Job and Sa Catalina, 301
and n. ; four represented annu-
ally in Madrid, 302; autos in
Seville, 304, n. 2, 305; amount
paid for representing, 305-306:
sums received bv dramatists for
writing, 306-307; the painting of
the carros, 308 and n. ; number of
carros, 309—310; stage for autos,
3 10-3 n; the properties, 3 1 1 ; dis-
order in representing autos, 313 ;
edict of the Bishop of Badajoz,
314-315 ; the Corpus procession in
Seville, 315; suppressed in 1765,
316; autos in the corrales, 317-
318; great expense of autos, 319;
sums paid to Calderon for autos,
321; contemporary accounts of
the representation of autos,
325 ff. ; account of Madame
d' Aulnoy, 332
INDEX
385
Avendano, Cristobal de, 139, u. 1,
i93i '99, 223. 229, 234, 235, 301,
n, 305
Avendano, Francisco de, 19
"Aventuras del Bachiller Trapaza,"
173, n.
Averiguador, El, 112, n., 237, n. 1;
249, n. 2
Avila, Diego de, 13, n. 3
Avila, Juan de, 41
Avisos and Anaies, 273
Avisos de Pellicer, 240, n. 4
\Ay Verdades! que en Amor, 98
Ayala, D* Elvira de, 49, 50, n. 1
Ayala, D. Gaytan de, 102
Ayamonte, Marquis of, 51, 53
Ayuso, Miguel de, 147
Badajoz, Bishop of, 314-315
Balbin, Domingo, 1S6, 200, 216, 231,
3°9. 3i7
Baltasar, Prince, 240; death of, 247;
248
Baltasara (La), 278, n. 2
Bances Candamo, Francisco de, 266,
n. 1, 276, n. 2
Baudot (Los) de Verona, 240, n. 4
Bapst, G., 65, n. 1, 101, 105, 106,
137. 138, 140
"Baptism of St. John," auto, 23
Barbieri, Nicolo (Beltrame), 140
Barcelona, festival of Corpus at, 4;
escarraman at, 73
Bargagli, Scipione, 22, n. 1
"Barquillos," 278
Barrera, D. Cayetano A. de la, 32,
"• 3. 79. n. 1, 235, 244, n. 3, 245,
n. 2, 288, n. 1
Barrio, Cristobal de, 150, n.
Barrionuevo, D. Jeronimo de,
Avisos, 243, n., 244, n. 2
Baschet, Armand, 29, n. 1, 142, n. 2
Bassompierre, Le Marechal de, 340,
n. 3
Bastidor =: wing of stage scenery,
92, n. 3, 97 and n.
Basto, Conde del, 180
Basurto, Diego Lopez, 184
Bayles, 69; distinguished from
Danzas, 69, n. 3 ; the Zarabanda,
70-71; various bayles, the Cha-
cona, Escarraman, etc., 72-73 ;
bayles antiguos, 74; Bayle del
Caballero de Olmedo, 70, n. 3 ;
Bayle de Jdcara, 125, n. 4; Bayle
de la Entrada de la Comedia,
126, n.
Bella (La) Aurora, 93, n. 3
Belligera (La) Espanola, 83, n.
Belmonte, Luis de, 180
Benzon, Luisa, 183
Berenger de Palaciolo, 4
Bernardo de Bovadilla, Luis, 223
Bertaut, Francois, 118, n. 3, 121 and
n., 328, 329
Bezon, Juan de, 186
Bezona, La — Ana Maria, 186
Bibbiena, Cardinal, La Calandra,
256
Blason (El) de los Chaves, 278, n.
Bocangel, D. Gabriel de, 232, n.
Bodas (Las) del Alma con el Amor
divino, 211
Bonilla y San Martin, A., 16, n. i,
71, n. 1
Booksellers, dishonesty of, 174
Borja, Vicenta de, 107
Bosberg, Sarah v., 140
Bourland, C. B., 18, n. 1
Boxiganga, the, 153
Boy Bishop (Obispillo), 127
Braones, Alonso Martin de, 290, n.,
295, n. 2
Bravo, Pedro, 149
Buen Retiro, the, 238-239; repre-
sentations in, 239-243 ; visited by
the public, 240
Bulletin Hispanique, 10, n. 4, 28,
n. 2, 30, n. 2, 31, n. 2, 32, n. 1,
33. n. 5, 34, n. 1 and 2, 35, n. 1 and
2, 36, n. 2, 37, n. 2, 44, n. 2, 80, n.,
107, n., no, n. 2, 141, n. 4, 163,
n. 3, 165, n., 177, n. 1, 202, n. 7,
203, n. 1, 204, n. 1, 215, n. 1, 231,
11. 1, 233, n. 2, 298, n. 3, 309, u. 2
and 3
"Bululu,'' the, 151
Burbadge, James, 34, n. 5
Burgalesa (La) de Lerma, 91, n. 1
Burgos, Antonio de, 68, n. 2
Burgos, Jeronima de, 194, 234, 258,
268
Burlador (El) de Sevilla, 90, 91
Burladora (La) burlada, 83, n., 84,
n. 1 and 2, 94, n.
Burlas (Las) de Pedro de Urde-
malas, 236
Burnyng Knight, the, 77
Caballero (El) del Fenix, 177, 11.,
307, n.
Caballero (El) del Sol, 102
Caballeros (Los) nuevos, 190
Cabello, Ana, 185
Cabranes, Diego de, 259
Cabrera de Cordoba, Luis, in, 210,
386
INDEX
n. 2, 2ii, n. 2, 214, n., 230 and
n. 1, 232, n. 2
Caida (La) de Faeton, 235
Calderon, Maria, 163-164 and n.,
186, 189, 269
Calderon, D. Pedro, ix, 74, n. 2, 86,
87, 89, 90, 92, 118; El galan
fantasma, 118, n. 4; 174, n. 2, 177,
n., 197, 198, 199, 202, 226, n. 1,
232, n. ; Circe, 241 ; La Purpura
de la Rosa, 241 ; El mayor En-
canto Amor, 242; Los ires mayores
Prodigios, 242, 243, n., 244, n. 2;
writes the autos in 1645, 247; the
aulas of 1648, 248, 276, n. 2, 279;
writes saynetes, 294-295 ; autos,
311; autos written for various
festivals, 320; sums received for
them, 321; writes autos till 1681,
321. 34i ' .
Collar hasta la Ocasion, 32, n. 3
Calle, Francisco de la, 295, n. 3
Camacho, Alonzo Gonzalez, 64, n. 1,
187
"Cambaleo," the, 152
Cancionero Classense, 70
Candado, Luis, 125
Candau, Maria, 65, 193, 27T, n.
Caiiete, Manuel, 3, n., 7, n. i, 15, 16,
n. 1, 19, n. 3, 23, n. 3
Capellan (El) de la Virgen, 93, n. 1
Caramuel, J., on the comedia, 33,
n. 1 ; on scenery, 86, n. 1, 163,
n. 3 ; on actors, 267 and u., 268,
n. 3, 269 and n. 2, 279, n. 1 ; on en-
iremeses, 288, n. 2
Carlos V. en Francia, 278, n.
Caro, Rodrigo, 60
Carrillo, Jose, xiii
Cartwright, The Royal Slave, 99
Carvallo, Luis Alfonso de, 280, n.,
286, n. 3
Casa con dos Puertas mala es de
guardar, 199
Casa (La) confusa, 71, n. 4
Casamiento (El) en la Muerte, 96, n.
Casamientos (Los) de Joseph, 177,
n., 307, n.
Casarse por defendor, 65
"Casas del Tesoro," theater in, in
Cascales, Francisco de, 227
Castigar por defender, 177
Castigo (El) en la Vanagloria, 195
Castigo (El) sin Fenganza, 163, n. 3
Castillo, Alonso del, 170-171
Castillo Solorzano, A. de, 173, n. 1
"Castradores," 120, 11.
Castro, Beatriz de, 147, n.
Castro, Francisco de, 185
Castro, D. Guillen de, 84, n. i, 119,
n. 1, 177, 180, 226, n. i, 341
Castro, Luis de, 150, n., 19S1 214
Castro, D. Pedro de, Archbishop of
Granada, 207, 211
Catalan, Juan, 63, 184, 223
Catherine, Princess, Duchess of Sa-
voy, 207
Cauallero (El) de Olmedo, dance,
70, n. 3
Cautela contra Cautela, 235
Cauteloso (Lo) de un Guante, 178
"Cazuela," the, 119, 128, 129, 130,
332, 337-338
Cebrian, Pedro, 194, 221
Celestina, tr. by Mabbe, 121, n. 2,
129, n. 2
Celos (Los) en el Caballo, 234, 236
Celos engendran Amor, 236
Centino, Alonso de, 12
Cerco (El) de Cordoba, 195
Cerezo de Guevara, Pedro, 147, 223
Cervantes, Miguel de, La Galatea,
13 ; his account of Lope de Rue da,
16-18; his plays Los Tratos de
Argel, La Destruycion de Numan-
cia, La Bat all a naual, 18, 20; his
Numancia, 21 ; El Retablo de las
Marairillas, 34, n. 1 ; Don Quixote,
45, n. 2, 62 and n., 75, n. 3, 98,
295> n- 3> 3I2-3I3! on dancing,
66 ; La gran Sultana, 66, 84, n. 3,
106, n. ; La Cueiia de Salamanca,
70, n. 3 ; La ilustre Fregona, 72, n. ;
El rufian Biudo, 68, n. 3, 72, n., 74 ;
El gallardo Espanol, Si, n. 1, 92;
La Casa de los Zelos, ibid.; on
curtains in the theaters, ,84; El
Rufian dichoso, 94, 146; Pearo de
Urdemalas, 95, n. 1, 160, n. 1;
Viage del Parnaso, 116, n. 5; 159,
El Licenciado vidriera, 160; the
Colloquio de los Perros, 172-173 ;
entremeses, 289, n., 290, n.
Chacona, the, 72, 73
Chambers, "The Medieval Stage,"
127, n.
Chapman, J., 179, n.
Charles V., 23. See also under
Pragmatica
Chavarria, Andres de, 149
Chorley, J. R., 230, n.
Churchmen oppose the theater, 207 ff .,
255-261
Cirot, G., 263, n. 1
Cisneros, Alonso de, 28, n. 2, 32 and
n- 3, 34. 35, 43. 82, n., 131, 142,
INDEX
387
154, n., 165, 193, 200, 202, 203,
n. 1, 211, n. 3
Cisneros, Juana de, 60
Claramonte, Andres de, 54, 81, 147-
149, 170, 174, 2 1 6, 221
Clavijo y Fajardo, D. Jose, 106
Cleraencin, Diego, editor of Cer-
vantes, 63, n. 1, 68, n. 2, 75, n. 2,
80, n., 98, 184, n., 243, n., 272, n.
, Cobaleda, Pedro de, 223
"Cobradores," 64, n. 4
Coello, Antonio, 91, n. i, 232
"Cofradia (La) de la sagrada Pa-
sion," 26 ff., 40
"Cofradia (La) de nuestra Senora
de la Soledad y Nifios expositos,"
27 ff . ; they erect their own thea-
ters in the Calle de la Cruz in
1579 and in the Calle del Prin-
cipe in 1582, 33; they buy a site
in the Calle del Principe, 35, 36;
build a corral, description of, 39-
41
Coleman, Mrs. 139
Collaboration of dramatists, 180
Collier, J. Payne, 27, n. 1, 28, n. 1,
34. n- 5. 37, 39, n. 1, 43, n. 1,
44, n. 3, 70, n. 1, 99, no, n. 1,
132, n. 2, 255
Colloquio de los Perros, 172-173
Colloquio de Timbria, Colloquio de
Camila, 281
Comedia del Molino, 91, n. 1
Comedias, the term comedia defined,
274-275; the various kinds of
comedias, 275-277; the staging
of, 76-103; Rojas, "Loa de la
Comedia," 78-81; comedias de
santos, 80, 144, 275 ; comedias
de capa y espada, or comedias de
ingenio, 85,275-276; comedias de
teatro (de ruido or de cuerpo),
80, 86, 88, 275, 276; comedias de
apariencias , 109 ; comedias a no-
licia, comedias a fantasia, 275;
the price of a comedia, 177-178 ;
sums paid for performing a come-
dia, 194-197; comedias canceled
by order of the King, 198, 243 ;
opposition to the comedia, 207 ff . ;
no artisans permitted to visit the
comedia on work-days, 215, n.;
decrees regulating comedias,
208 ff.; decree of 1598, 209-210;
decree of 1600, 211-213; decree
of 1603, 215-216; decree of 1608,
216-220; decree of 1615, 220-
223 ; the comedia no longer flour-
ishing, 224; other measures en-
acted concerning comedias, 225,
n. ; comedias seldom acted in
some cities, 227 ; comedias repre-
sented before the King and
Queen, 230-246; death of Prince
Baltasar, the question of again
permitting comedias raised, 247 ;
conditions recommended, 247 ;
comedias again allowed to be
represented, 248; the petition of
1646-47 to reopen the corrales,
248-249; comedias resumed in
the King's palace, 249; to the
public, 250; comedias written by
a tailor of Toledo, 276, n. ; the
representation of a comedia, 277-
279 ; gratuitous representations,
ibid.; the licensing of comedias,
277 ; new comedias, 278, n. 1 ;
the Loa, 279-286; the first act
followed by an entremes, 286;
Lope de Vega on, 287-288; con-
temporary accounts of the repre-
sentation of comedias, 322 ft.;
decline of the comedia, 341
Comedias escogidas, Vol. I, 279,
Vol. XII, 88, n., Vol. XXIX,
181
Comedie Franchise, 101
Cornelia, his Cristobal Colon, 97
Comendadores (Los) de Cordoba,
92, 133, 156
Commedia(La)dell' arte," 29, n. 1,
3°, 44, 45
Como se enganan los Ojos, 234, 237
Companies of players, 145; number
in a company, 145 ; the company
of Moliere in 1658, 145, n. 3;
licensed in Spain, 146; companias
reales or de titulo, companias de
la legua, 146, 225 ; companias de
parte, 146-149; various smaller
companies as described by Rojas,
150-154; the compania, 153-154;
the traveling of companies, 154-
158; companies on the decline,
197-198; number of companies in
Spain, 225. See also under De-
crees
"Compania (La) espanola," 149, n. 3,
195
Conde (El) Alarcos, 195
Conde (El) de Sex, 91, n. 1
Conde (El) loco, of Morales, 79, n. x
Conde (El) Lucanor, 244, n.
Condesa (La) Matilda, 196
"Confidenti, I," 45, 46
388
INDEX
"Confidentos italianos, Los," 142
and n. 2
"Conformes, Los," 129, n.( 149, 196
Confusion (La) de un Jardin, 123, n.
Conquista (La) de Oran, 330, n.
Conquista (La) de Toledo, 180
Constancia (La) de Arcelina, 49
"Contra los Juegos piiblicos," 71,
n. 4, 293, 294, 298, n.
Contreras, D. Antonio de, 245
Coquette (La) ou le Favori, 65, n. 1
Cordoba, theater in, 192
Cordoba, Fray Gaspar de, an, 212,
n. 1, 213
Cordoba, Maria de (Amarilis), 185,
186, 189, 268 and n. 3, 271, n.
Corneille, Examen de Melite, 100;
Nicomede, 145, n. 3
Corpus Christi, festival of, insti-
tuted in 1264, 4; early celebra-
tions at Seville, 4; in 1538, 21 ; in
1563, 23 ; in 1570, 23-24, 48, n. 1 ;
dances at, 71-75
Corrales: — The corral es of Madrid :
the corral in the Calle del Sol,
the Corral of Isabel Pacheco, the
Corral of Burguillos, 27, 28; the
Corral de Puente, 28, n. 2, 30-33,
n. 4 and 5, 34; representations in,
as late as 1584, 34, 43, in; the
Corral de la Pacheca, 28, n. 2,
29; description of, 29-30, 31-33
and n. 4; the favorite playhouse,
35; the Corral del Principe, 30,
32, n. 3; building of, 36, 39-41,
42, n. 1, 43, 44, in; the Corral
de la Cruz, 30, n. 2; building of,
in 1579, 33 ff. ; first representation
in, 33; Ganassa appears in, 35,
41, 43 ; the Cruz and Principe the
only corrales after 1587, 43, in;
changes in 1631, 112, n.; the Co-
rral de Valdivieso, 31 ; represen-
tations in the corrales, when, 33 ;
representations suspended in 1581,
35 ; description of the corrales,
41-43 ; closed on account of the
death of Philip III., 54, 229;
music in, 62 ff. ; performances in,
when, in, 112; the price of seats,
113-115; two fees paid, 116; au-
diences in, 117; women visit the
corrales, 1 18-120; men enter
without paying, 124; ruffianism
in, 125-129; deadheads, 126;
closed during the summer, 133 ;
the rental of, 204; the corrales
reopened in 1621, 229; seats in
the corrales, 134-13* • c'os*d on
account of the death of Queen
Isabel, 246; on account of the
death of Prince Baltasar, 247;
of Philip IV., 250; on account of
the pest in 1682, 251; the co-
rrales of Seville: the Corral de
D. Juan, 29, n. t, 47> 4-8, "3,
131; the Corral de San Pablo,
47, n. 2; the Coliseo del Duque
de Medina Sidonia, 47, n. 2;
the Corral de las Atarazanas,
47, 48, 49, 50; the Corral de
la Alcoba, 47, 48, 50; rent of,
in 1585, 205; San Pedro, 47, 51;
the Huerta de Da Elvira, 47, 49,
52; rental of, 53, 54; torn down,
59, 117, 125; the Coliseo, 48, 50;
construction of, 51-52; rental of,
53; destroyed by fire, 54; rebuilt,
54i 59> statistics concerning, 55-
57; again destroyed by fire, 60;
rebuilt, 61 ; La Monteria, 48, 57-
59; cost of, 59; rental of, 59, 60;
destroyed by fire, 61, 65, 97, n. 2,
125, 126, 128 ; the price of admis-
sion to the corrales, 115-116 and
n. 5, 117, 11.; men enter without
paying, 124-126; ruffianism, 128
and n., 129; plays viewed from
the housetops, 130; corrales closed
during summer, 133 ; visited by
players from Madrid, 192; the
number of representations in the D"
Elvira and the Coliseo from 1611
to 1 614, 203 ; rent of the Coliseo
in 1611, 205; the corrales closed
in 1646, 248; representations
again begun in the Coliseo in
1648, 248. Corrales in the Span-
ish colonies, 129, n.
Correa, actor, 19
Cortes (Las) de la Muerte, 312-313
Cortes, N. A., 10, n. i, n, 61, n. 2
"Cortesi, I," 44, n. 1
Cortinas, Da Leonor, mother of Cer-
vantes, 34
Co stanza, La, 32, n. 3
Coster, A., 49, n. 3
Costumes on the Spanish stage, 104-
105, 106 ; on the French stage, 105 ;
anachronisms in plays, 105 ; cos-
tume an indication of rank, 105,
n. 2; magnificence of costumes,
106-107 i great expense of, 107,
n. 3, 108; pawning of, no
Cotarelo y Mori, E., 10, n. 1, 11, 13,
14, n. 1, 16, n. 1, 71, n. 3, 73, 85,
INDEX
389
n. 1, 106, 112, n. 1, 115, n- I< J43>
163, n. 3, 193, 212, n. 1, 213, n-,
214, n., 216, n., 220, n. 1, 223, n.,
226, n., 227, u., 256, u. 1, 251, n.,
255, 256, 257-262, 290, n. 1, 295,
n. 3, 316
Council of Aranda, the, 253
Court performances, when, 11 1, n. 2,
230-246
Crawford, J. P. W., 23, n. 3, 290, n. 1
Creizenach, W., 21, 22, n., 115, n.,
138, n. 2, 161, n., 277, n. 1
Crespi de Borja, 227
Croce, B., 33, n. 2
"Cronica de los hechos del Condes-
table Miguel Lucas de Iranzo,"
141
Cruz, Fray Jeronimo de la, 264
Cruz, Ramon de la, 295
Cruzada Villaamil, Sr., 237
Cuebas, Francisco de las, 23, n. 3
Cueua (La) de Salamanca (Cer-
vantes), 70, n. 3
Cueva (La) de Salamanca (Alar-
con), 93, n. 3
Cueva, Juan de la, 13, 49
Cumplir con su Obligation, 122
Cunningham, F., 76
Dama (La) boba, 176, 268
Dama (La) Corregidor, 197
Dancers, Spanish, famous among
the Romans, 66 and n. 2; dances
at Corpus, 67-69
Dances, 71-75. See also under
Bayles
D'Ancona, Alessandro, 22, 44, n. 3
a°d 4. 45. 4«> n. h H°> "• 3, 142,
n. 2, 256, n. 2
"Danza de cascabel," 68 and n. 2
"Danza de espadas," 69, n. 2
Danza de la Muerte by Pedraza, 6,
7, n. 1
Danzas habladas," 75
Dar la Vida por su Dama, 232
Davenant's Siege of Rhodes, 139,
178
De Cosario a Cosario, 91, n. 1
"De Spectaculis," 262, 263, n.
Decrees regulating the theaters,
207; rescript of 1598, 207-210;
decree of 1600, 211-213; decree
of 1603, 215-216; decree of 1608,
216-220; decree of 1615, 220-
223 ; other measures enacted re-
specting the theaters, 225 ; decree
of 1615 a dead letter, 245 ; decree
of 1641, 245; decree of 1646-47,
249 and n. ; decree of 1653, 250
and n. 4; decree of 1665, 251
Degollado, El, 49
"Degollado," the, a fashion, 272,
n. 2
Dekker, Thomas, 64, n. 4, 178 and
n. 3
Delpino's Spanish Dictionary, 67,
n- 3, 75, n. 3
Desden (El) con el Desden, 123
Desdichado (El) en fingir, 84, n. 2
Despois, £., 66, n.
Despreciada (La) Querida, 234, 236
"Dia (El) de Fiesta por la Tarde,"
334-338
Diablo (El) mudo, 202
"Dialogos de la Agricultura," 260
"Dialogos de las Comedias," 263
Diaz, Alonso, 79, 80
Diaz, Pedro, 79, 80
"Diccionario de Autoridades," 73,
n., 291, n. 4
Diez, Gaspar, 12
Dios hace Reyes, 229
Docteur (Le) amoureux, 145, n. 3
Doctor (El) Carlino, 124
Don Sancho el Malo, 236
Dona Ana, Queen, death of, 35
Dona Beatrix de Siliia, 85, n. i
Doors at back of stage, 85, n. 2,
and see under Staging
Dos Amantes (Los) del Cielo, 90
Dramatists, difficulties of, with
actors, 173-174; with booksell-
ers, 174; with literary pirates,
175-176; honorarium received
by them, 177-178; by English
dramatists, 178-180; collabora-
tion of, 180; morality of plays,
266, n. 2; sums received for an
auto, 306-307
Drayton, Michael, 178, n. 3
Dressing-room. See Vestuario
Dueno (El) de las Estrellas, 89, n.
Eliche, Marquis of, 198, 243, n.
Elizabethan Age, number of plays,
ix; morality of plays, 120
Embustes (Los) de Fabia, 87 and
n. 1
Encanto (El) sin Encanto, 92 and
n. 3
Encantos (Los) de Merlin, 79, n. 1
Enciso, Bartolome de, 307
Enciso, Diego Ximenez de, 276, n. 2
English actors in Germany, 114,11.;
trial performances, 277, n. 1
English court plays, 76-78
39°
INDEX
English theaters, actors, etc. See
under London
Enredos (Los) de Benetillo, 132
Entr ernes de los Pare ceres, 119, n. 2
Entremeses, 69; definition of, 286;
entremesos in Valencia, 287 ; their
origin, 287 ; entremes de las Es-
teras, 287, n. 2; entremes de
Sebastian de Horozco, 287, n. 2;
the entremeses in Lope's Fiestas
del Santissimo Sacramento, 288;
in his Comedias, 288, n. 4; en-
tremeses cantados, 290; number
of entremeses to a comedia, 290
and n.
Enzina, Juan de la, 3, n., 13, n. 3,
256, n. 2
Escamilla, Manuela de, 198
Escamilla, Maria de, 198
Escarraman, the, 72, 73
Esclavo (El) del Demonio, 61
Escobedo, Juan de, 204
Escolastica (La) zelosa, 91, n. 1
"Escotado," a fashion, 247, n. 2
Escuelas (Las) de Athenas, 170-171
"Espana Sagrada," 127, n.
Espanola (La) de Florencia, 88
and n.
Espeyronniere, Antoine de 1', 138,
n. 2, 161, n.
Espinel, Vicente, 176, u. 1
Espinosa, Ana de, 127, 164
Espinosa, Cardinal, 26
Espinosa, Gabriel de, 223
Espinosa, Juan Bautista, 223
Espinosa, Juana de, 249, u. 2
Esquilache, Prince of, 240
Esquivel, Juan de, 68, n. 2
Estebanez, Alonso and Juan, 204
Estoile, Pierre de 1', Memoires, 340,
n. 1
Examen (El) de Maridos, 94, u. i
Fdckeux (Les), 65, n. 1
Fairet or Ferre, Marie, 138 and n.,
161, n.
Fajardo, Ana, 187
"Farandula," the, 153
Farsas sacramentales, 8, n.
Favor (El) agradecido, 94, n. 1
Fe (La) pagada, 73, 83, n., 125, n.
Fi (La) rompida, 91, n., 92
Febvre, Mathieu le, called Laporte,
139
Fernandez, Lucas, 13, n. 3
Fernandez de Cabredo, Tomas, 184,
185, 187, 196, 201, 216, 221, 242,
272, 285, 317
Fernandez de Guardo, Alonso, 185
Fernandez Guerra, Luis, 81, m,
n. 3, 227, n., 229, n. 1
Ferrer, Padre Juan, on the Cha-
cona, 73
Festivals given by Philip IV., 233-
246
Fete (La) de I'Amour et de Bac-
chus, 241, n. 1
"Fiesta de los Carros," 9, 298
"Fiestas del Santissimo Sacra-
mento," 288, 289, 11., 290, n.
Figueroa, Roque de, n8, 120; ac-
count of, 163, 172 and n., 186,
190, 200, n., 223, 250, 286, 301, 11.
Fingida (La) Arcadia, 84, n. 2
Fingir y Amar, 123, n.
Fischmann, II., 66, n., 146, n.
Fitzmaurice-Kelly, J., 7 and n. i,
14, 48, n. i, 98, 141
Flaminia, Italian actress, 140
Fleay, E. G., 27, n. 1, 34, n. 5, 144,
n. 2, 255, n. 2
Fletcher, John, 38
Floridor, Josias, 139, 11. 1
Fontana, Julio Cesare, 238 and n. 1
Foulche-Delbosc, R., 328, n.
Francesquina, La (Silvia Ron-
cagli), 46
Francisca Maria, 147
French players in London, 139, n. x
French theater, the stage setting,
99—101 ; women on the stage, 138,
139 and n. ; actors, 160, n. 2, 254
Fuensanta (La) de Cordoba, 190
Fuente, Tomas de la, 141
Fuerca (La) del Interes, 83, n.
Fuerzas (Las) de Sanson, 308
Furness, Horace Howard, 74, u. 2
Galan (El) de La Membrilla, 176
Galan (El) Fantasma, 118, n. 4
"Gallarda, La," a dance, 74, u. 2
Gallardo (El) Espanol, 92
Gallardo, Bartolome Jose, 108, n.,
245, n. 4, 263, n. 1
"Gallinero, El," 239, n. 2
Galvez, Isabel de, 198
Galvez, Jeronimo, 34, 35, 82, 11.
Ganar Amigos, 234
Ganassa, Alberto Nazeli de, 28,
n. 2, 29 and n., 30, 31, 32, 35 and
n. 1, 43-44, 48, 131, 141, 204
"Gangarilla," the, 152
Garcia, Alonso, 147
Garcia, Francisco (Pupilo), 198, 223
Garcia de Toledo, Francisco, 150
"Garduna (La) de Sevilla," 173, n.
INDEX
39i
"Garnacha," the, 152
Garrick, David, 106
Gasque, Juan, 147
Gayangos, D. Pascual de, 16, n. 1,
68, n. 2, in, n. 1, 231, n., 266, n. 1,
276, n. 2, 323
"Gelosi, I," Italian company headed
by Ganassa, 29, n. 1
Gelves, Counts of, 49 and n.
Germany, women on the stage, 140
"Gigantones," 298
Gloria (La) de Niquea, 238 and n.
Gongora, D. Luis de, 64, n. 1
Gonzalez, Bernarda, 184, u.
Gonzalez, Gabriel, 204
Gonzalez, Jusephe, 183
Gonzalez, Matias, 204
Gonzalez, Sebastian, 149, 193, 223
Gonzalez Carpio, Da Juana, 41, 205
Gonzalez de Salas, J. A., 69, n. 3,
98, n. 2, 120, n. 1
Gonzalez Pedroso, E., 5, u., 7, n.,
311
Gradas (Las) de San Felipe, 272, n.
Graf, Arturo, 256, n. 2
Gramont, Le Marechal de, 328, 329
"Gran Memoria," 175
Gran Sultana(La) , 66, n. 2, 84, n. 3
Granada, theater in, 191, n.
Granados, Antonio, 101, n. 3, 155,
183, 190, 215, 221
Granados, Juan, 32, 34, 35, 107, n.,
202
Graxales, Juan de, 185
Greg, W. W., ix, 27, n. 1, 14, n. 3,
34, n. s, no, n. 1, 178, n. 3, 189,
n. 2, 277, n. i
"Guardainfantes," 247
Guevara, Luisa de, 64, n. 1
Guevara, Mariana de, 184, 185
"Guzman de Alfarache," 154, n.
Guzman, Getino de, 34
Halliwell-Phillipps, J. O., 27, n. 1
Hardy, Alexandre, 99, 170
Hartzenbusch, J. E., 93, 11. 3, 94, n.,
134, n. 2, 180, n. 2, 228, n., 277,
n. 2, 294
Haywood, Thomas, A Woman
Killed •with Kindness, 179, n.
Hazanas (Las) del Marques de Ca-
nete, 236
Ilenslowe, Philip, 34, u. 5, 170
Henslowe's Diary, ix, 27, n. i, 34,
n. 5, 64, no, n. 1, 178, n. 3, 189,
n., 277, n. 1
Herbias, Jacinta de, 127, 164, 188
Herbias, Mariana de, 184
Heredia, Alonso de, 116, n. 5, 200,
216, 221, 231, 304, 309, 317
Heredia, Tomas de, 190, n. 2
Hermano (El) Francisco, 196
Hermosa (La) Alfreda, 177
"Hermosura (La) de Angelica," 233
Herrera, D. Fernando de, 49, n. 3
Herrera, Jacinto de, 180
Herrera, Maria de, 150
Herrera, Martin de, 13, n. 3
Herrera, Melchor de, 10, n. 4
Herrera, D. Rodrigo de, 42, u. 1
Herrera, D. Rodrigo de, dramatist,
177
Hija (La) del Aire, 237
Hi jo (El) de Reduan, 106, n.
Hijo (El) prodigo, 10
Hinard, Damas, 87, n. 1
"Hispania Illustrata," 108, n.
History of Felix and Philomena, 77
History of Sarpedon, 77
Horn (V) enamorat y la Fembra
satisfeta, x
Honorarium received by drama-
tists, 177-178
Honra (La) kurtada, 196
Horozco, Sebastian de, 8, n., 287, n. 2
Horses upon the stage, 79, 81
Hotel de Bourgogne, 99, 101 ;
women visit, 119, n. 3; rabble at,
121, n.
Hughes, Margaret, actress, 140, n.
Hume, Martin, 164, n. 1, 168, n.,
238, n. 1
Hurtado de la Camara, Lorenzo,
no, 117, 223, 246, 286
Hurtado y Cisneros, D. Juan, 32, n.3
Imperial (La) de Oton, 93, n. 3
Infante (El) de Aragon, 234
Inocente (La) Sangre, 83
"Introito," the, 281
Ir y quedarse, 225
Isabel of Bourbon, first wife of
Philip IV., 237, 238, n. ; her death,
246
Isabel, Princess of Portugal, 23
Italian actresses in Madrid, 142,
143
Italian comedies in Spain, 21, 22 ;
comedy of Ariosto represented
at Valladolid, ibid.
Italian players in Spain, 30, n. 2,
44-45 ; in the Corral del Principe,
143. See also under Confident,
Cortesi, Ganassa, Gelosi, and
Muzio
"Italianos (Los) nuevos," 44
392
INDEX
Jdcaras, 126, n. 2, 291-293, 298, n.
Jesus Maria, Fray Jose de, 262
Jimenez, Jusepe, 107
Jimenez de Valenzuela, Pedro, 195,
214
Job, auto, zoo
John of Austria, Don, 164
Jones, Inigo, 99
"Jornada, 286 and n.
"Journey into Spain," 324
Jovellanos, Melchor de, xi
Judit (La) Espahola, 236, n.
"Juegos de Escarnios," 252
Juicio (El) final, 320
Juvenal on Spanish dancers, 66, n. 2
Labrador (El) venturoso, 234, 235
Lamarca, Luis, x-xiii, 117, n., 193,
287
Lanini, Pedro Francisco, 70, n. 3,
126, n., 290, n. 1
Lara, Salvador, 65
Laura perseguida, 278, u.
"Laurel de Apolo," 241, n.
Lazarillo, 198
Leal (El) Criado, 277
Lee, Sydney, 38, 139
Lego (El) del Carmen, 196
Lemos, Conde de, 71, n. 4, 114
Leon, musician, 63
Leon, Cristobal de, 157, 201, 223
Leon, Melchor de, 107, 214, 215
Leon Marchante, D. Manuel de,
295 and n. 3, 321
Leon Pinelo, A., 69, n. 2, 226, n. 1,
243, n.
Leoni, Leon, of Arezzo, 22
Lerma, Duke of, 101, n. 3, 102, 212,
n. 1
Liar's Walk, 271, n. 2
Libertad (La) de Espana par Ber-
nardo del Carpio, 49
Libertad (La) de Roma por Mucio
Scevola, 49
"Licenciado (El) vidriera," 160
Licensing of comedias, 277
Limos, Juan, 141
Linares, Pedro de, 223
Lisbon visited by players from
Madrid, 194
Literary pirates, 175-176
Llegar en Ocasion, 105, n. 2
Llorente, Pedro, 52, 53, 184, 216,
221, 258
Lo que puede la Traicion, 235
Lo que son Mugeres, 123, n.
Loas, 279-286; the "Loa de la
Comedia" of Rojas, 78-81; va-
rious kinds of loas, 279; Cara-
muel on, 279, n. ; Luys Alfonso
de Carvallo on, 280, n. ; Lopez
Pinciano on, 280, n. ; the loas
of Lope de Vega, 28i,_ n.; the
loas of Agustin de Rojas, 281-
284; the loas of Quinones de
Benavente, 284-286; the loa de
Escarraman, 298, n.
Loaysa, Garcia de, 207, n.
Loaysa, Inigo de, 134, and n. 2
London theaters, their foundation,
27, n. 1 ; contributed to the poor
of the hospitals, 27, n. 1 ; repre-
sentations in inn-yards till 1576,
28, n. 1, 30; the Theatre, the
Curtain, the Rose, 34, n. 5; the
Globe, 34, n. 5, 36; Blactfriars,
ibid.; Malone on, 43, n. 1 ; music
in, 62, n. 2, 64; gallants on the
stage, 64 and n. 4, 65; Wallace
on, ibid.; at Blachfriars, the
Cockpit, Salisbury Court, ibid.;
the "jig," 70, n. 1; traverses, 84;
the price of admission, 1 14, n. 1 ;
women visit, 119, n. 1; plays on
Sunday forbidden, 132, u. ;
French women on the stage, 139
and 11. ; women appear on stage,
139-140; only two theaters in
London, 144, n. 2; actors take
several parts, 146; literary pi-
rates, 176, n. ; sums received by
dramatists, 178-180; salaries of
actors, 188 and n. 3 ; London
visited by a Spanish company,
•39, n- i,_ 34°
Lopez, Adrian, 237
Lopez, Francisca, 60
Lopez, Francisco, 223
Lopez, Maria, 185
Lopez, Simon, 226, n. 1, 265, n. 2
Lopez, Vicenta, 190
Lopez de Ayala, Pero, 50 and n.
Lopez de Enciso, Bartolome( ?), 240
Lopez de Sustaete, Luis, 128, 157,
202, 223, 246
Lopez de Sustaya, Jeronimo, 190,
214
Lopez de Yanguas, Hernan, 7, n. 1
Lopez Pinciano, Alonso, on the
Zarabanda, 71, n. 1 ; on staging
plays, 81, n. 4; on the loa, 280,
n. ; on Spanish comedias, 333-334
Lotheissen, F., 139, n. 1
Lotti, Cosme, 241 and n., 242
Louis XIV., 170, n.
I. u den a, Fernando de, 180
INDEX
393
Lulli, Jean Baptiste, 241, n. 1
Luna, D. Alvaro de, 287 and n. 3
Luna (La) Africana, 180
Luxan, Micaela de, 268
Luxan de Sayavedra, Mateo, 154, n.
Mabbe, James, 121, n. 2, 129, n. 2
Mac-Carthy, D. F., 242, n. 1
Maccoll, N., 72, n., 160, u. 1, 173,
n. i
Machinery on the stage; see under
Staging
Madrid as a theatrical center, x;
the corrales of Madrid, 26-36.
See also under Corrales
Madrid, Francisco de, 13
Maestro (El) de Danzar (Lope),
66, n. 4; de Calderon, 74, n. 2
Magdalena (La), 319
Malaguilla, Juan de, 223
Malara, Juan de, 24
Malcasados (Los) de Valencia, 119,
n. 1
Malherbe, Francois, 340, n.
Malone, Edward, 43, n. 1, 62, n. 2,
64, in, n. 2, 114, n. 1, 119, n. 1,
134. n- 3> '39. n. 1, 140, n., 176, n.,
r7*i I79-I*°> '88, n. 3
Maluenda, Jacinto de, xii, 250, n. 2
Manganilla (La) de Melilla, 94, n.
"Mansions" on the French stage,
100
Mantzius, Karl, 45, n. 1, 137, 138,
139, n. 1, 140
Manuel de Castilla, Pedro, 187, 190,
n. 2, 223
Manzanos, theatrical manager, 1 54, n.
Maqueda, Duke of, 239
Maravillas (Las) de Babilonia, 177
Margarita of Austria, wife of
Philip III., 211; plays acted in
presence of, 230-231; death of,
220, 250
Maria Manuela, 193
Maria Teresa, daughter of Philip
IV., 170, n.
Mariana, wife of Lope de Rueda,
11, 12, 141
Mariana, Juan de, on the Zara-
banda, 71, n. 4, 144; opposes the
theater, 262-263, 2^4> n-; "Contra
los Juegos publicos," 293-294,
397, n. 1
Mariana of Austria, 156, 250, 251
Marido (El) de su Hermana, 235
Marigraviela (Maria Gabriela),
63, H7
Mariscal (El) de Biron, 186
Marmot (El) de Felisardo, 84, n. 1
Marques de la Fuensanta del Valle,
233
Marquesa (La) Saluda, llamada
Griselda, 18, n. 1
Marston's Sophonisba, 64; Antonio
and Mellida, 146
Marti y Monso, Estudios," 296, n. 1
Martial on Spanish dancers, 66, n. 2
Martinazos, theatrical manager, 168
Martinelli, Angela, 45 and n. 3, 46,
143
Martinelli, Drusiano, 44 and n. 1,
45
Martinelli, Tristano, 45, n. 3
Martinez, Francisco, musician, 63
Martinez, Juan, 64, n. 1, 177; autor
de comedias, 223
Martinez de Asensio, Pedro, 125
Martir (El) de Madrid (Mescua),
235
Martires (Los) del Japan, 134, n. t,
195
Mas (La) constante Muger, 123, n.
Mas (El) impropio Verdugo, 123,
234
Mas (La) injusta Venganza, 123,
234
Mas merece quien mas ama, 235
Masco, Domingo, x
Massinger, Philip, 38
Matadora (La), dance, 70, n. 3
Mayor (El) Encanto Amor, 242
Medina de las Torres, Duke of,
243, n.
Medinaceli, Duke of, 11
Mejor (El) Hues fed de Espana, 320
Mejor (El) Maestro el Tiempo,
105, n. 2
Mejor (El) Representante, San
Gines, 181
Memorial of Philip II. concerning
the theaters, 208-210
"Memorilla," 175
Mendez de Carrion. D. Luis, 239
Mendoza, Fr. Alonso de, 144
Mendoza, D. Antonio de, 235, 240
Mendoza, Francisco de, 147
Menendez y Pelayo, M., 13, n. 3, 14
and n. 1, 15, 19, n. 3, 171, n.,
289, n., 297, n.
Mentidero de los Representantes,
271, n. 2
Mercader (El) Amante, 83, n. 1
Merimee, E., 293, n. 2
Mescua, Mira de, 61, 180, 186, 226,
n- 1, 323. 34i
Meson (El) del Alma, 310, n.
394
INDEX
Mesonero Romanes, R. de, 339, n. 1,
272, n. »
"Migaxas del Ingenio," 70, n. 3,
126, n., 272, n., 290, n. 1
Milagro (El) por los Celos, 186
Milagrosa (La) Eleccion de Pio V.,
236
Milan, Da Leonor de, 49, n. 3
Minsheu's "Spanish Dictionary," 63,
n. 1, 108, n., 189, n. 1
Misterios (Los) de la Misa, 320
"Modern Language Notes," 290, n. 1
"Modern Language Review," 237,
n. 1
Moeller, Frau, actress, 141
"Mogiganga (La) del Gusto,'' 295,
n. 3
Mogigangas, 295-296
Moland, "Moliere et la Comedie
italienne," 46, n. 3
Moliere, musicians in his troupe, 62,
n. 2 ; Les Fdcheux, 65, n. 1 ; La
Coquette ou le Favori, 65, n. 1 ;
performed at tennis courts, ioi ;
his company in 1658, 145, n. 3,
170 and n. 1 ; refused burial by
the church, 256
Molina, Luis de, 141
Molina, Miguel de, 60
Molina, Tirso de, ix, 81, n. 1, 84,
n. 2, 85, n. 1, 90, 226, n. 1, 266,
n. 2, 286, n. 3, 341
Monreal, Julio, 66, n. 4, 74, u. 2,
240, n. 4, 311, n. 3
Monserrate, Diego de, 150
Montalvan, Juan Perez de, 122, 174,
n. 2, 176, n., 186, 226, n. 1, 265,
n. 2, 341
Montanesa (La), 307
Montemayor, Sebastian de, 106, 142,
n. 1
Montesinos, Maria de, 147
Montiel, Pedro de, 12
Monzon, Cortes of, xii
Monzon, Luis de, 149, 204
Morales, author of El Conde loco,
79. n. 1
Morales, Maria de, 184
Morales, Mariana de, 308
Morales, Segundo de, 223
Morales Medrano, Juan de, ro8, n.,
account of, 162-163, r92, 196, 200,
214, 215, 221, 231, 317, 323
Morel-Fatio, A., 80, 274
Moreto, Agustin, 122, 123, 226, n. 1,
341
Morf, H., 255, n.
Morica (La) garrida, 149, 196
Morisco, his account of a play, 323
Mosqueteros, 30, 113; fee they paid,
117, 118, 119, 120; 'are the judges
of plays, 121 ; generally paid,
126, n., 278
Motteville, Madame de, 329
Much Ado about Nothing, 74, n. 2
Mudarra, Francisco, 223
Muerte (La) de Ay ax Telamon
sobre las Armas de Aquiles, 49
Muerte (La) del Rey don Sancho y
Reto de Zamora por D. Diego
Ordonez, 49
Muertos (Los) vivos, 173
Muestra (La) de los Carros, 290, n.
Munday, Anthony, 178, n. 3
Muniz, Juan Bautista, 107
Munoz, Ana, 81
Munoz, Francisco, 116, n. 5
Music in the corrales, 62-64, <>7>
132; music on the English stage,
64; musicians in the French thea-
ters, 62, n. 2, 278-279
Muzio, Italian player in Spain, 21,
29, n. 1
Nabarro, Pedro, actor and play-
wright, 18, n. 1, 62 and n.
Naples, comedias in, 33
Nasarre, Bias, 16, n. 1
Naufragio (El) de Jonas, 308
Navalcarmelo (Naval y Abigail),
10 and n. 3
Navarro Oliver, Juan, 139, n. 1, 341
Nave (El) del Mercader, 311, n. 3
Naxera, Andres de, 195
Nichols, "Progress of James I.,"
331, n.
Nicolas, Catalina de, 157
Nicomede, of Corneille, 145, n. 3
Nihez (La) de Crista, 177, n., 307, n.
Nino (El) del Senado, 236
No Amar la mayor Fineza, 199
No hay Dicha ni Desdicha hasta la
Muerte, 186
Noche (La) de San Juan, 240
"Norte de la Poesia Espanola," Va-
lencia, 1616, 73, n., 83
Nunca mucho costo poco, 199
Nunez, Esteban, 248
Nunez, Gabriel, 132, 156, 195, 215
"Naque," the, 151
Obediencia (La) laureda, 93, n. 3
"Obispillo, El," 127
Obras son A mores, 53
Ocasion (La) perdida, 93, 95, n. 2
Ofender con las Finezas, 245
INDEX
395
Olivares, Count-Duke of, 239, 240,
343, "•
Olivares, Countess of, 239, 241
Olivares, Maria de, 186
Olivera, Casa de la (1584-161S), xii
Olivera, Teatro de la, xii, xiii;
price of admission to, 117, n. ;
representations in, 278, n. 2
Olmedo, Alonso de, account of, 161-
162, 223, 234, 292, 294
Olmedo, Jeronima de, 139, n. 1, 340
Opposition to the theater, 207 ff.
Ordish, T. F., 34, n. 5
Organos (Los), entremes, 290, n.,
295, n. 2
Ormsby, John, 313
Ornero, Jeronima de, 162
Ortegon, Pedro de, 126, n. 2
Ortiz, Ana, 258
Ortiz, Francisco, actor, 183, 223
Ortiz, Francisco, author, 258
Ortiz, Santiago, 225, n. 2 ,
Ortiz de Guzman, D. Juan, 48, n. 3
Ortiz de Villazan, Cristobal, 57, n. 1,
63, 194, 223, 233, n. 2, 258
Ortiz de Zufiiga, Anales de Sevilla,
23
Osorio, Diego, 187, 197, 202, 244,
11. 2, 318
Osorio, Eugenia, 107
Osorio, Francisco, 31, 193
Osorio, Magdalena, no
Osorio, Rodrigo, no, 193
Ostos, Juan de, 150
Oviedo, Cosme de, 133, 151
Pacheco, D. Juan, 273
Paez de Sotomayor, Pedro, 142, 143,
258
Paniagua, Alonso de, 214
Pantoja, "Sobre Comedias," 226, n.
Parecido (El) en la Corte, 123, a.
Paris and Vienna, 76
"Particulares." See Private repre-
sentations
Pastrana, Juan de, 68, n. 2
Paz, Alonso de la, 197
Paz, Gregorio de, 211 and n. 1
Paz (La) universal, auto (El Lirio
y la Azucena), 202
Paz y Melia, A., 134, n. 1, 150, n. 2,
161, n., 171, n., 180, n. 3, 234-236,
250, n. 2
Pedraza, Juan de, 6, 7, n. 1
Pedraza, "Historia ecclesiasfica de
Granada," 191, n.
Pedro de Urdemalas, 95, n. 1
Pellicer, Casiano, 15, 21, n. 2, 26,
27, 28, 29, 30, 32, n. 3, 34, 36, n. i,
40, 41, 42, n. 1, 43, 54, n. 3,
70, 72, n., 74, 113, 135, 137, n. 1,
143, 202, 203, n. 1, 204, 205, 212,
213, 224, 229, 240, 242, n. i,
243, n., 246, 11. 2 and 3, 247, n. 2,
248, 250, n. 1, 251, n. 1, 264, n.,
291, 330, n.
Pellicer, Juan Antonio, 68, n. 3, 70,
n. 3, 225 and n. 2
Penalosa, Juan de, 199, 223
Peralta, Catalina de, 185
Perdida (La) de Espana, 234
Perdida (La) del Rey D. Sebastian,
235
Peregrino (El), auto, 311
"Peregrino (El) en su Patria," 87,
174-175, 2n, n. 3
Perez, Dr. Antonio, 209, n.
Perez, Cosme, 187, 268
Perez, Fernando, 147
Perez de Guzman, D. Alvar, 50
Perez Pastor, Cristobal, 10, n. 4, 28,
n. 2, 30, n. 2, 31, 32, n. 1, 33, n. 5,
34, n. 1 and 2, 35, n. 1 and 2, 36,
n. 2, 37, n. 2, 44, n. 2, 46, 54, n. 1,
63, n. 1, 64, n. 1, 67, 68, n. 2, 74,
75, 101, n. 3, 107, 108, 109, no,
113, 116, n., 129, n. 2, 132,
133, n. 1, 134, n. 3, 135, 141, 142,
145, u. 2, I47-H9, 150, n. 1, 155,
156, 162, 163, n. 3, 165, n., 171,
177, n., 178, 182-188, 190, 192,
193-196, 197, 198, 199, 200, 201-
205, 208, 209, n., 211, n., 215, 224,
229, n. 2, 230, n., 231, 237, n., 241,
n. 1, 243, n., 244, "n., 245, n., 247,
248, 258, 259, 267, n., 290, n. 2,
295, 298, n. 2 and 3, 302-305, 306,
307-308, 11., 309, 310, 311, 313,
317, 318, 319, 321
Performance, amount paid for, 194-
197; receipts of, 202-205. See
also under Representations
Peribanez y el Comendador de
Ocana, 91, n. 1
Pernia, Pedro de, 172 and n.
Perra (La) Mora, dance, 70, n. 3,
72, n. 2, 74
Pesame (El), dance, 72, n. 2
Petition of 1646-47 to reopen the
corrales, 249
Philip the Second, 33, 230
Philip the Third, fond of dancing,
66; erects a theater in the Casas
del Tesoro, in, 230; permits
comedias to be represented, 211;
betrothed, ibid.; autos represented
396
INDEX
before, 231; in the Escurial, 309;
death of, 54, 229
Philip the Fourth, fondness for
dancing, 68, n. 2; builds a thea-
ter, in, n. 1, 156, 164; interferes
with representations at the thea-
ters, 197-198,1243 ; accession to
the throne, 231; patron of art
and the drama, 232; appears on
the stage, 232-233 ; neglects the
greatest poets, 232, n., 237 ; large
suras expended for entertain-
ments, 243, n. ; visits the co-
rrales incognito, 244, 269, 273 ;
death of, 250
Phillyda and Choryn, 78
"Philosophia Antigua" of Lopez
Pinciano, 71, n. 1 ; on staging
plays, 81, n. 4; on the loa, 280,
n. ; on audiences, 333-334
Pineda, Fr. Juan de, 143, n. 3,
2
Pinedo, Baltasar, 102, 107, 109, n.,
131, 202, 214, 215, 304
Placida y Fictoriano, 256, n. 2
Playbills. See Posters
Pobreza no es Vileza, 96, n.
Pobrezas (Las) de Reynaldos, 84,
n. 1, 236
Poder (El) en el Discreto, 165, n.
Poderosa es la Ocasion, 234
Pope, A., couplet on Shakespeare,
39
Porres, Gaspar de, 80, 108 and u.,
131, 170-171, 182, 183, 192, 193,
196, 200, 214, 215, 231, 290, n. 2,
299, 300, 301 and n., 309, 317
Posters, theatrical, 112, 133-134;
in England, 134, n. 3
Poyo, Salucio or Salustio del, 174,
196, 278, n. 2, 308
Prado, Antonio de, 60, 162, 197,
223. 243. 3". 3'8
Prado, Sebastian de, 170, n., 249,
n. 2, 340
Pragmatica de Carlos V., 19 and n.,
20, 25
Premio (El) de la Hermosura, 233
Primer (El) Faxardo, 81
Principe (El) ignorante, 235
Principe (El) perfecto, 176
Private representations = particula-
res, 101 ; before the King, 229,
230-246; in 1622, 233-237
Propaladia, editions of, 15
Prospera Fortuna (La) de Rui Lo-
pez de A<valos, 196
Prueba(La)de los Amigos, 90, n. 2
Pruebas (Las) de la Leal tad, 236
Psiquis y Cupido, 243, n.
Pucelle (La) d'Orleans, 101
Puente (La) de Mantible, 186, 297, n.
Puente (La) del Mundo, 297, n.
Purpura (La) de la Rosa, 241, u.
"Quarterly Review, The," 91, n. 2
Quevedo, D. Francisco de, 172, u.,
278, n. 1, 240, 297, n. 1
Quien hallard Muger fuerte, 311
Quien mas miente medra mas, 240
Quien no se aventura, 235
Quinault, Philippe, 241, n.
Quinta (La) de Florencia, 83, n.,
91, n. 1, 95, n. 3
Quinones, Luis de, musician, 63, 184
Quinones, Maria de, 187
Quinones de Benavente, Luis, 118,
11. 1 and 2, 119, n. 2, 120, 127, n.,
172, n. 1, 190, 279, 284-286, 288,
289, 290, 291, 292, 298, n. 4
Quiros, Bartolome Lopez de, 192,
193
Rafaela Angela, wife of Lope de
Rueda, n, 12
Ramirez, Cristobal, 216
Ramirez, Miguel, 151, 165,183,214,
299
Ramos, Antonio, 216
Rasi, "I Comici Italiani," 45, n. 3,
140, n. 3, 269, n. 2
Real, the value of, 108, a.
Receipts of a theatrical perform-
ance, 202-205
Registre de La Grange, 62, n. 2, 65,
n. 1, 146, 11., 170, n. 1
Reina (La) Da Juana de Napoles,
94, n.
Reinoso, Luisa de, 147
Remirez de Arellano, Luis, 175-176
Rennert, H. A., "Life of Lope de
Vega," 38, n. 1, et passim; "The
Staging of Lope's Comedias," 40,
n. 2, 84, n. 2, et passim; "Notes
on the Chronology of the Spanish
Drama," 237, n.
Representations in the corra/w, when
permitted, 1 30-133 ; corrales closed
from Ash Wednesday till Easter,
131; no performances on Sat-
urday, 131 (see Appendix A) ;
always given on Sunday, 132;
public representations, 132; op-
position of the clergy to, 143-
145 ; sums paid for a repre-
sentation, 194-197; receipts of a
INDEX
397
representation, 202-205 > gratu-
itous representations, 277; when
representations took place, 278;
account of a representation, 278
ff.; descriptions of eye-witnesses,
323 ff. See also under Comedias
Restori, Antonio, 70, 368
"Revista de Archivos," 108, n., 249,
n. 1
"Revue Hispanique," 18, n. 1, 40,
n. 2, 84, n. 2, 328, n. 2
Rey (El) Angel (El Rey Angel de
Sicilia), 234
Rey (El) Bamba, 83, n., 91, n.
Reyes, Baltasara de los, 183, 279, n.
Reyes, Gaspar de los, 195, 214
Reyes, Mariana de los, 187
Reynolds, G. F., 76, n.
Ribadeneira, Pedro de, 260-261
Richter, Frau, actress, 141
Rigal, E., 100, 115, n., 119, n. 1 and 3,
121 and n., 139, 277, n. 1, 340, n.
Rios, Nicolas de los, 101, n. 3, 145,
151, 154, 215, 230, 259, 290, n. 2,
299
Riquelme, Alonso, 63 ; imprisoned
for debt, no, 155, 156, 172, 184,
192, 194, 200, 214, 216, 221, 231,
323
Riquelme, Jacinto, 109
Riquelme, Maria de, 163 and n. 3,
269 and n. 2
Rivas, Juan de, 32, 33
Robles, Bartolome de, 185, 301, n.
Robles, Luisa de, 1 61-162
Roca Paula, actress, 141
Rodamonte Aragones, 234
Rodriguez, Alonso, of Seville, 32,
35. 49
Rodriguez, Alonso, "El Toledano,
10, n. 4, 32
Rodriguez, Isabel, 190
Rodriguez, Fr. Manuel, 257
Rodriguez, Mariana, 150
Rodriguez, Pedro, 195, 214
Rodriguez Marin, Francisco, 71,
n. 1
Rodriguez Tirado, Jose, 68, n. 2
Rodriguez Villa, A., 273, n. 1 and 2
Rojas, Diego de, 195, 214
Rojas, Francisco de, 122, 123, 226,
n. 1, 241, n., 276, n. 2, 341
Rojas, Tomas de, 186
Rojas Villandrando, Agustin de, 3 ;
his "Loa en Alabanza de la
Comedia," 3, 13, 15, 32, 11. 2, 62,
78-81, 132, n. 2, 133, n. 6, 141,
n. 4, 144, 282; his life, 150; the
"Viage entretenido," description
of the various companies of play-
ers, 150-154; his El natural des-
dichado, 150, n. 2, 159-160, 165;
anecdotes related by, 165-169,
182, 183, 189; his Loas, 279, 281-
284
"Romancero General" (1604), 167,
294, 11. 1
Romera (La) de Santiago, 236
Romero, Bartolome, 107, 155, 186,
194, 201, 223, 241, n., 291, 292,
301, 11.
Romero, Mariana, 272, n.
Roncagli, Silvia ("la Frances-
quina"), 46, 143 and n. 2
Ropilla, 168
Rosa, Pedro de la, 107, 109, 156,
157, 170, n., 187, 194, 196, 201,
223, 242, 244, n. 2, 296, n. 1, 340
Rosario (El), of Pedro Diaz, 79, 80
Rosell, Cayetano. See Quinones de
Benavente
Rosenberg, M., 88, u.
Rosete, D. Pedro, 276, n. 2
Rouanet, L., 7, n. 2, 10, n. 3, 65, n. 1,
287, n. 2, 290, n., 294, n. 4, 295,
n. 3, 340, n. 4
Rueda, Antonio de, 64, 65, 131, 157,
187, 188, 190, n. 2, 194, 201, 223,
285, 294
Rueda, Lope de, 3, 9-13 ; earliest
autor de comedias, 9 ; represents
in Benavente, 10; at Seville, 10;
marries Mariana, a Valencian
woman, n; her suit against the
Duke of Medinaceli, n; Rafaela
Anxela, wife of Rueda, and their
daughter Juana Luisa, n; his
company, 12; died at Cordoba,
13 ; his historical importance, 14 ;
Cervantes's account of him, 16-
18, 20, 24, 25, 29, 62, 141, 170;
"introitos," 281, 287, 288, n. 1
Rueda (La) de la Fortuna, 323
Ruffianism in the theaters, 125-130
Rufian (El) dichoso, 94
Rufo, Juan, 18, n. 2, 20
Ruiz, Miguel, 183
Rye, W. B., 331, n.
Saavedra, Rodrigo de, 299
Saco (El) de Roma y Muerte de
Borbon, 49
Sacro (El) Parnaso, 311
Sainetes, 293-295
Saladino (El), 278, n. 2
Salazar de Mendoza, D. Pedro, 50
398
INDEX
Salcedo, Francisco, 31, 32, 33, n. 5,
35
Salcedo, Lucia de, 184
Salcedo, Mateo de, 47, u. 2
Saldana, Pedro de, 30, n. 2, 32, 35,
43,49.131 . ,
Salinas, Pedro Garcia de, 185
Saloraona, Angela, Italian actress,
46> H3
San Antonio, of Alonso Diaz, 79, 80
San Bruno, 235
San Carlos, 171, n.
San Cristobal, 128
San Hermenegildo, 23, 24
San Isidro, Labrador de Madrid,
95, n. 4
San Onofre, 6 el Rey de los De-
siertos, 54
San Reymundo, 190
Sancha, D. Justo de, 313, n.
Sanchez, Jeronimo, 223
Sanchez, Miguel, "El Divino," 79,
n. 1, 81
Sanchez-Arjona, J., 4-9, n, 23, 24,
29, n. 1, 32, n. 2, 47, 48-61, 63,
65, 66, 67, 68, 71, 80, 109, 115-
116, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 130,
133, 134, n. 2, 150, n. 1, 161, 164,
165, n., 170, n., 192, 203-205, 226,
n., 229, n. 3, 246, n. 5, 248 and
n. 2, 293, n. 2, 295, u. 2, 304, n. 2,
305, n. 3, 306, 308, n., 309, 310,
313, 3i5, 321
Sanchez Baquero, Pedro, 187
Sanchez de Vargas, Hernan, 57, n.,
64, n. 1, 108, 156, 157, 172, i77,
185, 186, 187, 193, 195, 196, 199,
201, 216, 221, 229, 304
Sancho Rayon, D. Jose, 233
Sandoval, "Historia de Carlos V.,"
23, n. 1
Santa Catalina, auto, 200
Santa Maria Egipciaca, 197, 265,
11. 2, 320
Santa Maria Magdalena, 250
Santoyo, Antonio de, 129, 11. ■*.
Sarmiento, Pablo, 165, n.
Scenery. See Staging
Schack, Adolf Friedrich von, 4, n. 1,
5, n. i, 16, n. 1, 19, 23 and n., 26, 28,
33, 41-43,78, 81, 82, 85, 86, 88, 90,
104, 145, n. 2, 191, n., 207, n., 215,
n. 2, 221, n., 226, n. 1, 228, n., 230,
233, 241, n., 243, n., 250, n. 3 and
4, 254, n. 1, 268, n., 269, n., 271,
n. 2, 274, 276, 279, n. 1, 280, n. 1,
286, n. 3, 288, n. 2, 294, n. 4, 298,
n. 5, 311, n. 3
Scherillo, M., 29, n. 1, 44, n. 4
Schmidt, F. W. V., 92, n. 3
Schwering, J., 339, n.
Seats in the corrales, 134-13°
"Seguidilla," 279
Selva (La) de Amor, 236
Selva (La) sin Amor, 241 and n.
Semiramis (La) of Virues, 79, n. 1
Sepulveda, Ricardo de, 27, n. 2, 42,
n. 1, 223, n., 246, n. 1, 270, n. 1,
272, n.
Serna y Haro, Juan de la, 204
Serrana (La) de la Vera, 81
Servir con mala Estrella, 106, n.
Sessa, Duke of, 36, 172, 220
Shakespeare, 34, n. 5 ; Henry V.,
Romeo and Juliet, 34, n. 5, 37;
compared with Lope de Vega,
36-39; Hamlet, Venus and
Adonis, Lucrece, 37 ; The Tem-
pest, 38; Much Ado About Noth-
ing, 74, n. 2; anachronisms in his
plays, 105, n. ; proprietor of
■wardrobe at Blackfriars, 110,170,
.178
Siete (Los) Infantes de Lara, 49
Sigura, Juan de, 182
Simon, Manuel, 162
Sin Honra no ay Amistad, 124, n.
Sin Secreio no ay Amor, 174, n. 2
Sol (El) parado, 81
Solano, Agustin, 141, 151, 166-169,
182, 189
Solano, Francisco, 223
Solis, Antonio de, 124, 243, n.
Sommi, Leone de, 140 and n.
"Sonajas," 67, n. 3
Sotomayor, Francisco de, 190
Soulie, E., 170, n., 189, n.
Southampton, Earl of, 36
Spanish money, value of, 108, n.
Spectators on the stage, 64, 65 ; in
La Monteria, 65 ; spectators enter
without paying, 125-129; view
plays from housetops, 130. For
English stage, see under London
St. John's eve, 242, 243
Stage, the, opposed by the church,
252-266; defended by churchmen,
259-260
Staging of comedias, 76-103 ; no
outer curtain, 82, 83; curtain at rear
of stage, 84, 86 ; windows, balconies,
walls, towers, etc., 85 ; doors on
the stage, 85 and n.; trees repre-
sented on the stage, 85' and n.;
doors at back of stage, 85, n. 2;
change of scene indicated by
INDEX
399
vacant stage, 86, 87; by entering
and leaving by a different door,
88 ; simultaneous scenery, 89 ;
change indicated by drawing a
curtain aside, 90; place of action
mentioned in the dialogue, 91 ;
vagueness of localization, 91 ;
scene indicated by costume, 91,
92 ; balconies, 93 ; corrector of
the theater, 93 ; garden and trees
on the stage, 95 ; painted canvas,
95 ; importance of chronology,
96; changes in Lope's long
career, 96-98; machinery and
the stage carpenter, ibid.; basti-
dores, 97 and n. z; apariencias
and tramoyas, 97-99 ; Cervantes's
remarks, 98; "appearances," 98-
99; construction of the Spanish
stage, 99 ; the stage setting of the
French theater, 99-100; the stage
of the mysteries, 100; Corneille
objects to it, 100; complaints of
d'Aubignac, 100; the stage at the
Hotel de Bourgogne, 101 ; pov-
erty of scenic effects on the Span-
ish stage, 101-102; private repre-
sentations, 102-103
Stiefel, A. L., 7, n. 1, 10, n. 1, 21,
n. 2, 22, n. 1, 29, n. 1
Storie of Pompey, A., 77
Suarez de Figueroa, Cristobal, 80,
120, n. 1, 175-176, 268, 275 and
n., 285
Sufrir mas por querer mas, 186, 245
Tamayo de Vargas, T., 32, n. 3
"Tamboril," the, 67, n. 3
Tapia, Juan de, 214
"Tarasca," the, 298
Tardia, Maria, 271, n.
Tejada, Juan de, 216, 220
Theater, decline of, 197; opposition
to, 207 ff. See under Co media
and Corrales
Theatrical life in Spain, anecdotes
concerning, 154, n.
Theatrical posters, 112, 133-134
Thomas, Hubertus, of Luttich, 23,
n. 1
Ticket scalpers, 116
Ticknor, George, 9, 14, 16, n. ±, 66,
68, n. 2, 71, n. 4, 104, 117, 118,
124, 226, 240, 241, 243, n., 252,
n. 1, 226, n. 1, 269, 287, n. 3, 288,
n. 1, 291, n. 2, 297, 298, n. 5
Timoneda, Juan de, 14, n., 288, n. 1
"Tonadilla," 293
Torneos (Los) de Aragon, 94, n. 1
Torre, Gabriel de la, 204, 214, 304,
317
Torres, Francisca de, 155
Torres Naharro, Bartolome de, 3,
13, 14; his Propaladia, 15-16, 19,
n. 3, 21, 22, 275 and n. ; introitos,
281, 286, n. 3
Tragedia (La) por los Celos, 84,
n. 1
Tragicomedia (La) de Lysandro y
Roselia, 68, n. 3
"Tramoyas," 80, 97, 98
Trances de Amor, 235
Transformaciones de Amor, 244
Trato (El) de la Aldea, 190
Traveling of theatrical companies,
154-158
Traverses'' of the Elizabethan
theatce, 84
Tres (Los) mayores Prodigios, 242
Turdion, the, a dance, 74, n. 2
Turia, Ricardo de (D. Pedro Juan
de Rejaule y Toledo), 30, 31,
n. 1, 45, n. 2; La Fe pagada
(Chacona), 73, 83, n., 84, n. 1
and 2, 94, n., 125, n. ; on comedias,
274, n.
Tutor (El), 49
Urson y Valentin, 106, n.
Vaca, Gabriel, 195, 214
Vaca, Jusepa, 268, 307
Vaca de Castro, D. Pedro, 258
Valcazar, Jeronima de, 185
Valdes, Pedro de, 52, 157, 177, 184,
194, 201, 216, 221, 229, 234, 236,
305
Valdivieso, Josef de, 311
Valencia, its importance as a dra-
matic center, x; origin of its thea-
ters, x-xiii; school of dramatists,
ibid, and 191-192; actors from
Madrid visit, 193-194, 199; re-
opening of theaters in, 249
Valenciano, Juan Bautista, 54, 165,
n., 186, 223, 229
Valenciano, Juan Jeronimo, 54, 115,
165, n.
Valiente (El) Lucidoro, 234
Vallejo, Diego de, 53, 63
Vallejo, Jeronimo, 202
Vallejo, Manuel Alvarez, 128, 133,
162, 163, 186, 199, 201, 223, 240,
245
Vargas, Andres de, 154-155
400
INDEX
Vargas, Juan de, 149, 196
Varona (La) Castellana, 81
Vazquez, Antonio(?), 41
Vazquez, Gaspar, 32, n. 3
Vazquez, Juan (El Polio), 155, 223
Vazquez, Juana, 141
Vazquez, Miguel, 141
Vazquez, Sebastiana, 147
Vega, musician, 63
Vega, Fr. Alonso de, 257
Vega, Alonso de la, Comedias, 15,
n. 1, 170, 11. 2
Vega, Alonso de la, 69
Vega, Andres de la, 109, 171, n.,
177, 185, 187, 200, n., 223, 245,
n. 2, 301, n.
Vega, Francisco de la, 12
Vega, Gabriel Laso de la, 294, n. 1
Vega Carpio, Lope de, ix; his resi-
dence in Valencia, x, 3, 9, 13, 16,
361 37. 38, 39! compared with
Shakespeare, ibid.; receives 100
ducats for his Vellocino dorado,
37, 11. 2; Comedias, Part IX, 38;
Comedias, Part XI, 38, d. 2, 40,
n. 2; visits the plays of the Ital-
ians, 44, 45, 53, 63, 66, n. 4, 70,
11. 3 ; La Dorotea, 74, n. 2, 174,
78, 79, n. 1, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84;
La Filomena, 84, n. 2, 87, 90, 91,
92. 93, 94. 95. n. 2, 3, 4, 5 ; Pro-
logo to Part XI (1618), 96; to
Part XVI (1623), 96, 97; Pro-
logo to Part XIX (1623), 98;
Epistola a Pablo Bonnet, 98, n. 1 ;
Arte nuevo de hacer Comedias,
105, 107; Loas to Part I, 112,
u. 2; on the "vulgo," 117, 122,
146, 156; El Castigo sin Ven-
ganza, 163, n. 3, 165, n., 170, 172,
173; Prologo to Part XVII, 174,
n. 1 ; El Peregrino en su Patria,
87, I74-I7S. 211, n. 3; Prologo to
Part XIII, 175; on the stealing
of his plays, 175-176; honora-
rium received, 177,186; in Valen-
cia, 191-192, 196, 199, 211; letter
of October 6, 1611, 220, 226, 229,
232, n., 233; Vega del Parnaso,
240; Sel<va sin Amor, 241 and n. ;
elegy _ on Villayzan, 245; his
comedias prohibited, 247, 260;
actors praised by Lope, 267; his
house in the players' quarter,
272, n., 277; his loas, 281, n. ;
never uses the term "Jornada,"
386, n. 3 ; on entremeses, 287; the
entr ernes es in Lope's comedias,
288, n. 4; he writes the four
autos of 1608, 307 and u., 323,
338. 339. 34i
Velasco, Ana de, 106, 142, n- '
Velasco, Francisco de, 187
Velasco Inigo de, 134, n. 2
Velazquez, Alonso, 32, n. 2
Velazquez, Jeronimo, xii, 32, 35, 43,
71, 131, 182, 191, 193, 203, 298,
n- 3. 299, 317
Velez de Guevara, Francisco, 134,
223
Velez de Guevara, Luis, ix; Diablo
cojuelo, 71, n. 1, 272, n. ; El
Caballero del Sol, 102; writes
plays for Sanchez, 172, 180, 226,
n. 1, 250, n. 2, 330, n., 341
Vellocino (El) dorado, 37, n. 2
Velten, Johannes, 140
Vencedor (El) vencido en el Tor-
neo, 236
V engadora (La) de las Mugeres,
236
Venier, Marie, 139
Vera, Diego de, 48, 50
Vera Tassis, "Life of Calderon,"
294
Verdugo, Francisca, 202
Vergara, Alonso de, 60
Vergara, Juan de, 193
Vergara, Luis de, 277
Vestuario = dressing-room, 40 and
n. 2, 92, 93
Vicente, Gil, 7, n. 1, 13, n. 3,48,11. 1
Victor! sign of approval, 121-124
Victorias (Las) del Marques de
Canete, 235
"Vida del gran Tacano," 172, n. 1,
278, n. 1
Vignali, Antonio, of Siena, 22
Villaizan y Garces, D. Jeronimo de,
186, 232, 244-245
Villalba, Alonso de, 216
Villalba, Juan de, 214
Villalba, Melchor de, 214, 304,
317
Villalobos, Juan Bautista de, 54
Villalon, El Bachiller, 19, 20
Villamediana, Count of, 238 and n.
Villanueva, Juan de, 185
Villanueva, Pedro de, 194
Villaviciosa, Sebastian de, 197
Villegas, Antonio de, 32, n. 3, 150,
214, 215, 231
Villegas, Diego de, 180
Villegas, Juan Bautista de, 149, 170,
174. 186. 196, 237. 245
Villena, Marquis of, 5
INDEX
401
Vina (La) del Senor, 311, n. 3
Virues, Cristobal de, 79, n. 1, 286,
n. 3
Vitoria (La) del Marques de Santa
Cruz, 96, n.
Voltaire, 65, n. 1
Wales, Prince of, visits Spain, 330, u.
Wallace, C. W., 65, n.
Ward, A. W., 37, n. 1, 70, n. 1
Wolf, Ferdinand, x, 4, n. 2, 5, n. 1,
8, n., 18, n. 2, 251, n. 1 ; on e n-
tremeses, 287, n. 2, 294, n. 1
"Woman of Babylon, The," 298
Women in Spanish theaters, 118-
120; in English and French thea-
ters, 119, n. i, 2, 127; women on
the stage, 137-143; on the French
stage, 138-139; French women
on the London stage, 139 and n. ;
women on the Italian stage, 140;
in Germany, 140-141 ; women on
the Spanish stage, 141-143 ;
women in the ancient entremeses,
141 ; women licensed to act in
Madrid in 1587, 142; forbidden
to appear on the stage, 145 and
n., 207;. opposition to women on
the stage, 212-213
Yepes, Fray Diego de, 207, n., 210
Zabaleta, Juan de, 197, 199, 290,
n. 1 ; El Dia de Fiesta por la
Tarde, 334-338
Zamora, casa de comedias in, 192
Zarabanda, the, 70, 71, n. 4, 143,
298, n.
Zaragoza, reopening of theaters in,
249
Zarzuela, rehearsals in, 198
"Zeitschrift fur Romanische Philo-
logie," 10, n. i, 21, n. 2, 22, n. 1,
29, n. i
ADDENDA ET CORRIGENDA
p. 7, n. i. On the Auto Sacramental (1520) of Lopez
de Yanguas, v. Cotarelo in Revista de Archivos
(1902), pp. 251, ff.
p. 13. Naharro is mentioned by Cueva in the third Epis-
tola of his Exemplar poetico:
"De fabula procede la comedia,
Y en ella es la inuencion licenciosa,
Cual vemos en Naharro y Heredia."
(Sedano, Parnaso Espanol, VIII, p. 66.)
p. 71, n. 2. La Casa confusa was represented by Pinedo's
company on October 16, 161 8, Baltasar Osorio and
Maria Flores also taking part. (Barrera, Catdlogo,
p. 210.)
p. 122, 1. 23. Lope de Rueda concludes his Colloquio de
Camila with the words : "Senores, perdonen, porque
aqui se da fin a nuestro Colloquio," and his Colloquio
de Tymbria with: "Sefiores, perdonen, que con bailar
se dio fin a nuestro Colloquio." His comedia Arme-
lina ends with a similar phrase, but the appeal to the
audience as "El ilustre Senado," I do not remember
to have seen in any dramatist before Lope de Vega.
p. 164, 1. 5. For Villahermoso read Vallehermoso.
p. 176, note, 1. 2. Strike out the words "years before,"
as the Plaza universal was published in 161 5.
403
4o4 ADDENDA ET CORRIGENDA
p. 177. To what is here said concerning the sums re-
ceived by a dramatist for a comedia we may add
that in 1634 eight hundred reals was paid for a
comedia by Montalvan, and nine hundred for a
comedia by Francisco de Rojas and Antonio Coello.
(Perez Pastor, Bibliografia Madrilena, III, pp. 452,
463.)
p. 232, n. To the playwrights mentioned may be added
Antonio Coello, Antonio Solis, Geronimo de Cuellar,
and Luis Velez de Guevara, who writes in 1633 that
he is unable to leave his house for want of a garment
to cover him. ( Perez Pastor, Bibliografia Madrilena,
III, p. 512.)
p. 238, n. 1. The episode related by Hume, it may be
remarked, was related by Francois van Aerssen,
Voyage d'Espagne, Cologne, 1666, pp. 47-49, and
repeated by Madame d'Aulnoy, who gives the
Countess of Lemos as authority for her story.
{Relation du Voyage d'Espagne, La Haye, 1693,
Vol. II, p. 20.) It is, of course, indignantly rejected
by Barrera, Catdlogo, p. 483. It may not be amiss
to add the following, concerning the comedia, also
from Madame d'Aulnoy: "Autrefois, continua-t-il
[D. Agustin Pacheco], les personnes vertueuses ne
se pouvoient resoudre d'aller a la Comedie; on n'y
voyait que des actions opposees a la modestie ; on y
entendoit des discours qui blessoient la liberte, les
Acteurs faisoient honte aux gens de bien; on y flatoit
le vice, on y condamnoit la Vertu; les combats en-
sanglantoient la Scene ; le plus foible etoit toujours
opprime par le plus fort, & l'usage autorisoit le
crime: Mais depuis que Lopes (sic) de Vega a
travaille avec succez a reformer le Theatre Espagnol,
il ne s'y passe plus rien de contraire aux bonnes
ADDENDA ET CORRIGENDA 405
mceurs; & le Confident, le Valet, ou le Villageois,
gardant leur simplicite naturelle, & la rendant agre-
able par un enjoiiement naif trouvent le secret de
guerir nos Princes, & meme nos Rois, de la maladie
de ne point entendre les veritez ou leurs defauts
peuvent avoir part. C'est lui qui prescrivit des regies
a ses eleves, & qui leur enseigna de faire des Come-
dies en trois Jornadas, qui veut dire en trois Actes.
Nous avons vu depuis briller les Montalvanes, Men-
dozas, Rojas, Alarcones, Velez, Mira de Mescuas,
Coellos, Villaizanes; mais enfin Don Pedro Calderon
excella dans le serieux, & dans le comique, & il passa
tous ceux qui l'avoient precede." (Relation du
Voyage d'Espagne, II, p. 98.)
p. 266. Among the early defenders of the comedia An-
dres Rey de Artieda might have been mentioned.
p. 339. In 1620 Sancho de Paz, autor de comedias, ob-
tained a privilege from Cardinal Borgia to form a
company of Spanish players in Naples; "and nobody
else nor any other company may represent in Naples
except he." (Croce, / Teatri di Napoli, p. 91.) In
1 62 1 Francisco de Leon obtained a similar privilege,
and in 1620 and 1621 Sancho de Paz and Francisco
de Leon represented in the Teatro del Fiorentini.
(Ibid., p. 92.) In 1630 and 1631 Francisco Malhelo
and Gregorio Laredo had companies in Naples.
The Biblioteca Nacional also contains a MS. of Lope de
Vega's Quien todo lo quiere, undated, new No. 16798.
Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2810, with the follow-
ing cast :
don Jun P° Me [Pedro Manuel de Castilla]
don fernando [Antonio de] Rueda
d. p° leon. i.e. Don Pedro [Diego de] Leon
4o6 ADDENDA ET CORRIGENDA
fabio
bernal osorio [Diego Osorio de Velasco]
octabia bisenta [Vicenta ?]
julia Catalina [de Acosta]
Ines Ant" [Antonia Infante]
Da Ana Jasinta [Jacinta de Herbias y Flores]
Leonarda
This is the company of Antonio de Rueda, about
1639-40.
The following cast of an entremes of the sixteenth century
I owe to the kindness of Dr. Crawford. It is entitled
Entremes de un Hijo que negodsuPadre, manuscript
of two leaves in folio in the Biblioteca Nacional,
in a hand of the sixteenth century.
Padre del licenciado Gaspar de huerta
licenciado Christoual de castro
muger michael
amo al° robleno
villano torres
There is nothing in the manuscript to indicate the
date of representation. The above cast is interest-
ing, however, from the fact that the role of the
woman {muger) is played by a man (michael),
which is an evidence of the early representation of
this entremes.
LIST OF
SPANISH ACTORS AND
ACTRESSES
1560-1680
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
BETWEEN 1560 AND 1680
Our knowledge of Spanish players is due chiefly to the investiga-
tions of D. Cristobal Perez Pastor. Of his publications the fol-
lowing have been consulted: Nuevos Datos acerca del Histrionismo
espanol en los Siglos XVI y XVII, Madrid, 1901 ; Proceso de Lope
de Vega por Libelos contra unos Comicos, Madrid, 1901, published
in conjunction with A. Tomillo, and the Datos desconocidos para
la Vida de Lope de Vega, in the same volume; Documentos para la
Biografia de D. Pedro Calderon de la Barca, Tome I, Madrid,
1905, and the same author's articles in the Bulletin Hispanique
for 1906-08.1 The following works have also furnished valuable
'This is a fitting place to say a few words concerning the career of
this distinguished and unwearying scholar, whose recent death has de-
prived Spanish letters of one of its most successful investigators. D.
Cristobal Perez Pastor was born at Tobarra (Province of Murcia), of a
family of peasants. Intended for the priesthood, he began his career with
the study of theology, then turned to the sciences, receiving the degree of
Doctor of Science, and finally devoted himself entirely to the pursuit of
literature. Appointed to the chair of Bibliography in the "Escuela de
Diplomatica," he did not find his post to his liking and resigned, to
apply himself henceforth to those vast bibliographical labors which have
made his name eminent. He published in rapid succession, besides the
above-mentioned works: La Imprenta en Toledo, La Imprenta en Medina
del Campo, Documentos Ceriiantinos, two volumes (this work and the
Calderon Documentos he left unfinished), and his great work Bibliografia
Madrileha, in three volumes, the latest of which appeared in 1907, and
which was also to be continued. It is no exaggeration to say that these
works contained more new biographical information concerning the great
writers of Spain than all other investigators combined had furnished in
the last two hundred years.
Sr. Pe'rez Pastor died on August 21, 1908, in the obscure village of Horche
(Province of Guadalajara), where his body rests in the humble church-
yard, in just such a spot as this modest scholar, retiring almost to timidity,
would doubtless have chosen. Let us hope that his work did not cease
when he let fall his pen, but that others may be prompted to follow in
the path of such a distinguished and exemplary leader.
409
4i o SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
information : Jose Sanchez- Arjona, Noticias referentes a los Anales
del Teatro en Seville desde Lope de Rueda hasta fines del Sigh
XVII, Seville, 1898, a work based for the most part upon re-
searches in the archives of Seville ; Emilio Cotarelo y Mori, Tirso de
Molina, Investigations bio-bibliograficas, Madrid, 1893; Antonio
Restori, La Collezione della Biblioteca Palatina-Parmense, in Studj
di Filologia Romanza, Fasc. 15, Roma, 1891; Rojas, Viage entre-
tenido, Madrid, 1603; Luis Quihones de Benavente, Entremeses,
Loas y Jdcaras por D. Cayetano Rosell, Madrid, 1872-74, 2 vols. ;
Marti y Monso, Estudios historico-artisticos, Zaragoza (1902?);
Migaxas del Ingenio, Zaragoza (no date), and the new edition of
this work by Sr. Cotarelo (Madrid, 1909), and others. Among
the latter the MS. in the Biblioteca Nacional, of which a number
of excerpts are given by Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. I, pp. 668 ff., is of
great importance, but must be used with caution.
LIST OF
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
1560-1680
Abadia (Andres de), actor and musician in the company of
Manuel Vallejo in Sept., 1630, and with Antonio de Rueda in
1638—39. He and his wife Maria Jimenez were members of the
company of Manuel Vallejo in Seville in 1633, 1640, and 1643.
Abadia (Juan de la), v. Labadia.
Acacio (Juan), native of Madrid, was an autor de comedias
at least as early as 1614, when he had a company in Toledo. He
represented at the Coliseo and at the Corpus festival in Seville in
1617, and in the Corral de Dona Elvira and also at Corpus in 1619,
his wife Ana Falcona acting in his company. He was one of the
twelve autores authorized by the decree of 1615. In 1623 he repre-
sented three comedias privately before the King, and in 1644 took
part in the autos at Seville. In March, 1626, he is described as a
resident of Valladolid, where his company was acting in Feb. and
March of that year. For his company in 1619 and 1644, v.
Sanchez-Arjona, pp. 203, 371. In Nov., 1636, his name is given
as Juan Acacio Bernal. (N. D., p. 257.)
Acacio (Juan), el Mozo, son of the preceding and an actor
in his company in 1636, when both appeared in Gaspar de Obre-
gon's Del Voder para tener, in Plasencia. (Sanchez-Arjona,
p. 341, n.) He appeared in Manuel Vallejo's company in 1640,
and again in his father's company in 1644.
Acebedo (Antonio de), actor in the company of Bartolome
Romero in Lisbon for two or three months before Shrovetide in
1639. Perhaps the same as the following.
Acebedo Fajardo (Antonio), prompter in the company of
Esteban Nunez, el Polio, in 1657; afterward an actor, playing old
men's parts, in the company of Felix Pascual in 1680. He was
also an author. (Gallardo, I, p. 671.)
Acosta (Catalina de) and her husband Antonio de Rueda
411
4i2 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
were in the company of Alonso de Olmedo in 1631, when they
were received into the Cofradia de la Novena. She was probably
the Da Catalina in the cast of Lope's Del Monte sale (1628) ; in
Aug.-Sept., 1638, she was in her husband's company in Valladolid
and Segovia, and in 1640-44 played fourth parts in his company.
She was apparently still living at the death of her husband, in 1662.
Acosta (Isabel de), wife of Miguel de Barbosa; both were
musicians in the company of Diego Vallejo in 1619.
Acosta (Maria de) , wife of the actor Cosme Perez, q. v.
Acuna (Antonio de), member of the company of Alonso de
Olmedo and Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla in 1638-39. He had a
company in 1654.
Acuna (Manuela de), played damas in Valencia in 1667.
She was the wife of Vicente de Salinas, and died in Gerona.
Agramonte (Juan Antonio de), actor in Manuel Vallejo's
company in 1670. See under Antonio (Juan).
Agramonte (Pedro de), famoso segundo in the company of
Alonso de Olmedo in 1635; he played third parts in the com-
pany of Lorenzo Hurtado de la Camara in 1642, and in the
company of Juan Perez de Tapia in 1662. In 1664 he played
fourth parts in the company of Juan de la Calle and Bartolome
Romero. A Pedro de Agramonte was prompter in the company
of Juan Martinez in 1631.
Aguado (Juan), second gracioso in the company of Jeronimo
Vallejo in 1 660.
Aguado (Maria) played sixth parts in the company of Felix
Pascual and Agustin Manuel in 1671.
Aguado (Pedro), member of the company of Antonio de
Prado in 1614, when he appeared in Tirso de Molina's La Tercera
de la Sancta Juana. In the previous year he was in the company of
Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan, and appeared in Lope de Vega's La
Dama boba (1613). In 1619 and 1621 he was with Alonso de
Olmedo.
Aguado (Simon), gracioso in the company of Sebastian de
Prado in 166 1 and 1662. In the latter year and in 1674 he had
a company (in 1662 he and Juan de la Calle represented an auto
in Madrid, and in 1674 his company alone). In 1675, 1676, and
1678 he was gracioso in the company of Antonio de Escamilla.
In 1677 he was in the company of Agustin Manuel de Castilla,
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 413
and in 1679 in that of Jose Antonio Garcia de Prado. He was
born in Malaga on Oct. 25, 1621, and died in Madrid, Jan. 18,
1706. He was the author of the mogiganga Los Niiios de la
Rollona y lo que pasa en las calles. (Paz y Melia, Catdlogo,
No. 2310.)
Agueda (Francisca) played first parts in the company of
Pablo de Morales in Seville in 1678.
Aguilar (Alonso de), native of Valencia; in March, 1602,
he agreed to act for one year in the company of Juan de Tapia,
Luis de Castro, and Alonso de Paniagua.
Agutlar (Francisco de), member of the company of Diego
de Santander in 1594.
Aguilar (Jeronima de), wife of the actor Luis Granados and
member of the company of Diego de Santander in 1594. Sister of
Francisco de Aguilar?
Aguilar (Jeronimo de), actor(?) accused of killing the actor
Juan Morales, husband of Juana de Villalba, in 1595.
Aguilar (Marina de), actress in Madrid in 1603; she was
the wife of Francisco Munoz. Both were in a joint company in
Madrid in 1603 and 1604, and in that of Alonso Riquelme in
Seville in 1607. There was a D? Mariana de Aguilar, who lived
in the Calle del Infante in Nov., 1 61 8, and who buried Catalina
de Valcazar. {Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 383.) Perhaps the same as
the above.
Aguilera (Francisco de), actor in the company of Alonso
Riquelme in 1607.
Aguirre (Martin de), actor in 1583-84. See Nuevos Datos,
p. 14, and Bull. Hisp. (1906), p. 364. A Martin de Aguirre is
also mentioned in 1622. (N. D., p. 190.)
Aguirre (Miguel de), member of the company of Andres de
la Vega in 1638-39.
Alarcon (Diego Manuel de), actor in the company of
Andres de Claramonte in 1614— 15.
Alarcon (Gonzalo de), autor de comedias in 1598; his wife
was Antolina Rodriguez.
Alarcon (Hernando de), actor in Claramonte's company in
1614-15.
Alarcon (Juan Bautista de), actor in Claramonte's com-
pany in 1614-15.
4i4 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Alarcon (Mariana de) of Valencia, widow of Alejandro
Maco; actress in Diego Vallejo's company in Seville in i6i9-
Alarcon (Sebastian de), actor in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1640, and in the company of Esteban Nunez in 1648.
He was still living in 1669. (Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 1664.)
Albricio (Juan de), actor in the company of Gaspar de Porres
from 1585 till Shrovetide, 1586. He was then a minor. (B. H.
(1906), p. 365.) He was indicted in 1596 for the killing of
Jeronimo Rodriguez. His name also appears as Juan de Albrici
and Juan Brizio Alegria. (B. H. (1907). P- 362.)
Alcantara (Nicolas de), member of the company of Esteban
Nunez in Seville in 1654. He was barba in Jeronimo Vallejo's
company in 1660.
Alcaraz (Basilia de) , first wife of the actor Juan de Tapia,q. v.
Alcaraz (Maria de), widow, actress in the company of Juan
Roman in 1639 and 1640.
Alcaraz, v. Lopez de Alcaraz (Diego).
Alcozer (Juan de), autor de comedias; he, Nicolas de los
Rios, and Miguel Ramirez represented one of the autos at Madrid
in 1587. He had a company in Madrid in July, 1590, and is
mentioned by Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 362.
Aldama (Juan de) of Madrid and his wife Mariana de
Aparicio were in the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas in
1633-34, an(l m tnat OI Andres de la Vega in 1636—37.
Aldama (Manuel de), actor in the company of Alonso de
Riquelme in 1606. He and his wife (name unknown) took part
in the Corpus festival at Seville in 1 61 4. The name Aldama or
Aldana occurs in the cast of La belligera Espanola. See Restori,
Studj, p. 92.
Alegria (Francisco Garro de), lessee of the corrales of
Madrid in 1632, 1636-41, and 1645.
Alejandro, musician, and his wife Ana Maria were members
of the company of Domingo Balbin in Seville in 1 61 3.
Alejandro (Jose), member of the company of Jose Garcia de
Prado in 1658, and in that of Juan Perez de Tapia in 1662.
Almaguer (Juan de), actor in 1584, and in the company of
Jeronimo Velazquez in 1590. (Datos desconocidos, p. 146.)
Almansa (Mateo de), actor in the company of Jacinto
Riquelme in Seville in 1652.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 415
Almansa (Pedro de) belonged to the company of Baltasar
Pinedo in 1611 (Bibl. Madrilena, III, p. 325); he played third
parts in the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas in 1619—20;
in Domingo Balbin's company from Sept. 1, 1623, till Shrovetide,
1624, and in the company of Juan Martinez from Oct. 10, 1624,
till Shrovetide, 1625.
Almella (Juan Jeronimo), native of the village of Morella,
and autor de comedias in 1628, when he took his company to
Valencia to give sixty consecutive performances, beginning on Palm
Sunday, v. Bulletin Hispanique ( 1906) , p. 377, and text, p. 193, n.8.
Almenara (Pedro de), actor in the company of Jeronimo
Velazquez in 1590-91, receiving seven reals daily, besides three
reals for "maintenance, tapers, and clean linen."
Almendros (Esteban de), harpist, and his wife Maria de la
Paz were in the company of Jose Garceran in Seville in 1657. In
1654 he had a company and represented the autos in Madrid.
(Calderon Documentos, p. 223.)
Almonacid (Diego de), lessee of the Coliseo in Seville in
1610; of the Coliseo and Dona Elvira in 1612, and of the Corral
de Dona Elvira in 1616—28. There were two persons, father and
son, who bore the same name.
Almonte, actor in the company of Ortiz de Villazan; he ap-
peared in Lope's La Dama boba (1613). See Life of Lope de
Vega, p. 172, n.
Alonso, actor in Valencia in the latter part of the sixteenth
century ( 1 588 ?) , in the company of Rodrigo Osorio. See Cotarelo,
Lope de Rueda, p. 30. His wife and daughter were members of
the same company.
Alonso (Francisco), actor in the company of Felix Pascual
in Seville in 1665. There was a Francisco Alonso who appeared
in Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan (1625).
Alonso (Juan), member of the company of Felix Pascual in
1665. His real name was D. Bartolome de Velasco, and he was
a native of Villadiego (Burgos). In 1662 he was in Valencia in
the company of Jose Carrillo, and in Madrid in 1663; in 1677
he was primer galan in the company of Magdalena Lopez. He
died in 1685.
Alonso (Manuel) played old men's parts in the company of
Pablo Martin Morales in Seville in 1678.
4i 6 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Alquilona (La) managed a company of players in Valencia
in 1 67 1.
Alvarez (Anton), actor in 1604 in Madrid, in a joint com-
pany with Vicente Ortiz and others.
Alvarez (Beatriz), wife of the actor Juan de Soriano; both
were in Baltasar Pinedo's company in 1613.
Alvarez (Bernabe), member of the company of Bernardo de
la Vega in Seville in 1672. See Alvarez Quixano.
Alvarez (Bernardino), actor in the company of Rodrigo
Osorio in Valencia in I588( ?). (Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, p. 30.)
The name given is merely Bernaldino, and the identification is not
certain. In 1613 he was in Domingo Balbin's company in Seville,
and appeared in Lope's Quien mas no puede in 1616. He was in
Manuel Vallejo's company in 1623, and in that of Antonio de
Prado in 1624.
Alvarez (Francisca) , wife of Juan Carmona; both were in the
company of Antonio de Prado in Valladolid in 1645.
Alvarez (Francisco), or Francisco Alvarez de Victoria, and
his wife Josefa Necti were members of the company of Tomas
Fernandez Cabredo. They were married in Valladolid in 1630,
but the wife is here called Josefa Nieto, which is probably correct.
(Marti y Monso, Estudios, p. 566.) A player by this name ap-
peared in the entremes Las Civilidades in Avendano's company.
(Rosell, I, p. 45.) In 1639 ne had a company jointly with Fran-
cisco Velez de Guevara and Pedro de Cobaleda. Francisco Albarez
and an actress Jusepa are found in the cast of Calderon's Troya
abrasada (1644).
Alvarez (Jeronimo), at one time an actor in the company of
Manuel Vallejo, is mentioned in 1662. He married Ana Baptista,
and died in 1689.
Alvarez (Luis), a minor in the company of Alonso Riquelme
from March, 1602, to 1603; he was in the company called Los
Andaluces in 1605-06; in Balbin's company in 1609, and with
Riquelme again in 1610, when his wife Maria de Herbias was a
member of the same company. Both belonged to the company of
Baltasar Pinedo from March 1, 1614, till Shrovetide, 1615. He
appeared in Lope's Del Monte sale (1628), in the company of
Heredia. v. Life of Lope de Vega, p. 324, n.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 417
Alvarez (Maria), wife of Alonso de Villalba; both were in
the company of Nicolas de los Rios in Seville in 1609. Prior to
this, in 1605, Maria Alvarez, "comedianta doncella," was in Rios's
company in Valladolid. (M. y M., p. 566.)
Alvarez (Maria), daughter of Francisco de Arteaga, was in
the company of Alonso de Olmedo in 1621, with her father.
{Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244.)
Alvarez (Maria), actress in the company of Manuel Vallejo
in 1674, and autora y scgunda in the company of Felix Pascual in
Seville in 1677. v. Sanchez- Arjona, p. 486. From the word
autora we infer that she was then the wife of Felix Pascual,
q. v.
Alvarez Quixano (Bernabe), actor in Madrid in 1678.
(Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 1459.)
Amarilis, v. Cordoba (Maria de).
Ambrosio, v. Lobaco and Martinez.
Amella, v. Almella.
Amor (Fabian de), menistril [player of a wind instrument] in
the company of Jerbnimo Ruiz, Francisco de Vera, and Alonso de
Morales in 1592.
Amor (Maria del), wife of Jeronimo de Castaneda; both
were in the same joint company in Madrid in 1614.
Ana (Dona), actress in the entremeses of Quinones de Bena-
vente. Her name was Ana Fajardo and she was the wife of Fran-
cisco Velasco, q. v.
Ana (La Senora), actress who took a subordinate part in
Lope's La nueva Victoria de D. Gonzalo de Cordoba (1622).
v. Life of Lope de Vega, p. 298, n.
Ana Maria, wife of Alejandro, musician; both were in the
company of Domingo Balbin in 1613. An Ana Maria appeared
as Dona Alanbra in Lope's Bastardo Mudarra (1612).
Ana Maria {La Bezona) ; her name was Ana Maria de
Peralta; she was the wife of the gracioso Juan Bezon (Nov.,
1623), and was in the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas for
one year from Ash Wednesday, 1624 {N. D., p. 203) ; in 1632
she and her husband were in Avendano's company (Cotarelo,
Tirso, p. 202), and in 1635 both were in Pedro de Ortegon's
company in Seville, she playing third parts. In 1636 they were
4i 8 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
with Francisco Lopez. (S.-A., p. 300.) Lope de Vega alludes
to her in the entremes La Muestra de los Carros del Corpus:
Mas pfcara, graciosa y socarrona
que sobre aquestas tablas la Bezona.
She appeared at a festival in the Buen Retiro as late as 1658,
when she is described as "muy dama de Sevilla." (Barrionuevo,
Avisos, IV, p. 34.) Under date of June 26 of the same year this
chronicler informs us that: "malpario la Bezona dos dias antes del
Corpus, y para que se animase a representar los autos, le envio Jose
Gonzalez 400 reales como Comissario que era de ellos, como el mas
antiguo del Consejo." But it does not seem possible that this
Bezona and Ana Maria de Peralta (q. v.) were the same person.
It is very probable that Francisca Bezon is the actress alluded to
by Barrionuevo.
Ana Maria, "la hija del lapidario," a member of Figueroa's
company. (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 169.)
Ana Maria, wife of Melchor de Moya; both were in the com-
pany of Nicolas de los Rios in Valladolid in 1605 and in Seville in
1609. Her name was Ana Maria de la Canal. (Marti y Monso,
Estudios, p. 566.)
Ana Maria, wife of the Valencian actor Jose Vives. Their
son was Antonio Velez de Guevara, who was gracioso in the com-
pany of Lorenzo Hurtado in 1 63 1. (Gallardo, Ensayo, I, p. 669).
Ana Maria, wife of Juan Jeronimo Valenciano, played second
parts in the company of Alonso de Olmedo in Seville in 1635.
Her name was Ana Maria de Caceres, q. v.
Ana Maria, actress in the company of Felix Pascual in Seville
in 1665.
Ana Maria, v. also under Mata, Mencos, Pena, Peralta,
Ribero, Rivera, Ulloa, and Vives.
Anaya (Maria de), wife of Jose Garcia de Prado (after
1658?). She was in Sebastian de Prado's company in 1661; in
that of Simon Aguardo and Juan de la Calle in 1662; was musica
in Escamilla's company in 1663, 1675-76. In 1666 she was
acting in Paris. In 1677 and 1678 she was in the company of
Agustin Manuel de Castilla, and in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1681. v. Olmedo (Alonso de), el Mozo.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 419
Andaluces (Los), a joint company composed of Francisco
Garcia de Toledo, Diego de Monserrate and his wife Mariana
Rodriguez, Juan de Ostos and his wife Maria de Herrera, Luis de
Castro, Cristobal de Barrio, and Luis de Alvarez "en nombre de
Bivar." The company was organized in March, 1605, to last till
Shrovetide, 1606.
Andino (Nicolas), harpist in the company of Pablo Martin
de Morales in Seville in 1678.
Andrada (Maria), wife of Diego de Cisneros in 1660.
Andrade (Ana de), actress in the company of Diego Osorio
in Madrid in 1657, distinguished for the charm of her voice and
for her skill in music. She was the second wife of the autor de
comedias Felix Pascual, after 1665.
Andrade (Antonio de), el G die go, husband of Maria de la
O; both were members of the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631.
Andrade (Feliciana de), actress, married Francisco Lopez
(before 1639), and had a daughter Josef a Lopez, called Pepa
la hermosa, who died in a convent at Monbeltran. (Pellicer,
Vol. II, p. 59.)
Andrade (Feliciana de), actress in the company of Diego
Osorio in 1657, and afterward the wife of Gregorio de Casta-
neda; both were in the company of Pablo de Morales in 1678.
Andrade (Josefa de), "single woman," played segundas damas
in the company of Pablo de Morales in 1678.
Andrade (Luisa de), daughter of Antonio de Andrade and
Maria de la O ; she was in the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631.
Andrade (Micaela de), actress in the company of her hus-
band, Diego Osorio de Velasco in 1657 and 1659. Of this family
of Andrade, Pellicer (ibid., p. 20) says there were three sisters:
Ana, Feliciana, and Micaela, all natives of Toledo; all were
members of Diego Osorio's company in 1657. v. Perez Pastor,
Calderon Documentos, Vol. I, pp. 248 and 259. There seems to
have been a fourth sister, Josefa. v. above.
Angel (Gabriel) and his wife Juana de Prado were farsantes
in Madrid in 1583-84. (B. H. (1906), p. 153.) He is also
mentioned in March, 1602.
Angel (Manuel), actor in the company of Antonio de Esca-
milla in 1677 and 1678; in Manuel Vallejo's company in 1679
and 1680, and in Juan Antonio de Carvajal's in 1681.
420 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Angela Dido received her surname from Guillen de Castro s
tragedy Dido y Eneas, in which she was celebrated. Pellicer says
that she was an autora antigua, and that her will, dated 1653, is
preserved in the Archivo de la Virgen.
Angela Francisca played first parts in the company of Luis
Hurtado in 1641 and at Corpus in Seville in 1642. This is doubt-
less Angela Francisca de Hinestroza, q. v.
Angeles (Francisca de los), actress in the company of
Manuel Vallejo in 1670.
Angeles (Jeronima de los), wife of Luis Calderon; both
were members of the company of Jeronimo Velazquez in 1590.
v. Perez Pastor, Proceso de Lope de Vega, p. 146.
Angeles (Maria de los), born in the Rastro in Toledo,
famous actress in the company of Alonso Riquelme in 1 607. In
Aug., 1610, she appears as the wife of Jeronimo Sanchez, autor
de comedias. She was in the company of Baltasar Pinedo in 1614,
and, for some reason not stated, the municipality of Madrid at
Corpus of this year, when Pinedo represented autos, requested that
she and Mariana de Herbias be removed from the company and
that two other actresses be engaged in their stead. {Bull. Hisp.
(1907), p. 379.) She is mentioned among the celebrated actresses
of the time by Suarez de Figueroa, in his Plaza universal ( 1 6 1 5 ) . She
is probably the Sa Maria who took the part of Lisena in Lope's Des-
den vengado in 161 7, as played by Juan Bap. Valenciano's company.
In 1620-21 she belonged to the company of Juan Bautista Valen-
ciano, and appeared as Leonor in the cast of Claramonte's La
infeliz Dorotea, as the MS. shows. See Life of Lope de Vega,
passim. In 1620 (dia de Sant Miguel) she was in the company
of Pedro de Valdes. {Bull Hisp. (1908), p. 243.) She wrote
some commendatory verses for the Viage entretenido of Rojas
(1603), and must have been a well-known actress at that time.
Angulo, el Malo, a native of Toledo, was an autor de comedias
about 1580. On Nov. 7, 14, and 15, 1582, his company repre-
sented in Madrid. Cervantes mentions him twice : in the Coloquio
de los Perros (written between 1606 and 1609, according to Fitz-
maurice-Kelly, Cervantes, Exemplary Novels, Glasgow, 1902,
p. xxix), saying: "We stopped at the house of an autor de comedias,
who, as I remember, was called Angulo el Malo, to distinguish him
from another Angulo, not an autor but an actor, the most witty
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 421
that the comedias then had or have at this day" ; and again in Don
Quixote, Part II, chap, xi, v. Clemencin's note. According to
Figueroa's Plaza universal he was deceased in 1615. Rojas, Viage
entretenido, p. 362, mentions Angulo as a well-known autor de
comedias. He represented in Marchena with Rios in I592(?).
{Ibid., p. 90.)
Angulo (Juan Bautista de), actor in the company of
Antonio Granados for one year from Sept. 3, 1604. On Jan. 11,
1619, Juan de Angulo and his wife Bernarda Gonzalez agreed to
act for one year in the company of Tomas Fernandez Cabredo.
This was probably the same person as Juan Bautista de Angulo.
Angulo (Marco Antonio de) and his daughter Mencia de
Vibas were members of the company of Segundo de Morales for
one year from Nov., 1638.
Antandra (La), v. Granados (Antonia).
Antequera, gracioso mentioned by Rojas, Viage entretenido
(1603), p. 15.
Anteta (Felipe), musician in the company of Juan Nunez,
el Polio, in 1658; in 1667 he was in the company of Lorenzo
and Francisco Garcia. His wife was Ursula Correa. He died in
1678.
Antonia (La Senora), wife of Juan de Montoya; both were
in Vallejo's company in 1 63 1. An Antonia appeared in Lope's
Hermosa Ester ( 1610).
Antonia Bernarda, daughter of Francisco Rodriguez and
Maria Suarez, was a member of the company of Manuel Vallejo
in 1631. Antonia Bernarda or Bernardo was in the company of
Pedro de la Rosa in Valladolid in 1655. (M. y. M., p. 567.)
Antonia Infanta, v. Infanta.
Antonia Manuela, or Antonia Manuela Catalan, wife of the
autor Bartolome Romero. She and her husband were in the com-
pany of Cristobal de Avendano in 1622, and from Ash Wednesday,
1624, 'n Juan Bautista Valenciano's company. In 1630 she acted
in her husband's company in Seville, and in 1631-32 in that of
Roque de Figueroa at Madrid, when she appeared with great ap-
plause in Montalvan's No ay Vida como la Honra. See his Para
Todos, edition of 1645, fol. 29, v., where she is called "unica en
todo." In 1636-37 Antonia and her husband were in the com-
pany of Tomas Fernandez Cabredo, receiving 16 reals daily for
422 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
maintenance and 22 reals for each performance, besides four ani-
mals for traveling. In 1637 sne acted in the autos in Madrid,
receiving a gratuity of 25 ducats. In the following year she and
her husband lived in the Calle del Amor de Dios, Madrid, and
mortgaged a house in the Calle de Francos, corner of the Calle del
Nino, to pay a wet-nurse for nursing their daughter Francisca
for forty-one months, at three and a half ducats per month. They
had three other children: Luisa, Mariana, and a son Damian.
The whole family was received into the Cofradia de la Novena on
April 26, 1 63 1. In 1642 and 1643 Antonia Manuela was acting
damas in her husband's company in Seville, where they represented
autos, and in 1645 in Valladolid. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Antonia Manuela and her husband Alejandro de la Villa,
were in the company of Jose Garcia de Prado in Seville in 1658.
In 1663 Antonia, then a widow, was in the company of Francisca
Lopez in Seville, and in 1665 she belonged to the company of Felix
Pascual. In 1668 she managed a company in Seville, and also-
in 1675. She also appeared in the latter year in Escamilla's com-
pany. (Perez Pastor, Calderon Doc, I, p. 341.)
Antonia Maria, actress in the company of Juana de Cisneros-
in Seville in 1660.
Antonio (Josephe), actor in the company of Jose Garcia de
Prado in Seville in 1658, and in Felix Pascual's company in
1665-70? He and his wife Josepha de Salazar were in the
company of Carlos de Salazar in Seville in 1676. His full name
was Jose Antonio Guerrero. He was still living in 1699 and had
a son Jose Andres Guerrero, who played fourth galanes in Valencia
in 1694.
Antonio (Juan), actor in the company of Antonio de Prado
in 1639. His name occurs in the cast of Calderon's Troy a abrasada
(1644).
Antonio (Juan), quarto galan in the company of Antonio de
Escamilla in 1661, in Jose Carrillo's company in 1663, and with
Escamilla again in 1671 ; in 1670 he was barba in Manuel
Vallejo's company, and in 1674 he was in the company of Mag-
dalena Lopez. The full name of this actor seems to have been
Juan Antonio de Agramonte. An actor named Antonio is men-
tioned by Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 467, as a member of the
company of Rios.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 423
Antonio (Luis), member of the company of Antonio de Prado
in 1632. An actor named Antonio appeared in Lope's Quien mas
no puede (1616) in Cebrian's company, and in Lope's La Conpe-
tencia en los Nobles (1628).
Antonio (Marco) was in the company of Diego Lopez de
Alcaraz in 1603-04. He and his wife Maria de Aviola were in
the company of Domingo Balbin in 1613. Marco Antonio and
his wife are mentioned as early as Oct., 1582, as executors of the
will of Maximiliano Milimino. (N. D., p. 335.) There was a
Marco Antonio in Vallejo's company in 1633.
Aparicio (Bernardo), actor (?) lived in the Calle de Francos
"in his own house" in 1662.
Aparicio (Mariana de), wife of Juan de Aldama; both were
in the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas in 1633-34, an£l m
the company of Andres de la Vega in 1636-37, she taking second
parts.
Aragon (Francisco de), second musico in the company of
Magdalena Lopez in Seville in 1677.
Aragon (Juan de), actor in a joint company .in 1604. There
was also an actor of the same name in the company of Magdalena
Lopez in 1674.
Aranda (Blas de) and his wife Juana de Segura, whom he
married in Valladolid in 1607, were in the company of Hernan
Sanchez de Vargas in 161 1— 12. He was in the same company in
Seville in 1 614, as bailarin.
Aranda (Luisa de), wife of the autor de comedias Francisco
Agavaro Valdes in 1588.
Aranda (Pedro de), actor and dancer in the company of Juan
Acacio in Seville in 161 9.
Arce, v. Arze.
Arcos (Sebastian de), calcetero, in charge of a carro at the
Corpus festival in Seville in 1560 and 1561. He was manager of
a company in 1580.
Arellano (Francisco de), actor in Madrid in 1584.
Arellano (Gregorio de), actor in a joint company in 1604-
1605, with Anton Alvarez, Vicente Ortiz, and others. The name
occurs in the cast of Lope's La Discordia en los casados (161 1).
Arguello, actor in the company of Alonso Riquelme in 1610.
Arguello (Maria de), wife of Pedro Barona or Varona; she
424 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
was a member of the company of Alonso Riquelme in 1610, and
appeared in Lope's La buena Guarda. In 1619 she belonged to
the company of Antonio Martinez from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31.
Arias (Damiana de), first wife of the actor Mateo de Godoy
(1639-62).
Arias (Francisco), son of Damian Arias and Luisa de
Reinoso, belonged to the company of Manuel Vallejo in 163 1.
Arias (Juan), actor in Heredia's company in 1627, when he
appeared in Lope's Del Monte sale.
Arias de Penafiel (Damian), praised by Caramuel and
others as the greatest actor of his day. In 1 61 7 he appeared as
Don Juan in Alarcon's Las Paredes oyen, on its first performance.
His wife was Luisa de Reinoso, and both were in Heredia's com-
pany in 1619. He seems to have been in the company of Juan de
Morales Medrano in 1621 (Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244) and
was a member of the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1622, and
of Juan de Morales Medrano's company in 1624. In 1625 he
owned a house in the Calle de Loreto, parish of San Sebastian,
Madrid. (B. H. (1908), p. 252.) In 1631 (April) he and his
wife and two children, Francisco Arias and Luisa de Penafiel,
were in the company of Vallejo. Cotarelo ( Tirso de Molina,
p. 206) says that he was in Roque de Figueroa's company in July,
1 63 1. He had a company, then managed by Pedro de Ortegon,
in Seville at Shrovetide of this year. (S.-A., p. 271.) He appeared
in Lope's El Poder en el Discreto (1624), and in 1634 ne was
again in Vallejo's company, his name appearing in the cast of
Lope's Castigo sin Venganza, written in that year. He had a
company in 1636-38, and represented the autos in Seville in the
former year. Prior to 1638 he had been in the company of
Heredia in Lisbon. (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 369.) In 1640 he and
Luis Lopez de Sustaete had a joint company and represented autos
at Madrid. In 1643 he was acting in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in Seville, and is said to have died in Arcos in that year.
He first represented Lope's comedia El Prodigio de Etiopia.
Arquer or Arques (Rafael) and his wife Maria de Espinosa
were members of Avendano's company in 1632. In 1645 he was
acting in Valladolid, apparently in Antonio de Prado's company.
(M. y. M.,p. 567-)
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 425
Arroyo (Agustin de), actor and musician in the company of
Pedro de Ortegon in Seville in 1635.
Arroyo (Domingo Ochoa de), v. Ochoa de Arroyo.
Arroyo (Jose de), actor in the company of Lorenzo Hurtado
and musico in Seville in 1645.
Arteaga (Andrea de)
Arteaga (Catalinade)
Arteaga (Clementede)
Arteaga (Eugenia de)
Arteaga (Franciscade), these five children of Francisco de
Arteaga and his wife Maria Perez were members of the company
of Manuel Vallejo in Seville in 1631-32 and Catalina and
Andrea were with Vallejo in 1643.
Arteaga (Francisco de) and his daughter Maria Alvarez
were in the company of Alonso de Olmedo in 1621. {Bull. Hisp.
(1908), p. 244.) He was a member of the company of Domingo
Balbin from 1623 till Shrovetide, 1624. In 1633 he was in the
company of Juan Bautista Espinola, with his daughter Maria de
Morales (sic). See Nuevos Datos, pp. 200, 229; Sanchez- Arjona,
p. 185. In 1635 he was in Alonso de Olmedo's company in
Seville; in 1643 he was in Vallejo's company, and in 1654 in the
company of Esteban Nunez in Seville. His wife was Maria Perez.
Arteaga (Juan de), autor de comedias, who, with Melchor
de Leon, represented the autos at Corpus in Seville in 1606. This
is probably the Artiaga mentioned as an actor (before 1603) by
Rojas, Viage, p. 13.
Arteaga (Maria or Mariquita de), daughter of Francisco de
Arteaga, was in Vallejo's company in 1632. See Rosell, I, p. 277.
In 1635 she played fourth parts in the company of Alonso de
Olmedo.
Arteaga (Pedro de), perhaps a brother of the preceding, and
a member of the same company in 1635.
Artegui (Pedro de), autor de comedias in 1634, when his
company represented before the King. (Averiguador, I.) Perhaps
Artegui is a mistake for Arteaga.
Arze (Bartolome Calvo de) was in the company of Nicolas
de los Rios in 1603, and seems to have been in the same company
for some years prior to this date. In 1609 he and his wife Isabel
426 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Ana belonged to the company of Rios in Seville. In 1622 he and
Isabel Ana were in the company of Cristobal de Avendafio, and
in 1624 in that of Juan de Morales Medrano. v. Rojas, Viage,
pp. 12, 14, and 466.
Arze (Jose), actor in Roque de Figueroa's company in 1631.
Arze (Juan de) of Salamanca, musico in the company of
Diego Vallejo in 1619, and in the company of Manuel Vallejo in
1622. In 1623 he was with Juan Bautista Valenciano.
Arze (Pedro de), native of Cuenca, actor in the company of
Gaspar de Porres from Jan., 1605, till Shrovetide, 1607.
Ascanio (Pedro de) and his wife Antonia Infanta were mem-
bers of the company of Antonio de Rueda in 1639 and 1640,
she playing third parts and la primera parte del saynete in 1639
and damas in 1640. (N. D„ p. 304; S.-A., p. 337.) In 1638
Rueda and Ascanio had a company together, when the loa of
Benavente, Vol. I, p. 366, was probably represented. They also
gave ninety performances in Lisbon between Nov. 15, 1638, and
Shrovetide, 1639. (N. D., p. 290.) In 1643 Ascanio represented
the autos in Madrid. In this year Zabaleta wrote for him the
comedia La Honra vive en los Muertos. (Paz y Melia, Catalogo,
No. 3875.)
Astorga y Valcazar (Maria de), v. Valcazar.
Asturiana (La), v. Roman (Maria).
Avellaneda (Sebastian de), autor de comedias (1635-40?).
I only find him mentioned in Gallardo, II, p. 667.
Avendano: there was an actor by this name at the close of
the sixteenth century, whom Rojas calls a famoso representante
y apacible poeta; he is also mentioned by Suarez de Figueroa in
1615, as being already deceased. He was probably Lope de
Avendano, the father of Cristobal de Avendano. (Rojas, Viage,
P- 131.)
Avendano (Agustin de), actor in Valladolid in 1602. (Marti
y Monso, Estudios, p. 566.)
Avendano (Antonio de) of Granada, musico in the company
of Juan Acacio in Seville in 1619.
Avendano (Cristobal de), actor and famous autor. Perhaps
he was the "Avendano, un mozo," who was in Rodrigo Osorio's
company in Valencia in I588(?). See Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda,
p. 30. His full name was Cristobal de Avendano Sasieta, and in
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 427
161 1 he acted in the company of Baltasar Pinedo. (Bib.
Madrilena, III, p. 325.) In 1613 he belonged to the company of
Baltasar Pinedo; in 1619 he and his wife Maria Candau (q. v.)
were in the company of Tomas Fernandez, and in 1620 in that of
Juan Bap. Valenciano, appearing in Claramonte's Infelice Dorotea.
He managed a company at least as early as 1620 (Bull. Hisp.
(1907), p. 385), in which year, and again in 1621 and 1626, he
represented autos in Madrid. In 1622 his company produced
Lope's La Juventud de San Isidro. On July I, 1623, he left
Madrid to give fifty representations in Valencia. In March, 1623,
Avendano agreed with Juan de Morales, Manuel Vallejo, and
Juan Bautista Valenciano to represent on the public stage erected
in Madrid on the reception of the Prince of Wales. (Bull. Hisp.
(1908), p. 248.) In 1625, 1627, and 1629 he represented autos
in Seville, and in 1628 he performed in La Monteria. In 1631 he
again took his company to Valencia, beginning to play at Easter.
In this year, on St. John's eve, he represented Lope's La Noche de
San Juan. He often performed before the King, notably in April
and May, 1623; in 1632, when he produced Lope's Hermosa Fea
and Noche de San Juan, and in 1635. Other comedias of Lope
first brought out by him were: El Medico de su Honra, Lanza por
Lanza, and La Paloma de Toledo. He was one of the founders
of the Cofradia de Nuestra Sehora de la Novena, in 1624. Ac-
cording to a letter of Lope de Vega the company of Avendano in
1633 met with only indifferent success. (Barrera, Nueva Bio-
grafia, p. 651.) In 1635 his company gave eight private per-
formances before the King: of these five were between May 14
and June 10, and three on Nov. 8, 20, and 26. I copy the entry:
"En Madrid, a 10 de Octubre 1635, a Francisco de Alegria,
arrendador de los corrales de la comedia, 1050 reales por cinco
particulares que hizo a S. M. Cristobal de Avendano." Again:
"En 27 de Noviembre 1635, 600 reales por tres particulares que hizo
a S. M." (Averiguador, I, p. 74.) Why the money was paid to
Alegria and not to Avendano we cannot answer. Was Avendano
indebted to Alegria? or did he, perhaps, die before May 14, 1635?
See Sanchez-Arjona, p. 296, and under Candau (Maria). For
his company in 1622, v. Datos desconocidos, p. 297; in 1623,
v. Nuevos Datos, p. 194; in 1632, v. Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 202. He
first represented Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan (1625).
428 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Avendano (Cristobal de), actor in the company of Tomas
Fernandez in 1620, when he is described as being more than
twenty-five years old. Perhaps a son of the preceding. (Bull.
Hisp. (1907), p. 385.) Fernandez Guerra, Alarcon, p. 380, men-
tions "Josefa," wife of Cristobal de Avendano, el Mozo. _
Avendano (Lope de) represented one of the autos at Corpus
in Seville in 1588 and 1600. See Avendano, above, and the fol-
lowing.
Avendano (Sebastian de Sasieta) and his wife Jeronima de
Salcedo were players in Valladolid in 1604, in the company of
Pinedo(?). (Marti y Monso, p. 566.) But (ibid.) we also find
"Lope de Sasieta Avendano y su muger Jeronima de Salcedo,
comediantes."
Avila (Diego de) and his wife Mariana de Mirabete took part
in the festival at the village of Mostoles, at Corpus, 1619. In 1624
he was in Antonio de Prado's company.
Avila (Jeronimo de), actor in Valladolid in 1644 in the com-
pany of Francisco de Guzman Morales. In 1645 he married the
actress Gregoria Delgado de la Cruz in Valladolid, when both
seem to have been in the company of Bartolome Romero. (M. y
M., p. 567.)
Avila (Juan de), actor in a joint company in 1604, and in
the company of Melchor de Leon in 1607. See also Pellicer,
I, 69. There was a Juan de Avila in the company of Alonso
Velazquez in 1598; perhaps the same.
Avila (Pedro de), actor in the company of Alonso de Heredia
in 1614; latest date 1628.
Avinon (Juan de) married the actress Isabel de Lerma in
Valladolid in 1605, when both were in the company of Rios.
(Marti y Monso, Estudios, p. 566.) He was a member of the
company of Baltasar Pinedo in 1613.
Aviola (Maria de), wife of Marco Antonio; both were in the
company of Domingo Balbin in 1613.
Ayala (Cristobal de), actor in the company of Alonso
Velazquez in 1598.
Ayala (Gregorio de) and his daughter Josefa de Ayala joined
the company of Juan Roman in March, 1639, and in April, 1639,
he was in the company of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago. In
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 429
1643 he and Josef a de Ayala (then called his wife) were in the
company of Bartolome Romero in Seville. (Sanchez-Arjona,
P- 367-)
Ayala (Hernando de), member of the company of Pedro de
Plata in 1587. He was then "more than twenty-five years old."
Ayala (Josefa de), daughter of Gregorio de Ayala, q. v. In
1642 she played second parts in Bartolome Romero's company in
Seville.
Ayala (Juan Antonio de), called Cuatro ojos, of Ecija; he
married a sister of Jose Carrillo, and was in the company of Juana
de Cisneros in Seville in 1660; in 1670 he was in Manuel
Vallejo's company, and in 1671 with Antonio de Escamilla as
barba.
Ayala (Luisa de), sister of Josefa ( ?) and in the same com-
pany in 1642.
Ayala (Pedro de) played first parts in the company of Fran-
cisco Galindo in 1637-38.
Ayora (Juan de), cobrador in the company of Antonio de
Escamilla in 1661.
Ayuso (Ana de), actress in the company of Juan Perez de
Tapia in Seville in 1662.
Ayuso (Feliciana de), wife of Bias de Navarrete; both were
in the company of Francisco Gutierrez in Seville in 1668; in
Antonio de Escamilla's company in 1672 and 1673 (in the latter
year she did not represent at Corpus on account of illness) ; in
Manuel Vallejo's in 1674, 1675, and 1676.
Ayuso (Jose de), called Mdtalo-todo, actor in 1653, and
cobrador with Francisco Garcia in 1665.
Ayuso (Miguel de) and his wife Luisa de Reinoso were in
the company of Claramonte from June 19, 1614, till Shrovetide,
1615.
Aznote (Gabriel), actor in the company of Nicolas de los
Rios in 1609.
Azores y Avila (Catalina de), wife of Antonio Granados,
at the time of his death, after June 8, 1641.
Azua (Diego de) belonged to the company of Baltasar Pinedo
in 161 1, and was a member of the company of Cristobal de Aven-
dano in 1623.
430 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Balbin (Domingo), famous autor of Toledo, was an actor in
the company of Gaspar de Petra (Porres?) in Valladolid in 1604.
(Marti y Monso, Estudios, p. 566.) His wife was Isabel de Bernz.
His company represented autos at Madrid in 1609 and at Seville in
1613. In July, 1623, he represented five comedias before the King;
he first produced Lope's Gran Cardenal de Belen and El Caballero
del Sacramento. Latest date March 30, 1625. For his company
in 1613, see Sanchez- Arjona, Anales, p. 154.
Balbin (Da Maria), sister of the preceding and wife of Diego
de Cardenas in 1634. She took part in the Corpus festival at
the village of Yebenes in 1635, and at the festival of Our Lady
at San Roque in 1636, playing first parts. She was still living
in 1640.
Balcazar, v. Valcazar.
Balmaceda, v. Valmaceda.
Baltasara (La), v. Reyes (Baltasara de los).
Banuelos (Juana), actress in the company of Francisco Gar-
cia (Pupilo) in 1665.
Barato (Anton), member of the company of Manuel Vallejo
in 1623.
Barba (Beatriz) of Rioseco married Juan Rodriguez in Valla-
dolid in 1 65 1, both being then in the company of Carlos de Tapia.
(M. yM, p. 567-)
Barbosa (Miguel) and his wife Isabel de Acosta, both of
Lisbon, were in the company of Diego Vallejo in Seville in 1619.
Barco, actor in the cast of La belligera Espanola (printed in
1616). v. Restori, Studj di Fil. Rom., Fasc. 15, p. 92.
Bargas, v. Vargas.
Barona or Varona (Pedro) was in the company of Antonio
Granados in 1613; in 1619 he and his wife Maria de Arguello
were in the company of Antonio Martinez.
Barrio (Baltasar de), actor in a joint company to represent
in Borox at Corpus in 1604; he was an autor in 161 1. Perhaps
this name should be Barrios.
Barrio (Cristobal de), member of the company called Los
Andaluces from March 15, 1605, to Shrovetide, 1606.
Barrionuevo, actor in the cast of La Paciencia en la Fortuna
(about 1640?). (Restori, Studj, p. 143.)
Barrios (Ana de), born in Naples and the daughter of a
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 431
washerwoman. She was adopted by the actor Jacinto de Barrios,
became an actress, and was in the company of Roque de Figueroa
in Valencia about 1649, and in that of Pedro de la Rosa in 1650.
She married Felipe de Velasco. (Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. II, p. 667.
See also Pellicer, Vol. II, p. 22.)
Barrios (Antonio de), actor in the company of Diego Lopez
de Alcaraz in 1603.
Barrios (Jacinto de) played third parts in the company of
Pedro de la Rosa at Seville in 1639.
Bartolico, actor mentioned by Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 465.
Basurto, v. Lopez Basurto (Diego).
Batanes (Juan de), joint lessee with Antonio Correa Muniz
of the corral La Monteria in Seville in 1639.
Bautista (Alejandro), galan in a company in Zaragoza in
1635, playing in El Diablo Predicador. (Barrera, Catdlogo, p. 30.)
Bautista (Juan), v. Valenciano.
Bautista (Juan) of Seville, sculptor by profession. He was
an autor, taking part in the Corpus festival at Seville in 1576,
1577, 1579, 1582, 1584, 1585-86, and 1589. He seems to have
been the same person as Juan Bautista de Aguilar. v. S.-A., p. 82.
He is mentioned by Rojas as a writer and actor. The Bautista
who was in Osorio's company in I588(?) in Valencia was Juan
Bautista de Villalobos, q. v. v. Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, p. 30.
Bazan (Francisca), wife of the autor Lorenzo Hurtado de la
Camara, q. v.
Bazan (Isabel), second wife of the actor Mateo de Godoy.
She died in Seville in 1658.
Bazan (Juan), musician who took part in the Corpus festival
at the villa del Escorial in 1619.
Beatricica, v. Velasco.
Beatriz, v. Velasco.
Beatriz Jacinta, actress playing fifth parts in the company of
Bartolome Romero in Seville in 1642 and 1643.
Becerra, autor de comedias in Jaen, who was licensed to repre-
sent Lope's Contienda de Diego Garcia de Paredes in that city on
Jan. 17, 1614.
Becerra Faxardo (Francisco), second gracioso in the com-
pany of Alonso de Olmedo and Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla in
1638. This is perhaps Francisco Antonio Becerra, who was acting
432 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
in Valladolid in 1642. His wife was Catalina de Silva. (M. y M.,
p. 566.)
Becerril (Jacinto de), in the company of Francisco Velez de
Guevara and others in 1639.
Belbis (Jose de), member of Bernardo de la Vega's company
in Seville in 1672.
Bella (Antonio de la) and his wife Luciana de la Bella
were in the company of Tomas Diaz, el Labrador, in Seville in
1643.
Bella (Luciana de la), v. preceding.
Benavente (Antonio de), actor in the company of Gabriel
de Espinosa in Aug., 1638, to represent the comedias Progne y
Filomena and Nunca mucho costo poco at Colmenar Viejo.
Benavides (Juan de), "de la villa de Alcafiices en la tierra de
Campos"; member of the company of Antonio Granados in 1613
and of Alonso de Villalba's in 1614. In 1 61 9 he was in the com-
pany of Cristobal Ortiz in Seville, and in 1621 in that of Alonso
de Olmedo. (Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244.) He is also called Juan
Enrique de Benavides.
Benet (Jusepe), musico in the company of Agustin Manuel
de Castilla in 1677-78.
Benito [de Castro], actor in the company of Riquelme in
1607 and 1610. He appeared in Lope's La buena Guarda (1610) ;
El Bastardo Mudarra (1612); La Dama boba (161 3); and El
Sembrar en buena tierra (1616).
Benzon (Luisa), wife of Jusepe Gonzalez; both were in the
company of Alonso de Cisneros and Melchor de Villalba for two
years (1595 and 1596). The first year they received 14 reals
"paid each day for each representation," and the second year 15
reals daily, besides 5 ducats for maintenance in each year, and also
a doubloon de a cuatro for washing, "as is customary, and as other
autores give, and free transportation in addition."
Bermudez de Castro (Miguel), with his company repre-
sented in the Coliseo of Seville in 1654. He was a native of San-
tiago de Galicia, and married first Maria de Salas and then Fabiana
Laura, from whom he was shortly afterward divorced. He be-
longed for a while to the company of Jose de Salazar and played
the parts of galan, and afterward barba. In 1660 he returned to
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 433
Seville with his wife Fabiana Laura, in the company of Francisco
Lopez. He died in 1676.
Bernabela ( Juana) , wife of Jose de Salazar, autor, who repre-
sented at Corpus in Seville in 1626. He returned in 1628 and
again represented the autos in 1630, when Juana Bernabela re-
ceived a gratuity of 500 reals. There is a Juana Bernabela de-
scribed as the wife of the autor Juan Rodriguez de Antriago and
a member of his company in 1639, doubtless the same person.
Bernal y Acacio (Juan Francisco), actor in the company
of Pedro de la Rosa in 1637.
Bernaldino, see under Alvarez (Bernardino).
Bernarda and her sister Maria were members of Figueroa's
company in i63i-32(?); they appeared in Benavente's entremes
El Talego. v. Rosell, I, pp. 109, 322. On p. 232 we learn that
Bernarda is the wife of Robles. This is probably Bernarda Rami-
rez, q. v.
Bernarda, actress in the company of Manuel Vallejo (about
1632?), is probably Bernarda Gamarra. (Rosell, I, pp. 277, 300.)
Bernarda, v. Gamarra, Ramirez, Teloy, Villaroel.
Bernarda Manuela, called la Grifona, was the daughter of
Jeronima de Vargas. (Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos,
I, p. 265.) She was in Antonio de Prado's company in 1650, and
in 1659 played second parts in the company of Sebastian de Prado
and Juan de la Calle. In 1 661 she acted third parts in Seb. de
Prado's company, and in 1662 was with Simon Aguado and Juan
de la Calle. In 1664 she was segunda in the company of Bartolome
Romero and Calle, and in 1665, 1670, 1671, 1677, and 1678
in Antonio de Escamilla's company; in 1673 she was with Felix
Pascual, and in 1674., 1675, 1676, 1679, and 1680 in the company
of Manuel Vallejo. In 1681 she was tercera in Juan Antonio de
Carvajal's company. From the Entremes del Nino Caballero by
Solis (Comedias, 1 68 1, p. 55), which was acted in the Coliseo del
Buen Retiro in 1658, it seems to follow (see p. 57, col. 1) that
Bernarda Manuela was at that time the wife of Cosme Perez.
The name Beatriz Ramirez (p. 54) is a mistake for Bernarda
Ramirez, who was also in the same company. See also the En-
tremes del Salta en Banco (p. 63), in which Bernarda [Ramirez],
Bernarda Manuela, Luisa and Mariana Romero, la Beqona, Maria
434 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
de Prado, and Maria Quinones appeared. And see the saynete at
the conclusion of Solis's Euridice y Orfeo, the passage beginning
with the stage direction: "Canta Bernarda \Manuela\, baylando
Cosme." (Poesias, ed. 1692, pp. 184, 214.) Under date of
Aug. 29, 1654, Barrionuevo (Avisos, I, p. 40) writes: "A la
Grifona, amiga del Condestable, han condenado al emparedamiento
de Baeza, que es un encerramiento cruel, sin comunicacion con
persona humana." Oct. 4, 1656: "Escapose del encerramiento de
Toledo la Grifona . . . se metio en uno de los coches ordinarios
con un rebozo, y se vino a Madrid en compania de un Andres Diaz,
escribano . . . que hoy le tienen preso para que diga donde esta,
porque ella, en llegando, tomo las de Villadiego." (Vol. Ill,
P- I5-)
Bernardino, v. Alvarez (Bernardino).
Bernardo, gracioso in the company of Avendano, about 1632:
his name occurs in the cast of Tirso's Celos con Celos se curart
(1625), as played by Avendano *s company. See Rosell, I, p. 214,
and II, p. 529. He seems also to have been in Avendano's com-
pany in 1626. (Flor de Entremeses (1657), p. 122.) An actor
named Bernardo appeared in Belmonte's A un tiempo Rey y Vasallo
in 1 642, as "Pasquin," and evidently also a gracioso. This was proba-
bly Lamparilla, q. v. There was a Bernardo, gracioso, in Lorenzo
Hurtado's company in i632-35(?). (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 29.)
Perhaps this was Bernardo de Medrano, q. v. A Bernardo,
gracioso, was in the company of Felix Pascual in 1665— 68( ?).
Berrio (Diego), a tailor, and native of San Marcos. He
brought out the auto La Batalla espiritual at Corpus in Seville in
1569, and in 1571 El Gonvite de Abraham, and again autos in 1572
and 1574. See Rojas, Viage, p. 125.
Berrio (Ursula de) and her husband Juan de Cuebas were
in the company of Andres de la Vega in 1638-39, and in that
of Pedro de la Rosa in Seville in 1639-40, playing fifth parts.
See also under Rio. Perhaps the above name should be Ursula del
Rio, as given in N. D., p. 283.
Berriz (Isabel de), or Isabel de Beris, wife of Domingo
Balbin (q. v.), and actress in his company.
Bezon (Francisca), said to have been the daughter of the
dramatist D. Francisco de Rojas Zorrilla. She was brought up
by Juan Bezon and his wife Ana Maria (la Bezona), and after-
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 435
ward became an actress. She was with the company of Diego
Osorio in 1659, and with Sebastian de Prado in Paris in 1660,
where she was much admired. She acted at Corpus in Madrid in
1671 ; was in Manuel Vallejo's company in 1674. In 1671, 1675,
and 1676 she was in the company of Antonio de Escamilla. She
married Vicente de Olmedo and managed a company in 1683,
when she produced an auto at Madrid. She died in the Calle de
Cantarranas in 1704.
Bezon ( Juan) , celebrated gracioso. His real name was Grego-
rio de Rojas, and he was half-brother to the dramatist Francisco
de Rojas Zorrilla. In 1622 he was a member of Manuel Va-
llejo's company, and from Ash Wednesday, 1624, to 1625 he
and his wife Ana Maria (la Bezona) were in the company of
Hernan Sanchez de Vargas. Both were also members of the com-
pany of Roque de Figueroa in 1629 or 1630 (Rosell, I, p. 169),
and in that of Cristobal de Avendano in 1626 at Corpus in Madrid,
and in March, 1632. In the latter year the wife is called Ana
Maria de Peralta. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 202.) In 1636 Juan
Bezon and Ana Maria were in the company of Francisco Lopez.
In Manuel Vallejo's company in 1622, besides Juan Bezon, we
find "Ana Maria de Peralta and her husband Diego de Ortega."
It is probable that we are here concerned with the same Ana Maria
who first married Ortega, and afterward Juan Bezon.
Bezona (La), see under Ana Maria and Peralta.
Bienpica (Pedro de) was in the company of Andres de la
Vega in Feb., 1638, and in July of the same year he was in the
company of Gabriel de Espinosa.
Blanco (Isabel), wife of Francisco Trivino; both were in the
company of Roque de Figueroa in 1631. They both appeared in
Lope's Guzmanes de Toral. See the ed. of Restori, p. ix.
Blasco (Jeronimo de), member of the company of Cristobal
de Salazar (Mahoma) , in March, 1630, when he was admitted to
the Congregation of the Novena. In 1639 he took old men's parts
in the company of Pedro de la Rosa, in Seville.
BOBADILLA, V. BoVADILLA.
Bohorques (Francisca de), actress in the company of Juan
Antonio de Carvajal in 1681.
Bolay, musico in the companies of Rueda and Ascanio. (Rosell,
I, p. 366.) v. Volay.
436 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Bonelo (Rafael), actor in the company of Cristobal de
Avendafio in 1632.
Bonilla (Pedro de), actor in the cast of Lope's La gran
Columna fogosa (1629).
Bordoy (Juan de) and his wife Luisa de Bordoy were mem-
bers of the companies of Jose de Salazar (Mahoma) and Antonio
de Rueda.
Bordoy (Luisa de), see the preceding. She was in Antonio
de Prado's company in 1632, and appeared in the entremes El
Talego. (Rosell, I, p. 127.)
Borja (Luisa de), actress in the company of Roque de Figue-
roa in 1631-32 (Rosell, I, p. 232, and Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206),
and in Avendano's company (1633?) {ibid., p. 62.) She played
fifth parts and the harp in the company of Antonio de Rueda in
Seville in i638(?), 1640, and 1644. This is undoubtedly Luisa
de Rayos, wife of Pantaleon or Jusepe de Borja, q. v.
Borja (Mariana de), or la Borxa, daughter of Pantaleon de
Borja and Luisa de Rayos, actress in the company of Diego Osorio
in 1659. She played fourth parts in the company of Antonio de
Escamilla in 1 66 1 and 1672; in Simon Aguado and Juan de la
Calle's company in 1662; in Jose Carrillo's in 1663; in Juan de
la Calle and Bartolome Romero's as tercera and musica in 1664;
in Francisco Garcia's in 1665, and in Manuel Vallejo's in 1670,
1675, and 1676. In 167 1 she was with Felix Pascual. For the
company in which she appeared in 1655, see Solis, Poesias, Madrid,
1692, p. 173. She was the wife of Cristobal Caballero and died
in 1 68 1. Maria de Borja, who was in the company of Carlos de
Tapia in Valladolid in 1 65 1, is probably the same person.
Borja (Pantaleon de), harpist, and his wife Luisa de Rayos
were in the company of Figueroa in 1631-32, and in the com-
pany of Antonio de Rueda in 1639, receiving 7 reals for mainte-
nance and 9 for each performance, besides three pack animals.
Both were in the same company in the following year, and both
were again in Rueda's company in Seville in 1644. He was in
Olmedo's company in i636(?). v. Rosell, I, p. 90. He was
drowned in passing the bar of Huelva in 1678, while in the com-
pany of Ines Gallo. Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206, gives his name as
Joseph de Borja. He was also in Avendano's company (1633?).
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 437
(Rosell, Vol. I, p. 62.) Both he and his wife Luisa took part in
the entremes El Tiempo. v. under Montemayor (Juan).
Borja (Vicenta de), wife of Jusepe Jimenez; both were in
the company of Baltasar Pinedo in 1617, and in that of Antonio
de Prado in 1624. She is probably the Vicenta in the company of
Olmedo in i636( ?). v. Rosell, I, p. 90. v. Vicenta.
BOTANELLI (VlNCENZO), V. CuRCIO ROMANO.
Botarga (Estefanelo) was in charge of one of the carros at
Corpus in Seville in 1584.
Bovadilla (Antonia de) agreed to sing, dance, and act in
three comedias in the village of Brunete on Aug. 15 and 16, 1637,
for 200 reals, transportation and board and lodging for herself
and maid.
Bovadilla (Luis Bernardo de), member of the company of
Manuel Vallejo in 1623, and in the company of Antonio de
Prado in 1624 and 1632. In 1625 he and his wife Maria de
Vitoria appeared in Lope's El Brasil restitutio, in the company of
Andres de la Vega, and in 1626 in Lope's Amor con vista, in the
company of Antonio de Prado. He had a company in 1637, and
in Feb., 1638, formed one with Alonso de Olmedo, in which his
wife acted, receiving 8 reals for maintenance and 16 reals for each
performance. In this year (1638) he arranged to have his com-
pany and that of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago give thirty repre-
sentations in Toledo. In 1639 Bernardo and his wife were in the
company of Antonio de Prado in Seville. He is probably the
Bernardo who appeared in the cast of La Guarda cuidadosa of
Miguel Sanchez (1615), and perhaps the Maria of the same cast
was his wife.
Bracamonte Gallareta (Gines de) was in the company of
Juan de Morales Medrano in 1624. Is this the Vacamonte of
Lope's El Poder en el Discreto (1623)? See Life of Lope de
Vega, p. 303, n.
Bravo (Francisco) was in the company of Hernan Sanchez
de Vargas in 1634-35.
Bravo (Juan), actor in the company of Melchor de Leon in
1607. Perhaps this is the Bravo who was in Rodrigo Osorio's
company in Valencia in 1588. (Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, p. 30.)
Bravo (Lucia), probably an actress. In 1638 she accused
438 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Diego de Leon, actor, of being guilty of the death of her son,
Francisco Vicente.
Bravo (Pedro) and his wife Dionisia de Castillo were mem-
bers of a joint company in 1614-15, which met every morning at
nine for rehearsals at Pedro Bravo's lodgings.
Brillante (Jeronimo), actor in the company of Juan Rodri-
guez de Antriago in 1639.
Briones (Andres de), in charge of the carros at Corpus in
Seville in 1592.
Burgos (Jeronima de), famous actress and friend of Lope de
Vega. See Life of Lope, pp. 113 et passim. For her Lope wrote
La Dama boba (1613). She was the wife of the celebrated actor
and autor Pedro de Valdes (before Feb. 14, 161 4), and was with
her husband's company in Lisbon in 161 5. She had a company
which represented Lope's Los Milagros del Desprecio before the
King on Dec. 24, 1632; perhaps her husband was then deceased.
She died, a widow, on March 27, 1641, in the Calle de Canta-
rranas, Madrid.
Burriel (Jacinto), prompter in Roque de Figueroa's company
in 1631.
Bustamante (Manuela de), la Mentirella, wife of the autor
Felix Pascual. She was segunda dama in Sebastian de Prado's
company in 1 66 1, and also played second parts in Simon Aguado's
company in 1662; in 1663 she was with Jose Carrillo, and in
1665-71 she played first parts in Felix Pascual's company. She
was the daughter of Toribio de Bustamante and Maria de los San-
tos, and died in 1673, leaving two children: Bernardo and Sabina.
Bustamante (Toribio de), actor and writer of entremeses.
He was in Sebastian de Prado's company in 1661 ; in that of Simon
Aguado in 1662, and in Felix Pascual's company in Seville in 1665.
His wife was Maria de los Santos, who must have been divorced
from him before 1654, f°r sne was then the wife of Pedro de
Salazar. v. Santos. Toribio died in 1680.
Bustamente (Francisca de), wife of Alejandro Ordonez;
both were in the company of Bernardo de la Vega in Seville in
1672.
Bustamente (Juan de), member of a joint company with
Manuel Vallejo in 1623, and in the company of Juan Rodriguez
de Antriago in 1639.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 439
Caballero (Alonso), autor, represented in La Monteria,
Seville, in 1667. His wife was Isabel Coronado. His company
also appeared at the Corpus festivals at Seville in 1671 and 1672,
and represented in 1675.
Caballero (Cristobal) of Granada, actor in the company of
Manuel Vallejo in 1670 (playing quartos), 1675, 1676, and 1681.
He played fourth parts in the company of Felix Pascual in 1671,
and in Escamilla's company in 1672. He had a company in 1691
and 1693, and died in Granada in 1725. His wife was Mariana
de Borja.
Caballero (Diego) and his wife Antonia Mazana were in the
company of Francisco Gutierrez in Seville in 1668; he was barba
in Felix Pascual's company in 1671, and both were with Matias de
Castro in 1673.
Caballero (Manuela), ha Rubia, daughter of Alonso
Caballero and Da Isabel Coronado. She was in the company of
Manuel Vallejo in 1673.
Cabello (Ana), wife of Alonso Fernandez de Guardo; both
were in the company of Antonio de Prado in 1614-16, appearing
in Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta Juana, and in that of Hernan
Sanchez de Vargas in 1619-20, she taking first parts.
Cabello (Juan), actor in a joint company in 1614 with Andres
de Claramonte and others. In 1622 he was in the company of
Cristobal de Avendano.
Cabello (Mariana), wife of Alonso Rodriguez; both were in
the company of Domingo Balbin in 1613.
Caceres (Agustin de), actor (?), father of the actress Maria
Leonor de Caceres (1631). His name occurs hi the cast of the
anonymous comedia Paciencia en la Fortuna (MS. dated 1615).
v. Restori, Studj, p. 143.
Caceres (Agustina de), wife of Agustin de Caceres, and
mother of Maria Leonor de Caceres.
Caceres (Ana de), actress in the company of Juan Perez de
Tapia in Seville in 1662.
Caceres (Ana Maria de), wife of Juan Jeronimo Valenciano
(1625) ; in 1635 she was in the company of Alonso de Olmedo
in Seville, and in 1643 both were in the company of Manuel
Vallejo, also in Seville.
Caceres (Maria Leonor de), see above, Caceres (Agustin
44Q SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
de). She was in a joint company which represented at the Corpus
festival of 1631 in Almonacid de Zurita.
Caceres (Martin de), farsante, represented a comedia before
the King in 1628.
Caceres (Matias de), autor in Seville in 1625, when he peti-
tioned to take part in the autos of that year. He acted the parts of
gracloso and then had a daughter ten years old.
Calderon (Cristobal). In 1576 he married Elena Osorio
(the Fills of Lope de Vega), daughter of the celebrated autor
Jeronimo Velazquez, in whose company he acted for a number of
years. He died on March 30, 1595. See Perez Pastor, Proceso de
Lope de Vega, pp. 218, S.
Calderon (Luis), husband of Jeronima de los Angeles; both
were in the company of Jeronimo Velazquez in 1590.
Calderon (Maria), la Calderona, famous actress. In March,
1623, she was the wife of Pablo Sarmiento, and both were in the
company of Juan Bautista Valenciano. {Bull. Hisp. (1908),
p. 248.) She was the mistress of Philip IV, and the mother of
his son, Don John of Austria (born April 17, 1629). She ap-
peared in Lope's El Poder en el Discreto (1624), and took the
part of Fenis in Lope's Amor con Vista (1626). Her husband in
1632 was Tomas de Rojas. In this year she received 1050 reals
for acting in two comedias and two autos in the village of Pinto,
besides transportation for herself, husband, and maid, lodging and
8 reals maintenance for every day she was on the journey. She
took part in the Corpus festival of the same year at Seville, leaving
the company of Juan Jeronimo Valenciano, of which she was
then a member, for this purpose. (S.-A., p. 285.) She after-
ward became a nun in the convent of Vallehermoso, in the province
of Guadalajara, where she became abbess, "and repenting of her
sins, there are those who assure us that she died in the odor of
sanctity." See also Gallardo, Ensayo, etc., Vol. II, pp. 601, 602.
Apparently she was still living in 1646. (Pellicer, II, p. 92.)
v. text.
Calle (Francisco de la), actor in Figueroa's company in
1635, in the cast of Peligrar en los Remedios by Rojas Zorilla.
Calle (Francisco de la) and his wife Jeronima Coronel were
members of the company of Francisca Lopez in 1663. Cotarelo
says (Migajas del Ingenio, p. 198) that in 1660 Francisco de la
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 441
Calle was the husband of Jeronima Coronel, niece of Cosme Perez
and sister of Barbara Coronel, and that Jeronima played second
parts in his company in that year. He says, moreover, that Jeronima
was the widow of Diego Jimenez, and that she must have been
older than Calle, for she was playing damas in Seville in 1643 and
was then married, and that her widowhood dated from at least
1648. Sometime between 1665 and 1670 Francisco de la Calle
(actor at least as early as 1657 and manager of a company in
Valencia in 1660) and his wife Josef a de Morales were in the
company of Felix Pascual (q. v.) ; both were in the company of
Magdalena Lopez in 1674 m Seville. In 1680 they were in the
company of Jeronimo Garcia, and in 1 68 1 in the company of
Juan Antonio Carvajal, he playing second barbas. He was also
a playwright. See Schack, Nachtrage, p. 60; Barrera, Catalogo,
p. 59 ; Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2650.
Calle (Juan de la), actor in 1632 in the company of Pedro
de Ortegon and in Roque de Figueroa's in 1635-36 (v. Rosell,
I, p. 322) ; in 1639 he played first and second galanes in the com-
pany of Francisco Velez de Guevara. He was again with Antonio
de Prado in 1650, and with Sebastian de Prado in 1 65 1. He had
a company in 1659 and 1660, in which he played third parts. In
1 66 1 he was again in Sebastian de Prado's company, and in
1662—64 played second barbas in his own company. In 1670
he was with Manuel Vallejo, el Mozo.
Callenueva (Pedro de), actor in the company of Diego
Lopez de Alcaraz in 1607 ; in 1 610 he was in Riquelme's company
and appeared in Lope's La buena Guarda. He is mentioned by
Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 466, as being in the company of
Nicolas de los Rios (before 1602).
Calvo (Juan), actor and musician in the company of Alonso
de Olmedo in Seville in 1635.
Camacho (Bonifacia), daughter of Pedro Camacho and
Magdalena Lopez, and a graciosa in her mother's company in
1674-77. She had a brother Vicente Camacho, of whom nothing
is known.
Camacho (Clara), sister of the preceding (Bonifacia), and
in the same company. She died in Valencia in 1680.
Camacho (Juan), gracioso in the company of Jeronimo
Vallejo in 1660. Magdalena Lopez was in the same company.
442 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Camacho (Pedro), husband of Magdalena Lopez (1634)-
He died in 1674. Their children were: Clara Camacho, Bonifacia
Camacho, and Vicente Camacho.
Campos (Gonzalo de), autor de comedias, took part in the
Corpus festival in Seville in 1586.
Campos (Juan de) and his wife Francisca Luisa de Guevara
were in the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1 631. He played third
parts in the company of Alonso de Olmedo in 1635.
Campoy (Juan de), actor, residing in Granada in 1633; he
played old men's parts (barbas) in the company of Francisco Velez
de Guevara in 1639. Perhaps the same as the preceding.
Canal (Ana Maria de la), v. Ana Maria.
Canales (Jusepe), actor in the company of Antonio de Rueda
in 1644.
Candada (La), v. Mariana de Velasco.
Candado or Candau (Antonia), actress in the company of
Cristobal de Avendano in 1632.
Candau or Candado (Juliana), wife of Pedro Diaz de
Robles; both were in the company of Manuel Vallejo in 163 1,
and in the company of Andres de la Vega in 1638—39. In 1644
Juliana Candado and her husband Pedro de Urquisa were in the
company of Antonio de Rueda. The MS. in the Bib. Nac. (San-
chez-Arjona, p. 371, n.) says that Juliana first married Pedro Diaz,
and after his death she married Esteban Nunez [Averigiielo quien
quiere~\. She was in Valencia in 1644, playing third parts in the
company of Jose Garceran. She must have married Nunez after
1654, I0r m's first wife was still living at that date.
Candau (Luis), actor in the company of Alonso de Heredia
in 1 61 4. In 1 61 9 he was in the company of Tomas Fernandez
and also in i623( ?). In 1622 he belonged to the company of his
son-in-law Cristobal de Avendano, and was cobrador in the same
company in Seville in 1628. He and his wife Mariana de Velasco
owned a house in the Calle del Infante, Madrid, in 1623. They
were also in Avendano's company in 1632. He died in the Calle
del Infante, Madrid, Oct. 3, 1649, on the day following the death
of his wife. He was sometimes called Luis Candau de Fox.
Candau (Maria), Maricandado, daughter of Luis Candau
and Mariana de Velasco, and the wife of Cristobal de Avendano
(1619), when she was in the company of Tomas Fernandez. She
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 443
acted in Madrid in 1623, and was in Seville in 1625 in her hus-
band's company, and again in 1632 we find her mentioned; in the
former year she received a gratuity of 220 reals for excellent act-
ing and reciting the loa. In 1626 she took part in the Corpus
festival at Madrid in her husband's company, appearing also in
Belmonte's entremes La Maestra de Gracia. See Flor de Entre-
meses (1657), p. 129. After the death of Avendano (May,
1635 (?) : see above, under Avendano) she married Salvador de
Lara, who appears as director of the company on May 31, 1635,
when they represented in La Monteria, Seville. ( Sanchez- Arjona,
Anales, pp. 243, n., 294, 296.) She died in 1636 or 1637.
Cano (Juan), prompter in the company of Cristobal de Aven-
dano in 1632.
Cano (Luis), actor in Madrid in 1584. In 1590 he repre-
sented the auto El Desposorio de Isac con Rebeca in Seville.
Canobas., actor in the cast of Lope de Vega's La Conpetencia
en los Nobles (1628).
Canadas (Alonso), actor in the company of Antonio de Prado
in 1632; he played old men's parts in the company of Jose Garceran
in Seville in 1657.
Capilla (Alonso de), autor de comedias in Seville in 1573.
Juan de la Cueva calls him "ingenioso representante" ; his com-
pany acted in Las Atarazanas in Seville in 1581, producing for the
first time Cueva's comedia La Libertad de Roma por Mucio
Scevela. He also represented autos in 1581-83.
Capiscol (El), v. Garces (Marcos).
Carbonera (Jeronimo) and his wife Mariana de los Reyes
(la Carbonera?) gave three representations in Barajas at Corpus
in 1637. In Oct., 1643, his wife was Mariana Ladron de
Guevara. His first wife was still living in Sept., 1640, and the
second must have died shortly after Oct. 3, 1643, the date of her
last will. (Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, pp. 261, 280, 325, 331.)
In 1627 Carbonero (sic) and Mariana were in the company of
the Valencianos, perhaps the same persons, v. Barrera, Nueva
Biografia, p. 442.
Carbonera (Mariana la) played primeras damas in the com-
pany of Alonso de Olmedo in Seville in 1635. See also under
Reyes (Mariana de los) and Ladron de Guevara
(Mariana).
444 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Carcaba (Da Catalina de) married Diego Lopez de Alcaraz
on Dec. 19, 1610.
Cardenal (Marcos de) represented the auto San Justo y San
Pastor at Seville in 1576, and also represented at Corpus in 1 577>
1580, and 1582.
Cardenas (Cipriano de), actor in the company of Juan Perez
de Tapia in Seville in 1662.
Cardenas (Diego de) and his wife Dona Maria Balbin took
part in Corpus festivals in 1634, 1636, and 1640.
Cardenas (Juan de) played fourth parts in the company of
Magdalena Lopez in Seville in 1677. His wife Maria Paula was
in the same company. He was still living in 1698.
Carmona (Juan) and his wife Francisca Alvarez were in the
company of Antonio de Prado in Valladolid in 1645. (M. y M.;
p. 566.)
Caro (Andres), actor in the company of Andres de la Vega
in 1639-40.
Caro (Juana), actress in the company of Pedro de la Rosa in
Valladolid at Corpus in 1659, and in that of Sebastian de Prado
in 1 66 1, and with Ant. de Escamilla in 1664. This curious notice
is found in reference to the Corpus representation of 1659 in
Zaragoza : "= mande dar ... 24 reales por aber traydo una sylla
de mano todo el dya del corpus y el byernes por la mafiana en que
yba Juana caro comedyanta por estar enferma y no poder yr en el
carro y llebarla asta donde paraban a las rrepresentaciones . . .
= 14 Junio, 1559." (Marti y Monso, Estudios, p. 567.)
Carranza (Pedro de), dancer in the Corpus festivals at
Madrid in 1593, 1598, 1599, and 1604; in the latter year he is
described as a tailor by trade.
Carrasco (Pedro), a famous tenor, was musico in the company
of Antonio de Escamilla in 1663-65 (in the latter year as barba),
and 1670—72 as barba. He married the actress Inez Gallo, but
was afterward (1670) separated from her. "Murio en Indias."
Carrillo (Damian), member of the company of Alonso
Riquelme in 1602, receiving 3 reals daily for maintenance and 10
reals for each performance, besides transportation for himself and
wife. In 1610 he was in the company of Sanchez de Vargas, and
appeared in Lope's La hermosa Ester.
Carrillo (Diego) played fifth galanes in the company of Seb.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 445
de Prado and Juan de la Calle in 1659. He was in the company
of Ant. de Escamilla in 1663—65, and in 1672 as segundo gracioso,
with Felix Pascual in 1673, and with Escamilla in 1675 and 1676.
Carrillo (Feliciana), wife of Jose Carrillo and actress in his
company in 1663.
Carrillo (Jeronimo) player vejetes in the company of An-
tonio de Escamilla in 1678.
Carrillo (Jose) was in the company of Jacinto Riquelme in
Seville in 1652, and in the company of Juana de Cisneros in 1660.
His wife was Feliciana (surname not given). He was a musician
and had a company in Valencia in 1662 and 1663 ; in the latter
year he represented two autos at Corpus in Madrid. He was
probably the author of the burlesque comedia El Robo de Elena y
destruction de Troya. v. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2925.
Carrillo (Juan Bautista) had charge of one of the dances
at Corpus in Madrid in 1628.
Carrillo (Juana), actress in the company of Jacinto Riquelme
in 1652.
Carrion (Jusepe or Jose de) and his wife Jacinta de Osorio
were in the company of Antonio Granados in 1632; he took old
men's parts in the company of Antonio de Rueda in 1639, 1640,
and 1644 in Seville. In 1654 ne was m tne company of Antonio
de Acuna, and later in that of Pedro de la Rosa. In 1659 and 1661
he played barbas in Seb. de Prado's company, and in 1662 in
Simon Aguado and Juan de la Calle's. In 1663 he was in Valencia
with Jose Carrillo, and in 1665 with Felix Pascual. In 1669 he
had a company and took part in the Corpus festival at Seville, and
in 1672 he was in the company of Bernardo de la Vega. He died
in 1676.
Carrion (Manuela de), actress in the company of Lorenzo
Hurtado in 1645, and in the company of Luis Lopez in 1650.
She was received into the Cofradia de la Novena in 1653.
Carrizales (Juan de), actor in the company of Tomas Diaz
in Seville in 1643, and in Lorenzo Hurtado's company in 1645.
Carvajal (Baltasar de), "apacible representante y agradable
versista." (Claramonte, Letania moral, in Gallardo, Ensayo,
II, p. 473.) He appeared in the company of Ortiz de Villazan in
1613, in Lope's La Dama boba. His comedia El Hijo de la Tierra
was published by Professor Restori, under the title La Bandolera
446 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
de Flandes, Halle, 1893. Caravajal is mentioned by Rojas, Viage,
p. 131, among the farsantes who were also playwrights.
Carvajal (Da Catalina), owner of the theater in Lisbon in
1619.
Carvajal (Juan Antonio de), musico in his own company in
Madrid in 1 68 1. He married Paula Lopez. His company and
that of Manuel Vallejo in 1681 represented La divina Filotea and
El Cordero de Isias, the last autos written by Calderon. Carvajal
was the author of both the loas that were represented on this occa-
sion. (Gonzalez Pedroso, Autos Sacramentales, p. 531.)
Carvajal (Manuel de), actor in the company of Carlos de
Salazar in Seville in 1676.
Casanueva (Pedro de), actor in the company of Alonso de
Riquelme in 1610.
Casas (Melchor de las), "Americano, de la Habana," actor
in the companies of Matias de Castro (1673) and Magdalena
Lopez (1674). He and his wife Melchora Rafaela were drowned
at "la barra de Huelva" while in the company of Ines Gallo
in 1678.
Cascan, actor in the cast of Lope de Vega's El Poder en el
Discrete (1624), according to Schack. I think this a mistake for
"Lezcano."
Casco y Rojas (Diego) and his wife Ana Maria de la Mata
were in the company of Sanchez de Vargas in 1633.
Castaneda (Gregorio de) and his wife Feliciana de Andrade
were in the company of Pablo de Morales in Seville in 1678.
Castaneda (Jeronimo de), actor in the company of Andres
de Claramonte in 1614; he and his wife Maria del Amor were
members of a joint company with Pedro Bravo and others from
July of the same year till Shrovetide.
Castano (Micaela) played fourth parts in Bartolome
Romero's company in Seville in 1642 and 1643. Her husband
Roque Castano was in the same company.
Castano (Roque) , see the preceding. He was in Juan Acacio's
company in Seville in 1644.
Castellon (Hernando), actor in the company of Diego
Lopez de Alcaraz in 1610.
Castellon (Jose), member of the company of Jose Garcia de
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 447
Prado in Seville in 1658, and of the company of Juan Perez
de Tapia in 1662.
Castilla (Agustin Manuel de), son of Pedro Manuel de
Castilla, actor and author of the zarzuela El Nieto de su Padre.
v. Restori, Studj, p. 38. He was famous in the parts of galan. In
167 1 he had a company with Felix Pascual, in which he played
first galanes; in 1673 he acted in Pascual 's company, and in 1675
and 1676 he was with Manuel Vallejo. He again had a company
in 1677 and 1678, when he represented autos in Madrid. In 1679
he was in Jose Garcia de Prado's company, and in 1680 in Jero-
nimo Garcia's. He died in Madrid in 1694.
Castilla (Pedro Manuel de), called Mudarra, a celebrated
actor. He played second galanes in the company of Alonso de
Olmedo in 1 63 1 and in the same company in Seville in 1635,
and first galanes in Antonio de Rueda's company in 1638, receiv-
ing 30 reals per day and 500 reals for the Corpus festival. Before
this (in 1637?) he managed a company. (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 369.)
In 1639 he appeared as Don Juan in Calderon's ha Desdicha de la
Voz. He had a company in this year with Antonio de Rueda, and
represented at La Monteria in Seville. He was called Mudarra
on account of his excellence in the principal role in Cubillo's play
El Rayo de Andalucia. He was again in Rueda's company in 1640,
and died at Naples in 1642, leaving a son, Agustin Manuel de
Castilla. His name appears in the cast of Calderon's Troya
abrasada, taking the part of Paris. The autog. MS. of this play
contains a censura dated Feb. 2, 1644, which shows that the
comedia had been previously performed. I owe this information
to Dr. G. T. Northup. See Paz y Melia, Cat., No. 3371.
Castillo (Alonso del) produced one of the autos at Corpus
in Seville in 1572. He was an actor and playwright, and agreed,
in 1589, to furnish Gaspar de Porres (in whose company he was
then acting) with nine comedias written by him, among them
La Escuela de Athenas. He was to receive 5^ reals per day
until he finished the said comedia; "after that, on account of the
plays and his acting, he is to have food and drink and clean linen
and 2^ reals per day, besides 3200 reals, one third to be paid
every four months." Nuevos Datos, p. 25.
Castillo (Andres del) had charge of one of the autos at
Seville in 1574.
448 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Castillo (Antonio del), actor in the company of Jose Garcia
de Prado in Seville in 1658.
Castillo (Dionisia de), wife of Pedro Bravo; both were in
a joint company in Madrid in 1614.
Castillo (Juan del), actor in the company of Francisca
Lopez in Seville in 1660.
Castillo (Pedro del), member of the company of Jeronimo
Sanchez from March 27, 1623, for one year.
Castro. An actor named Castro, and his wife, were in the
company of Rodrigo Osorio in Valencia in I588( ?). See Cotarelo,
Lope de Rueda, p. 30. He is also mentioned by Rojas, Viage,
p. 131, as one of the farsantes who had written farsas, loas, and
bayles before 1600. Perhaps this is Christoual de Castro, who ap-
peared in the entremes (sixteenth century) entitled Un Hijo que
nego a su Padre. See p. 406.
Castro (Antonio de), actor in the company of Juan Acacio
in 1644, and in Jacinto Riquelme's in Seville in 1652. His wife
Catalina de Pena was also in the latter company. His real name
was Zuniga, and he was celebrated in the roles of galan, especially
in the comedias El Licenciado Vidriera (Moreto), Un Bobo hace
ciento (Solis), and El Afamador de Utrera (Belmonte). He had
a company in Seville in 1655 and 1656, and in Valencia in 1664.
He afterward retired from the stage and became alguacil mayor of
Logrofio, where he died in 1684. For his company in 1656, see
SanchezArjona, p. 410.
Castro (D* Beatriz de), or Da Beatriz de Castro y Virues,
wife of the actor and playwright Andres de Claramonte (1604-
1626).
Castro (Benito de), see under Benito [de Castro].
Castro (Damian de), well-known gracioso, son of Matias de
Castro and Juana Gutierrez; he married (after 1684?) Catalina
Hernandez, known as Eufrasia Maria de Reina (S.-A., p. 484, n.),
whom he afterward left, "because it was uncertain whether her
first husband was dead." See Pellicer, II, p. 48, and p. 42, where
he says that Castro was still acting in 1723. He acted in the
Corpus festival at Madrid in 1706. (Paz y Melia, Catalogo,
No. 2957.)
Castro (Francisco de), actor in the company of Tomas Fer-
nandez de Cabredo from Shrovetide, 1619, to Shrovetide, 1620,
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 449
and in the company of Cristobal de Avendano in 1622. In 1623
he was in Manuel Vallejo's company. (N. D., p. 201.)
Castro (Francisco de) and his wife Antonia de Santiago were
members of the company of Luis Lopez in Seville in 1650. In
1 65 1 he had a company which represented the autos at Seville.
Castro (Francisco de), el Farruco, son of Matias de Castro
y Salazar and Juana Gutierrez, was a gracioso in Valencia in 1692.
His second wife (1700) was Salvadora de Estrada. He died in
1 7 14. He was the author of the entremeses noted by Paz y Melia,
Catdlogo, Nos. 1369, 1783, 2134, 2597, and 3426. See Barrera,
Catalogo, p. 79. h
Castro (Da Isabel de), celebrated actress in the company of
Andres de la Vega in 1635; in the following year, when she is
designated as a widow, she played third parts in the company of
Tomas Fernandez de Cabredo, receiving 14 reals daily. In
1638-39 she was again in the company of Andres de la Vega,
playing first and second parts, dancing and singing.
Castro (Da Jeronima de), widow, actress in the company of
Andres de la Vega in 1636, for one year, beginning Feb. 7, playing
second parts, singing and dancing.
Castro (Juan de), v. Castro y Salazar (Matias).
Castro (Lorenzo de), el G die go, actor in the company of
Luis Lopez in Seville in 1650. His wife was Maria de Quesada,
and he had a son Sebastian de Castro.
Castro (Luis de), autor de comedias in 1602 and 1603, in con-
junction with Juan de Tapia and Alonso de Paniagua. His wife
(1602) was Isabel de Ledesma. He was in the company styled
Los Andaluces in 1605, and in a joint company in 1614.
Castro (Maria de), wife of Alonso de Uceta, of the com-
panies of Figueroa and Avendano (1632). She was in the com-
pany of Juan Bautista Valenciano with her husband Diego de
Uceta (sic) in March, 1623. (Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 248.)
Castro (Mariana de), widow, actress in the company of
Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan in 1623, in which year her wages
were attached by Gabriel Gonzalez Flores, lessee of the theaters
of Madrid.
Castro (Matias de), v. Castro y Salazar.
Castro (Pedro de) and his wife Francisca Gevaro were in
Domingo Balbin's company in Seville in 1613.
450 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Castro (Silvestre de), actor in the company of Diego Lopez
de Alcaraz in 1610.
Castro (Ventura de), son of Matias de Castro and Mana
de la Cruz, and member of his father's company in 1673.
Castro y Guzman (Bernarda de), wife of Diego de Valdes
Toral; both were in the company of Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla
for one year from Feb. 4, 1637, she playing first parts.
Castro y Salazar (Juan de), actor, brother of the following
(Matias de Castro).
Castro y Salazar (Matias de), Alcaparrilla, born in 1629,
son of D. Pedro de Castro and Antonia Granados, was an actor in
Valladolid in 1652. His first wife, who never appeared on the
stage, was Maria de la Cruz of Toledo, by whom he had eleven
children; his second wife was Juana Gutierrez, by whom he had
fourteen more. They were born all over Spain, and Sanchez-
Arjona (p. 460) gives a list of some of them. Castro and his
second wife, who was a daughter of Francisco Gutierrez, were
members of Juan Perez de Tapia's company in Seville in 1662,
and were in the company of Francisco Gutierrez in 1668. He
played the part of gracioso. In 1672 he was with Felix Pascual.
(M. y M., p. 567.) In 1673 he had a company, which he took
to Madrid in August, and afterward to Seville, where he per-
formed from Nov. 1 till Shrove Tuesday, 1674; and in 1683
represented Calderon's auto La Cura y la Enfermedad, also in
Madrid, where he died in 1 69 1. He was an author of entremeses
and jdcaras. v. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, Nos. 2134, 2443, and
2502. One of his sons, Juan, also an actor, married in turn:
Mari-Gomez, Teresa de la Cueva, and Angela Diaz.
Castro y Salazar (D. Pedro Antonio de), father of the
preceding, was a native of Logrono and alguacil mayor of that city.
He fell in love with the actress Antonia Granados (la divina
Antandra) , sister of the famous autor de comedias Antonio de
Granados, and adopted the stage as a profession. They had three
children: Matias de Castro y Salazar, Juan de Castro y Salazar,
and Susana de Castro y Salazar. Don Pedro died after being
eight years on the stage. He was also a playwright, v. Barrera,
Catdlogo, pp. 79, 516.
Catalan (Antonia Manuela), v. Antonia Manuela.
Catalan (Juan) and his wife Mariana de Guevara were
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 451
members of the company of Alonso de Riquelme in 1606 for one
year from Shrovetide to Shrovetide. He had a company in 1617.
Ceballos or Zavallos (Juan de) and his wife Maria de
Corbellas were members of Claramonte's company in March, 1614,
and in Vallejo's company in 1631. In 1632 both belonged to the
company of Antonio de Prado.
Ceballos or Zavallos (Maria de), her husband Diego de
Guevara, and her mother Maria de Corbella were in the com-
pany of Manuel Vallejo in 1631, when she appeared in Lope's
El Castigo sin Venganza. She and her husband took part in
Benavente's entremes Las Duenas, given by the companies of
Antonio de Prado and Roque de Figueroa in the Buen Retiro in
i635-36( ?). (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 322.)
Cebrian (Pedro), well-known autor de comedias, and one of
the twelve authorized by the decree of 1615. In 1616 he repre-
sented Lope's comedia Quien mas no puede, and two autos in
Madrid at Corpus. See, however, Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 381,
from which he seems to have represented in Toledo at Corpus. In
1 61 7 he represented two autos at Pastrana, receiving 3150 rs.
In 1619 his company played twenty-four days in Toledo, beginning
at Easter; he also represented at Corpus in Madrid in this year,
and at Las Navas and Segovia, and later took his company to
Lisbon, to perform for three months, beginning on Dec. 1, 1619.
He also first produced Jimenez de Enciso's Los Medicis de Flo-
rencia. (Schack, Nach., p. 43.) In 1620 he represented the autos
Los Angeles and La Conversion de San Pablo in Seville. His wife
(Sept. 4, 1616) was Ana Munoz, probably the widow of Antonio
de Villegas. On this date he bought a house in the Calle de
Cantarranas for 2900 ducats. (Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 381.)
Celada (Francisco de), in charge of the dances at Corpus
in Madrid in 1577, 1589, 1591, 1593, and 1594.
Celada (Lorenzo de), actor in Madrid in 1584, and in the
company of Sebastian de Montemayor in 1589.
Celis (Barbola de), actress, married Jeronimo de Velasco in
Valladolid in 1632.
Cenzano (Pedro), dancer in charge of the dances at Corpus
in Madrid in 1595 and 1596.
Cepeda (Diego de), joint lessee of the theaters of Madrid in
1639 with Gabriel Garcia Flores and Francisco de Alegria. The
452 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
name Cepeda occurs in the cast of Lope's Los Mdrtires del
Japon.
Cera (Felipe de), of Jaen, musician in the company of
Gaspar de Porres in 1609.
Cerda (Luis Antonio de la), in the company of Pedro de
la Rosa in 1636, "to sing, play, and act."
Cerdeno (Luis), silversmith of Seville, in charge of one of
the autos at Corpus in Seville in 1561, 1563, 1570. ana" I57i-
Cereceda (Francisco de) and his wife Maria Ruiz were in a
joint company in 1637.
Cerezo de Guevara (Pedro), actor in the company of Gas-
par de Porres in 1604, and in Feb., 1614, engaged to act for one
year in the company of Pedro de Valdes, receiving 5 reals daily
for maintenance and 12 reals for each performance, besides 200
reals for Corpus. Later in the same year (June 19) he agreed
to act in a joint company with Claramonte until Shrovetide, 1615,
and in 161 6 had a company which represented two of the autos
at the Corpus festival at Madrid.
Cerquera (Ignacio), gracioso mentioned by Pellicer, II, p. 60.
Ceruela, actor who appeared in Lope's El Sembrar en buena
tierra (1616).
Cintor (Antonio), cobrador in the company of Luis Bernardo
de Bovadilla in Feb., 1638; and in Aug., 1638, in the company
of Damian de Espinosa. He had a company later in the same year.
Cintor (Gabreil), well-known actor (galan) in the company
of Tomas Fernandez in 1622. (B. H. (1908), p. 245.) In 1631
he was in the company of Lorenzo Hurtado, and in 1637 with
Bartolome Romero, receiving 10 reals daily for maintenance and
18 reals for each performance. In this year he took part in
the autos at Madrid, playing the parts of Pedro de la Rosa in the
latter's company. (CalderonDocumentoSjp.no.) He was with
Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla in Feb., 1638, receiving 10 + 20 reals
daily, and in July of the same year he was with Gabriel de
Espinosa. In 1639-40 he was in the company of Juan Rodriguez
de Antriago, and later had his own company. He died in great
poverty (in 1660?) in the General Hospital of Madrid.
Cintor (Pedro), actor in the company of Diego Lopez de
Alcaraz in 1607. In Lope de Vega's El Bastardo Mudarra ( 1612)
the part of Gonzalo Bustos is assigned to Cintor. This is probably
Pedro Cintor. In the same play Ana Maria and Cintorrico also
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 453
occur. In a loa written by Lope, about 1625-30, and published
by Barrera {Life of Lope de Vega, p. 292) , a "Cintor de Talavera"
is mentioned. The name Cintor also occurs in the cast of Cor-
deiro's El Favor en la sentencia, dated 1626, in Lope's La Con-
petencia en los Nobles, 1628 (?), and in El Brasil Restituido
(1626).
Cisneros (Alonso de), perhaps the most famous of all the
early autores de comedias, was born in Toledo about 1550. We
first hear of him as an autor in 1578, when he represented the
autos at Corpus in Madrid; in 1580 he represented the autos in
Madrid and appeared in the Corral de Puente, in the Calle del
Lobo, and frequently in the succeeding years. See Appendix A.
In 1582 he again represented at Corpus in Madrid, and in 1584
in Toledo, while in 1590 he resided at Madrid. His wife was
Mariana Paez de Sotomayor, daughter of Pedro Paez de Soto-
mayor and Ana Ortiz. She died in Seville, apparently, in January,
1590, "leaving much property and jewelry." Cisneros also repre-
sented at Corpus in Madrid in 1590 and 1591 and at Toledo in
1592, receiving 200 ducats = 2200 reals. In 1593 and 1595 he
again represented autos at Madrid, receiving 640 ducats. He died
on Sept. 10, 1597. {Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 368.) However, if
this date of Cisneros' death be correct, there is something wrong
in the document published in the Nuevos Datos on p. 356. It is
upon this that I had relied for my former statement that Cisneros
was still living in Jan., 1608. Lope de Vega, in his Peregrino en
su Patria (1604), speaking of Cisneros, says: "The fourth comedia
{El Perseguido) was represented by Cisneros, to whom no one
can be compared since the invention of comedias." Cabrera's story
concerning Cisneros is given by Sanchez-Arjona, p. 67. It may
be added that in 1581 he represented Juan de la Cueva's El
Infamador in the Huerta de Dona Elvira in Seville, which city
he also visited in 1585, 1588, and 1589, taking part in the
Corpus festivals. Suarez de Figueroa, in his Plaza Universal
(1615), mentions him among the famous actors then deceased. See
also Barrera, Catdlogo, p. 92.
Cisneros (Diego de) and his daughter Maria de Cisneros
were in the company of Bernardo de la Vega in Seville in 1672.
In 1669 he was in Garceran's company. His wife was Maria
Andrada or Andrade.
Cisneros (Juana de), actress in the company of Antonio de
454 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Prado in Seville in 1639. In 1651 she still played primeras damas
in Sebastian de Prado's company in Toledo, and in 1 660 had a
company in Seville at Corpus and in Madrid in Nov. and Dec,
and in 1661 in Madrid.
Cisneros (Luis de), actor in Roque de Figueroa's company
in 1631-32, taking old men's parts. See Rosell, Vol. I, PP. 45>
168, 231, and Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206. He died in 1634.
Cisneros (Maria de), v. Cisneros (Diego). She played in
the company of Antonio de Escamilla in 1677 and 1678, and in
Manuel Vallejo's company in 1679—81. She was the second wife
(in 1676?) of Manuel de Mosquera. She also married Jose
Jimeno, from whom she was divorced. (Gallardo, I, p. 690.)
Clara, actress in the cast of Lope's La hermosa Ester (1610)
in the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas.
Clara Maria played first parts in the company of her mother,
Magdalena Lopez, in Seville in 1677. In 1675 they managed a
company jointly.
Claramonte [y Corroy] (Andres de), well-known actor
and playwright, was a native of Murcia. Rojas names him in
1603 among the actors who were also playwrights. (Viage,
p. 141.) In 1604 he belonged to the company of Baltasar Pinedo
in Valladolid, when he married Dona Beatriz de Castro y Virues.
He was one of the twelve autores authorized by the Council of
1615. He is first mentioned as an autor in 161 1, and in 1614
was the head of a joint company. His Letania moral was printed
in 1613; in 161 7 he lived in Seville, and in 1 62 1 published there
"dos famosas loas a lo divino" : La Asuncion de la Virgen and
Las calles de Sevilla. In 1623 he received 300 reals for his auto
El Valle de la Muerte, represented by Tomas Fernandez, and in
June of the same year he received 300 reals for the auto Los
Corporales de Daroca, played by Alonso de Olmedo. In 1624
two other autos sacramentales by him were represented at Seville:
La Sinagoga, represented by Andres de la Vega, and El Homo de
Constantinopla, represented by Tomas Fernandez. The latter is
the only auto by Claramonte that has been preserved. In 1620
he wrote for Juan Bautista Valenciano the comedia La infeliz
Dorotea (MS. in the Bib. Nac). It was represented in the
Coliseo at Seville, the part of Dorotea being played by Da Manuela
Enriquez, wife of Juan Bautista. The MS. shows that the part
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 455
of Nufio de Lemos was played by Andres. Perhaps this was
Claramonte. He visited Valencia (before 161 6) and is highly
praised in the loa to Tarrega's La Duquesa constante:
Un monte claro, que a esta tierra vino.
He died on Sept. 19, 1626, in the Calle del Nino, Madrid.
Clavijo (Antonio) was in the company of Alonso de Cis-
neros and Melchor de Villalba for two years, beginning March 5,
J595> receiving 2^ reals daily for maintenance and 9 reals for
each representation, "besides a doubloon each year toward washing
his linen."
Cobaleda (Pedro de) and his wife Luisa de Guevara were
members of the company of Juan Martinez for one year, beginning
at Shrovetide, 1 63 1. In 1639 he had a company with Francisco
Velez de Guevara and Francisco Alvarez de Vitoria.
Coca (Ana de), wife of the autor Manuel de Coca y Reyes.
Coca y Reyes (Manuel de or Manuel de los Reyes y
Coca), famous gracioso in the company of Roque de Figueroa in
1630. In 1631-32 he and his wife Ana or Juana de Coca were
in the company of Roque de Figueroa; he was also in the same
company in 1635 and appeared in Peligrar en los Remedios by
Rojas Zorrilla. In 1634 ne was m tne company of Esteban Nunez
in Seville. He was in Barcelona in 1636, and in 1640 and 1643
belonged to the company of Manuel Vallejo, and in 1645 was
with Luis Lopez in Seville, and died at Estremera in 1660, while
in the company of Esteban Nunez.
Collazo (Isabel), actress in the company of Nicolas de los
Rios at Valladolid in 1603, when she married Juan Diez or Diaz,
actor in the same company. (Marti y Monso, Estudios, p. 566.)
Compania Espanola (La), a joint company organized in
May, 1602, by Pedro Rodriguez, Diego de Rojas, and Gaspar de
los Reyes.
Conde (Gavina), actress in the company of Manuel Vallejo
in 1640, perhaps the wife of the following.
Conde (Pedro), member of Manuel Vallejo's company in 1640.
Contreras (Manuel de), actor in a joint company with
Hernan Sanchez de Vargas and others in 1634, beginning at
Shrovetide, and continuing for one year.
456 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Contreras (Manuela de), "single woman" in the company
of Bartolome Romero in 1638-39.
Contreras (Pedro de), musico in the company of Roque de
Figueroa (1628?). See the loas of Quinones de Benavente, ed.
Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 168 and 381. In 1637 and 1639 he was in
the company of Pedro de la Rosa, playing fourth parts.
Contreras (Xines de), oficial in the company of Gaspar de
Porres in 1 600, and in the company of Baltasar Pinedo in Valla-
dolid in 1604. (M. y M., p. 566.)
Corbella (Angela de) , wife of the autor Luis Lopez de Sus-
taete (1634-41). Their children were: Maria, Josefa Luisa,
Micaela Francisca, and Francisco Manuel Lopez. She was still
living on Dec. 21, 1641.
Corbella (Maria de), wife of Juan de Ceballos or Zevallos;
both were members of the company of Andres de Claramonte from
March 28, 1614, till Shrovetide, 1615, and of Antonio de Prado's
company in 1632. Their daughter Maria de Ceballos or Zevallos
was the wife of Diego de Guevara.
Cordoba (Cipriano de), actor in the company of Matias de
Castro in Seville in 1673.
Cordoba (Diego de), actor in the company of Gaspar de
Porres in 1593.
Cordoba (Gonzalo de), actor in the Corpus festival at Seville
in 1594.
Cordoba ( Isabel de) , wife of the autor Antonio Martinez in
1619. Their daughter was the famous Maria de Cordoba (Jma-
rilis). They lived in the Calle de los Negros, in a house bought
from Bartolome Salcedo. Both seem to have died before Feb. 1,
1632. (N. D., p. 223.)
Cordoba (Jeronimo de), actor in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1623.
Cordoba (Maria de), Amarilis, also called la Gran Sultana,
one of the most famous of Spanish actresses. See my Life of Lope
de Vega, pp. 350 et seq. She was the daughter of Antonio Mar-
tinez and Isabel de Cordoba, both of Madrid, and the wife of the
actor and autor Andres de la Vega at least as early as 1 61 8, when
both belonged to the company of Baltasar Pinedo. (B. H. ( 1907),
p. 382.) In 161 7 she appeared as Dona Ana in Alarcon's Las
Paredes oyen; in 1620 (dia de Sant Miguel) she was in the com-
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 457
pany of Pedro de Valdes (Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 243), and in
1 62 1 she and her husband were in the company of Tomas Fer-
nandez. She was in her husband's company in 1624 and took part
in the autos and in the festival given by the Duke of Medina
Sidonia to Philip IV. in Seville in that year. In the same year
they represented Claramonte's auto La Sinagoga and Lope de
Vega's El Pastor Lobo. In 1625 she appeared in Lope's El Brasil
restituido, and at Corpus, 1626, she took part in the festival of
Madrid, being in the company of her husband. In Nov., 1626,
Amarilis managed a company which gave eight comedias before
the King at Aranjuez, for which she received 2400 reals, besides
an ayuda de casta of 2600 reals "for going to Aranjuez." She
played the part of Hero in Mescua's Hero y Leandro before 1629,
and her company represented El Cerco de Fuenterrabia by Cris-
tobal de Morales: "Representola la compania de Amarilis."
(Schmidt, Calderon, p. 25.) Her company also first performed
Tirso's Cautela contra Cautela. (Comedias de Tirso, Part II,
1635.) In 1632, dia de candelas, she received 800 reals, and cos-
tumes for herself, besides transportation, board and lodging for her-
self and maid, "to act, sing, and dance in two comedias at the village
of Daganzo ; the comedias to be selected from the following" : ( 1 )
No hay Dicha ni Desdicha hasta la Muerte (Mira or Rojas Zo-
rrilla) ; (2) Amar como se hade A mar (Lope) ; (3) El Milagro por
los Celos (Lope) ; (4) Sufrir mas porquerermas (Villayzan) ; (5)
El Mariscal de Biron (Montalvan) ; (6) La Puente de Mantible
(Calderon) ; (7) La Dicha del Forastero (Lope) ; (8) ElExamen
de Maridos (Alarcon). In 1639 she acted in four comedias in
Valdemoro at Corpus, receiving board, lodging, and traveling ex-
penses for herself and maid, and 1000 reals. In Sept., 1640, her
husband agreed to represent two comedias at the Villa del Escorial,
"if my wife Maria de Cordoba goes ; but if la Carbonera [Mariana
de los Reyes] should go, then I must give three comedias."
(N. D., p. 325.) She was acting at least as late as 1643, and died
in Madrid in 1678, after having retired from the stage more than
thirty years before. She is extravagantly praised by Guillen de
Castro in his comedia Enganarse enganando (written in 1624 or
earlier), and by Don Alonso de Castillo Solorzano in his novel Las
Harpias de Madrid (1631), who speaks of Amarilis as "la mayor
comica que ahora se conoce" ; v. the edition by Cotarelo, Madrid,
1907, p. 84. v. text.
458 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Cordoba (Sebastiana de), sister of Maria, and wife of Luis
de Toledo (1632).
Coronado (Diego), famous actor of the second half of the
seventeenth century.
Coronado (Da Isabel), wife of the autor Alonso Caballero;
she died in Seville in July, 1666, leaving a daughter, Manuela
Caballero, also an actress.
Coronel (Agustin), native of "Oropesa in the Kingdom
of Toledo." He was in the company of Alonso de Riquelme
in 1602, taking charge of the wardrobe and managing the traveling
of the company, receiving 2j4 reals for maintenance and 3 reals
daily during the two years of his contract. In 1606, 1607, and
1 6 10 he was again in Riquelme's company, and in the latter year
appeared in Lope's La buena Guar da. In 161 7 he was in Juan
Bautista's company and appeared in Lope's El Desden vengado.
In 1 6 19 he was with Cristobal Ortiz in Seville, and in 1620, 1622,
and 1623 again with Juan Bautista Valenciano, appearing in 1622
in Lope's La nueva Victoria de D. Gonzalo de Cordoba. In 1620
he took the part of Arnao in Claramonte's Infelice Dorotea. In
1643 he is called autor de comedias, and with his wife Maria
Coronel and his daughter Barbara Coronel, then eleven years old,
was acting in the company of Tomas Diaz in Seville, and in the
following year he was in the company of Juan Acacio in the same
city. He first represented Serrano's El Rayo de Cataluha.
(Barrera, Cat., p. 369.)
Coronel (Ana), actress, wife of Luis de Guevara (1621).
Coronel (Barbara), daughter of Agustin and Maria Coro-
nel, was in the company of Tomas Diaz in Seville in 1643 with
her parents. She was born in 1632, and married Francisco Jalon.
Being suspected of some part in her husband's death, she was im-
prisoned in Guadalajara, but was set free through the efforts of
her uncle Cosme Perez {Juan Rana). She is said to have worn
men's clothes through contempt for her sex. She had a company
in Valencia in 1676 and died in 1691. (Pellicer, II, p. 28.)
Coronel (Jeronima de), wife of Diego Jimenez; both were
in the company of Tomas Diaz in Seville in 1643, with Juan
Acacio in 1644, and with Lorenzo Hurtado in Seville in 1645.
In 1648 she was a widow and was in the company of Esteban
Nunez in Seville, and in 1650 was with Luis Lopez. In 1663
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 459
she is designated as a "married woman" and was in the com-
pany of Francisca Lopez, to which her second husband, Francisco
de la Calle, also belonged. Cotarelo (Migajas del Ingenio, p. 198)
says that Jeronima was the sister of Barbara Coronel.
Coronel (Juan), actor in the company of Antonio de Prado
in Seville in 1639. He married Isabel de Gongora, widow of
Juan Vizcaino (in 1639?). He was a hidalgo of Jadraque and
was for a time a member of the companies of Pedro de la Rosa and
Bartolome Romero.
Coronel (Maria), wife of Agustin Coronel. She was proba-
bly the Dona Maria in the cast of Lope de Vega's El Desden
Vengado (1617), in which her husband' also appeared. She was
an actress and dancer in the company of Cristobal de Avendano at
Corpus in Seville in 1625, and received a gratuity of 10 ducats,
"por lo bien que bailo con las sonajas en uno de los carros." In
1643 she was in the company of Tomas Diaz in Seville, and in
1 644 with Juan Acacio.
Correa (Ana), actress and dancer in the latter half of the
seventeenth century. Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 2284 (8), notes
•a bade written for her and Francisco Ponce.
Correa (Juan), antiguo autor mentioned by Rojas, Viage
entretenido, p. 361.
Correa (Juan), actor in the company of Juan Perez de Tapia
in Seville in 1655.
Correa (Ursula), wife of Felipe Anteta; both were in the
company of Juan Nunez, el Polio, in 1658.
Correa Muniz (Antonio), one of the lessees of La Monteria
in Seville in 1639.
Cos (Andres de) played second barbas, 1667-83, in 1678
with Escamilla, in 1679, 1680, and 1681 with Vallejo. His wife
Maria Ayora was the daughter of Juan de Ayora and Ursula de
Torres.
Cosme, v. Perez (Cosme).
Cristobal, famous as a galan in 1602. See Rojas, Viage entre-
tenido, p. 52. He was in the company of Antonio de Prado, and
appeared in Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta J nana, written in 161 4.
He is mentioned by Figueroa in his Plaza Universal (1615), and
appeared in Lope's Quien mas no puede (1616).
460 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Cruz (Blas de la), prompter and stage manager in the com-
pany of Juan Roman in 1639.
Cruz (Francisco de la) was one of the managers of the
theater in Lisbon in 1638.
Cruz (Gregoria Delgado de la), actress, married Jeronimo
de Avila in 1645. Both seem to have been in the company of Bar-
tolome Romero. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Cruz (Ines de la), actress, widow in 1637.
Cruz (Juan de la), musician of Granada, was the fiTst hus-
band of Francisca Diaz, afterward the wife of Antonio de Esca-
milla. Their children were known as Ana and Maria de Escamilla.
(Migajas del Ingenio, ed. Cotarelo, p. 202.)
Cruz (Luisa de la), actress in the company of Antonio de
Prado in 1632-35 (?). She frequently figures in the entremeses
of Benavente in the company of Antonio de Prado. v. Rosell,
I, pp. 127, 271, 312, 322. Her husband was Juan Antonio Sando-
val. She was an excellent singer and musician, and appeared in
Lope's Fabula de Perseo. She died in 1658.
Cruz (Maria de la), first wife of Matias de Castro y Salazar
(after 1650). She never appeared upon the stage.
Cruz ado (Francisco), actor in the company of Nicolas de los
Rios in Seville in 1609.
Cucarella (Ginesa), v. Cucarella (Juan Vicente).
Cucarella (Jose), v. Cucarella (Juan Vicente).
Cucarella (Juan Vicente), his wife Ginesa, and their son
Jose were in Avendano's company in 1632.
Cuebas, actor in the company of Cebrian in 1616, when he
appeared in Lope's Quien mas no puede. He was probably a
gracioso, and also appeared in the anonymous comedia Paciencia en
la Fortuna. See Restori, Studj, p. 143. Perhaps he is the same as
Juan de Cuevas or Juan de la Cueva. Cueva (Juan de la) and
his wife Ursula de Berrio or Ursula del Rio were in the company
of Andres de la Vega in 1638. Juan de Cuevas played fifth parts
in Pedro de la Rosa's company in 1639. (S.-A., p. 327.)
Cueva (Rodrigo de la), actor in the company of Alonso de
Villalba in 161 4.
Cuevas (Alonso de las), in charge of dances at Corpus in
1594, 1598, and 1599.
Cuevas (Jusepe de las), brother of the preceding, was in
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 461
charge of the dances at Corpus in Madrid in 1577-79, 1584-87,
1589, 1590, 1592, 1594-99-
Cuevas (Pedro Alonso de las), jubetero, in charge of the
dances at Corpus in Madrid, 1576-79. He died before March, 1592.
Cuevas (Salvador de las), actor in Manuel Vallejo's com-
pany in 1670 (second gracioso), 1675, and 1676; in 1671 he was
with Felix Pascual; in 1677 with Agustin Manuel de Castilla,
and in 1680 he was second gracioso in the company of Jeronimo
Garcia. In 1681 he was prompter in Carvajal's company. He
died, very poor, in Madrid on April 21, 1702. His wife was
Maria de San Miguel, by whom he had five children: Teresa,
Narcisa, Manuela, Francisco, and Lorenzo de las Cuevas or de la
Cueva. Of these Manuela and Francisco were also players.
(Cotarelo, Migajas del Ingenio, p. 201.)
Culebras (Jeronimo de), actor in the company of Jimenez de
Valenzuela in 1601, and in that of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz in
1607. He and his wife Marina de Torres were members of the
company of Alonso de Villalba in 161 4.
Curcio Romano, Italian actor, whose company represented
an auto in Toledo in 1579, receiving 50,000 maravedis. His real
name was Vincenzo Botanelli, and in 1581 he was subdirector of
Ganassa's company in Madrid, v. Cotarelo, Revista de Archivos,
1908, p. 52.
Cusio (Ana), wife of Francisco Perez Lobillo in 163 1.
Cusio (Catalina), sister of the preceding.
Chavarri (Jeronimo de), actor in the company of Bartolome
Romero and Juan de la Calle in 1664, and in Antonio de Esca-
milla's in 1665.
Chavarria (Andres de), actor in a joint company called Los
Conformes in 1623.
Chaves (Antonio de), actor in the company of Gabriel Vaca
in March, 1598.
Chaves (Magdalena de), wife of Pedro Maldonado, autor
de comedias in March, 161 1, when they lived "in their own
house" in the Calle de Cantarranas.
Damian, actor who appeared in Lope's La Conpetencia en los
Nobles (1628). Perhaps this was Damian Arias or Damian
Carrillo.
462 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Davila (Pedro), of Carabanchel de Abajo, actor in the com-
pany of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz in 1605. On Jan. 1, 1606, he
agreed to act in the company of Alonso Riquelme.
Delgado (Jose) was fourth galan in the company of Jeronimo
Vallejo in 1660.
Diago (Gaspar), native of Valencia, married Catalina Sanchez
of Aragon at Valladolid in 1655, both being then in the company
of Pedro de la Rosa. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Diaz (Alonso) , member of the company of Bartolome Romero
in 1642.
Diaz (Diego), actor in the company of Alonso Cisneros in 1595.
Diaz ( Francisca) , wife of Antonio de Escamilla, and mother
of Manuela de Escamilla.
Diaz ( Francisco ) , actor in the company of Antonio de Rueda
in Seville in 1644.
Diaz (Isabel), wife of the autor Carlos de Salazar, and in his
company in Seville in 1676. ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 484.)
Diaz (Josepa), member of the company of Bartolome Romero
in Seville in 1643.
Diaz (Juan), "guarda mayor de la ropa de Rios." (Rojas,
Viage entretenido, p. 404.) This is probably Juan Diez, who mar-
ried Isabel Collazo in Valladolid in 1603, when both were acting
in the company of Rios. (Marti y Monso, Estudios, p. 566.)
v. Godoy (Juan Diaz).
Diaz (Jusepe), actor in Lorenzo Hurtado's company in Seville
at Corpus, 1642; he appeared in Bartolome Romero's company in
the same year, playing third parts and singing.
Diaz (Luis), gilder, had charge of some of the autos repre-
sented at Seville in 1570-75.
Diaz (Luiz), actor in the company of Lorenzo Hurtado in
Seville in 1645.
Diaz (Tomas), el Labrador, autor de comedias, had a company
in Seville in 1643 (S.-A., p. 369), when he represented thirty
comedias in the Coliseo from Sept. 15, among them "six new
ones, never before acted in Seville during the last thirty years."
In 1644 he was in the company of Juan Acacio, and in 1645 in the
company of Luis Lopez.
Diaz Navarrete (Alonso), actor in the company of Cristo-
bal de Avendano in 1623, and in the same company, with his
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 463
wife Antonia de Vitoria, in 1632. Both appeared in Lope's
La Conpetencia en los Nobles (1628).
Diaz de Robles (Pedro) and his wife Juliana Candau were
in the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631, and in that of Andres
de la Vega in 1638-39.
Diego, actor in Antonio de Prado's company in 1632-35 (?).
(Rosell, I, p. 322.) This is probably Diego de Guevara, husband
of Maria de Ceballos, who was in the same company. See also
under Mencos, Nauarrete, Robledo.
Diest (Miguel) and his wife Manuela de Escamilla were in
the company of Sebastian de Prado and Juan de la Calle in
Dec, 1659.
Dios (Ana de), actress in the company of Felix Pascual in
i665-68(?).
Dolza (Jose) took subordinate parts in the company of Ber-
nardo de la Vega in Seville in 1672.
Domingo (Vicente), "tocaba con gran primor el clarin." His
wife was Luisa Lopez, daughter of the autor Luis Lopez de
Sustaete.
Domingo (Vicente) and his wife Luisa Antonia were in the
company of Francisco Gutierrez in Seville in 1668.
Dominguez (Andres), actor in the company of Alonso
Riquelme in 1 6 10. The name Dominguez also occurs in the cast
of Lope's La gran Columna fogosa (1629).
Dominguez (Cebrian) and his wife Maria Tardia were
players in Madrid in 1619.
Dorotea, actress in the company of Bartolome Romero in
i63i(?). She appeared in the cast of Jacinto Cordero's play El
Favor de la Sentencia, written in 1626. ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 272.)
See also under Sierra.
Duarte (Ambrosio) or Ambrosio Duarte [Martinez?],
a Portuguese musician, and his wife Maria de Prado were in the
company of Antonio de Prado in Valladolid in 1645 and in that of
Sebastian de Prado in Nov., 165 1; she played primeras damas,
and both (he as musico) were in the same company in 1659, 1661,
and 1662 (with Prado and Escamilla), when she played segundas.
In 1663 both were in Jose Carrillo's company, she playing first
parts. In 1664 both were in the company of Bartolome Romero
464 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
and Juan de la Calle, and in 1665 in the company of Francisco
Garcia (Pupilo).
Duarte (Gabriel), actor in the company of Alonso de Cis-
neros and Melchor de Villalba for one year from March 5> I595>
and in the company of Jimenez de Valenzuela in 1602. He agreed
to act in the company of Juan de Morales Medrano in 1606, and
afterwards withdrew. He was with Alonso de Heredia in 1614,
and with Hernan Sanchez de Vargas for two years (1617-19).
Duarte (Jeronimo), member of the company of Jacinto
Riquelme in Seville in 1652.
Duarte (Martin), actor in a joint company in 1614, and in
the company of Juan Roman in March, 1639, in which he agreed
to act for one year; in the following month we find him in the
company of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago, to act at Corpus in the
villa de Borox.
Elguero (Francisco) and his wife Francisca Munoz took
part in the Corpus festival at Truxeque and Penalver in 1636,
and at Hita in 1637.
Elvira (Francisco de) of Alcaraz and Juan Ibafiez produced
the dances and "inventions" at the Corpus festival at Alcaraz
in 1554.
Enciso (Francisco de), "cloth-shearer," and his wife Sebas-
tiana de la Paz acted, sang, and danced at the Corpus festival at
Galapagar in 1619, and at Fuente de Saz in the same year.
Enriquez, early actor mentioned by Rojas, Viage, p. 13.
Enriquez (Diego), actor in the company of Hernan Sanchez
de Vargas for one year from Nov. II, 1633.
Enriquez (Jacinto), member of the company of Luis Lopez
in Seville in 1645, and with Esteban Nunez in 1648.
Enriquez (Da Manuela) of Valencia, wife of Juan Bautista
Valenciano; she was in her husband's company in 1617, and
appeared in Lope de Vega's El Desden vengado. She and her hus-
band were in the company of Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan at
Corpus in Seville in 1619, when Manuela received a gratuity of
50 ducats for excellent acting. She was in the company of her hus-
band in Seville in 1620, also receiving a gratuity, and appeared in
the title role of Claramonte's La infeliz Dorotea. In 1621 and
1622 she was again in her husband's company, appearing in the
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 465
latter year in Lope's Nueva Victoria de D. Gonzalo de Cordoba.
She is probably the Emanuela Henrriques, widow, who was resid-
ing in Valencia in 1628. v. text, p. 193, n. 8.
Enriquez (Pedro), actor in the company of Juan Roman in
March, 1639 ; in the following month he was one of a joint com-
pany under Juan Rodriguez de Antriago, until Shrovetide, 1640.
Enriquez (Tomas) , celebrated gracioso; in the company of
Antonio de Prado in 1624, and in Romero's company in 1637 till
Shrovetide, 1639. He was in Seville in 1642, 1643, and 1645, in
the company of Bart. Romero, his name also appearing in the com-
pany of Luis Lopez, in Seville, in the latter year. His wife was
Maria Roman, la Asturiana, also called Marimorena.
Escamilla (Antonio de), native of Cordoba. His real name
was Antonio Vazquez. He married Francisca Diaz in Granada,
and had two daughters, Manuela and Maria de Escamilla. Cota-
relo, Migajas del Ingenio, p. 202, says that Ana and Maria de
Escamilla were the daughters of Francisca Diaz and her first
husband Juan de la Cruz, musician, of Granada, and that Manuela
was the only daughter of Escamilla and Francisca Diaz. Antonio
de Escamilla we find as a member of Antonio de Prado's company
in 1650, and in 1 65 1 he and his daughter Maria were in the com-
pany of Sebastian de Prado. In 1659 he was gracioso in the
company of Sebastian de Prado and Juan de la Calle, and in 1661
had a company at the Corpus festival in Madrid. In 1662 he had
a company with Sebastian de Prado, and represented autos with his
own company in 1663, 1664, 1665, 1670, 1671, and 1672. In 1673
he was in the company of Felix Pascual; in 1674 as gracioso with
Simon Aguado, and in 1675, 1676, 1677, and 1678 he again had a
company and represented autos at Madrid. In 1679, 1680, and
1681 he was in Manuel Vallejo's {el Mozo) company, as gracioso.
In Sept., 1690, he was in Cadiz. (Paz y Melia, Catdlogo,
No. 2550.)
Escamilla (Manuela de), daughter of Antonio de Escamilla
and Francisca Diaz, and wife of Miguel Diest (1659). Probably
before this she had borne a son to Alonso de Olmedo, el Mozo, q. v.
In 1658 she was in the company of Francisco Garcia, and in 1659
with Sebastian de Prado and Juan de la Calle, playing third parts.
In 1661, 1662, 1663, 1664, 1665, 1671, 1672, 1676, 1677, and
1678 she played third parts in her father's company. In 1673
466 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
she was with Felix Pascual, in 1674 with Simon Aguado. In 1679,
1680, and 1 68 1 she was in the company of Manuel Vallejo. ror
her the comedia Pedro de Urdemalas was written. (Paz y Meha,
Cat., No. 2550.) According to Pellicer (Vol. II, p. 86), she was
born in Monforte de Lemos, Galicia, first appeared upon the stage
at the age of seven, was married at thirteen and a widow at fifteen,
remarried, and died in 1695.
Escamilla (Maria de), daughter of Antonio de Escamilla,
was in the company of Antonio de Prado in 1650 and 1 65 1. In
1658 she was with Francisco Garcia, and in 1659 played fourth
parts in the company of Sebastian de Prado. In 1663, 1664, and
1665 she was musica in the company of her father.
Escobedo (Antonio de) and his wife were acting in Madrid in
1584. In Dec, 1589, he was in the company of Alonso de Cis-
neros; in March, 1602, he belonged to a joint company directed
by himself, Melchor de Leon, Diego Lopez de Alcaraz, and Pedro
Ximenez de Valenzuela, which was to represent autos and comedias
in Toledo. See Scobedo (Antonio de).
Escoriguela (Juan de), a native of Tronchon in Aragon.
He is probably the actor who appeared as Liseo in Lope's Sembrar
en buena tierra (1616) : the name is twice written Escruela, and
it is possible that it may be a different person. He was in the
company of Antonio de Prado in 1623, and again in 1631, 1632,
i634~36(?), and 1639, taking old men's parts in the latter year.
His wife was Jeronima de Sierra, who died shortly after Dec. 25,
1641. In 1645 he was acting in Valladolid, when his name is
given as Juan de Esguriguillas Arifio. (M. y M., p. 566.)
Escudero (Lorenzo), member of Antonio de Prado's company
in 1639. He managed a company and represented in La Monte-
ria at Seville in 1649, and in 1650 was in the company of Luis
Lopez.
Espada (Ambrosio de) played old men's parts in Lorenzo
Hurtado's company in Seville in 1642.
Espana (Juan de) was in the company of Bernardo de la Vega
in 1672, and gracioso in the company of Magdalena Lopez in
Seville in 1677. He was formerly a physician in the General
Hospital of Madrid.
Espana (Pedro de), actor in the company of Diego Lopez de
Alcaraz in April, 1607, and in the company of Alonso de Heredia
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 467
in March, 1614. His name appears in the cast of Lope de Vega's
La buena Guarda (1610), represented by Riquelme's company.
In 1621 he was in the company of Alonso de Olmedo. (Bull. Hisp.
(1908), p. 244.)
Espanoles (Los), a company under the management of Nicolas
de los Rios in Jan., 1589. (N. D., p. 24.)
Espinola (Juan Bautista) of Seville, autor de comedias in
Feb., 1633, when he was in Alicante. His company consisted of:
Maximiliano Morales, who played second parts; Francisco de
Arteaga and his daughter Maria de Morales ; Francisco de Valencia
and his wife Maria de Herrera, both second parts; Juan de
Samaniego and his wife Maria de la O, who played third parts,
and Juan de Garabito, cobrador. Perhaps this name should be
Espinosa instead of Espinola.
Espinosa( ?), actor in 1631. (Nuevos Datos, p. 222.)
Espinosa (Ana Maria de), wife of the autor Juan Roman
(1637). (Nuevos Datos, p. 262; Sanchez- Arjona, p. 335.)
Espinosa (Beatriz de) and her husband Nicolas Oracio Carta-
gines were in the company of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz in 1603.
Espinosa (Damian de), actor in March, 1638, in the com-
pany of Andres de la Vega; autor in the same year and in 1639.
His company on July 25, 1638, consisted of: Gabriel Cintor, Anto-
nio de Benavente, Antonio de Salinas, Pedro de Bienpica, Manuel
de Vellon, and Bias de Heredia. The Gabriel de Espinosa (N.D.,
p. 294) is almost certainly a mistake for Damian de Espinosa.
Espinosa ( Juana de) , second wife of the autor Tomas Fernan-
dez de Cabredo (1635). In 1642 Belmonte wrote for her (then
a widow) the comedia A un tiempo Rey y Vasallo. In 1643 she
and Luis Lopez managed a company. She died before March,
1647 (Averig., p. 170), leaving three children, Francisca and her
two younger sisters. See under Fernandez de Cabredo.
Espinosa (Juan Bautista de), autor de comedias in 1634-
1637. See above, under Espinola (Juan Bautista de).
Espinosa (Manuela Maria de) and her husband Manuel
Vallejo, el Mozo, were members of the company of Antonio de
Castro in 1656, and of Juana de Cisneros' company in Seville in
1660. Her first husband was Rafael Arquer. She died in 1670.
Rafael Arquer and Maria de Espinosa are found in the list of
Avendano's company in 1632. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 202.)
468 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Espinosa (Silvestre de) , actor in Madrid in 1584- (^- "•
(1906), p. 363-)
Estanque (Francisco), actor in the company of Carlos de
Salazar in 1676.
Estefania, actress in Antonio de Prado's company in Bena-
vente's El Murmurador. (Rosell, I, pp. 143, 394.)
Estrada (Luis de), actor in 1626. He was in Antonio de
Prado's company in Seville in 1639, and in Lorenzo Hurtado's
in 1645. His name occurs in the cast of the anonymous comedia
Paciencia en la Fortuna (Restori, Stud), p. 143), and in Cordero's
El Favor en la Sentencia (1626). ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 272.)
Eugenia, v. Arteaga, Osorio, and Villegas.
Eugenia Maria, wife of the actor Gonzalez, called el Grana-
dino and el Meon, about 1632—36.
Exea (Juan de) and his wife Salvadora de Ochoa were in
Bait. Pinedo's company in 1613.
Fabiana Laura, actress, was born at Granada, the daughter
of a physician, D. Matias Andres de Eslava, and D" Salvadora
Hurtado. She ran away from home and at an early age married
the actor Miguel Bermudez, whose second wife she was (1660),
in which year they both belonged to the company of Francisca
Lopez in Seville. Fabiana Laura was afterward in the following
companies: Manuel Vallejo's in 1672, playing second parts;
Felix Pascual's in 1673, playing first parts; Simon Aguado's in
1674, first parts; Manuel Vallejo's in 1675, 1676; Agustin Manuel
de Castilla's in 1677, 1678; Jose Garcia de Prado's in 1679, and
in Jeronimo Garcia's in 1680, always playing primeras damas.
She died in Madrid, Jan. 23, 1698. See Sanchez-Arjona, Andes,
P- 425-
Fadrique, actor in the cast of Lope de Vega's El Desden ven-
gado ( 1617) , and in his Nueva Victoria de D. Gonzalo de Cordoba
(1622). He also appeared as D. Garci Nunez in Claramonte's
La infeliz Dorotea (1620) in the company of Juan Bap. Valen-
ciano.
Fajardo (Ana), wife of Francisco de Velasco; both were in
Pedro de la Rosa's company in 1636. In 1637 they paid 2300 reals
for a costume.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 469
Fajardo (Ines), wife of Nicolas de Villanueva; both were in a
joint company from 1614 till Shrovetide, 161 5, with Pedro Bravo
and others.
Fajardo (Juan), actor in the company of Tomas Diaz in
Seville in 1643. In 1644 he was in Valladolid in the company of
Francisco de Guzman Morales. (M. y M., p. 566.) One Juan
Fajardo had charge of a dance at Corpus in Alcaraz in 1599.
Falcon (Diego), member of the company of Juan Acacio in
Seville in 1619.
Falcon (Jaime), tailor, and actor in the company of Juan
Acacio in 1619; perhaps a brother of Diego. He was in the com-
pany of Manuel Vallejo in 1623 and seems to have been in Acacio's
company again in March, 1626.
Falcona (Ana) , actress in the company of Juan Acacio in
1617, receiving a gratuity of 550 reals at the Corpus festival for
excellence in acting and costumes in the auto El Salteador del
Cielo, In 1619 she was the wife of Juan Acacio and belonged to
his company.
Farinas (Domingo) and his wife Maria del Rio were acting
in Valladolid in 1652. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Feliciano (Francisco), actor in the company of Jose Garcia
de Prado in Seville in 1658.
Felipa Maria played fourth parts and danced in the company
of Luis Hurtado in Seville in 1642. There was a Felipa Maria in
the company of Felix Pascual in 1673 as understudy.
Felipe, actor in the cast of Lope's El piadoso Aragones (1626),
taking the part of D. Pedro de Agramontes.
Felipe (Miguel), member of the company of Carlos de Salazar
in Seville in 1676.
Feliseo (Gabriel Francisco) played barbas in the company
of Magdalena Lopez in Seville in 1677.
Felix (Francisco), actor in 1636; his wife was the actress
Mariana de Talavera.
Fernandez (Alonso), actor in the company of Nicolas de los
Rios in 1609.
Fernandez (Andres), autor de comedias in Madrid in 1623-
1624, jointly with Juan Bautista Valenciano.
47Q SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Fernandez (Andres), actor in the company of Carlos de
Salazar in 1676. Here he is called "brother of Alonso.'
Fernandez (Francisca), daughter of Tomas Fernandez de
Cabredo and Juana de Espinosa. In March, 1647, after the death
of her mother, she petitioned the King to be paid the sum due her
mother for eight private performances given to the Queen. She
had two younger sisters, who were left without support by the
death of their mother. (Averiguador, p. 170.)
Fernandez (Gaspar), actor in the company of Diego Osorio
in 1659, and cobrador in Antonio de Escamilla's company in 1677
and 1678.
Fernandez (Juan) brought out a carro in the autos at Seville
in 1570 and 1572.
Fernandez (Juan), actor and musician in 1593.
Fernandez (Juan), husband of Catalina de Leon of Madrid,
who was in the company of Juan Martinez in 1631.
Fernandez (Juan), actor in the company of Antonio de Esca-
milla in 1670, 1671 (segundo galan), and 1675; in 1674 he was
with Simon Aguado, and in 1679 with Manuel Vallejo.
Fernandez (Luisa) of Murcia, daughter of D. Francisco
Velastegui, and wife of the actor Antonio Leonardo. She was in
the company of Antonio Ordaz in Valencia in 1664, and came to
Madrid and played fourth parts in the company of Antonio de
Escamilla in 1669 and 1670, and third parts in Manuel Vallejo's
company in 1672, 1673, 1676, 1679, 1680, and 1681, in the last
two years as understudy.
Fernandez (Magdalena), wife of Diego de Medina; both
were in Antonio de Prado's company in 1632.
Fernandez (Manuela), actress (cuarta) in the company of
Antonio de Escamilla in 1671.
Fernandez (Micaela), actress in the company of Francisca
Lopez in 1660; with Manuel Vallejo in 1670, and with Magda-
lena Lopez in Seville in 1677. She is said to have been as clever
in the role of dama as in that of galan in male attire. She was the
daughter of Miguel Fernandez Bravo and Isabel Ana. (Cotarelo,
Migajas del Ingenio, p. 203.) There were two well-known
actresses named Isabel Ana; which one is meant here, I do not
know. Micaela Fernandez in 1688 was acting in the company of
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 471
Matias de Castro, and in 1689 in that of Escamilla. She died
in 1691.
Fernandez (Miguel), autor de comedias in charge of the
autos at Seville in 1657. In 1660 he was in the company of
Francisca Lopez. His wife was Jacinta Gallego.
Fernandez (Sebastiana), younger sister of Luisa Fernandez,
played segundas damns in the company of Antonio Ordaz in 1664.
She was in the company of Antonio de Escamilla in 1669 and
again in 1676; in 1 67 1 with Felix Pascual, and played third parts
in Manuel Vallejo's company in 1672, 1673, and 1675. In 1679
she was in the company of Jose Garcia de Prado, and in 1680 with
Jeronimo Garcia. She married Vicente Salinas, and both retired
from the stage and set up a shop selling "barros y dukes de Portu-
gal" in the Carrera de San Jeronimo, Madrid, where they lost all
their savings, so that Sebastiana lived on the alms of the theatrical
companies. She died in the Calle de las Huertas on Sept. 29, 1702.
(Cotarelo, Migajas.)
Fernandez Bravo (Miguel), see above under Fernandez
(Micaela). Perhaps the same as Miguel Fernandez.
Fernandez de Cabredo (Tomas), famous autor de comedias
and gracioso. In 1607 he had a company in Valladolid, and in
1608 and 1609 he represented at the Coliseo in Seville; in 161 1
and 1612 he represented two autos at Corpus in Madrid, receiving
600 ducats. He was one of the autores authorized by the decree
of 1615, and first represented Lope de Vega's El Bobo del Colegio
(before 1618). His wife Juliana Antonia is first mentioned in
1619. (N. £>., p. 180.) In 1623 and 1624 he took part in the
Corpus festival at Seville, when he represented the auto of Clara-
monte, El Valle de la Muerte. He was one of the five founders
of the Cofradia de la Novena. In 1625 he represented autos in
Madrid, and beginning in June, his company performed ten come-
dias privately before the King. In Oct., 1632, he began to repre-
sent in La Monteria, Seville, and brought out the autos at Corpus
in the following year. In 1634 ne again represented four comedias
before the King. On June 5, 1635, ne was m Valladolid, and
returned to La Monteria in Seville in Nov., 1637, where he also
represented an auto in 1638, and in the early part of this year
performed in the same theater. In 1637 he gave no less than
472 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
seventeen representations before the King, and also gave an auto
in Madrid. In 1635 his wife was Juana de Espinosa, by whom
he had three daughters: Francisca and two younger, whose names
are not given. The first wife of Fernandez was Ana Maria de la
Pefia, whom he married in Valladolid in 1607. (Marti y Monso,
Estudios, p. 566.) In the cast of Ricardo de Turia's La belligera
Espahola (printed in 1616), as represented by Tomas Fernandez,
occur the names La S* Ana Maria [de la Pefia?] and La Sa Juana
[de Espinosa?]. He first represented Lope de Vega's La Conpe-
tencia en los Nobles (1628?). Fernandez died before Dec, 1641,
the date of the license of Belmonte's play A un tiempo Rey y
Vasallo, which he wrote for Juana de Espinosa, "viuda de Tomas
Fernandez." Perhaps he died before Corpus, 1641, for it is
probable that la Viuda, whose company represented two autos in
Madrid in that year, was Ana de Espinosa. v. Schack, Nachtrage,
PP- 72, 73-
Fernandez de Castro (Juan), actor in the company of Sebas-
tian de Montemayor in Sept., 1599.
Fernandez de Garrote (Antonio), actor in the company of
Bartolome Romero for one year from Feb. 25, 1640.
Fernandez de Guardo (Alonso) and his wife Ana Cabello
were in the company of Antonio de Prado in 1614-16 and ap-
peared in Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta Juana, and both were
in the company of Sanchez de Vargas in 1619—20.
Ferrer (Jose), cobrador in the company of Pablo Martin de
Morales in Seville in 1678.
Ferrer (Maria Lopez), v. Lopez (Maria).
Ferrer (Vicente), native of Valencia living in Madrid, and
his wife Maria Ruiz were members of the company of Juan de
Tapia, Luis de Castro, and Alonso de Paniagua from March 4,
1602, for one year. He was in a joint company in 1604.
Figueroa (Ana de), widow, actress in the company of Sanchez
de Vargas for one year from Jan., 1635.
Figueroa (Francisca de) and her husband Antonio Herrera
de Mendoza were members of the company of Cristobal de Aven-
dano in 1632.
Figueroa (Gabriela de), daughter of Roque de Figueroa and
Mariana de Olivares. She was in her father's company in 1 63 1
and in Valencia in 1649, playing second parts, likewise in the
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 473
company of her father. In 1650 she was in Pedro de la Rosa's
company. She married Jose Garceran, and played first parts in
his company in Seville in 1657 and 1658, and in Valencia in 1664.
She died in Mallorca before 1668.
Figueroa (Jeronima de), wife of Juan de Figueroa; both
were members of the company of Matias de Castro y Salazar in
1673.
Figueroa (Juan de), v. the preceding.
Figueroa (Da Maria de), wife of Francisco de Rivera; both
were in Carlos de Salazar's company in 1675.
Figueroa (Roque de) of Cordoba, famous autor de comedias
and friend of Lope de Vega. He and his wife Mariana de Olivares
were in Domingo Balbin's company from Sept. 1, 1623, till Shrove-
tide, 1624, receiving u reals for maintenance and 22 reals for
each performance. In March, 1628, he represented eight comedias
before the King, four in the Pardo and four in the Salon de
Madrid; and in 1627, 1629, and 1630 he represented autos at
Corpus in Madrid. (Nuevos Datos, pp. 216, 218.) His company
appeared in Seville in 1626, representing an auto, and again in 1632
at the Coliseo. In 1631 he performed in the Casa Real de Campo ;
in 1634 he gave eight comedias privately before the King, and ten
in the following year. In 1635 he represented the comedia Peligrar
en los Remedios, which was written for him by Rojas Zorrilla, as
the MS. shows. (Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2552.) The latest
notice that I have found of his company is 1649, when he was at
Tarragona. (Schack, ibid., p. 73.) Figueroa received a careful
education, and the story is related of him that some accident hav-
ing befallen the preacher at a festival in the parish of S. Sebastian,
Madrid, Figueroa took off his sword, ascended the pulpit, and de-
livered an address in Latin, to the great surprise of all his hearers.
It was Figueroa who first produced the two famous plays of Tirso
de Molina, El Condenado por desconfiado and El Burlador de
Sevilla, and a number of Montalvan's : No ay Vida como la Honra
(before 1632, "in which Antonia Manuela appeared with great ap-
plause" ) , El Mariscal de Biron, El SenorD. Juan de Austria, Cum-
plir con su Obligation. He had two children, Miguel de Figueroa, a
captain of cavalry, who died in Milan, and a daughter Gabriela, q. v.
He died in 1651. In Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. II, p. 688, we read
that Figueroa first married Ana Ponce, whose obsequies were cele-
474 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
brated in 1633. But she must have died long before this, as he
was married again in 1623. Moreover, this "antigua y loable
costumbre de celebrar las honras de los defuntos" was often cele-
brated annually. Figueroa died at Valencia at the age of eighty,
according to Gallardo. {Ibid.) For his company in 1631,
v. Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206. (Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 165, 224.)
Florencia y Carrillo (Diego Prudencio de), actor, married
Maria de Santa Cruz in Valladolid in 1653. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Flores (Catalina), actress, and wife of the hawker
(buhonero) Lazaro Ramirez. The Cofradia de la Novena had
its origin in a miracle concerning her. For her story v. Entremeses,
LoaSj etc., de Quihones de Benavente, ed. D. Cayetana Rosell,
Madrid, 1874, Vol. II, appendix. Her daughter was Bernarda
Ramirez, wife of Sebastian de Prado, q. v.
Flores (Francisca), actress in the company of Pedro de la
Rosa in 1636.
Flores (Gaspar) had charge of the dances at Corpus in
Madrid in 1649.
Flores (Isabel de), member of the company of Carlos de
Salazar in Seville in 1676.
Flores (Juan de), called Siete Coletos, actor in the company
of Francisca Lopez in 1660. His wife was Maria de la O de la
Beruga. He was drowned at Huelva in 1678, while in the com-
pany of Ines Gallo.
Flores (Maria), daughter of Maria de Salinas and actress in
the company of Bartolome Romero and Juan de la Calle in 1664,
playing fifth parts and music.
Flores (Maria de), called Mariflores, wife of Pedro Rodri-
guez in 1590, when both belonged to the company of Jeronimo
Velazquez. In 1602 she was in Valladolid, apparently in the com-
pany of Jeronimo Lopez. (M. y M., p. 566.) In 1606-07 both
were in the company of Melchor de Leon. She was in her hus-
band's company sometime prior to 16 10, when he died. She ap-
peared in the comedia by the Count of Lemos, La Casa confusa,
in Lerma, before Philip III., in Oct., 1618. In 1629 she executed
a power of attorney to recover money due her by Melchor de Leon
since 1606. Leon was apparently in Brussels with his company
in 1629. She was unable to sign her name. She is mentioned by
Suarez de Figueroa in 161 5, among the famous actresses of that
time.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 475
Fonseca (Alonso), musico, member of the company of Rueda
and Ascanio (1638-39). (Rosell, I, p. 366.)
Fonseca (Maria de), daughter of Pedro de Fonseca, actress in
the company of Matias de Castro in Seville in 1673. She was in
Manuel Vallejo's company in 1681 as understudy.
Fonseca (Nicanor de), actor in the company of Francisco
Gutierrez in Seville in 1668.
Fonseca (Nicolas de), actor in the company of Luis Bernardo
de Bobadilla for one year from Feb. 28, 1637. An actor by the
same name was in the company of Francisca Lopez in 1663.
Fonseca (Pedro de), son of Alonso Fonseca, was a member
of the company of Laura de Herrera in 1663, and of Francisco
Gutierrez in Seville in 1668; in 1673 he and his daughter Maria
were in the company of Matias de Castro in Seville. He died
in 1682.
Fontana (Maria), actress in the company of Andres de la
Vega in 1638.
Fontela (Nicolas de), member of the company of Antonio de
Rueda in 1639. The same as Nicolas de Fonseca?
Francesquina (La), Italian actress in Madrid in 1587, in the
company of Drusiano Martinelli. (Nuevos Datos, p. 21.) Her
name was Silvia Roncagli.
Francisca, wife of the actor Andres de Labaya; both were in
Manuel Vallejo's company in 1631.
Francisca, actress in the company of Pedro Cebrian in Lope's
Quien mas no puede ( 1616), and in Heredia's company in the cast
of Del Monte sale. Perhaps the latter was Francisca Paula, wife
of Mencos, who was in the same company.
Francisca, actress in the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas
at Corpus in Seville in 1621.
Francisca, actress in the company of Antonio de Prado (1632-
1636?). (Rosell, I, pp. 270, 294.)
Francisca, actress in the company of Pedro de la Rosa in
1660-61. (S.-A, p. 330.)
Francisca, see also under Arteaga, Bazan, Bezon, Flores,
Gevaro, Gongora, Hinestroza, Lopez, Manso, Ortiz, San
Miguel, Torres, Vallejo.
Francisca Antonia, wife of Francisco Tome, actress in the
476 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
company of Luis Bernardo de Bobadilla for one year from
March 12, 1637; both were in Bartolome Romero's company for
one year from Feb. 22, 1638.
Francisca Feliciana, actress in the company of Juan Perez de
Tapia in Seville in 1662.
Francisca Maria, daughter of Maria Gabriela; both were in
the company of Claramonte from June 19, 161 4, till Shrovetide,
1615.
Francisca Maria, la Nina, played the part of the infant Jesus
in the auto Siquis, in the company of Juan Bautista Valenciano in
Seville in 1 62 1.
Francisca Maria, wife of Manuel Vallejo; both were in the
company of Diego Vallejo in Seville in 1619. In 1622-23 she was
also acting in her husband's company. She died on Nov. 21, 1627, in
the Calle del Nino. v. under Vallejo (Manuel de). She left
a daughter, also named Francisca Maria.
Francisca Maria, v. Valdivia.
Francisca Paula, wife of Diego de Mencos; both were in
the company of Bartolome Romero in 1638 and 1640, and with
Manuel Vallejo in 1639. In the latter year they acted in Lisbon,
Mencos playing vexetes and his wife third parts. (N. D., p. 296.)
v. also Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 162, 358, and under Perez.
Francisca Teresa, actress in the company of Antonio de Castro
in Seville in 1656.
Francisco (Juan), actor in the company of Jeronimo Sanchez
in 1623. An actor by this name belonged to the company of
Manuel Vallejo in 1670 and 1679, to the company of Magdalena
Lopez in 1674 and 1677, and to Jeronimo Garcia's in 1680, and
was prompter in Carvajal's in 1681.
Francisco (Manuel) or Manuel Francisco Martinez,
el Brillante, played galanes in the company of Antonio de Prado in
1650. In 1656 he was with Antonio de Castro at the Coliseo,
Seville; in 1660 with the company of Juana de Cisneros; in 1663
with that of Francisca Lopez and Laura de Herrera; in 1668
with Francisco Gutierrez; in 1672 played second galanes with
Antonio de Escamilla, and in 1674 was with the company of
Magdalena Lopez in Seville.
Francisco Felix, v. Felix.
Francisco Vicente, son of the actress (?) Lucia Bravo. He
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 477
was killed in 1638, and his mother accused the actor Diego de
Leon of being concerned in his death. See also under Vicente.
Franco (Lucas) of Murcia, actor in 16 19.
Franco (Luis), actor ( ?) in 1602. (N. D., p. 62.)
Franco (Pedro) brought out the auto Los cinco Sentidos at
Corpus in Seville in 1560.
Frasquito, actor in the cast of Alarcon's Las Paredes oyen,
1617.
Fresno (Ana del), daughter of Pedro del Fresno; she was
in Pedro de la Rosa's company in 1637.
Fresno (Pedro del) played first old men's parts (barba) in
Pedro de la Rosa's company in 1637 and 1638.
Frutos (Francisco de), in charge of one of the dances at the
Corpus festival in Madrid in 1628.
Frutos (Pedro de), gracioso after the middle of the seven-
teenth century, v. Solis, Poesias, Madrid, 1692, p. 296.
Frutos Brabo (Jose), celebrated gracioso; he and his wife
Josefa Lobaco were members of the company of Antonio de Prado
in 1632 and 1635 (?), and again in Seville in 1639. See Rosell,
I, pp. 127, 322; S.-A., pp. 280, 325. He was still living in 1644,
and died in Toledo.
Fuensalida (Jeronimo de), lessee of the corrales of Madrid in
1604 and 1609.
Fuente (Sebastian de la), actor in the company of Alonso de
Heredia in 1614.
Fuente (Tomas de la) of Toledo, autor de comedias in 1584.
v. Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 362. He had a brother Juan.
Fuentes (Domingo), member of the company of Alonso
Velazquez in Seville in 1598. The name Fuentes occurs in the
cast of Lope's La hermosa Ester (1610) when it was first repre-
sented by the company of Sanchez de Vargas.
Fuentes (Francisco de), called Monguia, from a character
in Tirso's Santo y Sastre, played vejetes in Manuel Vallejo's com-
pany in 1679-81. He married Jeronima Quirante, daughter of
Pedro Quirante. He was still acting in 1695.
Fuentes (Isabel de), called Lanza de Coche.
Fuentes (Leonor de), sister of the preceding, actress in the
entremeses of Benavente.
478 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Gadea (Micaela de), wife of Alonso de Riquelme (March,
1602), acted in her husband's company at the Corpus festival in
Seville in 1607. She died before March 30, 1608, when Riquelme
married Catalina de Valcazar.
Gaitan (Juan) played subordinate parts in the company of
Magdalena Lopez in Seville in 1674.
Galiano (Antonio), actor in the company of Andres de la
Vega from March, 1639, for one year.
Galindo (Francisco) , autor de comedias in March, 1637, hav-
ing a joint company (compania de partes).
Galindo (Mariana), daughter of Maria de Guzman Rueda;
she was in the company of Juan Acacio at Corpus in Seville in
1644, when she received a gratuity of 400 reals. In the follow-
ing year she was in the company of Lorenzo Hurtado.
Galvez (Isabel de), actress in the company of her husband
Francisco Garcia in 1658, and in Antonio de Escamilla's company
in 1664, playing segundas damas. In 1665 she was again in Fran-
cisco Garcia's company. (Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos,
PP-253,3o8.) InNov., 1657, while acting in Madrid, and being then
the wife of Garcia, Isabel de Galvez was carried off by the Conde
de Monterrey and the Marques de Almazan, who had no difficulty
in pacifying the irate husband, according to Barrionuevo, Avisos,
III, p. 352. He calls the actress La Galvez, "una comedianta muy
bizarra." She was Garcia's second wife.
Galvez (Jeronimo de), one of the earliest of Spanish theat-
rical managers. On Nov. 29, 1579, Galvez and Juan Granado
gave the first representation in the new Corral de la Cruz in
Madrid. On Dec. 3, 1581, he represented in the Corral de la
Pacheca, and several times thereafter in that year and in 1582, and
again in 1584. In 1590 he was acting in the company of Jeronimo
Velazquez, who calls Galvez "mi companero y autor." (Perez
Pastor, Datos desconocidos, p. 146. See Appendix A.) Suarez de
Figueroa mentions Galvez among the famous actors then (1615)
deceased. He died in Valladolid in 1604; his full name was
Jeronimo Millan de Galvez. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Gallego, actor in the company of Rodrigo Osorio in Valencia
in the latter part of the sixteenth century (1588?). (Cotarelo,
Lope de Rueda, p. 30.)
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 479
Gallego (Jacinta), actress, wife of Miguel Fernandez
{1657). She died in Granada.
Gallego (Juan), actor in the company of Francisco Gutierrez
in Seville in 1668, and harpist with Antonio de Escamilla in 167 1
and 1672. In 1676 he was with the company of Carlos de Salazar.
Gallegos (Juan), lessee of the theater in Toledo in 1608.
Gallo (Ines), wife of Pedro Carrasco, a famous tenor. She is
said to have been the daughter of D. Antonio de Pedraza, who
was murdered in the Puerta del Sol. She had a company of players,
and was drowned at Huelba in 1678.
Gamarra (Bernarda), daughter of Miguel Jimenez and Ber-
narda Teloy. She was a member of the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1 63 1.
Ganassa (Alberto Naseli de), Italian actor, who first
brought a company of players to Madrid in 1574. In a document
dated Madrid, 1581, he styles himself "Alberto Naseli, alias
Ganassa." He took part in the Corpus festival at Seville in 1575
and returned in 1578 and 1583. In May and June, 1579, he repre-
sented in the Corral de Puente, Madrid, and frequently thereafter
in that year and in 1580-84. See Appendix A. His company in
1581-82 comprised: Cesare di Nobile, Giovanni Pietro Pasquarelo,
Cipion Graselli, Giulio Villanti, Iacopo Portalupi, Carlo Masi,
two Spanish musicians: Pedro de Salcedo and Ant0 Laso, besides
Vincenzo Botanelli, alias Curcio Romane. See text, pp. 29, n. 1,
et passim, and Cotarelo in Revista de Archivos, 1908, pp. 42 ff. Lope
de Vega, who doubtless knew Ganassa, mentions him in several of
his comedias, and in one of them he introduces a servant whose
speeches throughout are in the Bergamask dialect. See El Genoues
liberal (an early play), Comedias, Part IV, Pamplona, 1614.
Ganteo (Felipe), actor who took part in the autos has Lagri-
mas de San Pietro and Los vicios Locos del Infierno in the town of
Borox in 1604.
Garabito (Juan de), cobrador in the company of Juan Bap.
Espinola in 1633, and seems also to have managed a company in
that year. He is mentioned also in 1637.
Garay (Teresa de), wife of Antonio Marin; both were in the
company of Jacinto Riquelme in Seville in 1652. In 1660 she
played segundas damas in Jeronimo Vallejo's company. She was
480 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
the first wife of Juan de Sequeiros, according to Cotarelo, Migajas
del Ingenio, 1 908, p. 194.
Garceran (Jose) of Mallorca had a company in La Monteria,
Seville, in 1657-58, and in Valencia in 1668. His wife Gabriela
de Figueroa, daughter of Roque de Figueroa, played first parts in
his company. He died in 1678.
Garces (Marcos), el Capiscol, was in the company of Diego
Osorio in 1659, and harpist in Antonio de Escamilla's company
in 1 66 1, 1662, and 1663. In 1671, 1672, and 1673 he was harpist
and segundo barba with Felix Pascual.
Garcia (Alonso), actor in the company of Andres de Clara-
monte in 1 614.
Garcia (Ana), widow, in Oct., 1636, of Pedro Garcia de
Quintanilla, and mother of the actress Rufina Justa.
Garcia (Blas), actor in the company of Francisco Velez de
Guevara, Pedro de Cobaleda, and Francisco Alvarez, for one year
from March 13, 1639.
Garcia (Brigida), wife of the actor Francisco de San Miguel,
q. v.
Garcia (Domingo), Pertecilla, harpist in the company of
Simon Aguado and Juan de la Calle in 1662, and also with Jose
Carrillo in the same year. In 1665 he was with Felix Pascual,
and died in Granada in 1689.
Garcia (Francisco) and his wife Maria Sanchez, of Ciudad
Rodrigo, were members of the company of Alonso Riquelme for
two years, from March, 1602, till 1604. v. Garcia de Toledo
(Francisco).
Garcia (Francisco), autor de comedias in 1639. (Nuevos
Datos, p. 311.) An actor by this name appeared in Belmonte's
A un tiempo Rey y Vasallo in 1 642. Francisco Garcia, "vecino de
Granada," and Da Jacinta Reyes, both players, were married in
Valladolid in 1642. (M. y M., p. 566.) See the following.
Garcia (Francisco), Pupilo, and his wife Jacinta Eugenia
were in the company of Esteban Nunez at Seville in 1648. (S.-A.,
p. 384-) He afterward belonged to the following companies:
in 1650 he played first galanes with Luis Lopez; in 1 65 1 he was
with Sebastian de Prado; in 1654 with Esteban Nunez in Seville.
In 1656 he had a company and represented autos in Madrid, and
in 1657 and ^58 his company performed at the Teatro de la Cruz.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 481
In 1659 he was with Sebastian de Prado; in 1660 with Juana de
Cisneros, while in 1665 he represented autos in Madrid. In 1671
his company acted at La Monteria in Seville and produced an auto;
in 1675, 1676, and 1680 he was first barba in Manuel Vallejo's
company, and in 1679 he was with Jose Garcia de Prado. In 1657
the wife of Francisco Garcia was Isabel de Galvez. According to
Cotarelo, Migajas del Ingenio, p. 205, Garcia married a third wife,
Maria de Vallejo, sister of Carlos and Manuel Vallejo, el Mozo.
This was some time before 1672. He died at Torrelaguna in 1689.
In 1674 a Francisco Garcia and his wife Antonia Maria were mem-
bers of the company of Magdalena Lopez in Seville. Whe-
ther this was one and the same person, I have no means of deter-
mining.
Garcia (Jeronimo), actor, joined the Brotherhood of the
Novena in 1653. He was a gracioso, and married Bernarda
Manuela, called Rabo de Vaca. He was in the company of Jose
Garcia de Prado in 1679, autor de comedias in 1680, when he rep-
resented an auto in Madrid, and in the company of Juan Antonio
de Carvajal in 1681.
Garcia (Juan), actor in Seville in 1658, in the company of
Jose de Prado.
Garcia (Lorenzo) played third parts in the company of Anto-
nio de Escamilla in 1 67 1. He seems to have been with Manuel
Vallejo in 1670, playing quartos. (Migaxas del Ingenio, fol. 57.)
He died in 1682.
Garcia (Manuel), actor in the company of Francisca Lopez
in Seville in 1660. There was a Manuel Garcia, called Asadurilla,
who, after Lorenzo de Prado's death (1649?), married his widow,
Manuela Mazana. Perhaps this is the same person.
Garcia (Melchor), actor in the company of Manuel Vallejo
in 1674.
Garcia (Miguel), actor in the company of Magdalena Lopez
in Seville in 1674.
Garcia (Roque), member of the company of Juan Martinez
for one year from March 2, 1633. He was to act, dance, sing,
write, and prompt for 3 reals per day, besides 3 reals daily for
maintenance.
Garcia (Rufina), "famosa," played third parts in the company
of Pedro de Ortegon in Seville in 1635. This was undoubtedly
482 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Rufina Justa, the daughter of Ana Garcia and Pedro Garcia de
Quintanilla, maestro de armas. The above explains why in a
loa by Quinones de Benavente, represented by Fernandez in 1636,
she calls herself "Rufina, la de Ortegon." See Rosell, Vol. I,
p. 298, and also ibid., pp. 55, 288, 433 ; on the latter page begins
the jdcara that was represented by Ortegon's company in 1635.
Rufina was in the company of Tomas Fernandez, as we see from
the above, in 1636, and also in 1637; m 1650, at Corpus, she was
in Antonio de Prado's company. She died in 1 668.
Garcia (Teresa), actress in the company of Juan Rodriguez
de Antriago in 1637. There was a Teresa Garcia in the company
of Luis Lopez in Seville in 1650.
Garcia Carril (Juan), actor for one year from Sept. 24, 1637,
in the joint company of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago.
Garcia Flores (Gabriel), lessee of the theaters of Madrid in
i64o( ?). (Nuevos Datos, p. 325.)
Garcia de Guevara (Pedro) played second parts in the com-
pany of Bartolome Romero in 1637-38.
Garcia de Prado, v. Prado.
Garcia de Salinas (Pedro), noted gracioso in the company
of Alonso Riquelme in Jan., 1619 (residing in Zaragoza in that
year). On Feb. 15, 1619, he and his wife Jeronima de Valcazar
agreed to act in the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas for
two years from Shrovetide till Shrovetide, 1621. He was in the
company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631-32. His wife Jeronima de
Valcazar was in the same companies, and both appeared in Lope de
Vega's El Castigo sin Venganza in 1 632. v. also Rosell, Vol. I,
p. 277.
Garcia de Toledo (Francisco), actor in a joint company
called Los Andaluces in 1605—06.
Garcia de Vergara (Pedro) and his wife Francisca Maria de
Valdivia were members of the company of Francisco Solano from
Aug. io, 1637, till Shrovetide, 1638; in the following year he was
in the company of Juan de Malaguilla (March 9, 1638). (N. D.,
p. 287.)
Garrote (Antonio) [or Saviote?] played old men's parts in
the company of Bartolome Romero in Seville in 1642-43.
Gasque (Juan or Juan Salvador), actor in the company of
Baltasar Pinedo in March, 161 1. At Corpus of this year he acted
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 483
in Madrid in the company of Tomas Fernandez. On Jan. 7, 1614,
when he describes himself as a native of Orihuela then residing in
Zaragoza, he agreed to join the company of Pedro de Valdes for
one year. He was then in the company of Morales. (N. D„
p. 136.) On March 13, 1614, he contracted to join Baltasar
Pinedo's company for one year, and on June 19 of the same year
he joined the company of Andres de Claramonte, till Shrovetide,
1615. (Ibid., pp. 142, 145.)
Gevaro (Francisca), wife of Pedro de Castro; both were in
Domingo Balbin's company in Seville in 161 3.
Gevaro (Juan de), actor in Balbin's company in 1613. v. also
Guevara (Juan).
Gil (Isidro), actor in the company of Francisco Solano in
1637-38. On March 21, 1639, he and his wife Jeronima Rodri-
guez agreed to act in the company of Damian de Espinosa. Ten
days after this he joined the company of Francisco Velez de Gue-
vara, Pedro de Cobaleda, and Francisco Alvarez.
Gil de Cordoba (Juan), actor in the company of Cristobal de
Avendano in 1623.
Gobia (Gaspar de) played first and second galanes in the
company of Andres de la Vega in 1638-39.
Godinez (Felipe) played parts of barba in Pedro de Ortegon's
company in Seville in 1635.
Godos (Matias) , actor in the company of Felix Pascual in 167 1.
Godoy (Juan Diaz), native of Fuentes del Ebro, actor in the
company of Gaspar de Porres for two years from Feb. 15, 1592.
Godoy (Mateo de) of Granada was in a joint company headed
by Juan Rodriguez de Antriago (April 6, 1639), and took part
in the Corpus festival at Borox in the same year. In 1643 he was
in Bart. Romero's company in Seville, and in 1644 with Antonio
de Rueda, also in Seville. In 1659 he was with Diego Osorio;
in 1660 he seems to have been with Pedro de la Rosa (S.-A.,
P- 330-) ! m 1 66 1 he was barba in Antonio de Escamilla's company;
1662 with Sebastian de Prado; 1663, 1664, 1665, 1670, and 1671
again with Escamilla. His first wife was Damiana de Arias; his
second was Isabel Bazan, who died in Seville in 1658. For the
company in which he appeared in 1655, v. Solis, Poesias, Madrid,
1692, p. 173. He is the author of the entremes El Desafio, pub-
lished in Ramillete de Sainetes escogidas, etc. (Zaragoza, 1672.)
484 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Gomez, actor in "una compania muy humilde" with Rojas and
Arze before 1600. See Rojas, Viage, pp. 9, 11.
Gomez (Alonso) took the part of El Emperador Valente in
Lope's La gran Columna fogosa (1629).
Gomez (Bartolome), actor in the company of Jose de Prado
in Seville in 1658.
Gomez (Magdalena), widow of Pedro Alonso de las Cuevas,
had charge of dances at Corpus in Madrid in 1 592.
Gomez Varela (Diego) and his wife Micaela Lopez were in
the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1625.
Gongora (Atanasio de), actor for one year from March 11,
1632, in the company of Bartolome Romero.
Gongora (Francisca de), mother of Isabel de Gongora, q. v.
Both were in the company of Cristobal de Avendano in March,
1632, when they were received into the Cofradia de la Novena.
Gongora (Isabel de), well-known actress. She and her hus-
band Juan Vizcaino were in the company of Cristobal de Avendano
in 1632; in Feb., 1636, she is described as the widow of Juan
Vizcaino and was then in the company of Pedro de la Rosa (for
one year), playing second parts and dancing. In 1637-38 and
1639-40 she was again in Pedro de la Rosa's company, also taking
second parts. Previous to this, perhaps between 1633 and 1636,
she had been in the company of Antonio de Prado. See Entremeses
de Benavente, ed. Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 97, 174, 322. She afterward
married Juan Coronel, a hidalgo of Jadraque. In 1641 and 1650
she was again in the company of Pedro de la Rosa, and died, it is
said, in April, 1669. See Schack, Nachtrage, p. 72.
Gonzalez (Bernarda) , wife of Juan de Angulo in Jan., 1619,
when both agreed to act for one year in the company of Tomas
Fernandez.
Gonzalez (Hernan), early actor (1580) in Madrid.
Gonzalez (Juan) of Seville, a silversmith and clothes dealer
(platero y tratante en ropa), brought out autos at Seville at Corpus
in 1582, 1587, I590, IS9I. and 1592.
Gonzalez (Juan), gracioso in the company of Pedro de
Valdes in 1625-26.
Gonzalez (Juan) and his wife Polonia Maria were in the
company of Tomas Diaz in Seville in 1643, and in Lorenzo
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 485
Hurtado's company in 1645. In 1648 both were in the company
of Esteban Nunez in Seville, when he is called Juan Gonzalez
Valcarcel. In 1660 he was in the company of Pedro de la Rosa,
and in 1661 in that of Antonio de Escamilla. Perhaps it was he
who appeared (about 1635?) m the anonymous comedia Paciencia
en la Fortuna. v. Restori, Studj, p. 143. Whether he was the
Juan Gonzalez, called Zapizurri, who died in Calatayud in June,
1667, I do not know. See the following.
Gonzalez (Juan), actor in the company of Diego Osorio in
1659; segundo galan in the company of Ant. de Escamilla in
1661, 1663, 1664, and 1665; in the company of Juan de la Calle
and Simon Aguado in 1662. He seems to have been still acting in
1670-75. v. Migaxas del Ingenio, fol. 79, v.
Gonzalez (Jusepe) and his wife Luisa Benzon agreed to act
for two years, from March 5, 1595, in the company of Alonso de
Cisneros and Melchor de Villalba.
Gonzalez (Matias), lessee of the profits received by the hos-
pitals of Madrid in 161 8.
Gonzalez (Pedro) and his wife Micaela Ortiz were in the
company of Jose de Prado in Seville in 1658. In 1655 a Pedro
Gonzalez was gracioso in the company of Antonio Lavella, and
died in 1684. Perhaps the same. The name also appears in the
cast of Lope's La gran Columna fogosa ( 1629).
Gonzalez (Sebastian) and his wife Catalina Tellez were in
the company of Domingo Balbin from Sept. 1, 1623, till the
following Shrovetide. On Oct. 14, 1623, he acted with the
Madrid company called Los Conformes, in the comedia La Morica
garrida, by Juan de Villegas at Leganes. We hear of him again in
1632 in the company of Francisco Lopez, representing the autos at
Madrid, and in Nov., 1635, he had a company of players, when
his wife was Maria Manuela, and his company agreed to give fifty
representations in Valencia, beginning in December. (N. D.,
p. 242.) A Gonzalez and also a Catalina were once in Prado 's
company. See Rosell, Vol. I, p. 394.
Gonzalez, called el Granadino and el Meon, actor in 1632-
1636 ( ?) . His wife was Eugenia Maria.
Gonzalez Camacho (Alonso), native of Membrilla
(Toledo), musician in the company of Roque de Figueroa in 163 1-
486 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
1632, and in that of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas in 1633. See
Rnsell, Vol. I, p. 224, and Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206.
Gonzalez Flores (Gabriel), lessee of the theaters of Madrid
in 1623.
Gorriz (Cristobal), played minor parts in the company of
Ant. de Escamilla in 1675, 1676, 1677, and 1678.
Grajales or Graxal (Juan de) and his wife Catalina de
Peralta were in a joint company in March, 1604; both were in the
company of Alonso de Villalba in Feb., 1614. On March 28, 1614,
both agreed to join the company of Andres de Claramonte for
one year. In 1626 he was in the company of Juan de Morales
Medrano. Both appeared in Lope de Vega's La Conpetencia en los
Nobles (1628). Grajales is mentioned by Rojas among the actors
who were also playwrights. {Viage, p. 131.) See Barrera, Cata-
loffo, p. 179.
Grajales, v. Martinez de Grajales.
Gran Sultana (La), v. Cordoba (Maria de).
Gran Turco (El), v. Vega (Andres de la).
Granada (Miguel), dancer in the company of Tomas Fernan-
dez. He died in 1636.
Gran ado (Diego), el Vie jo , had charge of the dances at Corpus
in Madrid in 1577, 1579, 1584, and 1587.
Gran ado or Gran ados (Juan), one of the best known of the
older Spanish autores. On Nov. 29, 1579, his company and that
of Jeronimo Galvez gave the first representation in the new Corral
de la Cruz. His company appeared several times in that year, and
in 1580 and 1581. See Appendix A. A Juan Granado, son of
Diego Granado, el viejo, had charge of the dances called Rada-
mante, Reinaldos, Oliveros, and Montesinos at Corpus in Madrid
in 1584, also the dances in 1589, 1593-95, 1598, 1599, and 1604.
This was probably the same person. In 1605 the wife of Juan
Granado was Luisa Martinez. (N. D., p. 355.) See the inter-
esting list of theatrical costumes which he bought in this year from
Baltasar Pinedo, Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 369.
Granado or Gran ados (Luis) of Medina del Campo and his
wife Jeronima de Aguilar were in the company of Diego de San-
tander in Dec, 1594. He was again in Santander's company in
June, 1597, and had a company in 1606-13. Probably a brother
of Antonio.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 487
Gran ados (Alonso), minstrel in the company of Jeronimo
Ruiz, Francisco de Vera, and Alonso de Morales in Madrid
in 1592.
Granados (Antonia), known as la divina Antandra, was the
wife of D. Pedro de Castro y Salazar (q. v.), and the mother
of Matias de Castro y Salazar. ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 430, n. ;
Schack, Nachtrage, p. 31.) She had three children, and died
giving birth to a daughter Susana. Her children were brought up
by her brother, the celebrated Antonio Granados.
Granados (Antonio), one of the most famous of Spanish
autores de comedias, was born at Madrid in 1570, and was an
actor in the company of Alonso Velazquez in Seville in 1598.
He managed a company in 1602, and was one of the eight autores
authorized by the decree of 1603, and one of the twelve authorized
by the decree of 1615. Granados first represented Lope's Los
Esclavos libres (before 1604), as we learn from the Peregrino.
Lope calls him "Gallardo galan, gentil hombre, y de la tierra del
Peregrino." He also first represented Lope's El cuerdo Loco
(1602) and La gallarda Toledana, and in the autograph of Lope's
El Cordobes valeroso Pedro Carbonero, dated at Ocana, Aug. 26,
1603, in the list of characters we find Granados (who managed the
company) in the role of Pedro Carbonero, and Villegas in the part
of the king. In 1604 Granados resided in Medina del Campo,
and in the same year (in April-July) he was in Valladolid, and
again in 1607. In 1605 he represented autos at Seville, and again
in 1615 and 1618. He was in Zaragoza in 1607 and in Oct., 1608;
in Jaen in July, 1610, and in Malaga in Nov., 1610; in Murcia
in May and June, 161 1 ; in Granada in Dec, 1615; in Lisbon in
Sept. and Oct., 1617, and in Sept., 1621. In 1618 he was in Zara-
goza and came to Seville, where he represented Lope's auto Obras
son Amores and Poyo's Las Fuerzas de Sanson. He was in Madrid
in Dec, 1620, and Aug., 1621, and in 1623 took his company to
Lisbon. In July, 1626, he represented two comedias before the
King. He was received into the Cofradia de la Novena in 1632.
His will is dated June 8, 1641, shortly after which date he probably
died. His wife, who survived him, was Catalina de Azores y
Avila. He left no children or other heirs.
Granados (Maria de), actress in the company of Diego Lopez
de Alcaraz in 1603, and daughter of Luisa de Aranda. On May
488 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
24, 1604, they gave a power of attorney to Gaspar de Porres to
sell a house they owned in Valladolid. El Maestro Vicente Espinel
was a witness to this instrument.
Grifona (La), v. Bernada Manuela.
Guardia, actor who appeared in the cast of Tirso's La Tercera
de la Sancta J nana, 1 6 14.
Guebara (Andres de) and his wife Ines de Ulloa y Sotomayor
were in the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas in March, 1626;
he was in the company of Pedro de Ortegon in Seville in 1635,
taking principal parts. His full name seems to have been Andres
Gutierrez de Guevara. (S.-A., p. 298, n.)
Guerma (Gregoria de), wife of the autor de comedias Gaspar
de los Reyes in 1602.
Guevara (Antonio de), brother of Luisa and Francisco de
Guevara; actor under twenty-five years of age in 1631, in the
company of Juan Martinez. In 1658 he was in Jose de Prado's
company in Seville.
Guevara (Diego de) and his wife Maria de Zaballos were in
the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631; in 1632 they were in
Antonio de Prado's company, acting in the entremes Las Duenas.
(Rosell, Vol. I, p. 322.)
Guevara (Francisca Luisa de), wife of Juan de Campos;
both were members of Manuel Vallejo's company in 1631. v. also
Gevaro (Francisca).
Guevara (Francisco de), brother of Antonio and Luisa, and
actor in the company of Juan Martinez in 1631. This is un-
doubtedly Francisco Velez de Guevara, q. v.
Guevara (Isabel de), wife of Diego Osorio de Velasco, gra-
cioso. Both were in Pedro de Ortegon's company in Seville in 1635.
Guevara (Juan de), member of a joint company of actors,
with Pedro Bravo and others, in Madrid in 161 4. A Juan de
Gevaro or Guevara was in Balbin's company in Seville in 1613.
Guevara (Luis de) played galanes in the company of Tomas
Fernandez in 1636-37. His wife was Ana Coronel.
Guevara (Luisa de), wife of Pedro de Cobaleda, and sister of
Antonio and Francisco de Guevara. She played third parts and
first musical parts in the company of Juan Martinez in 1631, "and
if the second parts be assigned to her, she is to play them."
Guevara (Mariana de), wife of Juan Catalan in Jan., 1606,
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 489
when both agreed to act in the company of Alonso Riquelme for
one year from Shrovetide, 1606, to Shrovetide, 1607. In Feb.,
1609, there is mentioned a Mariana de Guevara, wife of Bartolome
de Robles.
Guevara (Pedro), v. Cerezo de Guevara.
Guevara, v. Cerezo de Guevara.
Gutierrez (Francisco) and his wife Maria Lopez were in
the company of Luis Lopez at Corpus in Seville in 1650. He was
a native of Loratan, near Valladolid. They had two children:
Luis and Juana Gutierrez. Francisco afterward married a Valen-
cian woman named Timotea. He had a company in Seville in
1661, 1668, and 1669. In 1672 he was segundo barba in the com-
pany of Ant. de Escamilla, and in 1673 in that of his son-in-law
Matias de Castro. For his company in 1668, v. Sanchez- Arjona,
P- 447-
Gutierrez (Juana), daughter of Francisco Gutierrez and
Maria Lopez, and second wife of Matias de Castro y Salazar,
whom she married in Valencia (before 1662) and by whom she
had fourteen children. She was in the company of Juan Perez de
Tapia in Seville in 1662, and in her father's company in 1668.
See Sanchez- Arjona, p. 460.
Gutierrez (Mariana) and her husband Antonio de Sampayo
Were members of the company of Antonio de Villegas in Feb., 161 2.
{B.H. (1907), p. 377-)
Gutierrez (Simon), actor in Ricardo de Turia's La belligera
Espanola (printed in 1 616). v. Restori, Stud), p. 92. In the cast
of Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan (1625) the part of Cesar was
taken by Gutierrez.
Gutierrez (Tomas) brought out carros at the Corpus festival
in Seville in 1582, 1584, and 1585. Rodriguez Marin, Rinconete
y Cortadillo, p. 134, says that Tomas Gutierrez afterward aban-
doned the theatrical profession and kept an inn at Seville in the
Calle de la Bayona, where Cervantes lodged in 1585. In a ballad
entitled "Trato de las Posadas en Seuilla," we read :
Lo primero, si llegares
aquella braua posada
que esta en calle de Bayona,
donde los Principes paran, etc.
(Revue Hispanique, 1905, p. 137.).
490 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
This, in all probability, was not the inn where Cervantes stopped.
If it was, the experience of lodging with Princes seems never to
have been repeated in his after-life. According to Suarez de
Figueroa's Plaza Universal, Tomas Gutierrez was deceased in
1615.
Gutierrez de Olivares (Andres or Antonio) and his wife
Ana Romera were acting in Oct., 1603, apparently in the com-
pany of Baltasar Pinedo.
Guzman (Alejandro), actor? His wife was Paula de
Medina.
Guzman (Juan de) of Ayamonte, musician and actor in 1602,
for two years in the company of Pedro Ximenez de Valenzuela.
"He is to receive 220 ducats, the necessary food, and have his
clothes washed."
Guzman (Pedro de), actor in the company of Nicolas de los
Rios in 1609, and in the company of Manuel Vallejo in Madrid
in 1622.
Guzman Morales (Francisco de), autor de comedias in
Valladolid in 1644. (M. y M., p. 566.)
Guzman Rueda (Maria de), "legitimate mother" of Mariana
Galindo; both were in the company of Juan Acacio in Seville in
1644.
Haedo (Juan Bautista de), actor? His wife D" Maria
Morote played first parts at the Corpus festival in the villa del
Escorial in 1636.
Haro (Alfonsa de), wife of Bartolome de Robles in 1643;
both were in the company of Tomas Diaz in Seville in that year.
Haro (Luis de), actor in the company of Pedro de Plata from
March 24, 1587, till Shrovetide, 1588.
Henriquez, actor, apparently in the company of Nicolas de
los Rios in 1 601. (Rojas, Viage, p. 13.)
Herbias (Mariana de), wife of Luis Alvarez; both were
members of the company of Alonso Riquelme in 1 610. She took
the place of Lucia de Salcedo, "and is to act in all the latter's parts
in the company, and in the new comedias is to share the principal
parts with another actress." She was in Baltasar Pinedo's company
from Shrovetide, 1614-15, but at the Corpus festival of 1614 the
Municipality of Madrid requested that she and Maria de los
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 491
Angeles be removed from Pinedo's company and that two other
actresses be engaged in their stead. (Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 379.)
Herbias y Flores (Da Jacinta de), widow in March, 1639,
and a member of the company of Antonio de Rueda in 1638 (?),
1639, and 1640, playing second parts, singing, and dancing, v. San-
chez-Arjona, pp. 334-337. Probably before this (in 1636-37?)
she was in the company of Alonso de Olmedo. (Rosell, Vol. I,
p. 90.) In Jan., 1640, she was the wife of the autor de comedias
Luis Lopez de Sustaete. See text, p. 127.
Heredia (Alonso de), autor de comedias in 1603; his wife in
1604 was Maria de Rojas. He represented autos in Madrid in
1609. (B. H. (1907), p. 375), and in this year, on Aug. 15, he
produced at Getafe Lope's D. Juan de Austria en Flandes. In his
company in 1 614 were: Ant. de Navarrete, Pedro de Avila, Manuel
Simon, Sebast. de la Fuente, Gabriel Ehiarte, Luis Candau, Pedro
de Espana, Antonio Pinero and Santiago Valenciano. He had a
company in 1619, and was one of the managers authorized by the
decree of 1615. He was, it seems, still living in 1638. (JV. £).,
p. 290.)
Heredia (Ana de), actress in the company of Hernan Sanchez
de Vargas in the autos at Seville in 1 62 1, when she received a
gratuity of 100 reals.
Heredia (Andres de), actor in the company of Nicolas de los
Rios in Aug., 1606. He had a company at least as early as 1601,
when he represented the autos at Corpus in Seville, receiving 700
ducats, and seems to have had a company in Toledo in Aug., 1602.
(N. D., p. 97.) He and his company represented an auto at
Zamora in 1607 so badly that they were expelled from the city.
He was again in the company of Rios in Seville in 1609. In the
following year he was in the company of Alonso de Villalba( ?).
(N.D.,p. 116.)
Heredia (Blas de), actor in the company of Damian de Es-
pinosa in Aug., 1638.
Heredia (Jeronimo de), actor in the company of Alonso de
Olmedo in 1621 (Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244), in the company
of Domingo Balbin in 1622, and with Cristobal de Avendano for
one year from April 25, 1623. His wife was Catalina Osorio.
Heredia (Jeronimo de), son of Tomas and Maria de Heredia
(S.-A.), and famous in the role of galan. He was in the company
492 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
of Francisca Lopez in Seville in 1660; in Jose Carrillo's com-
pany in Madrid at Corpus and in Valencia in 1663, and with
Simon Aguado in 1674. His wife was Josef a Lopez, sister of the
autora Francisca Lopez. He died of dropsy in 1676. See Cota-
relo, Migajas del Ingenio, p. 206, who says that the wife of Here-
dia was Jeronima Lopez.
Heredia (Juan de), autor de comedias in Granada in Sept.,
1585. For his letter to the autor Juan de Limos, see Cotarelo,
Lope de Rueda, p. 54.
Heredia (Juan Jeronimo de), actor in 1643, when he was
imprisoned for debt in Madrid.
Heredia (Maria de), famous actress, wife of Tomas de Here-
dia. In 1626 both were in the company of Andres de la Vega and
Maria de Cordoba, and took part in Calderon's auto El Pintor de
su Deshonra, in Madrid at Corpus. She was in her husband's com-
pany in 1627-28, appearing in Lope de Vega's Del Monte sale
quien el Monte quema, and in the company of Antonio de Rueda
in 1638 and 1639. She apparently failed to keep her agreement with
Rueda in 1639, and he executed a power of attorney to Francisco de
Alegria on July 27, to recover the amount advanced to her.
(N. D.j p. 319; Rosell, Vol. I, p. 366.) In the latter year she
appeared as Dona Beatriz in Calderon's La Desdicha de la Voz.
(Schack, Nachtrage, p. 87.) Cotarelo (Tirso, p. 208) recounts
some of the scandals connected with her, and for one of which she
was imprisoned in 1642, and afterward condemned to the galleys.
See also Gallardo, Ensayo, II, Appendix, p. 73, and Barrionuevo,
Avisos, Vol. Ill, p. 215. Her son (by Luis Lopez) was married
in Madrid in 1657; sne died in Naples in 1658.
Heredia (Tomas de), see the preceding. He was a gracioso in
the company of Rueda and Ascanio in 1638. See Rosell, Vol. I,
p. 366, and p. 369, where Maria de Heredia says that they had
had a company in Lisbon of which Arias was a member.
Hernandez (Catalina), v. Hernandez de Verdeseca. A
much later actress named Catalina Hernandez acted under the
name of Eufrasia Maria de Reina, q. v.
Hernandez (Diego), actor in the company of Juan de Tapia,
Luis de Castro, and Alonso de Paniagua from March, 1602, for
one year, and in Domingo Balbin's company in Seville in 1613.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 493
Hernandez (?) (Domingo), actor in the cast of Lope's La
gran Columna fogosa (1629). The name is not legible with cer-
tainty.
Hernandez (Isabel), la Vetera, wife of Miguel Jeronimo
Pinzon or Punzon, and primera dama in Roque de Figueroa's
company in 1631-32. See Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 169, 224; and
Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206. She afterward retired from the stage and
entered a convent. In his Para Todos (1632) Montalvan says of
his auto Escanderbec, "que represento La Belera con grande
vizarria, espiritu, y acento" (fol. 179, ed. of 1645).
Hernandez (Tomas), actor in the company of Esteban Nunez
in Seville in 1654.
Hernandez Galindo (Francisco) and his wife Isabel de
Torres were in Claramonte's company in 161 4.
Hernandez Pinzon (Cristobal) took part in the Corpus
festival at Seville in 1559 and 1570.
Hernandez de Verdeseca (Catalina), wife of the autor
Gaspar de Porres, is first mentioned in 1591. In the autos at
Seville in 1594, in which she acted in the company of her husband,
she received a gratuity of 1100 reals for the beauty and costliness
of the silk-embroidered costumes which she wore. (S.-A., p. 86.)
She is called "widow of Gaspar de Porres, vecino que fue de
Toledo," in July, 1623. She was still living at the close of
March, 1625. Her sons were Dr. Mathias de Porres, the friend
of Lope de Vega, and Juan de Porres.
Herrera, mentioned as an antiguo autor by Rojas, Viage entre-
tenido (1603), and as a musico, apparently in the company of
Rios in 1601. (Ibid., p. 14.) Perhaps this was Melchor de
Herrera, q. v.
Herrera (Alonso de), danzante and autor de comedias, re-
ceived 12,000 mrs. for two danzas de Villanos produced in a
comedia acted in Madrid in honor of the Peace of Cambray in 1559.
Herrera (Jeronima de) and her husband Sebastian Zamudio
belonged to the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631.
Herrera (Juan de), actor in the company of Antonio Grana-
dos (when?). An actor Herrera appeared in the cast of Lope's
La Discordia en los Casados (1611) and in his El Sembrar en
buena Tierra (1616). See RoselL Vol. II, p. 336. A Juan de
494 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Herrera de Gamboa, actor and author of Cephalo y Pocris, is men-
tioned by Cervantes, Persiles y Sigismunda, Bk. Ill, chap, u.
Herrera (Da Laura de), lessee of the corral La Monteria in
Seville in 1663-69.
Herrera (Marcos de), musician in the companies of Roque
de Figueroa in 1 631 and Cristobal de Avendafio in 1632, and
later with Lorenzo Hurtado. He was a native of Membrilla
(Toledo). (Rosell, I, p. 231.) See also ibid., p. 168, where he
is called "musico nuevo en las tablas," and is highly praised as a
singer and player on the guitar.
Herrera (Maria de), wife of Juan de Ostos; both were in
the company Los Andaluces in 1605.
Herrera (Maria de) and her husband Francisco de Valencia
played second parts in the company of Juan Bautista Espinola in
1633, and in that of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas from March 9,
1634, for one year.
Herrera (Melchor de), autor de comedias, took part in the
"fiestas de Agosto" in Toledo in 1561. He represented two autos
at Corpus in Toledo in 1 5 80, for which he received 140 ducats.
(B.H. (1906), p. 78.)
Herrera (Pablo de), actor in the company of Antonio de
Prado in Seville in 1639.
Herrero y Mendoza, v. Mendoza.
Hidalgo (Maria), her husband Juan de Urquiza, and their
son Pedro were in the company of Roque de Figueroa in 1631-32.
Hinestroza (Angela Francisca), actress in the company of
Manuel Vallejo in 1631, and in that of Lorenzo Hurtado in
Seville in 1641 and 1642, playing first parts. She and her sister
Beatriz were members of a joint company in Seville in 1642, taking
part in the autos with Lorenzo de Prado and others. They had
then retired from the stage and were living in Seville. (Sanchez-
Arjona, p. 358.)
Hinestroza (Beatriz) played third parts in the company of
Lorenzo Hurtado in 1642. She and Angela were daughters of Ana
de Torres, and all three were in Manuel Vallejo's company in 1631.
Hita (Ines de), wife of Francisco Pinelo. In i632-35(?)
(Rosell, Vol. I, p. 29) she and her husband were in Madrid in
the company of Tomas Fernandez, and in 1633-34 both were
members of the company of Juan de Morales Medrano. She had
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 495
two daughters, Maria and Juana de Margarita. She was unable
to write her name. Perhaps she was the Ynes who appeared as
Diana in Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan (1625).
Hita (Juana Margarita de), daughter of Francisco Pinelo
and Ines de Hita, and wife of Antonio Rodriguez (1633); she
was confined in a convent in Valladolid por alguna travesura, and
was killed by a fall in attempting to escape. See also Pinelo
(Juana Margarita). Perhaps this is the Margarita in Lorenzo
Hurtado's company (1632-35?). (Rosell, I, p. 29.) See, how-
ever, under Margarita.
Huerta (Gaspar de), actor in the entremes (sixteenth cen-
tury) El Hijo que nego a su Padre. See Addenda.
Hurtado de la Camara y Mendoza (Lorenzo), actor in
1 62 1 in the company of Pedro de Valdes. On Oct. 22, 1621, he
agreed to join the company of Tomas Fernandez de Cabredo from
Shrovetide, 1622, to 1623, to act first parts, "unless Gabriel Cintor
be in the same company, when he is to act no less than second
parts." In 1623-24 he belonged to the company of Cristobal de
Avendano. His wife was Francisca Bazan, and both were in the
company of Roque de Figueroa in 1629-30(7). See Rosell,
I, p. 169. He had a company at least as early as Oct., 1631, when
he gave three representations before the King. On April 26 of
this year he entered the Cofradia de la Novena; indeed, he must
have been a well-known autor de comedias long before this, as he
was one of the five founders of the Cofradia. In 1631-33 he
lived in the Calle de Francos, Madrid, and in 1638 in Valladolid.
He played first parts in his own company in La Monteria in
Seville and at Corpus in 1640, 1641, and 1642 (S.-A., p. 356, for
his company in 1642), and again at Corpus in 1645 (for this
company, v. S.-A., p. 375). Lorenzo Hurtado was a hidalgo,
descendant of Payo Furtado de Mendoza, ennobled in 1489. His
company produced (in 1641 ?) Mescua's comedia El Martir de
Madrid, as the MS. shows. (Paz y Melia, Cat., No. 2029.)
Ibanez (Juan), native of Alcaraz, produced the dances and
"inventions" for the Corpus festival at Alcaraz in 1554.
Ines, actress in the "entremes cantado" La Muerte, with Rufina,
Maria de Jesus, Antonia Manuela, Juan Matias, Naxera, and
Bezon. This was probably Ines de Hita. The company was that
496 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
of Tomas Fernandez, and the date, in all probability, 1636-37-
The name Ines also occurs in the cast of Tirso's Celos con Celos
se cur an (1625).
Infanta (Antonia), celebrated actress, wife of Pedro Ascanio
in 1638: see the passage in the entr ernes of Benavente spoken by
Antonia. (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 373.) Perhaps she was the Antonia
in Pedro de la Rosa's company in i636(?) in the entremes Los
Muertos vivos. Both were in the company of Antonio de Rueda
in 1639, when she "played third parts, singing and dancing, and
the primera parte del saynete" (N. D., p. 304) ; and in the same
company in 1640, when she played primer as damas y musica.
(S.-A., p. 337.) Prior to this (1636-37?) she was in the com-
pany of Alonso de Olmedo. (Rosell, I, p. 90.) See ibid., p. 376,
where Antonia sings :
Dos galanes al dia
Mi Pedro hace,
Uno en la comedia
Y otro en la calle.
See also the story concerning her in the text (p. 127), and Sanchez-
Arjona, p. 335.
Inza (Juan) and his wife Josef a Maria were in the company
of Francisca Lopez in 1663. He was a gracioso, and belonged for
a while to the company of Francisco de la Calle. In 1665 he was
with Felix Pascual, and died in Cadiz in 1682.
Inigo [de LoavsaJ , v. under Loaysa.
Isabel (Dona), actress playing third parts in the company of
Tomas Fernandez in Madrid in 1636— 37(?). A Dona Isabel
appeared in the cast of Lope's El Voder en el Discreto (1623)
in the company of Juan de Morales.
Isabel, actress in the company of Felix Pascual in i665-68( ?).
Isabel, la Velera, v. Hernandez.
Isabel Ana, wife of Bartolome de Arze; both were in the
company of Nicolas de los Rios in Seville in 1609, and in the
company of Cristobal de Avendano in 1622. In March, 1624,
both were in the company of Juan de Morales Medrano. This
was probably the Isabel Ana who lived in the Calle del
Infante, Madrid, in 1614, and then belonged to the company
of Pedro de Valdes, and afterward to that of Pinedo. See Life of
Lope de Vega, p. 171 et passim.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 497
Isabel Ana, wife of Jusepe Luzon; both were in the com-
pany of Jeronimo Sanchez from March, 1623, for one year. She
seems to have been in the company of Pedro de la Rosa in 1636;
at all events the entremes Los Muertos vivos, in which she ap-
peared, seems to have been represented by this company. (Flor de
Entremeses, Zaragoza, 1679.) In Oct., 1638, Isabel Ana is desig-
nated a widow, and belonged to the company of Juan Roman from
Shrovetide, 1639, to 1640. There was an Isabel Ana, wife of
Miguel Fernandez Bravo. Perhaps the same. See above under
Fernandez (Micaela).
Isabel Antonia, actress, wife of Antonio Pinero.
Isabel Maria, "single woman" in the company of Juan Rodri-
guez de Antriago in April, 1639.
Isabel Maria, actress in the company of Hernan Sanchez de
Vargas in Seville at Corpus, 1621, when she received a gratuity
of 500 reals for excellence in acting and for fine costumes.
Isabelica, actress in the cast of La Guarda cuidadosa by Miguel
Sanchez (1615) and in Como ha de usarse del bien. v. Restori,
Studj di Fil. Rom., Fasc. 15, 1891, p. 129. See also Lope's Los
Guzmanes de Toral, ed. Restori, p. vii, who thinks that Isabelica
was the daughter of Francisco de Sotomayor, q. v.
Iturrote (Juan de), actor in the company of Bernardo de la
Vega in 1672.
Jacinta, v. Gallego, Herbias, Medina, Osorio, and Velez.
Jacinta Eugenia, actress, wife of Francisco Garcia, Pupilo;
both were in the company of Esteban Nunez in 1648.
Jalon (Maria Antonia), wife of Pablo Martin de Morales,
and a member of his company in Seville in 1678.
Jaraba (Garcia de), actor in the company of Cisneros and
Melchor de Villalba in 1595-96.
Jaraba (Juan de), member of the company of Alonso
Riquelme in 1610. He was lessee of the two theaters of Madrid
in May, 1613, for one year, for 8850 reals (N. D., p. 134), and
again in 1614-15. He furnished the painting and the properties
of the cars at Corpus in 1619 in Madrid. His wife was Lucia
Martinez.
Jerez (Juan de), member of the joint company of Andres de
Claramonte in June, 161 4.
498 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Jerje (Manuel) and his wife Ana de Torres belonged to
the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1 63 1.
Jeronima, actress in the company of Sanchez de Vargas at
Corpus in Seville in 1621, when she received a gratuity of 100
reals.
Jeronima, v. Burgos, Coronel, Herrera, Olmedo, Rodri-
guez, Sierra, Valcazar.
Jeronimo (Juan), v. Valenciano.
Jeronimo (Miguel), actor in the company of Diego Lopez de
Alcaraz in 1603-04; in 1604 in the company of Antonio de
Granados; in the company of Riquelme in Seville in 1607, and in
Sept., 1623, with the company of Manuel Vallejo. In 1626 he
was in the company of Antonio de Prado and appeared as Julio
in Lope's Amor con Vista. In 1630-31 he and his wife Isabel
Hernandez, la Velera, were in the company of Roque de Figueroa.
v. Rosell, I, pp. 168, 169, and ibid., pp. 224, 231 ; Cotarelo, Tirso,
p. 206. He is probably the Jeronimo who took the part of
Fabricio in Lope de Vega's Sin Secreto no ay Amor (1626). His
full name was Miguel Jeronimo Punzon.
Jesus (Leonor Maria de), actress in the company of Tomas
Fernandez in 1636. (Rosell, I, pp. 55, 405.) She was the wife
of Inigo de Loaysa, and both were in the company of Pedro de
la Rosa in i638-3<j(?). (Rosell, I, pp. 235, 380.) They both
appeared in Belmonte's play A un tiempo Rey y Vasallo in 1642.
Jimenez (Diego) and his wife Jeronima de Coronel were in
the company of Tomas Diaz in Seville in 1643, in the company
of Juan Acacio in 1644, an<^ w'tn Lorenzo Hurtado's company in
Seville in 1645. Diego Jimenez died before 1648; at all events,
in that year his wife is described as a widow.
Jimenez (Juan) appeared in the cast of Tirso de Molina's La
Tercera de la Sancta Juana (1614-16) in the company of Antonio
de Prado. In 1643 he was in Bartolome Romero's company in
Seville.
Jimenez (Jusepe) and his wife Vicenta de Borja were in the
company of Baltasar Pinedo in March, 1617, and in the company
of Antonio de Prado in March, 1624. A Jusepe Jimenez was a
musician and actor in the company of Olmedo in 1635; perhaps
the same. Who the "Jusepe" was who appeared in Juan Bautista's
company in Lope de Vega's Nueva Victoria de D, Gonzalo de
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 499
Cordoba (1622) and in his Del Monte sale (1627) I am unable
to determine.
Jimenez (Maria) , actress, wife of Andres de Abadia ; both were
members of the company of Manuel Vallejo in Seville in 1633,
1640, and 1643.
Jimenez (Miguel), his wife Bernarda Teloy, and their daugh-
ter Bernarda Gamarra were in the company of Manuel Vallejo in
1 63 1. In 1632 he lived in the Calle de Francos, Madrid.
Jimenez de Valenzuela (Pedro), autor de comedias in
1 601, when he represented in Valladolid and Madrid; his wife
was Maria de Salcedo. He and Gabriel Vaca had a company in
1601-02. For their representations in Madrid in 1601, see Ap-
pendix. In March, 1602, he had his own company. He was a
native of Toledo, and there is record of an instrument dated in
that city on Jan. 10, 1602 (when he resided there), in which
Jimenez acknowledges a debt of 400 reals to Lope de Vega, evi-
dently the price of a comedia. (2V. D., p. 351.) The latest notice
of Jimenez that I have found is 1605.
Jordan (Pedro) belonged to the company of Antonio de
Prado in Madrid in 1632 and in i634~35(?), and again in
Seville in 1639. See Rosell, I, p. 97. He had two sons who were
also in Prado's company in 1632. The name occurs in the cast
of Lope's El piadoso Aragones (1626).
JOSEFA, V. LOBACO, MORALES, ROMAN.
Josefa Maria, widow in 1639, when she appeared in two
comedies in Truxeque.
Josefa Maria, wife of the actor Juan Inza; both were in the
company of Francisca Lopez in Seville in 1663, and in Felix
Pascual's company in 1665.
Juan (Miguel), musician in 1639.
Juan (Pedro), actor in the company of Juana de Cisneros in
Seville in 1660.
Juan Bautista, actor in 1604, and member of the company
of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz in April, 1607; this is probably Juan
Bautista de Villalobos, q. v.
Juan Francisco, v. Francisco.
Juan Matias, v. Matias.
Juana (La Senora), actress in the cast of Lope de Vega's
Hermosa Ester (1610).
500 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Juana Bautista, wife of Miguel de Miranda; both were in
the company of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago in 1637—38-
Juana Bautista, wife of the actor Felipe Lobato or Lobaco,
q. v.
Juana Bernabela, actress, wife of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago
and in his company in 1639, playing the principal parts.
Juanico, son of the gracioso Bernardo, called el Tuerto Lampa-
rilla, or Bernardo Medrano, q. v. (Rosell, I, p. 288, and Res-
tori's ed. of Lope's Los Guzmanes de Toral, p. x.) There is a
Juanico mentioned by Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 52.
Juarez, see also under Suarez.
Juarez (Ana) , singer and dancer in the company of Lorenzo
Hurtado in Seville in 1642.
Juarez (Cristobal), actor, died before Dec. 15, 1616. His
widow was Da Maria de Ocampo.
Juarez (Dionisia), wife of the actor Juan Martinez; both
were in Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan's company from Shrovetide,
1 61 9, for one year.
Juarez (Juan), musico in the company of Lorenzo Hurtado
in Seville in 1642.
Juarez (Juana), actress, sister of Juan Roman; both agreed
to join the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas on June 28,
1638, for one year. She was then a widow. On Oct. 6, 1638,
she agreed to act for one year, from Shrovetide, 1639, to 1640, in
the company of her brother.
Juliana, actress in the company of Bartolome Romero (1637—
1643?). v. Rosell, I, pp. 220, 284.
Juliana Antonia, second wife (1619) of Tomas Fernandez
de Cabredo, q. v.
Jusepa, primera dama in the company of Ana de Espinosa (la
Viuda) in Madrid at Corpus, 1641. v. Schack, Nachtrage, p. 73.
v. Necti (Josefa).
Jusepa Maria, actress in the company of Andres de la Vega
in 1635. In March, 1637, she is described as a widow, and acted
in three comedias given in Brunete in August of that year.
Jusepe, actor in the company of Juan Jeronimo Valenciano
in 1622, appeared in Lope's Nueva Victoria de D. Gonzalo de Cor-
doba; the name also occurs in the cast of Tirso's Celos con Celos
se curan (1625) in the part of Mendo. In 1627 he was in
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 501
Heredia's company, taking part in Lope's Del Monte sale. In
1639 he played old men's parts in the company of Andres de la
Vega, and appeared in Calderon's La Desdicha de la Voz. The
actor in the latter play is almost surely Jusepe de Carrion, as the
company was Antonio de Rueda's. v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 372.
Justa (Rufina), v. Garcia (Rufina).
Labadia (Juan de), actor; his wife Luisa de Robles is de-
scribed as a widow on June 19, 1618. (N. D., p. 167.) Sanchez-
Arjona, p. 256, says that Juan de la Abadia and his wife Luisa
de Robles were acting in the Coliseo at Seville in 1627. See
under Olmedo (Alonso de) and under Robles (Luisa de).
Labana (Manuel de) ; his name was Juan Vela. He mar-
ried Angela Garcia and played galanes in the company of La
Aquilona in Valencia in 1671. Afterward he played gracioso in
Madrid and Valencia in the company of his brother Miguel Vela.
Labaya (Andres de) and his wife Francisca belonged to the
company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631 (Cotarelo). Perhaps this is
a mistake for Andres de Abadia or Labadia.
Ladron de Guevara (Ana), actress in Jacinto Riquelme's
company in Seville in 1652. (S.-A., p. 398.)
Ladron de Guevara (Mariana), la Carbonera{ ?), native of
Mondejar, was the second wife of Jeronimo Carbonera. She died
shortly after Oct. 3, 1643, the date on which her will was exe-
cuted. (Nuevos Datos, p. 330.) v. Reyes (Mariana de los).
Lamparilla, el Tuerto, well-known gracioso whose real name
was Bernardo [Medrano?]. He was in the company of Avendaiio
(Rosell, I, p. 214), and afterward with Andres de la Vega in
1634, and in the company of Tomas Fernandez in 1636-37.
(Rosell, I, pp. 288, 330.) His wife was named Margarita.
(Ibid., II, p. 330.) See also under Bernardo.
Lara (Ines de), wife of the famous autor de comedias Nicolas
de los Rios in 1607. She was living at the time of his death,
March 29, 16 10.
Lara (Juan de) , actor in the company of Juan de Tapia from
March 4, 1602, for one year.
Lara (Salvador de), actor, married Maria Candau after the
death of her first husband, Cristobal de Avendano (1635?).
Thereafter he headed Avendano's company, which represented
502 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
in La Monteria, in Seville, in the same year. (S.-A., P- 294.)
See under Avendano.
Laredo (Gregorio) and Francisco Malhelo had a company of
Spanish players in Naples in 1630 and 1 631. (Croce, / Teatri di
Napoli, p. 91.)
Larrea (Diego de), actor in Madrid in 1584.
Laso (Antonio), musician in the company of Alberto Naseli,
alias Ganassa, in Madrid in 1581-82. (Revista de Archivos
(1908), p. S3-)
Lastra (Andres de la), actor indicted in 1606 for a quarrel
with an alguacil. The name occurs in the cast of Turia's comedia
La belligera Espanola (printed in 1616). (Restori, Studj, p. 92.)
Lastra (Diego de) of Toledo had charge of one of the dances
at Corpus in Madrid in 1587.
Latras (Maria de), actress in the company of Manuel Vallejo
in i632( ?). (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 277.)
Leal (Antonio), dancer, singer, and actress in the company
of Manuel Vallejo in Seville in 1640.
Leal (Luis), member of the company of Tomas Fernandez de
Cabredo in 1619 for one year, from Shrovetide.
Ledesma (Isabel de), wife of Luis de Castro; she acted at
the Corpus festival of 1602 at the villa of Borox, in the company
of her husband and Juan de Tapia. On June 18, 1603, both
became members of a joint company.
Leon, musician and actor in the company of Alonso Riquelme
in Seville in 1607.
Leon (Angela de) had a company of players in Valencia in
1676.
Leon (Catalina de), wife of Juan Fernandez; she was in the
company of Juan Martinez from March, 1631, for one year.
Leon (Cristobal de). We first read of him as an executor
of the will of Juan Ruiz de Mendi in November, 1596. In 1610
he was in the company of Lopez de Alcaraz. He had a company
in 1615-22. He and Baltasar Pinedo represented the autos at
Madrid in 1617. {Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 382.) There was a
"Leon," evidently a musico, in the cast of Lope's El piadoso Ara-
ffones (1626).
Leon (Diego de), actor in 1638. In 1639, 1640, and 1644.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 503
he was in the company of Antonio de Rueda, playing third parts
and dancing. In 1639 he appeared in Calderon's La Desdicha de
la Voz. On May 19, 1638, Lucia Bravo withdrew an accusation
she had made against Diego de Leon for complicity in the death of
her son Francisco Vicente. One Diego Leon was the lessee of the
Corral de Dona Elvira in Seville in 1619. (S.-A., p. 196.)
Leon (Francisco de), autor de comedias, "que es el mas anti-
guo de los que hay en este Reyno y tiene su compafiia hecha de
representantes espanoles," represented in Naples in March, 1621.
See Croce, / Teatri di Napoli, p. 91. The only Leon antiguo, to
my knowledge, is Melchor de Leon, q. v.
Leon (Francisco de), actor in the company of Andres de la
Vega for one year from Feb. 25, 1638. A Francisco de Leon had
a company representing the autos at Seville in 1674.
Leon (Juan de), actor and musician. He died in the Calle de
Cantarranas, near the Posada Nueva, in 1645. There was a Juan
Acevedo de Leon in Antonio de Prado's company in 1632; perhaps
the same.
Leon (Luis de), lessee of the corrales of Seville in 1617. See
Lesa (Luis de).
Leon (Da Maria Antonia de), wife of the celebrated actor
Alonso de Olmedo, el Mozo, q. v.
Leon (Melchor de), one of the early autores de comedias.
He had a company in 1586 and represented two autos in Seville
in 1590 and 1597, and in the former year his company represented
a number of times in Madrid, beginning Dec. 6. See Appendix A.
His wife was Maxima [Mariana?] Ortiz, and in April-Dec,
1 601, he was in the company of Pedro Jimenez de Valenzuela and
Gabriel Vaca. (Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 366.) He had a company
in Aug., 1602, and was one of the eight autores authorized by the
decree of 1603, in January of which year his company was in
Medina del Campo. In 1606 he represented two autos at Seville,
receiving 700 ducats, and in 1607 performed autos at Toledo, his
company including: Pedro Rodriguez and Maria Flores, his wife,
Pedro de Zurita, Juan de Avila, Juan Bravo, Juan de Valdiviesso,
Miguel Ruiz and his wife Baltasara de los Reyes, and Bartolome
Sanchez. In 161 1 he is called Melchor de Leon Diez de Vas-
cones. He first represented Lucinda perseguida, one of Lope's
5<H SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
earliest comedias, and in 1620 first produced Tirso's Villana de
Vallecas. He visited Brussels with his company in Sept., 1629.
(n: d., p. 218.)
Leon (Nicolas), Spaniard(?), was a joueur de farces in the
service of the King of Navarre in 1579. (Baschet, Corned. It.,
p. 87, n.)
Leonardo (Antonio), actor in Valencia in the company of
Antonio de Ordaz in 1664; in 1670 in the company of Antonio
de Escamilla; in 1672 with Manuel Vallejo, playing fourth parts;
in 1673 with Felix Pascual; in 1676 he played segundos galanes
in the company of Hipolito de Olmedo, and in 1681 with Agustin
Manuel. He was originally a musician and married Lucia Fer-
nandez. He afterward married a niece of Maria de Cordoba,
and died in Madrid in 1698.
Leonor Maria, wife of Cristobal de Montoya; both were of
Granada and belonged to the company of Juan Acacio in Seville
in 1619.
Lerma (Isabel de), actress, married Juan de Avifion in Valla-
dolid in 1605, when both were in the company of Rios.
Lesa (Luis de), lessee of the Corral de Dona Elvira in Seville
in 1 619. (Nuevos Datos, p. 174.) Sanchez- Arjona, p. 180, says
the lessee was Luis de Leon.
Leyzalde (Domingo de), son of Miguel de Leyzalde and
Maria Lopez. He was in the company of Melchor de Leon from
Aug. 30, 1586, until Shrovetide, 1587.
Leyzalde (Miguel de), v. the preceding.
Lezcano, actor in the company of Avendano. His name occurs
in the cast of Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan, the MS., of which
bears a censura dated 1625. The name is also in the cast of Lope's
El Voder en el Discreto (1624). In 1627 he was in the company
of the Valencianos. (Barrera, N. B., p. 442.)
Limos (Juan de), autor de comedias in Madrid in 1583-84,
and in Seville in 1585. (Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, p. 54.) His
wife (1586) was Juana Manzano. (B. H. (1906), p. 366.)
Limos (Sebastian de), actor in the company of Pedro de
Saldana in 1585 (before June), v. Bonilla, Anales, p. 150.
Linares (Pedro de), actor in the company of Andres de la
Vega, March 20, 1638. He is mentioned as an autor in the same
year, when he represented the autos at Estremera. Prior to this,
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 505
in 1634-36 ( ?), he was a member of the company of Antonio de
Prado. (Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 29, 97, 322.) In Dec, 1638, he
played old men's parts in the company of Luis Lopez.
Linan (Domingo), autor who represented one of the autos in
Seville in 1633. He was an actor in 1634.
Loaisa (Jose), actor in the company of Carlos de Salazar in
Seville in 1676.
Loaysa (Fulgencio de), actor in the company of Jeronimo
Sanchez for one year from March, 1623. He played fourth parts
in a joint company with Gabriel and Antonio Cintor and Luis
Bernardo de Bovadilla in Feb., 1638. The name Loaysa (in all
probability Inigo) appears in the cast of La Guarda cuidadosa by
Miguel Sanchez (1615). See the following.
Loaysa (Inigo de) and his wife Leonor Maria de Jesus were
in the company of Tomas Fernandez in 1 631, when he was re-
ceived into the Cofradia de la Novena (S.-A., p. 323), and again
in 1636-37. (Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 151, 288.) In i638(?) they
acted in an auto entitled El Santo Rey D. Fernando, in Seville, and
he was in the company of Luis Lopez and Juana de Espinosa prior
to Sept. 30, 1643, when he is mentioned as deceased. (N. D.,
p. 330.) He was in the company of la Viuda (Ana de Espinosa)
at Corpus, 1641, at Madrid. See Schack, ~Nachtr'dge, p. 73. In
1642 he and his wife appeared in Belmonte's A un tiempo Rey y
Vasallo. (S.-A., p. 295.) He is said to have been stabbed to
death in Valencia, in the Calle de la Mayuda, near the Calle de
la Olivera, while announcing the play for the following day.
Perhaps there is confusion here with Inigo de Velasco, q. v.
Loaysa (Jose), actor in the company of Jose Carrillo in 1663.
Loaysa (Pedro de) and his wife (name not given) were in
Domingo Balbin's company in Seville in 1613.
Loaysa (Petronila de), wife of the actor Luis de Toledo;
both were in the company of Antonio de Prado, appearing in
Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta Juana (1616?), and in the com-
pany of Juan Acacio in Seville at Corpus in 16 19, when she re-
ceived a gratuity for acting in the auto La Ninfa del Cielo.
Lobaco (Ambrosio), actor, died in 1635. He resided in the
Calle de San Agustin, Madrid. His son (also an actor?) died in
the previous year. (Rosell, II, p. 327.)
Lobaco or Lobato (Felipe), actor in the company of Fernan
506 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Sanchez de Vargas for one year from Feb. 22, 1633. Later
(1636-39?) he was in the company of Tomas Fernandez.
(Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 293, 381. See also ibid., p. 371.) His wife
was Juana Bautista.
Lobaco (Josefa) and her husband Jose Frutos were in the
company of Antonio de Prado in Seville in 1632, i633~35(?),
and in the same company in 1639. See also Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 127,
174, 193, 270, 322, 351. On the death of her husband she entered
the convent of Santa Clara at Illescas, where she died.
Lobera (Juan), musico in the company of Jeronimo Vallejo
in 1660.
Lobillo (Francisco) and his wife Ana Maldonado, both of
Madrid, were in the company of Juan Acacio in Seville in 1619.
Lobillo, v. Perez Lobillo.
Lopez (Adrian), autor de comedias in Salamanca and Valla-
dolid in 1650. In this (beginning on Dec. 1) and the following
year he also represented at Corpus in Seville and in La Monteria.
In Jan. and Nov., 1653, his company represented an auto and acted
Calderon's La Hija del Aire (in Nov.) privately before the King.
In 1657 he played first parts in the company of Diego Osorio,
and in 1659 he had a company in Naples (in the Teatro dei
Fiorentini) which included his mother, two sisters, and a brother.
(Croce, / Teatri di Napoli, p. 146.) He had a company as late
as 1 67 1. He was, it seems, a brother of Luis Lopez [de Sustaete?].
v. Averiguador ( 1 871), p. 201.
Lopez (Andres), actor in the company of Claramonte in 1614
till Shrovetide, 1 615.
Lopez (Antonio), actor in Valladolid in 1644 in the company
of Francisco de Guzman Morales. (M. y M., p. 566.)
Lopez (Beatriz), actress and singer in the company of Pedro
de Ortegon in Seville in 1635. There was a Beatriz Lopez, sister
of Adrian Lopez, who was upon the stage in 1659 and 1670.
v. Lopez (Adrian).
Lopez (Bernardo), actor in the company of Francisca Lopez
in Seville in 1660 and 1663. In 1671 he was second gracioso in
the company of Antonio de Escamilla; in 1672 and 1673 he
was with Manuel Vallejo; in 1675 again with Escamilla, and in
1676 again with Vallejo. Sanchez-Arjona conjectures that he
may be the celebrated gracioso Bernardo Lopez del Campo, who
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 507
afterward retired to Granada, kept a shop, and died there in
1705.
Lopez (Cristobal), lessee of the theaters of Madrid in 1609,
1611, 1612, and 1615.
Lopez (Damiana), actress in Valladolid in 1654. (M. y M.,
p. 567.) She was in the company of her brother Adrian Lopez
in Naples in 1659, and played first parts also in the company of
her brother in 1671, and afterward in the company of La Alquilona.
She "was distinguished especially for her singular virtue," and died
in Barcelona.
Lopez (Diego), actor in the cast of Lope's La gran Columna
fogosa (1629).
Lopez (Fernando), actor in same play as the preceding.
Lopez (Francisca). It appears that more than one actress
bore this name. There was a Francisca Lopez who, we are told,
was famous in the play La Nina de Gomez Arias, and who was the
sister of Luisa and Jose Lopez and the wife of Gaspar de Segura.
She managed a company of players in Seville in 1660, 1661, 1663,
and 1664. (Sanchez-Arjona, p. 424 et passim.) In March, 1662,
her company was acting in Granada. (Barrera, Catdlogo, p. 341.)
It is said that she was formerly in the company of Pedro de
Ortegon. If this be so, it must have been before 1636. In 1663
Francisca Lopez is called "widow of Gaspar de Segura"; and in
1677 she is in the company of Agustin Manuel de Cast ilia. (Cal-
deron Documentos, p. 350.) That this Francisca Lopez and
Francisca Lopez de Sustaete, daughter of Luis Lopez de Sustaete,
are one person is proved by a note appended, to the manuscript of
Montero de Espinosa's play En el Dichoso es merito la Culpa.
See Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, Nos. 1070, 2583. The latter shows
that Francisca had a company in 1668. There was also a Fran-
cisca Lopez, wife of Luis Lopez [de Sustaete?] and mother of
Luisa Lopez. Mother and daughter were acting in the company
of Luis Lopez in Seville in 1637 and 1645. (S.-A., pp. 306, 374.)
Maria Lopez was in this company in the latter year. It is probable
that this Francisca Lopez was the mother of the Francisca first
above mentioned. See below, under Lopez de Sustaete (Luis).
Lopez (Francisco). There seem to have been at least two
actors by this name. In 1629 Francisco Lopez, autor de comedias,
represented in the Coliseo at Seville, and in 1630 in La Monteria.
His wife was Damiana Perez, and his name occurs on the books
508 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
of the Cofradia de la Novena in 1632, 1633, a°d 1635, in which
latter year he was in Valencia (S.-A., p. 261). This is, in all prob-
ability, the Francisco Lopez whose company represented several
comedias privately before the King in June, 1632, and in 1633.
On May I of the latter year he produced Lope's Si no vieran
las Mugeres (v. Averiguador, Vol. I), and in the previous year
(1632) he and Manuel Vallejo represented the autos in Madrid.
Among the members of his company were Diego de Robledo, Sebas-
tian Gonzalez, and Francisco de Velasco. {N. D., p. 225.) He
died in 1653. (S.-A., p. 261.) There was a Francisco Lopez
who, according to Pellicer (Vol. II, p. 59), married Feliciana de
Andrade and died in 1669. We learn from Croce, / Teatri di
Napolij p. 125, that Francisco Lopez and his wife Feliciana de
Andrade, the mother of Josefa Lopez, called Pepa la hermosa,
were in Naples in 1639. There was also a Francisco Lopez who
played fourth parts in the company of Antonio de Rueda in 1640,
his wife Isabel Lopez playing third parts and the harp in the same
company. (S.-A., p. 337.) Both are said to have been previously in
the companies of Juan Bautista and Pedro de la Rosa. {Ibid.,
p. 261.) In 1656 Francisco Lopez was in the company of Antonio
de Castro. {Ibid., p. 410.) He had a company in Granada in
May, 1662. (Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2427.) Averigiielo el
discrete.
Lopez (Gabriel), actor at a Corpus festival at the villa of
Borox in 1602, in the company of Juan de Tapia, Luis de Castro,
and others.
Lopez (Hernando), member of the company of Felix Pascual
in Seville in 1665. A Fernando Lopez appeared in the cast of
Lope's La gran Columna fogosa (1629).
Lopez (Isabel) played third parts in the company of Antonio
de Rueda in Seville in 1640. Her husband Francisco Lopez
played fourth parts in the same company.
Lopez (Jacinto) played in the company of Luis Bernardo de
Bovadilla for one year from Feb. 4, 1637. In 1639 he had
charge of the music ("cantar y poner los tonos") at the Corpus fes-
tival in Valdemoro.
Lopez (Jeronimo), autor de comedias. v. Lopez de Sustaya
(Jeronimo).
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 509
Lopez (Jose), actor in the company of Matias de Castro in
Seville in 1673. He was a brother of Francisca Lopez.
Lopez (Josefa), sister of the autora Francisca Lopez, and wife
of Jeronimo de Heredia. She was the daughter of Francisco
Lopez and Feliciana de Andrade, and was called Pepa la hermosa.
She was in the company of her father in Naples in 1639, and in
that of Francisca Lopez in 1660, and she and her husband were
in the company of Jose Carrillo in 1663. In 1668 she belonged to
the company of Francisco Gutierrez.
Lopez (Juan), second gracioso and harpist in the company of
Jose Garceran in Seville in 1657; his wife Ana de la Paz playing
fifth parts in the same company. He afterward married Maria
de Medina, daughter of the autor Francisco de Medina, and was
gracioso in Medina's company in Seville in 1670, and in that of
Carlos de Salazar in 1675 and 1676. In the former year he was
indicted for wounding Maria de Figueroa, wife of Juan Francisco
de Ribera, of the same company. At the close of the seventeenth
century there was another actor named Juan Lopez, who married
Maria Bernardez and played second barbas and third galanes.
Lopez (Juan), actor in the company of Bartolome Romero in
1638-39, and in all probability the same Juan Lopez who was in
Figueroa's company (in 1630-31?) and who was called "el gran
Juan Lopez." (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 168, and p. 224, in the Loa
segunda, which seems to have been represented by Figueroa in
1632.) In the Libros de la Cofradia a Juan Lopez, el Terrero, is
mentioned, who died in 1658; perhaps the same.
Lopez (Luis), v. Lopez de Sustaete.
Lopez (Luis), second gracioso in the company of Pablo Mar-
tin de Morales in Seville in 1678.
Lopez (Luisa), daughter of Luis Lopez [de Sustaete] and
his wife Francisca Lopez, was well known as an actress in Seville
in 1637, while in the company of her father. She married Vicente
Domingo and was again in her father's company in 1645 and in
the company of Juan Perez de Tapia in Seville in 1662. She was
then living in Cadiz and came to Seville to take part in the autos,
receiving 11 00 reals. In 1673, then a widow, she was again upon
the stage in the company of Matias de Castro, acting in La Mon-
teria in Seville. In 1680 she was in the company of Jeronimo
5io SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Garcia. (Calderon Documentos, I, p. 365.) According to Pelli-
cer, II, p. 145, she died in 1699. See also Sanchez-Arjona, Andes,
PP- 306, 374.
Lopez (Magdalena), wife of the actor Pedro Camacho, played
quartos damas in the company of Jeronimo Vallejo in Madrid in
1660. She (then a widow) had a company in Seville in 1674, 1675,
and 1677. Perhaps Pedro Camacho is a mistake for Juan Camacho,
who was also in Vallejo's company in 1660.
Lopez (Maria), mother of the actor Domingo de Leyzalde
(1586).
Lopez (Maria), or Maria Lopez Ferrer, actress, took part in
four comedias in 1619 in the villa de Buendia.
Lopez (Maria), daughter of Luis Lopez de Sustaete and wife
of Francisco Gutierrez (1645); both were in the company of
Luis Lopez de Sustaete in that year and in 1650. Her first hus-
band (1633) was Diego de Santiago, autor de comedias. She died
in 1 65 1, leaving two children: Luis and Juana Gutierrez, q. v.
For her Calderon wrote the entremes El Sacristan mujer. (Paz y
Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2974.)
Lopez (Martin), actor in the company of Pedro de Ortegon
in 1635.
Lopez (Matias), actor? witness to the marriage of Lopez de
Alcaraz and Catalina de Carcaba on Dec 19, 1 6 10.
Lopez (Micaela), wife of the autor de comedias Pedro de
Ortegon ; she played first parts in his company in Seville in 1635.
Lopez (Micaela), wife of Bartolome de Robles (1621).
They took part in the Corpus festival at Madrid in that year. In
February, 1625, a Micaela Lopez was the wife of the actor Diego
Gomez Varela, and both were in the company of Manuel Vallejo.
Lopez (Paula) played second parts in the company of Juan
Antonio Carvajal in 168 1. According to Gallardo, I, p. 680, she
was his wife.
Lopez (Rosendo), actor in the company of Agustin Manuel de
Castilla in 1677, 1678; with Jose Garcia de Prado in 1679 and
Juan Antonio de Carvajal in 1681.
Lopez ( Vicenta) , wife of Francisco de Sotomayor. Both were
in the company of Cristobal de Avendano from Jan. 18, 1626, for
one year. She had a daughter Isabel (v. Isabelica) ; all were
members of the company of Roque de Figueroa in 1631-32.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 511
(Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 224.) Vicenta Lopez
played segundas damas. {Ibid., p. 232.)
Lopez de Alcaraz (Diego), native of Cuenca and well-known
autor de comedias. He was an actor in the company of Rodrigo
Osorio in July, 1594, but had a company as early as 1596 (indeed,
in Feb., I594i he is called autor de comedias. Bull. Hisp. (1907),
p. 360), and first produced Lope de Vega's comedia El Soldado
Amante. About this time he married Magdalena Osorio, daughter
of Rodrigo de Osorio, and represented two autos at Madrid in
1598 and one in 1599. In March, 1601, he lived in Madrid, in
the Calle de Francos, when he agreed to act for one year in the
company of Gabriel Vaca and Jimenez de Valenzuela, receiving
28 + 6 reals daily. To free himself of debt he was finally obliged
to sell his theatrical wardrobe to Juan de Tapia, Luis de Castro,
and Alonzo de Paniagua on March 4, 1602, for 2683 reals. In
1605 he represented two autos at Valladolid, and in July gave a
comedia before the Duke of Lerma; in the following year he pro-
duced Lope's Duque de Alba en Paris at Borox. He was one of
the eight autores authorized by the decree of 1603, and one of the
twelve authorized in 1615. On Dec. 19, 1610, he married Dona
Catalina de Carcaba in Madrid. For his early representations in
Madrid, v. Appendix A. The latest mention of him is in March,
1622.
Lopez Basurto (Diego), gracioso in the company of Alonso
Riquelme in 1606, receiving 3 reals for maintenance and 3 reals
for each performance. He was again in Riquelme's company in
1607 and 1 610, in which latter year he appeared in the cast of Lope
de Vega's La buena Guarda.
Lopez del Campo (Bernardo), gracioso in the company of
Francisco de la Calle in 1660. He died in Granada in 1705. He
was the author of a number of bailes mentioned by Cotarelo
(Migajas del Ingenio, p. 207).
Lopez Cautivo (Juan) had charge of the dances at the Corpus
festival in Madrid in 1582.
Lopez Maldonado (Juan), ministril (player of wind-instru-
ment) in the company of Jeronimo Ruiz and others in Madrid
in 1592.
Lopez de Pintarroja (Juan), actor in the company of Felix
Pascual in Seville in 1665.
512 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Lopez de Quiros (Bartolome), born in Toledo, autor de
comedias in Madrid in 1586, when he began his representations on
Jan. 12; he brought out the auto La Apocalipsis de S. Juan at
Seville in 1586, and had a company in Valencia in 1588—89. See
Perez Pastor, Proceso de Lope de Vega, p. 9. He is mentioned
by Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 362, as a well-known actor.
Lopez de Sustaete (Luis), native of Segovia, and his wife
Angela Corbella were in the company of Pedro de Ortegon in
Feb., 1632, when they were received into the Cofradia de la
Novena. ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 288.) He was an autor de come-
dias in 1634 m Seville at Corpus, and also in 1637, 1640, 1645,
1646, 1649, and 1650. He was in Madrid in 1638 and repre-
sented thirty times in Toledo in 1639, beginning at Easter, and
again in 1640, and in the latter year his company acted privately
before the King in the royal palace and Buen Retiro, while his
company and that of Damian Arias represented at Corpus in
Madrid. In 1642 he was again in Madrid, and in 1643 he agreed
to give fifty or sixty representations in Valencia. In this year he
and Ana de Espinosa had a company jointly. By his wife Angela
Corbella he had the following children: Maria, Luisa or Josefa
Luisa, Micaela Francisca, and Francisco Manuel Lopez. (San-
chez-Arjona, p. 287.) This statement conflicts with what is stated
above, under Francisca Lopez. Moreover, we are told that in
1640 the wife of Luis Lopez was Jacinta de Herbias. (Averi-
guador, I, p. 125.) There is documentary evidence, however, to
prove that Angela Corbella was the wife of Luis Lopez de Sustaete
on Dec. 21, 1641. (Nuevos Datos, p. 328.) We have seen above
that in 1645 Francisca Lopez was the wife of Luis Lopez, and
that she and her daughter Luisa acted in his company in that year.
(S.-A., p. 374, where a list of his company is given.) Perhaps we
are dealing here with two actors named Luis Lopez. I am unable
to clear up the matter.
Lopez de Sustaya (Jeronimo) and his wife Isabel Rodriguez
of Madrid, autores de comedias, belonged to the company of Anto-
nio Granados for two years from March 5, 1602, when Jeronimo
Lopez was to give to Granados the following comedias: San Rey-
mundo, Los Caballeros nuevos, La Fuensanta de Cordoba, and El
Trato de la Aldea, "which he has bought from the poets who wrote
them." Prior to this, from Jan. 4 to Jan. 29, 1602, his company
represented in Madrid. Suarez de Figueroa, Plaza Universal
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 513
(1615), p. 336, mentions him as still living. The censura of this
work, however, is dated April 4, 161 2. According to Pellicer,
he died in 1610. On May 21, 1603, he belonged to the company
of Juan de Morales Medrano.
Lorenzo (Gaspar), actor? witness to the marriage of Jusepa
Vaca and Juan de Morales on Dec. 27, 1602. An actor named
Lorenzo appeared in Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta Juana
(licensed in 161 6) and in the cast of La Guar da cuidadosa by
Miguel Sanchez (printed in 1615). Both plays were evidently
represented by the same company. Could this Lorenzo be Lorenzo
Hurtado? The name also occurs in the cast of Lope's El piadoso
Aragones (1626).
Losa (Juan de) had a company of "volatines" in La Monteria
in Seville in March, 1632.
Loya (Francisco de), actor in the company of Diego Lopez
de Alcaraz in 1607.
Loyola of Toledo, actor mentioned by Rojas, Viage, p. 362,
among the best known at that time (1603). He also says that
he was the author of the comedia Audalla (ibid., p. 126), a play
that seems to be lost. Barrera gives the author's name as Juan
Bautista de Loyola.
Lucia, actress in the cast of Lope's El Sembrar en buena Tierra
(1616). Perhaps Lucia de Salcedo, q. v. See also Lucia Sevi-
llano.
Luciana. She was a sister of Antonia del Pozo {La Patata).
See under Patata (La).
Ludena (Hernando de), actor in the company of Cisneros in
Sept., 1587.
Luis, actor in the company of Alonso Riquelme in 16 10.
Luis (Juan) bought out one of the carros at Corpus in Seville
in 1577.
LUISA, V. BORDOY, BORJA, CRUZ.
Luisa, la musica, in the company of Antonio de Prado in
1639. Perhaps this is Luisa de Borja.
Luisa Ambrosia, widow, actress in the company of Juan Roman
in 1639.
Luisa Antonia, wife of Vicente Domingo; both were in the
company of Francisco Gutierrez in Seville in 1668.
LUJAN, V. LUXAN.
514 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Luna (Hernando de), autor in charge of the auto Las Cortes
de Cristo in Seville in 1592.
Luque? (Miguel), actor in the company of Antonio de Rueda
in Seville in 1644.
Luxan (Micaela de), famous actress and amiga of Lope de
Vega, who celebrates her in his sonnets under the name of Lucinda
or Camila Luzinda. She was the mother of several of his children.
Of these Mariana and Angelilla, then quite young, were living
with their mother in Toledo in 1603 ; what became of them we do
not know. A daughter, Marcela, was born in 1605, who became
a nun and died in 1688, and a son, Lope Felix, born in 1607, who
became a soldier and died in 1634. Lope's relations with Micaela
de Luxan were continued until about 161 4; after that we hear
nothing of her. She must have been a famous actress, for Suarez
de Figueroa mentions her in his Plaza Universal (161 5) among
the most celebrated comediantes then living. Despite this fact the
name Micaela de Luxan occurs nowhere in the theatrical annals
that have been preserved. See my Life of Lope de Vega, passim.
Luzon (Jusepe) and his wife Isabel Ana were in the company
of Jeronimo Sanchez from March 27, 1623, for one year.
Llorente (Pedro) and his wife Maria de Morales were in
the company of Tomas Fernandez for one year from Nov. 12,
161 1. They received 8 reals for maintenance daily and 20 reals
for each performance, besides traveling expenses for the couple
and one servant. His company represented in Salamanca in 1614
during the Christmas vacation. Both took part in the Corpus
festival at Seville in 1 61 7. Llorente lived in the Calle del Infante,
Madrid, where he died on Jan. 30, 1621. He was one of the
twelve autor es authorized by the decree of 161 5.
Macana, v. Mazana.
Madera (Antonio de), stage manager and machinist in the
company of Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla for one year from March 4,
1637-
Madrid (Juan de), actor in the cast of Tirso's La Tercera de
la Sancta Juana, dated 1614.
Maire (Francisco) and his wife Jacinta Velez took part in the
Corpus festival at the villa de Algete in 1636, she playing first parts.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 515
Malaguilla (Juan de), actor in a joint company with Fernan
Sanchez de Vargas and others in March, 1634; he had a com-
pany in 1636-39. There was a Juan de Malaguilla who played
third and fourth parts in the company of Sebast. de.Prado and
Juan de la Calle in 1659; he was harpist in the company of
Escamilla in 1664, 1665, 1670, 1675, and 1676; in 1674 with
Simon Aguado and in 1 68 1 with Manuel Vallejo.
Malaguilla (Valerio de), harpist in the company of Agustin
Manuel in 1677 and 1678; with Jose Antonio de Prado in 1679,
with Jeronimo Garcia in 1680, and with Manuel Vallejo in 1681.
Maldonado (Alonso), member of the company of Andres de
la Vega from March 1, 1638, for one year.
Maldonado (Ana), wife of Francisco Lobillo; both were of
Madrid, and belonged to the company of Juan Acacio in Seville
in 1619.
Maldonado (Gaspar), ministril (player of wind-instrument)
in Madrid in 1584.
Maldonado (Juan de), actor in Madrid in 1631; on
March 24, 1639, he agreed to play old men's parts in the com-
pany of Juan Roman, and on April 6, 1639, joined the company
of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago until Shrovetide, 1640.
Maldonado (Juan Lopez), ministril in the house of D. Garcia
de Mendoza, Viceroy of Peru, at Lima, in 1588, receiving 200
ducats per year. He is first mentioned in 1577.
Maldonado (Dona Melchora), widow of the ministril
Alonso de Morales (1577-1624). She was the daughter of Juan
Lopez Maldonado, ministril, and was still living at the death of
her husband, on Feb. 22, 1624.
Maldonado (Pedro), autor de comedias in March, 161 1,
when he lived in the Calle de Cantarranas with his wife Magdalena
de Chaves. From Shrovetide, 161 5, to 1616, he was in the com-
pany of Tomas Fernandez. In March, 1621, he and his wife
Jeronima Rodriguez were in the company of Juan de Morales
Medrano. His name appears in the cast of La belligera Espanola
(printed in 1616). v. Restori, Stud), p. 92.
Maldonado, v. also Martinez Maldonado.
Maluenda (Jacinto), alcaide of the theater at Valencia in
1628-43. v. Barrera, Catdlogo.
516 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Mancarea (Antonia), actress in the company of Felix Pas-
cual, 1670-71?
Manso (Bartolome) and his daughter Francisca Manso be-
longed to the company of Andres de la Vega in Feb., 1636. He
was probably in Manuel Vallejo's company in 1630. (Bull. Hisp.
( 1908), p. 256.) He died in the Calle de Cantarranas on July 26,
1652. In the partida de difuncion his wife is called Maria
Torrada.
Manso (Francisca), daughter of Bartolome Manso and
Angela de Torrado, played third parts in the same company in
1636. She played primeras damas, apparently in the same year,
in the company of Tomas Fernandez. (Rosell, I, p. 288.)
Manuel, actor in Lope de Vega's Nueva Victoria de D. Gon-
xalo de Cordoba (1622). Is this perhaps Pedro Manuel?
Manuel (Jacinto), actor in the company of Francisco
Gutierrez in Seville in 1668.
Manuel (Juan), segundo barba in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1672, and in Simon Aguado's company in 1674.
Manuel de Castilla (Agustin), v. Castilla.
Manuel de Castilla (Pedro), v. Castilla.
Manuel Francisco, v. Francisco.
Manuela Bernarda, called Rabo de Vaca, wife of Jeronimo
Garcia, played segundas damas in the company of Antonio de Esca-
milla in 1663. (Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Vol. I,
p. 297.) In Gallardo, I, p. 679, she is called Bernarda Manuela.
Manzano (Juana), wife of the autor de comedias Juan
Limos in 1586. (Bull. Hispanique (1906), p. 366.)
Manzanos, gracioso representante mentioned in Guzman de
Alfarache, Part II, Book I, chap. ii.
Marcos, actor in the cast of Lope de Vega's La Conpetencia en
los Nobles (1628) and Del Monte sale (licensed in 1628). He
and his wife Josef a were in Avendano's company in i63i-32(?).
(Rosell, I, pp. 84-200.) The name Marcos also occurs in the
cast of Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan (1625). See also under
Herrera.
Margarita, la Portuguesa, actress in the entremeses of Bena-
vente. (Rosell, Vol. II, p. 339.) v. Hita (Juana Margarita
de). The name Margarita occurs among the players in Lorenzo
Hurtado's company (1632-35?). She was, it seems, the wife
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 517
of Bernardo, the gracioso. (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 29. On the follow-
ing page she addresses him, an actor in the same company, with
the words: "jAy, marido de mi vida!")
Maria Angela, wife of Gregorio de Morales, was in the com-
pany of Francisco Solano in 1637-38.
Maria Flores, actress, daughter of Maria de Salinas.
Maria Francisca, actress in the company of Francisca Lopez
in Seville in 1663, and with Manuel Vallejo in 1679-81.
Maria Gabriela or Marigraviela, actress in the company of
Alonso Riquelme in Seville in 1607, and in that of Andres de
Claramonte from June 19, 1614, till Shrovetide, 1615. She had a
daughter, Francisca Maria.
Maria Imperia, wife of the Italian actor Maximiliano Mili-
mino, who was killed in a brawl in Madrid in Nov., 1582.
Maria Laura, actress in the company of Jeronimo Garcia in
1680.
Maria Manuela, wife of Sebastian Gonzalez, autor de come-
dias in Nov., 1635.
Maria Paula, wife of Juan de Cardenas; both were in the
company of Magdalena Lopez in Seville in 1677.
Mariana appeared in Lope's La buena Guarda (1610) in
Riquelme's company.
Mariana Jacinta of Madrid, widow, singer in the company
of Ortiz de Villazan in Seville in 16 19.
Mariflores, v. Flores (Maria de).
Marin (Antonio), gracioso in the company of Manuel Vallejo
in Seville in 1640. Prior to this, in Feb., 1632, he belonged to
the company of Juan Ruiz, and in 1642 was in the company of
Pedro de la Rosa. In 1644 he appeared in the cast of Calderon's
Troya abrasada. In 1652 he and his wife Teresa de Garay were
acting in La Monteria, Seville, in the company of Jacinto
Riquelme. His daughter was also an actress in 1642. (S.-A.,
p. 295.) He died in 1655. {Ibid., p. 341.)
Marin (Juan), escultor, took part in the dances and in the
auto El Martirio de S. Esteban in Seville in 1569.
Marina, v. Munoz (Marina) . She was Maria or Marina de
Aguilar.
Maritardia, v. Tardia (Maria).
518 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Marroquin (Rafael) played the tamboril in the dance El Rey
Don Alonso at Corpus in Madrid in 1611.
Martel (Bernardo), lessee of the theater in Alcala de
Henares in 1638.
Martin (Vicente), actor in the company of Alonso Velazquez
in 1598, at Corpus, in Seville.
Martin de Morales (Pablo), autor de comedias in Seville in
1678-79. His wife was Maria Antonia Jalon.
Martinazos, autor de comedias, praised by Rojas, Viage en-
tretenido, p. 91. Solano (Augustin) and Nicolas de los Rios were
in his company.
Martinelli (Angela), famous Italian actress, wife of
Drusiano Martinelli, acting in Madrid in 1587, in her husband's,
company, / Confidents. See Baschet, Les Comediens Italiens a la
Cour de France, Paris, 1882, p. 194 et passim.
Martinez (Alonso), actor in the company of Jeronimo Velaz-
quez in 1590; he was in Baltasar Pinedo's company in Seville at
Corpus, in 1603. Cervantes in his comedia La gran Sultana,
Act III (Comedias, ed. 1794, Vol. II, p. 98), speaks of Martinez
as already deceased (probably some time before 1615), and says
of him that he was the inventor of the danzas cantadas, which he
introduced in place of the entremeses.
Martinez (Ambrosio [Duarte?]), a Portuguese, and famous
musician and composer, about 1630. His wife Maria de Prado
was the daughter of Antonio de Prado. v. Duarte.
Martinez (Ana), sister of Alonso Martinez, and member of
Pinedo's company in 1603, she and her brother receiving a gratuity
of 400 reals in that year. She was the wife of Miguel Ruiz in
Nov., 1607, and both were in Pinedo's company in Feb., 161 1.
Perez Pastor, Bibliografia Madrileha, Vol. Ill, p. 325.
Martinez (Angela), actress in the company of Juan Perez de
Tapia at Corpus in Seville in 1662.
Martinez (Antonio), husband of Isabel de Cordoba, and
father of the famous Maria de Cordoba y de la Vega. He was
an autor de comedias in Madrid in 1619. In 1621 he is styled
alquilador de hatos, i.e., a hirer-out of costumes. He brought out
a dance in the Corpus festival at Madrid in 1628, and is again
mentioned in 1632. He seems to have been deceased on Feb. 1,
1632. (N. D., p. 223.)
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 519
Martinez (Cebrian), actor, in charge of wardrobe in the
company of Bartolome Romero for one year from Feb., 1 63 1. In
1639 he belonged to the company of Antonio de Prado in Seville.
Martinez (Francisco), actor in the company of Alonso
Riquelme in Seville at Corpus, 1607.
Martinez (Francisco), member of the company of Andres de
la Vega in 1638 and 1639. There was a Francisco Martinez in
the company of Magdalena Lopez in Seville in 1674.
Martinez (Jeronimo), actor in Madrid in 1584.
Martinez (Jeronimo), member of the company of Jeronimo
Sanchez in 1623, and in 1639 in the company of Juan Roman.
Martinez (Juan) and his wife Dionisia Suarez or Xuarez
were in the company of Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan in 1619-20
(Shrovetide to Shrovetide), and previously in 1619. He was an
autor de comedias, "of those named by his Majesty," from 1623 to
1636. In 1624 he represented in Valencia. On July 11, 1633,
he represented a comedia privately before the King, and in 1636 .
represented eight comedias before Philip IV. Juan Martinez ap-
peared as Satan in Lope's La gran Columna fogosa (1629).
Martinez (Juan), segundo gracioso in the company of Mag-
dalena Lopez in Seville in 1677.
Martinez (Lucia), wife of Juan de Jaraba, lessee of the
corrales of Madrid in 1 613 -1 5.
Martinez (Luis), autor de cotnedias in Madrid in 1586, and
in Valladolid in 1588.
Martinez (Luisa), wife of the autor de comedias Juan
Granado in April, 1605.
Martinez (Maria), mother of Juan Francisco Ruiz and wife
of Damian Ruiz. All were in the company of Manuel Vallejo in
1631.
Martinez (Miguel), dancing-master in charge of dances at
Corpus in Madrid in 1603.
Martinez (Miguel), actor in the company of Baltasar Pinedo
in 1613; in 1619 and 1620 he was in the company of Tomas
Fernandez. He and his daughter (name not given) were in the
company of Jeronimo Sanchez for one year from March 27, 1623.
Martinez de Grajales (Pedro), actor in the company of
Gaspar de Porres, May, I597~99-
520 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Martinez Maldonado (Francisco), actor in the company of
Alonso Riquelme for one year from Jan., 1606.
Martinez de Mora (Diego) and his daughter Mariana took
part in Gaspar de Avila's Las Fullerias de Amor at Leganes in
1629. (Paz y Melia, Cat., No. 1340.) They both acted in
Brihuega in 1636. See also under Mora (Diego de).
Mata (Ana Maria de la), wife of Diego Casco y Rojas;
both were members of the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas
from Jan., 1633, till the end of Oct., she sharing the second parts
with Dona Francisca de Vargas, daughter of the autor.
Mata (Antonio de) and his wife Josef a Nieto were members
of the company of Jacinto Riquelme in Seville in 1652.
Mateo, actor in the cast of Lope's El piadoso Aragones (1626),
taking the part of Raymundo de Luna.
Matias (Juan) or Juan Matias Molina was harpist in the
company of Avendano in 1632. His wife was Ana de Molina,
in the same company. ( Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 203 ; Rosell, Vol. I,
p. 86.) In 1636-38 he was in the company of Tomas Fernandez.
In 1640 he was segundo barba and musical director in the company
of Antonio de Rueda in Seville. His name occurs in the cast of
Calderon's Troy a abrasada (censura of 1644). There was a
Matias who appeared as Gascon in Tirso's Celos con Celos se
cur an (1625) : perhaps the same actor.
Matos (Juan de) of Seville, actor and bailarin in the company
of Antonio de Prado, apparently in 1634-36. See Rosell, Vol. I,
pp. 97, 101. I presume that the loa of Benavente's in which Matos
appeared belongs to about this date from the fact that Malaguilla
{ibid., p. 99) had a company at that time.
Max" (Maximiliano( ?) ), actor in the cast of Lope's El
piadoso Angonis (1626), taking the part of D. Juan de Beamonte.
The name also appears in Prado 's company in 1632-35 (?).
v. Rosell, I, p. 322. The latter is perhaps Maximiliano de Morales.
Maxara (Miguel de), actor in the company of Pedro de
Ortegon in Seville in 1635.
Maynel or Mainel (Jeronimo), actor in the company of
Jeronimo Velazquez in 1590. He is mentioned by Suarez de
Figueroa as being deceased before 161 5.
Mayo (Juan Bautista), autor de comedias in Valladolid in
1640. (M. y M., p. 566.)
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 521
Mazana (Antonia), v. Mazana (Manuela Antonia).
Mazana (Juan) and his wife Dorotea de Sierra appeared in
Lope de Vega's El Brazil restituido (1625) in the company of
Andres de la Vega. v. Modern Lang. Review, Jan., 1906. He
was in Antonio de Prado's company, with his daughter (called la
Nina de Mazana, or la Nina de Dorotea), about 1634-35.
v. Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 97, 322, 351. He was again in Prado's com-
pany in Seville at Corpus in 1639 and in Sept., 1642. He was
probably divorced from Dorotea de Sierra before May 30, 1642,
when he was a musico in Prado's company and is described as
the former husband of Dorotea de Sierra. (N. D„ p. 329.) The
name Juan Manzano (sic) appears in the cast of La Paciencia en la
Fortuna (about 1640). (Restori, Stud], p. 143.)
Mazana (Jusepa), sister of Manuela Antonia Mazana,
actress in the company of Antonio de Prado in Seville in 1639.
Mazana (Manuela Antonia), daughter of Juan Mazana
and Dorotea de Sierra, and wife of Lorenzo de Prado. Both be-
longed to the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1640, and to the
company of Lorenzo Hurtado in Seville in 1642, she playing second
parts at the Corpus festival. In both these cases she is called
Manuela Macana. Lorenzo de Prado died of the pest in i649( ?),
after which she married Manuel Garcia, called Asadurilla.
(Rosell, Vol. II, p. 340.) According to the MS. of the Libros de
la Cofradia, partly published in Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. II, p. 676,
Manuela afterward married Diego de Santa Cruz Caballero. Cer-
tain it is that Diego de Caballero and his wife Antonia (sic)
Mazana were in the company of Francisco Gutierrez in Seville in
1668, in Agustin Manuel and Felix Pascual's in 1671, and in the
company of Matias de Castro in 1673; here she is called Manuela
Mazana. ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 460.) The name Ma Macana oc-
curs in the cast of Calderon's Troya abrasada (1644).
Mazo (Alejandro), actor? His widow Mariana de Alarcon
of Valencia was in the company of Diego Vallejo in Seville in 1619.
Medina (Catalina de), wife of Francisco de Salas; both were
in the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631. See under Salas.
Medina (Diego de), cobrador in the company of Antonio de
Prado in 1632, and in the same company in Seville in 1639.
His wife Magdalena Fernandez also acted in Prado's company
in 1632.
522 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Medina (Francisca de), wife of Jose de Mendiola; both
belonged to the company of Magdalena Lopez in Seville in io77-
Medina (Francisco de), actor in the company of Alonso de
Olmedo on Oct. 29, 163 1, when he was received into the Cofradia
de la Novena. He was with Juan Acacio in Seville at Corpus in
1644; with Lorenzo Hurtado in 1645, and with Luis Lopez de
Sustaete in 1650. In 1652 he was with Jacinto Riquelme, also
in Seville, and in 1670 he had a company in La Monteria, Seville.
He had three daughters: Maria, Josefa, and Paula, and a son
Cristobal.
Medina (Jacinta de), actress in the company of Luis Lopez
de Sustaete in Seville at Corpus, 1645.
Medina (Jeronimo de), actor in the joint company of Juan
Roman from Shrovetide, 1639, to 1640. He furnished costumes
to the company, receiving 2j4 reals extra per day.
Medina (Josefa de), daughter of Francisco de Medina; she
died in Seville in i67o(?), "despenada de una tramoya.'' (San-
chez-Arjona, p. 452.)
Medina (Maria de), actress in the company of Antonio
Granados in Seville at Corpus in 1618, when she received a
gratuity of 100 reals for excellence in the auto Las Fuerzas de
Sanson, by Poyo. She was in Domingo Balbin's company from
Sept. 1, 1623, till Shrovetide, 1624.
Medina (Maria de), daughter of Francisco de Medina and
wife of Juan Lopez, gracioso, in 1676, when both belonged to the
company of Carlos de Salazar in Seville.
Medina (Paula de), sister of the preceding; she married Ale-
jandro Guzman.
Medina (Pedro de) took part in the Corpus festival at Seville
in I559> IS6o, and 1569.
Medrano (Bernardo de), first gracioso in the company of
Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla from Feb., 1637, i°T one year. In
Feb., 1638, he was in the company of Alonso de Olmedo and Luis
Bernardo de Bovadilla, also for one year. There was a Bernardo,
gracioso, in the company of Lorenzo Hurtado about 1632-35 (?).
v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 29. Perhaps this was Medrano. He was also
in Avendano's company. {Ibid., p. 62.) v. Lamparilla and
Bernardo.
Medrano (Juan de), son of the preceding, and in the same
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 523
company in 1637 and 1638. He is probably the "Juanico, hijo
de Bernardo," in Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 288, 330. The date of the
loa on p. 288 is probably 1636.
Mejia [Antonio?], actor in the cast of Belmonte's play A un
tiempo Rey y Vasallo in 1642. The name Mexia occurs in the cast
of Calderon's Troya abrasada ( 1644) . See also Mexia and Messia.
Melocoton (Jose), musico in the company of Antonio de Esca-
millain 166 1 and 1663.
Mencos (Ana Maria de), wife of Diego de Mencos; both
appeared in Heredia's company in Lope de Vega's Del Monte sale
(1628), and both were in the company of Cristobal de Avendano
in 1633.
Mencos (Diego de), gracioso famoso y solfista in the company
of Cristobal de Avendano in March, 1632, and Feb., 1633. In
1635 he belonged to the company of Alonso de Olmedo. In
Feb., 1638, he and his second wife Francisca Paula joined the
company of Bartolome Romero for one year. In 1639 he went to
Lisbon to act for twenty-four days, beginning in Lent, taking the
part of vexete, and his wife playing third parts. In Feb., 1640,
both were again in Romero's company, until the end of the octave
of Corpus.
Mendi (Juan Ruiz de) , v. Ruiz.
Mendi (Maria de), sister of Juan Ruiz de Mendi of Madrid,
and legatee under his will, dated Nov. 24, 1596.
Mendiola (Jose) played third parts in the company of Magda-
lena Lopez in Seville in 1677. His wife was Francisca de Medina.
Mendoza (Antonia Herrero de) and his wife Francisca de
Figueroa were in Avendano's company in 1632.
Mendoza (Bartolome de) of Jaen, autor de comedias, repre-
sented two autos in Alcaraz in 1588, receiving 40 ducats. In 1589
he represented two comedias a lo dlvino in the same town. (B. H.
(1906), p. 368.)
Mendoza (Francisco de), actor in the company of Diego de
Santander in Dec, 1594. In June, 1614, he joined the company
of Andres de Claramonte, till Shrovetide, 161 5.
Mendoza (Juan de), actor in the company of Juan de Tapia,
Luis de Castro, and Alonso de Paniagua, from March, 1602, for
one year. In 1604 he took part in the autos at the villa de Borox.
Mendoza (Juana de), daughter of Manuel Jerje and Ana de
524 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Torres. She was a member of the company of Manuel Vallejo
in 163 1.
Mendoza (Luis de), actor in Antonio de Prado's company in
1650; in 1662 with Sebastian de Prado; in 1663 he was gracioso
in Jose Carillo's company, in 1664 second gracioso with Bartolome
Romero and Juan de la Calle, in 1665 with Francisco Garcia, and
in 1670 and 1677 w'tn Escamilla. He was a Portuguese and died
in 1684.
Meneses (Juan) played first and second parts in the company
of Juan Roman from March 23, 1639, for one year.
Mesa (Baltasar de), "famoso por el ingenio y por la repre-
sentacion." (Claramonte, Letania moral.) Rojas, Viage, p. 131,
mentions "Mesa" among the actors who had written farsas, loos,
etc.
Mesa (Gaspar de), member of the company of Diego Lopez
de Alcaraz in April, 1607.
Messia (Antonio). The daughter of Antonio Messia, name
not given, was an actress in Madrid in 1650, in Prado's company.
(Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, I, p. 170.) v. Mejia [An-
tonio].
Mexia (Damian), actor in the company of Alonso de Villalba
in 1614.
Micaela, v. Fernandez, Gadea, Lopez, Luxan, Ortiz.
Miguel Juan, musico in Madrid in March, 1639, who took
part in two comedias at Penalver in that year.
Milimino (Maximiliano), Italian actor killed in a brawl,
Oct. 19, 1582, in Madrid. He headed a company of Italian players
which was in the pay of the King of Navarre in 1578. (Baschet,
Les Comediens Ital., p. 87, where the name is written Massimiano
Milanino.) His wife was Maria Imperia.
Millan (Isabel), actress in the company of Antonio de Rueda
in Seville in 1644.
Minano (Juan), actor in Juan Roman's company from Shrove-
tide, 1639, to 1640. The name occurs in the cast of ha Guarda
cuidadosa by Miguel Sanchez.
Mirabete (Mariana de), actress, wife of Diego de Avila in
Feb., 1619. Both appeared at the Corpus festival at the villa de
Mostoles in that year.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 525
Miralles (Juan) belonged to the company of Francisco
Gutierrez in Seville in 1668 and 1669.
Miralles (Luis de) of Valencia, actor in the company of Felix
Pascual, died in Valladolid in 1672. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Miranda (Beatriz de), "single woman" in the company of
Bartolome Romero from Feb. 26, 1638, for one year. On
March 30 of the same year she contracted to act for one year in
the company of Andres de la Vega.
Miranda (Juan de), actor in the company of Pedro Ximenez
de Valenzuela and Diego Lopez de Alcaraz in 1602.
Miranda (Miguel de) and his wife Juana Bautista were mem-
bers of the company of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago from Shrove-
tide, 1637, till Shrovetide, 1638; "she to play second parts and
he to receive one real less per day than his wife."
Molina (Agustin), singer and actor in Manuel Vallejo's
company in 1633.
Molina (Ambrosio de), segundo musico in the company of
Jeronimo Vallejo in 1660.
Molina (Ana de), wife of Juan Matias de Molina, was in the
company of Crist, de Avendano in 1632.
Molina (Juan de), actor in the company of Roque de Figueroa
in 1631.
Molina (Juan Matias de), harpist, v. Matias (Juan).
Molina (Luis), actor in the company of Juan Limos in 1583-
84.
Molina (Miguel de), lessee of La Monteria in Seville from
1636 for six years.
Monroy (Juan Antonio de) played second parts in the com-
pany of Jose Garceran in Seville in 1657 ; l"s wife Jeronima Muniz
played fourth parts in the same company.
Monsalve (Catalina de) and her husband Pedro de Ribera
were members of the company of Alonso de Olmedo in 1621.
(Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244.)
Monserrate (Diego de) of Madrid and his wife Mariana
Rodriguez acted in the company of Alonso Riquelme for one year
from March 7, 1602, and in the company called Los Andaluces
from March, 1605, till Shrovetide, 1606.
Montemayor(Juan DE)and his wife Ana Maria de Ulloa were
526 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
acting in Lisbon prior to Feb. 13, 161 7, when they agreed to join
the company of Fernan Sanchez de Vargas for one year. In
1632-33, with their daughter Beatriz de Velasco (Beatricica), they
were in the company of Cristobal de Avendano. (Cotarelo, Tirso,
p. 203 ; Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 62, 84.) His name and Ana Maria's
occur in the cast of Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta J nana (writ-
ten in 1614 and licensed in 1616), and the names Montemayor
and Ana Maria are found in a MS. of La Guarda cuidadosa by
Miguel Sanchez; he also appeared in Lope's Del Monte sale
(1628), apparently in the company of Heredia. In 1645 he was
in the company of Luis Lopez in Seville.
Montemayor (Sebastian de) and his wife Ana de Velasco
are mentioned as members of a company of actors in Madrid in
1584. He was an autor de comedias in 1589 and 1601. Perhaps
Beatriz de Velasco was the daughter of Sebastian and not of Juan,
though the chronology seems to oppose this.
Montesinos (Maria de), wife of Diego de Ordonez; both
were in a joint company in June, 1603. On June 19, 1614, she
was the wife of Fernando Perez, and acted with him in the com-
pany of Claramonte until Shrovetide, 1615.
Montiel (Pedro de), actor in the company of Lope de Rueda
in 1554. (Cortes, Un Pleito de Lope de Rueda.) He wrote the
auto Los Desposorios de Crista con la Naturaleza humana, in
which he also acted at the Corpus festival at Seville in 1575. It
was expressly stipulated that he was to appear in person on the
car which he brought out. He also produced autos in Seville in
1574 and 1576.
Montoya (Cristobal de) and his wife Leonor Maria, both of
Granada, were members of the company of Juan Acacio in Seville
in 1619.
Montoya (Isidro de), actor in the company of Agustin Manuel
de Castilla in 1678.
Montoya ( Jeronima de) , wife of Andrez Pizarro ; both were
in a joint company with Pedro Bravo and others in July, 1614.
Montoya (Juan de), native of Orgaz, over twenty-five years
old in 1 61 7, when he seems to have been in the company of Pedro
de Valdes (N. D., p. 163) ; actor in the company of Diego
Vallejo in Seville in 1619, and in the company of Manuel Vallejo
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 527
in 1622, 1623, and 1631; in the latter year his wife la Senora
Antonia acted in the same company.
Monzon (Luis de), dancing-master, arranged the dances for
the Corpus festivals in Madrid in 1603, 1606, 1 608 -1 2, and
called autor de comedias in 1614. In 1619 he and Gabriel de la
Torre presented five dances at Corpus. In Sept., 1623, he was one
of the lessees of the theaters of Madrid, and in 1628, with others,
again had charge of the dances at Corpus. A "Monzon" is men-
tioned by Rojas, Viage, p. 51.
Mora (Diego de), actor? witness to the marriage of Luis
Quinones and Isabel de Velasco on Sept. 20, 161 4. This is proba-
bly the Diego Martinez de Mora who entered into an obligation,
for himself and his daughter Mariana, to sing and act at Leganes
in Gaspar de Avila's Fullerias de Amor in 1629. (Paz y Melia,
Cat., No. 1340.)
Morales (Alonso de), ministril, mentioned as early as 1577,
when his wife was Dona Melchora Maldonado, daughter of the
ministril Juan Lopez Maldonado. (N. D., pp. 10, 33.) In 1588
he entered the service of D. Garcia de Mendoza, Viceroy of Peru,
as a musician, and died in Madrid on Feb. 22, 1624, his wife
surviving him. {Ibid., p. 205.)
Morales (Alonso de), brother of Juan de Morales Medrano
(N. D., p. 217), and a famous actor. He was called el Divino,
and is mentioned as an actor as early as 1584. He had a com-
pany in Madrid in April, 1592, together with Jeronimo Ruiz and
Francisco de Vera. In Oct., 1594, he was a member of the com-
pany of Diego de Santander, and also in 1596, taking part in the
Corpus festival at Seville. He represented two autos and the
comedia Don Alvaro de Luna at the Corpus festival in Getafe in
1601. Claramonte, in his Letania moral (printed in 1612), says
of him: "Alonso de Morales, principe de los representantes, que
merecio en sus dias llamarse el Divino, por el ingenio y por la
representacion," implying that Morales was then deceased. He is
also mentioned by Suarez de Figueroa in his Plaza Universal
(1615) among the famous actors then dead. Perez Pastor, how-
ever, publishes a document dated Oct. 31, 1626, in which Alonso
de Morales, vecino de Salmeron, pledges some landed property in
that town as surety for Juan de Morales Medrano. (N. D.,
p. 212.) The latter, moreover, seems to have inherited this very
528 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
property in Salmeron, which was probably the seat of the family.
(N. D., p. 217.) Rojas, Viage, p. 131, mentions Alonso de
Morales among the actors who had written farsas, has, etc., and
says (p. 127) that Morales was the author of the comedia El Conde
loco, but whether this was Alonso or Pedro de Morales is uncertain.
As to the Conde loco, see Barrera, Catdlogo, p. 5 1 7, col. I , and p. 527.
Pellicer (Vol. I, p. 117) ascribes the following plays to "Morales":
El legitimo Bastardo, El Renegado del Cielo, and La Toma de
Sevilla por el Santo Rey Fernando.
Morales (Bartolome de), actor in Nov., 1605, and appar-
ently a relative of Juan de Morales Medrano.
Morales (Cristobal de), actor in the company of Jeronimo
Velazquez in 1583, and in July, 1614, in the company of Clara-
monte. In March, 1619, he belonged to the company of Tomas
Fernandez. In 1621 he and his daughter were in the company of
Alonso de Olmedo. (Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244.)
Morales (Felipe de), native of Cordoba, married Catalina
Sanchez of Jaca in 1650. Both were then members of the company
of Adrian Lopez in Valladolid. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Morales (Gaspar de) played third parts in the company of
Pablo Martin de Morales in Seville in 1678.
Morales (Geronimo de) played second parts in the company
of Pedro de Ortegon in Seville in 1635.
Morales (Gregorio de) and his wife Maria Angela were in
the company of Francisco Solano from March, 1637, till Shrove-
tide, 1638.
Morales (Ignacia Petronila de), "single woman," actress
in the company of Pablo Martin de Morales in Seville in 1678.
Morales (Jeronimo) played second galanes in the company of
Sebastian de Prado in 1659—62; barbas in the company of Juan
de la Calle and Bartolome Romero in 1664; he was with Fran-
cisco Garcia in 1665, with Escamilla in 1670 and 1677, with Felix
Pascual in 1673, and with Manuel Vallejo in 1672. See above,
Jeronimo de Morales, perhaps the same person. His daughter
was in Seb. de Prado's company in 1 660.
Morales (Josefa de) and her husband Francisco de la Calle
were in the company of Felix Pascual in i665~7o( ?), and in that
of Magdalena Lopez in Seville in 1674; in 1680 she played
segundas damas in the company of Jeronimo Garcia, and in 1681
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 529
primeras damas in the company of Carvajal. She had a son, Salva-
dor de la Calle. Pellicer, Vol. II, p. 64, says that she first ap-
peared upon the stage in the company of Juan de Nieva, in 1632 ( !) ,
and died in Madrid in 1684.
Morales (Juan de), actor in the company of Nicolas de los
Rios in March, 1590. He died before April 10, 1595, when Juana
de Villalba is designated as his widow. He died by violence, and
on the date just mentioned his widow withdrew an accusation
that she had made against Jeronimo de Aguilar for killing her hus-
band. The widow afterward (before 1597) married Baltasar
Pinedo.
Morales (Juan de), actor in the company of Antonio de
Castro in Seville in 1656, and played third parts in the company
of Jose Garceran in the following year.
Morales (Maria de) and her husband Pedro Llorente were
members of the company of Tomas Fernandez for one year from
Nov. 12, 161 1. She was in her husband's company in Dec, 1614,
and in Seville at Corpus in 1617, when they received a gratuity of
220 reals. She outlived her husband, who died on Jan. 30, 1621.
She is mentioned by Suarez de Figueroa (1615) as a famous
actress, and appeared in Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta Juana
(licensed in 1616) on its first representation. She seems also to
have produced the first part of this comedia in Valladolid, in
Feb., 1 61 5. See Sanchez-Arjona, p. 165.
Morales (Maria de), daughter of Francisco de Arteaga and
Maria Perez ; all were received into the Cofradia de la Novena on
April 26, 1631. In 1633-34 she and her father were members of
the company of Juan Bautista Espinola. (AT. D., p. 229.)
Morales (Mariana de) or Mariana Vaca de Morales, daugh-
ter of Juan de Morales Medrano and Jusepa Vaca, who were
married in 1602. She was acting in her father's company in
Seville at Corpus, 161 8, and was then about fifteen years old. On
this occasion she and her mother received a gratuity of 300 reals
for excellence in the auto La Serrana de la Vera. She seems to
have belonged to her father's company till 1624, except in 1622,
when she was in the company of Manuel Vallejo at Corpus.
Her name occurs in the cast of Lope de Vega's El Poder en el
Discreto (1623), and she was doubtless the autora taking the part
53Q SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
of Lisena in the cast of Lope's Amor con Vista (1626), for it was
represented by the company of Antonio de Prado. She was the
second wife of Antonio de Prado, and was still acting in his com-
pany in 1650. They were living in the Calle de las Huertas,
Madrid, at the time of Prado's death on April 14, 1651. In 1649
she had received a gratuity for acting in the Corpus festival at
Madrid, and in the following year she was in the company of her
husband. (Perez Pastor, Calderon Doc, I, p. 169.) She was still
acting in 1658, when she belonged to the company of her son Jose
Garcia de Prado in Seville. She also had a son Diego, and died
in Madrid in 1673.
Morales (Maximiliano or Maximiliano Eustorquio de),
actor in the company of Antonio de Prado in 1632, and played
second parts in the company of Juan Bautista Espinola in Feb.,
1633-34. He seems to have been in Prado's company in 1634-
i636( ?). (Rosell, I, p. 97.) In Sept., 1637, he was in the com-
pany of Bartolome Romero, and in 165 1 in that of Carlos de Tapia.
(M. y M., p. 567.) He was a nephew of Juan de Morales
Medrano, and was called el del escopetazo. He died in the hospital
at Murcia in 1658. v. Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. I, p. 671, and
Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 216, where the name is given as if there were
two actors Max. and Eustorquio.
Morales (Pedro de), actor and autor de comedias, was a wit-
ness, in April, 1599, to a contract made by Luis de Vergara. On
Dec. 27, 1602, he witnessed the marriage contract of Juan de
Morales Medrano and Jusepa Vaca. Lope de Vega, in his Peregrine
(1604), calls him "cierto, adornado y afectuoso representante."
He first produced Lope's comedia Los Amantes sin Amor before
1604, and is mentioned by Rojas, Viage, p. 131, among the actors
who had written farsas, loas, etc. Whether he is the Morales,
author of the play El Conde loco, is uncertain. See Barrera, Cata-
logo, pp. 274, 275, 517, col. 1, and 527. In his Viage del Parnaso
Cervantes says :
The next, who is the Muses' chief delight,
Their grace, their charm, their wisdom, all in one,
Who bears the palm for goodly wit at sight,
Is Pedro de Morales, true-born son
Of courtly taste, the sure retreat always
My poor luck finds that else might be undone.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 531
"The man to whom Cervantes consecrates this short eulogium, one
of the most delicate and touching in the poem, was a famous come-
dian and a writer of comedies. He seems to have befriended Cer-
vantes in the deepest hour of his need, and Cervantes was not the
man to forget either a friend or a kindness. He represents him
further on as being one of the few who welcomed him on his return
from Parnassus:
My heart and hand I gave and warm embrace
To Pedro de Morales. . . ."
Morales was still alive in 1636 to throw a little flower on Lope's
grave, in the shape of a touching sonnet contributed to Montalvan's
"Fama Postuma de Lope de Vega." See Cervantes, Journey to
Parnassus, translated by James Y. Gibson, London, 1883, p. 349,
an excellent work in every way, which deserves to be better known.
Morales (Sebastian de), actor in the company of Gaspar de
Porres in 1604-05, from Shrovetide to Shrovetide, and in the
company of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz in April, 1607.
Morales (Segundo de) and his wife Leocadia de Torres were
members of the company of Diego Vallejo in Seville at Corpus
in 1 6 19. In 1630 he is called "alquilador de libreas y apariencias."
{Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 256.) He was an autor de comedias in
1637 and 1638.
Morales Medrano (Juan de), one of the most famous of
Spanish theatrical managers, was an actor at least as early as
1595. He married the no less celebrated actress Jusepa Vaca de
Mendi on Dec. 27, 1602, and was one of the eight autor es author-
ized by the decree of 1603, and one of the twelve permitted by the
decree of 1 61 5. Some time prior to Sept. 13, 1602, Morales had
agreed to act in the company of Antonio Granados for one year,
but broke the contract, for which Granados had him put in prison,
but released him on the payment of 450 reals and Morales's agree-
ment to act with Granados for one month. (B. H. (1907),
p. 367.) In Aug., 1603, Morales represented two comedias pri-
vately before the Queen at Valladolid, receiving 600 reals. (Ibid.,
p. 368.) In 1604 his company represented the autos in Seville,
and also appeared in Madrid, producing Mescua's comedia La
Rueda de la Fortuna. v. Life of Lope de Vega, p. 153. In 1606
he represented the comedia El Caballero de Olmedo (ibid.,
532 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
p. 165, n.)i and also inaugurated the Casa de Comedias at Zamora.
(There was, however, a theater in Zamora some years before this.
See S.-A., p. 109, n.) In June, 1608, he represented the comedia
San Luis Bertran in Valencia, receiving 2500 reals. (Cang. de la
Acad, de los Nocturnos, ed. Grajales, Pt. II, Valencia, 1905, p. 202.)
He was also in Valencia in 1630 (Jan. and Feb.). In 1609 he rep-
resented autos in Toledo. He again represented the autos in Seville
in 1610, 1615, 1616, and 1618, receiving each time 700 ducats. In
1606, 1608, 1612, and 1614 his company represented autos at
Madrid. His daughter Mariana de Morales became the wife of
Antonio de Prado; father, mother, and daughter were acting in
the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1622. (N. D., p. 297.) In
May and June, 1623, his company represented six comedias pri-
vately before the King, and the autos in Madrid in 1623, 1624,
and 1625. In 1623 he produced Lope's El Poder en el Discreto.
In 1625 he petitioned to have a house that he was building in the
Calle del Principe exempt from taxation because he had served
the Queen for twenty-two years and because he had eight children.
(Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 251). Between this date and 1635 his
company often performed before Philip IV. v. Averiguador,
pp. 8 et seq. He was one of the few Spanish theatrical managers
whom fortune favored, and in 1614 owned houses in the Calle del
Principe, and in 1627-29 in the Calle del Lobo, the Calle del
Prado, corner of the Calle del Leon, and others in the Calle del
Nino. He was a hidalgo, and when sued for debt in 1634, in
Madrid, he claimed the privileges of hidalguia by virtue of letters
patent granted in Valladolid on Sept. 1, 1627. (N. D., p. 239.)
The date of his death is not known. For his company in 1624,
see ibid., p. 207.
Moreno (Baltasar) and his wife Catalina Moreno were
members of Avendano's company in 1632; both names occur in the
cast of Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan; the MS. bears a censura
dated 1625.
Moreno (Juan), actor in the company of Antonio Granados
in Dec, 1613. The name Moreno occurs in the cast of Tirso's
Celos con Celos se curan (1625).
Morote (Da Maria), wife of Juan Bautista de Haedo; she
played first parts in the Corpus festival at the villa del Escorial
in 1636.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 533
Mosquera (Antonio) played terceras partes in the company of
Agustin Manuel and Felix Pascual in 1671.
Mosquera (Manuel de), native of Valladolid and originally
a painter by profession, then actor in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1670; he also played third galanes in 1672, and barbas
in 1673, 1674, 1676, 1679, and 1681 in the same company; in
1671 he was with Felix Pascual; in 1677 and 1678 he was with
Escamilla. He married Antonia del Pozo and afterward (in
1676?) Maria de Cisneros.
Moya (Ana de) appeared as Dona Juana in Lope's La Conpe-
tencia en los Nobles in i628( ?).
Moya (Bartolome de), actor in the company of Diego Lopez
de Alcaraz in 1603-04.
Moya (Melchor de) and his wife Ana Maria de la Canal
were in the company of Nicolas de los Rios in 1605 in Valladolid
and in 1609 in Seville.
Mozo (Roque) of Zaragoza, actor in the company of Juan
Acacio in Seville in 161 9.
Mudarra (Francisco de) belonged to the company of Nicolas
de los Rios in Seville in 1609. He had a company in 161 7 and
1619, in the former year with Francisco Ortiz. In this year, in
Sept., he represented at Vallecas. He is the author of a comedia,
Nadie diga mal del dia hasta que la luz se acabe, dated 1617.
v. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2275.
Mudarra, v. Castillo (Pedro Manuel de).
Munilla (Diego), member of the company of Fernan Sanchez
de Vargas for one year from March 10, 1634.
Muniz (Jeronima) played fourth parts and the harp; she was
the wife of Juan Antonio de Monroy, and both were in the com-
pany of Jose Garceran in Seville in 1657.
Muniz (Juan Bautista) and his wife Euxenia Osorio were
in the company of Baltasar Pinedo in Feb., 1613, and in the com-
pany of Tomas Fernandez in April, 1619, when they paid 2400
reals for a costume. Both were in the company of Alonso de
Olmedo in 1621. {Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244.)
Munoz (Ana), celebrated actress, and wife of Antonio de
Villegas in June, 1593. v. Rojas, Viage, p. 51. She is mentioned
by Suarez de Figueroa in his Plaza Universal. Her name occurs in
the cast of Lope's Quien mas no puede (1616). v. Luis Fer-
534 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
nandez-Guerra, D. Juan Ruiz de Alarcon, p. 1 86. She had a son
(Rojas, Viage, p. 48), Juan Bautista de Villegas, q. v., besides
Francisco, the dramatist, and two daughters, Maria and Ana. Her
husband died on May 29, 1613, after which she managed his com-
pany for some time. (Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 378.) Whether the
Ana Munoz whom we find as the wife of Pedro Cebrian on Sept. 4,
1616, was the widow or the daughter of Villegas, I do not know.
Munoz (Antonio), actor in the company of Juan Roman in
1639-40, and in Felix Pascual's company in Seville in 1665.
Munoz (Francisca), wife of Francisco Elguero in Feb., 1636,
when they appeared at the Corpus festival at Truxeque. In July,
1637, they represented comedias in the village of Hita.
Munoz (Francisco), actor in 1589. In June, 1603, and
March, 1604, he and his wife Marina de Aguilar were in a joint
company, and in 1607 both were members of Alonso Riquelme's
company in Seville. In March, 1614, he was in Alonso de Here-
dia's company.
Munoz (Isabel), actress in the company of Hernan Sanchez
de Vargas in Valladolid in 1619. (M. y M., p. 566.)
Munoz (Jeronimo), prompter in the company of Tomas Diaz
in Seville in 1643.
Munoz (Juan), actor in the company of Antonio Granados in
Dec, 1613.
Munoz (Miguel) and his wife Angela de Toledo were in the
company of Juan Bautista Valenciano in March, 1623. (Bull.
Hisp. (1908), p. 248.)
Munoz (Pedro), member of the company of Cristobal de
Avendano in March, 1623.
Munoz (Sebastiana), wife of Francisco Rodriguez; both were
in Juan Roman's company from Shrovetide, 1639, to 1640.
Munoz de la Plaza (Antonio), actor in the company of
Alonso de Villalba for one year from Feb. 24, 1614.
Murillo, famous actor, mentioned by Suarez de Figueroa,
Plaza Universal (1615), as being then deceased.
Muzio, Italian actor in Spain in 1538.
Najera (Tomas de), actor and musico in the company of
Tomas Fernandez in 1636-39. v. Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 55, 381.
His name occurs in the cast of Calderon's Troya abrasada( 1644).
He died in Barcelona. See also under Naxera.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 535
Narbaes, actor in 1623, appearing in Lope's La nueva Victoria
de D. Gonzalo de Cordoba.
Narbaes (Francisca), actress in the company of Antonio de
Rueda in Seville in 1644.
Navala (Maria), dancer in the company of Juan de Morales
Medrano at the Corpus festival in Seville in 161 5, when she re-
ceived a gratuity of 10 ducats for excellence in the bailes.
Navarrete (Alonso Diaz) and his wife Antonia de Victoria
were in the company of Avendano in 1632.
Navarrete (Antonio de), actor in the company of Alonso
de Heredia in March, 1614. A "Nauarete" appeared in Tirso's
La Tercera de la Sancta Juana (licensed in 1616) ; a "Nabarrete"
in Lope's La Conpetencia en los Nobles (1628) ; "Nabarete" in the
cast of Paciencia en la fortuna, of which there is an Osuna MS.
dated 1615 (v. Restori, Studj, p. 143), and in Como ha de usarse
del bien {ibid., p. 129), and in La Guar da cuidadosa by Miguel
Sanchez, printed in 1 61 5.
Navarrete (Bartolome de), member of the company of Cris-
tobal Ortiz de Villazan for one year from Feb. 17, 1 6 19. In the
list of this company he is called a musico, and was from Granada.
Navarrete (Blas de), actor in the company of Juan Perez de
Tapia in Seville in 1662; he and his wife Feliciana de Ayuso
were in the company of Francisco Gutierrez at Seville in 1668.
In 1671 and 1672 he was in the company of Ant. de Escamilla;
in 1673 with Felix Pascual, and in 1674, 1675, and 1676 with
Manuel Vallejo. He is probably the Fernando Ignacio Bias de
Navarrete who was in Antonio de Castro's company in 1656.
Navarrete (Juan Antonio), musico in the company of
Manuel Vallejo in 1673. His wife Paula was in the same com-
pany.
Navarrico of Toledo, actor. Rojas, Viage, p. 362, mentions
him among the best actors of his day.
Navarro (Diego), actor in the company of Abagaro Francisco
Valdes in 1583-84. {B. Hisp. (1906), p. I53-)
Navarro (Jose), musician in the company of Pablo de Morales
in Seville in 1678.
Navarro (Juanico), member of the company of Jose Ant.
Garcia in 1679.
Navarro (Pedro), antiguo autor, mentioned by Rojas, Viage
entretenido, p. 361, and also by Cervantes in the Prologue to his
536 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Comedias; Lope de Vega also calls him a famous actor (Comedias,
Part XVI, 1622, Prologue). He is doubtless the "Unico Poeta y
Representante Navarro," author of the Comedia muy exemplar de
la Marquesa de Saluzia, llamada Griselda, published in 1603. See
the reprint by C. B. Bourland, Revue Hispanique, 1905. Rojas,
Viage, p. 132, says: Nauarro of Toledo "fue el primero que
inuento teatros."
Navarro Oliver (Juan), actor, and his second wife Jeronima
de Olmedo were in the company of Avendaiio in 1632. He was
in the company of Antonio de Rueda in 1644 (see the list of the
company in S.-A., p. 371, where he is called simply Juan Navarro),
and was still living in 1678. He and his wife were with Jose
Carrillo in Valencia in 1662, and with Manuel Vallejo in 1674,
and he was with Escamilla as barba in 1675—78. This was proba-
bly the Juan Navarro who had a company of Spanish players in
London in Dec, 1635, when he received £10 "for himself and the
rest of the company for a play presented before his Majesty,
Dec. 23." (Malone, Historical Account of the English Stage,
Basil, 1800, p. 131, n.)
Navas (Juan de), actor in the company of Esteban Nunez in
Seville in 1654.
Naxera (Andres de), autor de comedias in 1593, when he
managed a company jointly with Gabriel Nunez. In 1606 he
had charge of the dances at Corpus in Madrid, and in 1609 of a
danza de cascabel entitled "The dance of Don Gayferos and
rescue of Melisendra." In 161 1 with Gabriel de la Torre he
brought out at Corpus the dance El Rey don Alonso. He repre-
sented other dances in 16 15 -18.
Necti (Josefa), wife of Francisco Alvarez de Victoria in 1630;
both were in the company of Tomas Fernandez before 1639.
Negrilla (La), actress playing second parts in the company of
Ana de Espinosa in Madrid at Corpus, 1641. v. Schack, Nach-
trage, p. 72.
Neyra (Juan de) brought out one of the dances at Corpus in
Madrid in 1628.
Nicolas (Catalina de), first wife of the autor de comedias
Pedro de la Rosa in Feb., 1636. v. Rosa (Catalina de la.)
Nieto (Josefa), wife of Antonio de Mata; both were in
Jacinto Riquelme's company in Seville in 1652. In 1677 and 1678
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 537
she was in the company of Escamilla, and in 1679-81 in the com-
pany of Manuel Vallejo.
Nieto (Juan), member of a joint company in Madrid in
March, 1604.
Nieva (Juan de), autor in charge of one of the autos at
Seville in 1628; his company was to represent in La Monteria,
Seville, in 1633, but the performances did not take place. (S.-A.,
p. 284.) He was a brother-in-law of Damian Arias.
Nobles of Toledo, well-known actor in 1602, mentioned by
Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 362.
Noguera (Antonio de), actor in the company of Andres de
la Vega for one year from March, 1639.
Nolasco (Pedro), actor in the company of Jose Garcia de
Prado in 1658.
Nunez (Alonso), musician and dancer in the company of Juan
Acacio in Seville in 16 19.
Nunez (Esteban), el Polio, actor in the company of Lopez de
Salazar, Mahoma, in 1633, and in that of Juan Acacio in Seville
in 1644. His first wife was Josefa de Salazar (1644), who was in
the same company, and both were in the company of Lorenzo
Hurtado in Seville in 1645. In 1648 and 1654 ne had his own
company in Seville, Cadiz, and other cities, his wife Josefa Salazar
being a member of his company. His second wife is said to have
been Juliana Candau, widow of Pedro Diaz( ?). Juliana was the
wife of Pedro de Urquiza in 1644, when both were in the company
of Antonio de Rueda in Seville.
Nunez (Francisco), member of the company of Diego de
Santander in 1594, and in Domingo Balbin's company in 1613.
In Feb., 1619, he was in Pedro Cebrian's company.
Nunez (Gabriel), autor de comedias in Madrid in 1593 and
1603. In Aug., 1593, he performed the comedias Los Comenda-
dores (Lope de Vega) and Los Enredos de Benetillo (by Lope?),
"con los dichos entremeses in cada de las dichas comedias con su
musica de biola y guitarras," at Nava del Carnero. (N. D.,
p. 36.) He represented at Corpus in Barajas in 1603.
Nunez (Juan), dancer, of Madrid, was in the company of
Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan in Seville in i6ig(?). In 1626 he
was in the company of Jose de Salazar in Seville, and in 1632
in Antonio de Prado's company. In 1637 ne was with Luis Lopez
538 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
in Seville, when he received a gratuity of 3750 mrs. for the hand-
some costume he wore. In 1645 he was with Bartolome Romero
in Valladolid. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Nunez de Luna (Diego), musician in the employ of D. Gar-
cia de Mendoza, Viceroy of Peru, in Lima, in 1588.
Nunez de Prado (Juan), actor in the company of Cristobal
de Leon in Aug., 1620, and with Pedro de la Rosa in 1639 in
Seville. Perhaps the same as Juan Nunez, above.
O (Maria de la), widow of the autor de comedias Luys de
Vergara in 1 61 7. (Perez Pastor, Bibliografia Madrilena, Vol. II,
P-437-)
O (Maria de la), wife of Antonio de Andrade, el Gallego, in
1 63 1, when she, her husband, and her daughter Luisa de Andrade
were members of the company of Manuel Vallejo. In Feb., 1633,
Maria de la O and her husband Juan de Samaniego engaged to
act for one year in the company of Juan Bautista Espinola, and at
Corpus of 1637 they took Part in the representation of an auto
and two comedias in the villa de Zedillo.
O (Maria de la), actress in the company of Jose Carrillo in
1663. (Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, p. 296.) There was
a Maria de la O de la Berruga, an actress of a later date, who was
the daughter of Toribio de Bustamante and the wife of Juan de
Flores and mother of Alfonso de Flores, harpist, of Madrid.
Ocampo (Da Maria de), widow of the actor Cristobal Juarez
in Dec, 1616. The inventory of his effects was filed on Dec. 15,
1616.
Ocana (Pedro de), of Murcia, musician and actor in the com-
pany of Alonso de Cisneros in Dec, 1589. His wife was Agustina
de Vega, and both were in the company of Gaspar de Porres from
March 27, 1593, for one year.
Ochoa (Mariana), v. Ochoa (Salvador de).
Ochoa (Pedro de), actor in the company of Juan de Limos
from March, 1583, till Shrovetide, 1584. He was to receive 3 reals
at the end of each performance, besides board, lodging, travel-
ing expenses, and to have his shirts washed. (B. H. (1906),
p. 153.) He acted in the company of Antonio de Villegas in June,
I593-
Ochoa (Salvador de) and his wife Mariana were in the
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 539
company of Nicolas de los Rios in Seville in 1609. In March,
161 1, Ochoa was in Pinedo's company, and at Corpus in the same
year he acted with the company of Tomas Fernandez in Madrid,
while in Feb., 1613, we find Salvador de Ochoa and his wife
Jeronima Rodriguez in Baltasar Pinedo's company.
Ochoa (Salvadora), wife of Juan de Exea; both were in the
company of Baltasar Pinedo in 1613.
Ochoa de Arroyo (Domingo), actor in the company of Anto-
nio de Prado in Seville in 1639. (S.-A., p. 325.) He appears
under the name Arroyo in the Entremeses of Benavente, also in
Prado's company, as vejete about 1633-36 (?). v. Rosell, Vol. I,
pp.97, 174, 322, 351.
Ojeda (Felipa Maria de), actress in the company of Luis
Lopez in Seville in 1650.
Ojeda (Maria Valba) played second parts in the company of
Pedro de Ortegon in 1635.
Oliva (Francisco), ministril in the company of Alonso de
Morales and others in April, 1592.
Olivares (Antonio de), actor in the company of Alonso
Riquelme( ?) for one year from March, 1602.
Olivares (Lorenzo de), nephew of the preceding, and actor
in Riquelme's company in 1602-03.
Olivares .(Mariana de), wife of the celebrated autor de come-
dias Roque de Figueroa; both were in the company of Domingo
Balbin from Sept. 1, 1623, till Shrovetide, 1624. She acted in her
husband's company in 1631-32. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206.) She
had two children: Miguel de Figueroa, who died in Milan as a
captain of cavalry, and Gabriela de Figueroa (q. v.), who married
the actor Jose Garceran.
Olmedo y Tofino (Alonso de), famous actor and autor de
comed'ms, was the son of the Mayordomo of the Count of Oro-
pesa, and was born in Talavera de la Reina, where he served
the Count, as a page. He is said to have fallen in love with an
actress, Luisa de Robles, a member of a traveling company which
visited his native town. Luisa was then the wife of Juan Laba-
dia, an actor; some time thereafter she received the news that her
husband had been drowned, whereupon she is said to have married
Olmedo. Some three years after this, being then in Granada
with his company, Olmedo was surprised one day by the sudden
540 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
reappearance of Luisa's former spouse. We are told that Olmedo
accepted the situation with admirable resignation; that he imme-
diately shared his possessions with Luisa and bade her farewell.
See the story, told with some detail by Sanchez- Arjona, p. 223.
While this story of Luisa de Robles in its main incidents may
be true, she was certainly not the siren who first lured Olmedo
upon the stage. In a petition to the town council of Seville (ibid.,
p. 224), dated 1640, Olmedo says that he had served the King
at the Corpus festivals for forty years, and that he had been
manager of a company for twenty-four years. This would place
the beginning of his theatrical career in the year 1600, and his
beginning as an autor in 1616. What we know of Luisa de Robles
is briefly this: in June, 161 8, she is described as the widow of
Juan Labadia (N. £)., p. 167) ; at Corpus in 1621 she was in
Olmedo's company in Madrid; in Sept., 1623, she is designated
a single woman over twenty-five years old, and belonged to Manuel
Vallejo's company (ibid., p. 201) ; in 1624 she was in Antonio de
Prado's company in Madrid, and in 1627 she and her husband
Juan de Labadia were in -Manuel Simon's company in Seville. If
the Enoch Arden episode ever took place, it must have occurred
about 1618 (or rather before that date, as we shall see) ; but at
that time Olmedo had been upon the stage for many years. His
career was a long one. His name occurs in the cast of Lope's Los
Guzmanes de Toral, written before 1604. v. Restori's edition, p. ix,
n. 2, where Obredo = Olmedo. In 1610 he acted in Riquelme's
company and appeared in Lope's La buena Guarda.- On July 11,
1613, he agreed to act in the company of Ana Munoz, widow of
Antonio de Villegas, until Shrovetide, 1615, receiving 18 reals
daily, besides 6 reals for maintenance and 30 ducats for Corpus.
(B. H. (1907), p. 378.) His company in 1621 comprised: Cris-
tobal Ortiz and Ana Maria, his wife; Juan Muniz and Eugenia,
his wife ; Cristobal de Morales and daughter ; Pedro de Ribera and
Catalina de Monsalve, his wife; Francisco de Arteaga and his
daughter Maria Alvarez; Juan de Benavides, Pedro Aguado,
Francisco Vicente, Pedro de Espafia, Lorenzo Salvador; Jeronimo
de Heredia and Catalina de Osorio, his wife ; Luisa de Robles and
Alonso de Olmedo. (Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244.) On Nov. 21
of this year he agreed to take his company to Seville and represent
every day except Saturday, till Shrovetide of 1622 (ibid., p. 245),
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 541
producing two new comedias each week, and also half the Corpus
festival, and to have the exclusive right of representing during this
time. His company represented autos at Madrid in 1620 and in
Seville in 1622, 1623, 1630, 1635, and 1636. In 1631 he entered
the Cofradia de la Novena. In Jan., 1632, he represented before the
King the comedia Si el caballo vos han muerto, and in 1636
represented six comedias before Philip IV. Olmedo married be-
fore 1 618 Jeronima de Ornero, daughter of the Mayordomo of
the Count of Sastago; she acted in his company, together with her
daughter Maria de Olmedo, in 1635, Olmedo playing old men's
parts in his own company. For a list of this company, v. S.-A.,
p. 297. He had six children, several of whom were members of
his company at different times. In 1638, on Shrove Tuesday, his
company took part in the fiesta in the Buen Retiro, but in 1640
we again find him acting in the company of another, Manuel
Vallejo. (S.-A., p. 339.) He retired from the stage before 1646.
Alonso de Olmedo was a hidalgo, and by a special decree of
Philip IV., dated May 20, 1647, all the privileges of his rank
were preserved to him, "although he had been an autor de come-
dias." He died in Madrid in 165 1.
Olmedo (Alonso de), el Mozo, son of the preceding, was a
Bachiller en canones in the University of Salamanca, but aban-
doned his studies for the stage. In Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. I,
p. 674, we read that he was admitted into the Cofradia in 1631,
"being then in the company of his father." This does not neces-
sarily imply that he was then old enough to appear upon the stage.
The first notice that we have of him as an actor is in 1640, when
he belonged to the company of Manuel Vallejo. Sanchez-Arjona
says that he acted and danced in his father's company in the pre-
ceding year in Seville (p. 223). He was famous in the role of
galan, acting for years in rivalry with Sebastian de Prado. In
1659 he was first galan in the company of Diego Osorio; in 1660
he was with Pedro de la Rosa and appeared in Montero's play
A mar sin favorecer; in 1 661 with Ant. de Escamilla; 1662 with
Simon Aguado and Juan de la Calle; 1663, 1664, 1665, 1670,
1671, 1672, 1675, 1676, 1677, and 1678 with Escamilla; 1673,
1674, 1679, 1680, and 1 68 1 with Manuel Vallejo, and died in
1682, in Alicante, while a member of Escamilla's company. His
wife was Maria Antonia de Leon of Velez-Malaga, who, it is said,
542 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
was kidnapped a few days after her marriage by hirelings of the
tenth Admiral of Castile, D. Juan Gaspar Enriquez de Cabrera,
and her husband never saw her again. Olmedo was a galan both
on and off the stage; he had a son named Gaspar de Olmedo by
the actress Maria de Anaya, before the latter married Jose Antonio
de Prado. The parents of Maria de Anaya, to break off her rela-
tions with Olmedo, had sent her to Paris with Sebastian de Prado's
company in 1660, where her son Gaspar was born. He also had a
son by the celebrated Manuela de Escamilla, named Alonso de
Olmedo, who also followed the stage and acted gracioso parts with
much applause. (Cotarelo, Migajas del Ingenio, p. 210.) Olmedo
was the author of a number of bailes and entremeses, a list of which
is given by Restori, Piezas de Titulos de Comedias, p. 181, n.
Olmedo (Gaspar de), actor in Manuel Vallejo's company in
1 68 1. He was the son of Alonso de Olmedo, el Mozo, and Maria
de Anaya.
Olmedo (Hipolito de), actor (in 1650?) ; his real name was
Zorrilla. He was manager of a company in 1676.
Olmedo (Jeronima de), daughter of Alonso de Olmedo and
Jeronima de Ornero. She and her husband Juan Navarro Oliver
were in Avendano's company in 1632. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 203.)
In 1638—39 she was in the joint company of her father and Luis
Bernardo de Bovadilla. In 1640 she was in Vallejo's company in
Seville; in 1659 with Diego Osorio; in 1662 with Jose Carrillo; in
1666 she acted in Paris, and in 1674 with Manuel Vallejo. She
died in Madrid on Jan. 19, 1703, more than eighty years of age.
Olmedo (Maria de), sister of the preceding, took fifth parts
and played the harp in her father's company in Seville at Corpus,
1635; m Feb., 1638-39, she was in the company of her father
and Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla. In 1640 she was segunda dama
in the company of Manuel Vallejo. She is said to have married
the autor Juan Perez de Tapia (S.-A., pp. 340, 359) ; if this be
so she must have married him after Nov. 15, 1640, for at that date
Tapia's first wife, Ana Maria Rodriguez, was still living. (N. D.,
p. 327.) According to Sanchez-Arjona she was the wife of Juan
Perez in 1653, when both were received into the Cofradia de la
Novena (p. 359), and was understudy in the company of Esteban
Nunez in 1657 (P- 34o). She died in Madrid, in April, 1668
(ibid., p. 340), or in Seville! or Granada! (ibid., p. 360).
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 543
Olmedo (Maria de), wife of the actor Tome de Olmedo; both
-were in the company of Esteban Nunez in Valencia in 1654.
There was a Maria de Olmedo in the company of Nunez in
Valencia in 1657. See the preceding article.
Olmedo (Tome de), v. the preceding.
Olmedo (Vicente de), actor and dancer, husband of Fran-
•cisca Bezon (1650?). In 1659 both were in the company of Diego
Osorio; according to Gallardo, I, p. 673, he was residing in Madrid
in 1717. He was a son of Alonso de Olmedo.
Olmos (Dona Maria de), "single woman," actress in the
Corpus festival at the villa de Zedillo in April, 1637.
Onez (Angela de), actress( ?) in 1596. v. N. D., p. 45.
Oracio Cartagines (Nicolas) and his wife Beatriz de
Espinosa were in the company of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz in 1603.
Orbaneja (Jeronimo de) produced one of the autos in Seville
in 1559.
Ordaz (Antonio de) , actor in the company of Juana de Cisne-
ros in Seville in 1660. He had a company in Valencia in 1664.
Ordaz (Juan), actor in the company of Antonio de Escamilla
in 1670.
Ordonez (Alejandro) and his wife Francisca de Bustamente
were in the company of Bernardo de la Vega in Seville in 1672.
Ordonez (Diego) and his wife Maria de Montesinos were
members of a joint company in 1603. The name Ordonez occurs
in the cast of Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan (licensed 1625), in
Avendano's company, together with Maria de Montesinos.
Ordonez (Felipe) agreed on Feb. 25, 1638, to play "whatever
may be commanded, but no less than third parts," in the company
of Alonso de Olmedo and Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla for one year.
On March 2, 1638, he agreed to play first parts for one year in
the company of Alonso de la Vega. In 1673 a Felipe Ordonez
was in the company of Matias de Castro in Seville; in 1680 he was
cobrador with Jeronimo Garcia.
Ornero (Jeronima de), second ( ?) wife of Alonso de Olmedo
and a member of his company in 1635, was the daughter of the
Mayordomo of the Count of Sastago. She died in 1665.
v. Olmedo (Alonso de).
Oro (Ana de), wife of Pedro de Contreras; both belonged to
the company of Pedro de la Rosa from March, 1637, f°r one year-
544 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
She appeared in his company in the Entremeses of Benavente.
v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 381.
Orozco (Jeronimo de), actor in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1670.
Orozco (Miguel de), actor in the company of Diego Osorio
in 1659; in 166 1 played third parts in Sebastian de Prado's
company; in 1662 with Simon Aguado, and in 1663, 1664, 1665,
and 1670 with Ant. de Escamilla.
Ortega (Diego de) and his wife Ana Maria de Peralta (after-
ward the wife of Juan Bezon), both natives of La Mota del
Cuervo, were in the company of Diego Vallejo in Seville in 1619,
and in the company of Manuel Vallejo in Madrid in 1622.
Ortega (Juan de), el Hijo de la Tierra, was a member of the
company of Sebastian de Avellaneda, and joined the Cofradia de la
Novena in 1 636.
Ortega (Luisa de), wife of Juan de Santamaria; both were
in the company of Fernan Sanchez de Vargas from March 9, 1634,
for one year.
Ortegon (Pedro de), autor de comedias in Seville in Dec,
1630, and in 1 63 1, in the latter year in charge of the company
of Damian Arias (S.A., p. 271), and in 1634 took part in the
Corpus festival. He was again in Seville in 1635 (for his com-
pany in that year, v. S.-A., p. 299). His wife Micaela Lopez
played first parts in his company. He died at Madrid in the Calle
de Cantarranas in 1636.
Ortiz (Alonso), actor in the company of Antonio de Rueda
in Seville in 1644. There was an Ortiz in Juan Roman's company
in 1639-40.
Ortiz (Ana), widow of the autor Pedro Paez de Sotomayor.
Her will is dated Sept. 4, 1596. She is mentioned by Suarez de
Figueroa (161 5) as a famous actress.
Ortiz (Ana) , actress in the company of Antonio de Escamilla
in 1670.
Ortiz (Cristobal), v. Ortiz de Villazan.
Ortiz (Francisca), wife of Vicente Ortiz; both were mem-
bers of a joint company in March, 1604, for one year.
Ortiz (Francisco), a minor in May, 1600, when he was
bound to Gaspar de Porres for four years, "to serve and help him
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 545
in anything which he may be commanded, in his farces and autos,
both public and private, and he is to give him food, drink, clothing
and shoes and all necessary things, and to cure him of any ills he
may have, and furnish him lodging and clean linen." (N. D.,
p. 52.) He had a company in Feb., 1617, with Francisco Mudarra,
and in 1623 was in the company of Antonio de Prado.
Ortiz (Francisco) and his wife Ursula de Torres were in
Bart. Romero's company for one year from Feb., 1640. He was
cobrador. He was also cobrador in Sebastian de Prado's company
in 1 65 1. Perhaps the same as the preceding.
Ortiz (Maria), daughter of Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan and
Ana Maria de Ribero.
Ortiz (Mariana), mentioned by Suarez de Figueroa in his
Plaza Universal (1615), among the famous actresses then deceased.
I think that she was the wife of Melchor de Leon in 1601, for
Maxima Ortiz seems to be a mistake for Mariana Ortiz, v. Leon
(Melchor).
Ortiz (Micaela), sister of Maria Ortiz and wife of Pedro
Gonzalez; both were in the company of Jose Garcia de Prado in
Seville at Corpus in 1658.
Ortiz (Vicente), v. Francisca Ortiz, above. He belonged
to the company of Alonso Velazquez in Seville in 1598.
Ortiz de Urbina (Pedro), actor in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1622 and 1623, and with Bartolome Romero in 1631.
In 1636 he was cobrador for the lessees of the theaters of Madrid.
He bought a house in the Calle del Amor de Dios, corner of the
Calle de Santa Maria, from Bartolome Romero, in March, 1637,
and seems to have been connected with the latter's company in
1639-40.
Ortiz de Villazan (Cristobal), famoso representante, as
Lope de Vega calls him, was a native of Valladolid. His theatrical
career was short ; he was, apparently, in the company of Alonso de
Riquelme in 1613, and in Jan., 1614, he was a member of the com-
pany of Pedro de Valdes, and he and his wife Ana Maria de Ribero
(who were in the same company in the previous year) joined in
an obligation for money owed by them. He had a company in
the following year, being one of the twelve autores authorized
by the decree of 161 5. He represented Lope's El Sembrar en
546 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
buena tierra (1616) and El Desconfiado (in Sept., 1617), and
had a company in Madrid in 161 7 and 161 8, and again in
1619 and 1623. He took part in the autos at Seville in 1619 and
1620 (for his company, v. Sanchez-Arjona, p. 204). His wife
acted in his company in 1 61 9, and her name and her husband's
also appear in the cast of Lope's La Dama boba, written in 1613,
and produced by the company of Pedro de Valdes in the course
of the same year. In 1621 he and his wife Ana Maria belonged
to the company of Alonso de Olmedo. (Bull. Hisp. (1908),
p. 244.) In Sept., 1622, he represented three comedias "en el
cuarto de la Reina." (Ibid., p. 247.) Ortiz had two daughters:
Micaela, wife of Pedro Gonzalez, and Maria. He died in the
Calle del Leon, Madrid, on July I, 1626. He first represented
Claramonte's(?) El Tao de S. Anton (in 1620-21?) and Tirso's
El Arbol del mejor Fruto and El mayor Desengano.
OSORIO, V. OSORIO DE VELASCO.
Osorio (Baltasar), "Rey de los Graciosos," was in the com-
pany of Juan de Morales Medrano in 1615, when he received a
gratuity of 100 reals at the autos of Corpus in Seville. Perhaps
this was the Osorio who appeared in Lope's Quien mas no puede
(1616), in Cebrian's company.
Osorio (Catalina), wife of Jeronimo de Heredia, actor, in
July, 1623. Both were in the company of Alonso de Olmedo in
1 62 1. (Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244.)
Osorio (Eugenia), wife of Juan Bautista Muniz; both were
in the company of Baltasar Pinedo in Feb., 1613, in the company
of Tomas Fernandez de Cabredo in April, 1619, and in Alonso
de Olmedo's in 162 1.
Osorio (Francisco), autor de comedias as early as 1579, when
he represented (June 8 and 9) in the Corral de Valdivieso, and
again in the corrales of Madrid in 1581 and 1582. He also repre-
sented in March, 1588, Aug.-Dec, 1590, and March, 1592. See
Appendix A. He and his brother Rodrigo had a company in
Valencia in 1588. He is probably the "Osorio, autor antiguo y
famoso," who first represented Lope de Vega's El Soldado Amante
and La Ingratitud vengada.
Osorio (Isabel), v. Osorio de Velasco (Diego) and
Guevara (Isabel de).
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 547
Osorio (Jacinta) and her husband Jusepe de Carrion be-
longed to the company of Antonio Granados in 1632.
Osorio (Juan), actor, indicted in 1606 in Madrid for quar-
reling with an alguacil and breaking his staff.
Osorio (Magdalena), well-known actress, daughter of the
autor Rodrigo Osorio and wife of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz, also
autor de comedias, before March 28, 1601. Her name is men-
tioned, in a complaint made in 1588 to the Inquisition of Valencia,
as living in concubinage with the actor Bautista [Juan Bautista
de Villalobos?], while both were members of her father's com-
pany, v. Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, p. 30. She must have died
after April, 1607, and before Dec. 19, 1610, when Lopez de
Alcaraz married Catalina de Carcaba. (N. D., p. 123.)
Osorio (Micaela), actress (quinta) in the company of Antonio
de Escamilla in 1661.
Osorio (Pedro), actor in the company of Domingo Balbin in
1609 and 1613, appearing in the comedia of Godinez, La Reina
Ester, in the latter year.
Osorio (Rodrigo), father of Magdalena Osorio and a well-
known autor de comedias from 1588 to 1601. He was an actor
in March, 1583, perhaps in the company of Juan Limos. (Bull.
Hisp. (1906), p. 153.) In 1588 he had a company in Valencia.
It consisted of : Juan Bautista of Seville, Magdalena Osorio, Isabel
de Torres (la Granadina), Cristobal de Avendano, Castro and
his wife, Juan de Vergara, Bernaldino, Bravo, Gallego, Romero,
musicOj and his wife. (Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, p. 30.) That
Osorio was in Valencia in 1588 is certain. (Life of Lope de Vega,
P- 39-) The Juan Bautista just mentioned is in all probability
Juan Bautista de Villalobos. Osorio is the theatrical manager to
whom Cervantes, being in Seville in 1592, promised to furnish six
comedias upon such subjects as Osorio might select, and for which
he was to receive 50 ducats, if they turned out to be among the
best that had been represented in Spain. Rodrigo and his brother
Francisco Osorio represented the autos at Toledo in 1592, receiv-
ing 500 ducats. At the beginning of 1594 Rodrigo was arrested
and his chattels and wardrobe were attached for a debt (60,225
mrs.) due in Valladolid. His surety was his son-in-law, Diego
Lopez de Alcaraz, who was also his surety in March, 1601, when
Rodrigo was imprisoned for debt at the instance of Antonio Perez
548 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
of Segovia, and released on the promise of Alcaraz to pay a part
of the amount due. (Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 360.)
Osorio de Velasco (Diego), celebrated gr arioso, and his wife
Isabel de Guevara were admitted to the Cofradia de la Novena
on April 28, 1634, being then in the company of Juan Bautista
Espinola or Espinosa. In 1635 he was segundo gr arioso (Bezon
being first) in the company of Pedro de Ortegon in Seville, his
wife Isabel Osorio (Isabel de Guevara) playing fourth parts in the
same company. He was gracioso in Olmedo's company in i636( ?).
v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 90. In 1638, 1639, 1640, and 1644 he was in
Antonio de Rueda's company, and appeared in Calderon's La
Desdicha de la Voz (1639). He afterward managed a company
and became one of the foremost autores de comedias in Madrid.
In 1649 and 1650 he represented autos, and in 1 65 1 represented
Calderon's comedias El Eneas de Dios and Antes que todo es mi
Dama. In 1652 Moreto wrote for him El Poder de la Amistad.
(Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 2648.) He also represented autos
from 1653 at Madrid till 1661, and in the latter year his com-
pany was acting at the Teatro de la Cruz. On the death of his
first wife Isabel, he married Micaela de Andrade. v. Perez Pastor,
Galderon Documentos, I, passim. In 1659 he lived in the Calle
de Cantarranas. In 1660 he seems to have belonged to the com-
pany of Pedro de la Rosa, and appeared as Papagayo in Mon-
tero's Amar sin favorecer. (S.-A., p. 330, n.) He belonged to
the family of the Constables of Castile (Velasco), and became
Governor of Salas de los Infantes, where he died sometime after
1661. He had a daughter Catalina, who died in 1658.
Ostia (Diego de la) of Toledo took part in the "fiestas de
Agosto" in Toledo in 1561, and had charge of dances in Madrid
in 1570, and a dance at Toledo in 1580.
Ostos (Juan de) and his wife Maria de Herrera were in the
company Los Andaluces in 1605-06.
Osuna (Alonso de), galan in the company of Antonio de
Prado in 1624. (N. D., p. 206.) In 1636 he was in the company
of Tomas Fernandez. (Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 288, 290.) Sanchez-
Arjona, p. 134, gives the date of representation of this loa as
1621-23. This is impossible, for Roque de Figueroa and his wife
Antonia Manuela figure in the loa, and they joined the company
of Fernandez in April, 1636. (N. D„ p. 251.) In 1638-39
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 549
(desde Carnaval de 1638 a igual fecha del ano siguiente) he was
in the company of Bartolome Romero. {Ibid., p. 275.) Sanchez-
Arjona, p. 359, says that Alonso de Osuna figured in the com-
pany of Bartolome Romero in 1631, when he was received into
the Cofradia de la Novena. This seems to agree with the Segunda
Loa of Benavente, ed. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 230. Osuna, then in the
company of Roque de Figueroa, says that in the preceding year
he was in Romero's company. This would place this loa in the
year 1632. In 1642 and 1643 Osuna was again in Romero's
company (S.-A., p. 358), and in 1645 in the company of Lorenzo
Hurtado (ibid., p. 375). He is probably the Alonso de Osuna,
author of the comedia Fingir la propia Verdad and others, men-
tioned by Barrera. (Cat., p. 289.) The name Osuna appears in
the cast of Cordeiro's El Favor en la Sentencia (MS. dated 1626).
Otero (Antonio de), actor in the company of Francisco
Solano in 1637, and in the company of Juan Roman from Oct. 19,
1638, for one year, playing galanes.
Oviedo (Cosme de) took part in the Corpus festivals at Seville
in 1561, 1579, and 1582. He is said to have been the inventor
of theatrical posters. Rojas, Viage entretenido, ed. 1603, p. 132,
says: "Cosme de Oviedo, aquel autor de Granada tan conocido,
que fue el primero que puso carteles."
Oviedo (Magdalena de), wife of Cristobal de San Pedro;
both were in the company of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz for two
years, from Jan. 10, 1610; both also appeared in Prado's company
in Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta Juana, written in 1 614 and
licensed in 161 6.
Paez (Diego) produced the auto La Circuncision del Senor at
Corpus in Seville in 1564. He seems to have been afterward
(1586-92) a dealer in theatrical costumes.
Paez (Juan), actor (in the company of Gaspar de Porres?)
in Jan., 1597.
Paez de Sotomayor (Mariana), daughter of Pedro Paez de
Sotomayor and Ana Ortiz, and wife of the famous autor de come-
dias Alonso de Cisneros. She died in Seville before Jan. 16, 1590,
"leaving much property." Suarez de Figueroa mentions her among
the celebrated actresses of her day.
Paez de Sotomayor (Pedro) of Madrid, autor de comedias in
5 so SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
1587. His wife was Ana Ortiz; he died before Sept. 4, 1596, the
date of his wife's last will. v. the preceding and N. D„
pp. 19-23, 43.
Palencia (Francisco de) took part in the Corpus festival at
Seville in 1597.
Palma (Angela de), "single woman"; actress for one year,,
from Feb. 27, 1638, in the company of Alonso de Olmedo and
Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla.
Paniagua (Alonso de) of Granada, autor de comedias in
1602, with Juan de Tapia and Luis de Castro. His wife Paula
Salvadora was a member of his company in that year, and both
belonged to the company of Nicolas de los Rios from Shrovetide,.
1604, to 1605.
Paniagua (Da Maria) , wife of D. Diego de Villegas and actress
at the Corpus festival in Valdemoro, playing first parts, in 1623.
Pantaleon (Juan de), actor in the company of Francisca
Lopez in Seville in 1660 and 1663; in the company of Francisco
Gutierrez in 1668, and in that of Bernardo de la Vega in 1672.
Pantoja (Agustina de), actress in the company of Lorenzo-
Hurtado in Seville in 1645.
Pascual (Bernardo), son of Felix Pascual and Manuela de
Bustamante; he played galanes in Manuel Vallejo's company in
1673 and 1674 (second galan) ; with Escamilla in 1676, and
with Jeronimo Garcia in 1680, and with Carvajal in 1681.
Pascual (Felix), autor de comedias, a native of MuchamieL
(Valencia), played the guitar, but never acted. He was of a good
family; his real name was Jaime Lledo. It is said that, being in
Naples, he fell in love with Maria de Heredia, and followed the
stage. His first wife was Manuela de Bustamante, la Mentirilla.
After her death he married Ana de Andrade, and she having died,
he married a relative in Muchamiel, whither he retired and where
he died in 1708. (S.-A., p. 441.) He was in the company of
Sebastian de Prado in 1661, and musico in that of Simon Aguado-
and Juan de la Calle in 1662, and in Jose Carillo's company in
1663. He had a company in Seville in 1665 and 1677, and in
Madrid in 1669, 1671, and 1673. Sometime between 1665 and
1670 his company consisted of the following players: Manuela
[de Bustamante], Juan Alonso (first parts), Bernardo, gracioso,
Joseph Antonio (second), Josepha de Morales, Toribio de Busta-
mante, Miguel Perez, Joseph de Carrion (barbas), Isabel, Fran-
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 551
cisco de la Calle (second), Polonia and Ana de Dios. {Migajas
del Tngenio, p. 81.) In 1671 he and Agustin Manuel had a com-
pany. Pascual had a son Bernardo and a daughter Sabina by his
first wife. For his company in 1665, v. S.-A., p. 443. See also
Alvarez (Maria).
Pascual (Onofre) belonged to the company of Juan de
Morales Medrano in 1624, and to the company of Bartolome
Romero in 1631-32 and 1637-38. In 1643 he was in the com-
pany of Tomas Diaz in Seville, and in 1644 was with the company
of Juan Acacio, also in Seville, and in 1648 with Esteban Nunez.
Pascual (Sabina), daughter of Felix Pascual and Manuela de
Bustamante. She married Manuel de Villalba, and played prime-
ras damas.
Pat ata (Antonia), actress in the company of Tomas Fer-
nandez and Pedro de la Rosa in 1637-39. v. Rosell, Vol. I,
P. 381.
Pat ata (La). Her name was Antonia del Pozo, and she was
called La Patata, probably because she was the daughter of Antonia
Patata. She was a celebrated singer, and in 1659-60, 1670, 1671,
and 1672 she was in Manuel Vallejo's company. She was the first
wife of the actor Manuel de Mosquera and had a sister Luciana.
(Rosell, Vol. II, p. 342; Solis, Poesias, p. 219.) She probably
died before 1676. (Cotarelo, Migajas del Ingenio, p. 213.)
Paula, wife of Juan Antonio Navarrete, musico; both were in
Manuel Vallejo's company in 1673.
Paula Salvadora, actress, wife of Alonso de Paniagua in
1602. Both were in the company of Nicolas de los Rios in
1604-05. On Feb. 11, 1617, she is mentioned as the wife of
the actor Juan Bautista de Villegas; her name occurs again in
Nov., 1623, as the wife of Villegas.
Pavia (Diego), actor in the company of Francisco de Guzman
Morales in Valladolid in 1644, in that of Jacinto Riquelme in
Seville in 1652, and in the company of Antonio de Castro at the
Coliseo in Seville in 1656. His wife (1644) was Juana Vallejo.
Pavia (Josefa), actress in the company of Antonio de Castro
in Seville in 1656, and in the company of Juana de Cisneros
in 1660.
Pavia (Miguel), actor de por medio in the company of Sebast.
de Prado and Juan de la Calle in 1659.
Paz (Alonso de la), autor de comedias, represented Calde-
552 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
ron's comedia Santa Maria Egipciaca at Torija in 1655. (Perez
Pastor, Calderon Documentos, I, p. 226.)
Paz (Ana de la) played fifth parts and was musician in the
company of Jose Garceran in Seville in 1657 ; her husband Juan
Lopez was segundo gracioso and harpist in the same company.
Paz (Maria de la) played segundas damas and music in Gar-
ceran's company in 1657. Her husband Esteban de Almendros
was harpist in the same company. Their children were Maria
de la Paz and Isabel Eugenia Almendros, the latter of whom
entered a convent in Cordoba.
Paz (Sancho de) , autor de comedias, had a company in Naples
in 1620 and 1627. v. Croce, / Teatri di Napoli, p. 91.
Paz (Sebastian a de la), actress at the festival of Corpus at
Galapagar in 1619. Her husband was Francisco de Enciso, cloth-
shearer (tundidor).
Paz ( ?), actor in the company of Figueroa in 1635-
i636( ?) ; his name occurs in the cast of Peligrar en los Remedios,
by Rojas Zorrilla (1634), and in Lope's Los Mdrtires del Japan.
Alonso de la Paz was an autor de comedias in Madrid in 1655.
Perhaps the same person. {Calderon Doc, I., p. 226.)
Pedro (Juan), actor in the company of Gaspar de Porres in
1600.
Pena (Ana Maria de la), first wife of the autor de comedias
Tomas Fernandez; they were married in Valladolid in 1607.
(M. y M., p. 566.) She died before June 25, 1634. (S.-A.,
p. 134.) But see under Fernandez de Cabredo (Tomas).
Pena (Catalina de), wife of Antonio de Castro; both were
in Jacinto Riquelme's company in Seville in 1652.
Penafiel (Luisa de), daughter of Damian Arias de Penafiel
and Luisa de Reinoso, was in Manuel Vallejo's company in 1631.
On Nov. 4, 1639, sne married her cousin Diego de Penafiel.
Penalosa (Juan de), actor in the company of Fernan Sanchez
de Vargas for one year from Oct. 23, 1634. He had a company
in Aug., 1636, when he represented Lope's Nunca mucho costo
poco and Calderon's Casa con dos Puertas mala es de guardar.
Penarroja (Jeronimo de) played fourth parts in the com-
pany of Jose Garceran in Seville in 1657. In 1664, 1665, 1670,
and 1 67 1 he was segundo barba with Ant. de Escamilla; in 1672-
1676 with Manuel Vallejo, and died in Madrid on Jan. 29, 1704,
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 553
aged seventy-two. He had a daughter in Escamilla's company
in 1677.
Pen as (Sebastian de las), harpist in the company of Antonio
de Prado, 1634-36 ( ?). (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 97.)
Pen as (Sebastiana de las), actress in the company of Luis
Lopez in Seville in 1650, in the autos of that year.
Pepa, la Hermosa. v. Lopez (Josefa).
Peral (Jusepe del) of Toledo, musician and dancer in the
company of Diego Vallejo in Seville in 1619, and in the com-
pany of Manuel Vallejo in 1622. In 1624 he acted in the company
of Juan de Morales Medrano, and in 1632 he and his wife Isabel
de Vitoria were in the company of Roque de Figueroa in Seville
at Corpus.
Peralta (Ana Maria de), actress, wife of Diego de Ortega;
both were natives of La Mota del Cuervo, and were in the com-
pany of Diego Vallejo in 1619 in Seville, and in the company of
Manuel Vallejo in Madrid in 1622. She afterward married Juan
Bezon (q. v.) and was called la Bezona, q. v.
Peralta (Catalina de), wife of Juan de Grajal or Graxal
in March, 1604, when they agreed with Anton Alvarez, Vicente
Ortiz, and others to form a joint company for one year. On
Feb. 24, 1614, both joined the company of Alonso de Villalba.
On March 28, 1614, they agreed to join the company of Andres
de Claramonte for one year. In 1628 both appeared in Lope de
Vega's La Conpetencia en los Nobles.
Peralta (Francisco de) produced the auto El Reseat e del
Alma in Seville in 1576.
Peregrin (Isabel), member of the company of Cristobal de
Avendafio in 1632.
Perez (Agustin), actor in Valladolid in 1642. (M. y M.,
P. 566.)
Perez (Cosme), known as Juan Rana, famous gracioso in the
company of Juan Bautista in 161 7 and 1622; in the former year
he appeared as Leonardo in the original cast of Lope's El Desden
vengado; in the latter as El Capitan Medrano in Lope's La
nueva Victoria de D. Gonzalo de Cordoba. He was in the com-
pany of Antonio de Prado in 1623-24, and with Pedro de la Rosa
in 1636, when he received 10 reals daily for maintenance and 20
reals for each representation, besides 50 ducats for the Corpus
554 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
festival. Quinones de Benavente wrote an entremes entitled
Juan Rana, in which Cosme Perez appeared while in the company
of Pedro de la Rosa, to which he belonged for many years.
(S.-A., p. 328.) He acted for a while in the company of Tomas
Fernandez, and appeared in the entremes La Guardainfante
(Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 134, 405), and in 1642 went to Valencia. In
1650 he belonged to the company of Antonio Garcia de Prado in
Madrid, and took part in the autos. He appeared upon the stage
as late as 1665. "On January 5, 1665, here came, among other
diversions of sports we had this Christmas, Juan Arana (sic), the
famous comedian, who here acted about 2 hours, to the admiration
of all who beheld him, considering that he was near upon 80 years
of age." (Memoirs of Lady Fanshawe, ed. 1905, p. 187.) "He
was a man of exemplary life, and owned houses in the Calle de
Cantarranas." He is said to have married Bernarda Ramirez,
who was also in Rosa's company in 1639, playing sixth parts (see
under Ramirez (Bernarda) ) , but this is probably a mistake. His
wife seems to have been Bernarda Manuela, q. v. His second
wife was Maria de Acosta. Caramuel calls Cosme Perez the most
famous of all the comic actors on the Spanish stage. He died at
Madrid in 1673.
Perez (Cristobal), second gr arioso in the company of Felix
Pascual and Agustin Manuel in 1671.
Perez (Damiana), wife of the actor and autor Francisco Lopez
(1629).
Perez (Fernando) of Zaragoza, actor in the company of
Melchor de Leon from Dec, 161 1, for one year. His wife, in
June, 1 614, was Maria de Montesinos, and both were in the
company of Claramonte till Shrovetide, 1615. In Jan., 1619,
he was in the company of Juan de Morales Medrano, and in
March of the same year appears to have been in the company of
Alonso de Olmedo. (N. £>., p. 179.) His sister was Sebastiana
Vazquez.
Perez (Francisca Paula), widow (1639-40) of Antonio
Ponce de Leon, played first parts in the company of Juan de
Malaguilla in that year.
Perez (German), el Bueno, actor in the company of Jose
Martinez de los Rios in 1632. (Gallardo, I, p. 669.)
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 555
Perez (Isabel), sister of Cosme Perez, actress in the company
of Pedro de la Rosa in 1636-37. (Rosell, I, p. 419.)
Perez (Juan), actor for two years, from Feb. 15, 1592, in
the company of Gaspar de Porres, "receiving 5700 reals, board,
lodging, and clean linen, and a cart in which to carry his belong-
ings from place to place."
Perez (Juan), actor in the company of Juan Bautista Valen-
ciano in March, 1623. {Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 248.) He played
galanes in the company of Pedro de la Rosa in 1636. v. Rosell,
Vol. I, p. 419. On Feb. 28, 1637, Juan Perez agreed to act for
one year in the company of Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla, and on
Aug. 21 of the same year he contracted to act until Shrovetide,
1638, in the company of Segundo de Morales. (N. D., pp. 260,
272.) By this agreement the wife of Juan Perez (name not
given) was to take the money at the door (cobradora). On
March 24, 1638, he joined the company of Bartolome Romero,
and in 1642 played second galanes in the same company in Seville.
This Juan Perez and Juan Perez de Tapia seem to be the same
person.
Perez (Juan Manuel), autor de comedias; his company rep-
resented at Corpus in Seville in 1675.
Perez (Maria), wife of the actor Francisco de Arteaga in
1 63 1, and then in the company of Manuel Vallejo.
Perez (Miguel), actor in the company of Felix Pascual in
1665-68 (?).
Perez (Pedro), actor in the cast of Paciencia en la fortuna
(Restori, Stud], p. 142) and in Lope de Vega's Los Guzmanes de
Toral, ed. Restori, p. ix.
Perez (Polonia), famous actress, was the first wife of Fernan
Sanchez de Vargas. She appeared in the title role of Lope's La
hermosa Ester (1610) in her husband's company. Of this play
Lope says: "Representola el famoso Sanchez con notable auto-
ridad y aplauso." (Part XV.) She died before Jan. 11, 1619,
leaving two children, Francisca and Hernando de Vargas, both
still minors in 1626, and some property in the town of Hita.
Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos, p. 212, says that she was the second
wife of Sanchez de Vargas.
Perez Lobillo (Francisco) of Granada, died May 4, 1631.
SS& SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
His wife was Ana Cusio, and his children Francisco and Ana
Maria Perez Lobillo.
Perez de Tapia (Juan) , son of Agustin Perez de Tapia. On
Nov. 15, 1640, he executed a power of attorney to his wife Ana
Maria Rodriguez to recover his inheritance in his father's estate.
(N. D., p. 327.) Sanchez-Arjona, p. 340, says that he married
Maria de Olmedo. When? Before 1653, at all events, for in
that year both were received into the Cofradia de la Novena.
(Ibid., p. 359.) In 1650 he was in Antonio de Prado's company
in Madrid. (Calderon Documentos, p. 170.) Perez de Tapia
became an autor de comedias and visited Seville, appearing in La
Monteria in 1654-56, and again in 1659, 1661, and 1662. For
his company in the latter year, v. ibid., p. 430. v. Perez (Juan).
Pernia (Juan Antonio) played third galanes and was bailarin
in the company of Roque de Figueroa, 1628—33. v. Rosell, Vol. I,
pp. 165, 230. He was the member of the company who patched up
the comedias, as we see from Benavente's loa:
(Sale Pernia.)
I No es Pernia este que sale,
Que representa, que baila,
Que hace versos, que remedia,
Si sucede una desgracia,
Doce 6 diez y seis colunas
De la noche a la man an a?
(Ibid., pp. 167, 168.)
See also Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206.
Pernia (Juan Antonio), gracioso in the company of Pablo
Martin de Morales in Seville in 1678. Perhaps this is the Pernia
mentioned in Gallardo, I, p. 680, who married Francisca Correa and
died in Madrid in 1707.
Pernia (Pedro de), actor in the company of Domingo Balbin
from Sept. 1, 1623, till Shrovetide, 1624. In 1628 he was in
Valladolid, apparently in the company of Figueroa. (M. y M.,
p. 566.)
Petra (Gaspar de), autor de comedias in Valladolid in 1603.
(M. y M., p. 566.) Perhaps this is a mistake for Gaspar de
Porres.
Petronila (La Sr"), actress in the cast of Tirso's La Tercera
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 557
de la Sancta Juana in Prado's company (1614-16). This was
probably Petronila de Loaisa.
Picano (Jacinto) played segundos galanes in the company of
Roque de Figueroa (1629-33?).
Yo soy Jacinto Picano,
Que los galanes primeros
Hice con Luis a, y ogano
Con segundos me contento.
Rosell, Vol. I, p. 230. See also Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206.
Pimentel (Maria), actress in March, 1638, in Madrid.
Pineda (Diego) represented the auto El Triunfo de la Verdad
in Seville in 1582.
PlNEDO (Baltasar) , famous autor de comedias, who had a com-
pany at least as early as 1596. In March, 1597, his wife was
Juana de Villalba (daughter of Alonso de Villalba and Ana
Romera), who had been the widow (Jan., 1596) of Juan de
Morales. In 1602, 1603, and 1609 he represented autos in Seville,
and in 161 3 in Toledo. He was one of the eight autor es authorized
by the decree of 1603. On May 22, 1605, in Toledo, in the Salon
del Ayuntamiento, he represented Lope's El gallardo Catalan at a
festival in honor of the birth of Philip IV. (April 8). His com-
pany produced autos in Madrid in 1606, 1607, 1614, 1617, 1618,
and 1619. In 1616-18 he and his wife Juana de Villalba lived
"in their own house" in the Calle del Amor de Dios, opposite the
hospital of Anton Martin. In 1613 he represented the autos in
Toledo. Lope de Vega greatly praises him as an actor, in his
Peregrino en su F 'atria, ed. 1604, fol. 198. Pinedo first produced
Lope's comedia La Santa Liga: "Representola Pinedo, y a Selin
famosamente." (Part XV.) In 1621 he represented Tirso's
auto El Colmenero divino, and first produced his Como han de ser
los Amigos. For his early representations (1601) in Madrid,
v. Appendix A.
Pinelo (Francisco) and his wife Ines de Hita were in the
company of Juan de Morales Medrano for one year from Ash
Wednesday, 1633, and in Lorenzo Hurtado's company in 1632
or 1635 ( ?). v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 29.
Pinelo (Juana Margarita), daughter of Francisco Pinelo
and Ines de Hita, and wife of Antonio Rodriguez ; both were in the
558 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
company of Juan Martinez for one year from Feb. 26, 1633.
See also Hita (Juana Margarita de).
Pino (Luis del) of Granada, called el Palomo, was in the
company of Miguel Bermudez in Seville in 1654, and in Antonio
de Castro's company in 1656.
Pinto (Luisa de), wife of the autor de comedias Bernardo de
la Vega, and in his company in 1672. In 1677 and 1678 she
played segundas damas in the company of Antonio de Escamilla.
Pinzon or Punzon (Miguel Jeronimo), v. Jeronimo
(Miguel).
Pinero (Antonio), actor and musician in a joint company
with Alonso de Heredia and others in 1614. In i632-35(?) he
was in Lorenzo Hurtado's company. (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 30.) In
1637 and 1638, and again in Seville in 1642^43, he was in
Bartolome Romero's company. His wife was Isabel Antonia.
Pizarro (Andres) and his wife Jeronima de Montoya be-
longed to a joint company in 1614-15, with Pedro Bravo and
others.
Plana (Domingo de la), actor in the company of Juan Perez
de Tapia in Seville in 1662.
Plata (Pedro de), autor de comedias in 1587 and in 1596. In
March, 1598, he was in the company of Gabriel Vaca, while in
Dec. of this year he seems to have had a company. (B. H. ( 1907)
P- 363-)
Plaza (Francisco de) produced the auto El Nacimiento de
Moises in Seville in 1575.
Plaza (Francisco Munoz de la), actor in the company of
Alonso de Villalba in 1614-15. He appeared in the cast of Lope's
El Sembrar en buena tierra in 1616.
Poca Ropa. Who the actress was who bore this strange desig-
nation, I do not know. See under Romero (Mariana).
Polonia, actress in the company of Felix Pascual (q. v.) in
1665-70.
Polonia, v. Perez (Polonia).
Polonia Maria, wife of Juan Gonzalez [Valcarcel] ; both
were in the company of Tomas Diaz in Seville in 1643, in Lorenzo
Hurtado's company in 1645, and in the company of Esteban Nunez
in 1648.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 559
Polope (Agustin), musician in the company of Diego Lopez
de Alcaraz in 1610, and in Baltasar Pinedo's company in 1613.
Polope (Blas), member of the company of Diego Osorio in
1659; in 1 66 1 and 1676 he was second barba in Escamilla's com-
pany; in 1662 with Sebastian de Prado, in 1674 witn Simon
Aguado, and in 1678 with Agustin Manuel.
Polope (Damian), actor in the company of Ant. de Escamilla
in 1676, and with Jose de Prado in 1679.
Polope (Pablo), member of the company of Simon Aguado
in 1674, in Agustin Manuel's in 1677, and in Jeronimo Garcia's
company in 1680. His wife (1675) was Josefa de San Miguel.
(M. y M., p. 567.) Perhaps he is the same as Pablo Polope y
Valdes, who wrote for the stage, v. Barrera, p. 305.
Pollo (Jusepe), actor in the company of Juan Acacio in
Seville in 1644.
Ponce (Francisco), gracioso in the company of Felix Pascual
and Agustin Manuel in 1671, and in the company of Carlos de
Salazar in Seville in 1676.
Ponce de Leon (Antonio). His widow, in March, 1639,
was the actress Francisca Paula Perez.
Ponce de Leon (Juan), musician in the company of Pedro de
la Rosa in 1636-37.
Porras (Jusepe de), actor at the Corpus festival in 163 1 at
Almonacid de Zurita.
Porres, actor in the cast of Lope de Vega's La hermosa Ester
(1610), in the company of Sanchez de Vargas.
Porres (Gaspar de), one of the best known of the early
autores de comedias ( 1585-1623 ?) , and the friend of Lope de Vega,
was born at Toledo in 1550. It was Porres who obtained the
license to print Part IV of Lope's Comedias in 1613. We first
hear of him as manager of a company in 1585, when he represented
three autos at Madrid. In 1586-87 Lope de Vega was furnishing
to Porres "the comedias that he used to give to Jeronimo Velaz-
quez." (Life of Lope de Vega, pp. 30 et passim.) His wife was
Catalina Hernandez de Verdeseca, first mentioned in 159 1. In
1589 he produced autos at Seville and in 1592 represented two of
the autos at Madrid, when he and Rodrigo de Saavedra, who
produced the other two autos, were to perform exclusively from
560 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Lunes de Quasimodo till Corpus. For this festival the dress-stufis
of his company cost 10,350 reals. In 1591 he bought a house in
the Calle del Principe (Pinedo owned the adjoining one), and
in 1594 represented four autos in Seville, receiving 1200 ducats,
his wife also receiving a gratuity of 1 100 reals for the elegance of
her costumes. He also represented autos in Madrid in 1593,
!595> !599> 1604, 1605, receiving, in 1604, 4000 reals, and again
represented the autos in Seville in 1603 and 1607. Porres was
one of the eight autores authorized by the decree of 1603. He
seems to have taken his company to Lisbon prior to May 25, 1601.
(N. D., p. 58.) In 1601 (after July 1) his company visited
Valencia. (N. D., p. 59.) From Aug. till the end of Nov., 1604,
he represented twelve comedias privately before the Queen, at
Valladolid, receiving 3600 reals. (Bull Hisp. (1907), p. 369.)
In 1 6 10 he was residing in Toledo. For his early representations
( 1 60 1 ) in Madrid, v. Appendix A. He died before July 20, 1623,
when his wife is mentioned as "the widow of Gaspar de Porres,
formerly a resident of Toledo." He had two sons, Dr. Matias de
Porres, a graduate of Salamanca (1599) and a friend of Lope
de Vega, and Juan de Porres, who assisted his father in his theat-
rical companies (1603). v. Perez Pastor, Proceso de Lope de
Vega, p. 258. He first represented Lope's Jorge Toledano, and
doubtless many others of his comedias.
Porres (Juan de), son of Gaspar de Porres. In June, 1601,
he was more than twenty and less than twenty-five years old, and
was employed by his father. In 1609 he was alguacil mayor and
alcaide of the prison of the town of Atienza.
Porres (Da Maria de), daughter of Gaspar de Porres; she
was married in 1623.
Pozo (Antonia del), v. Patata (La).
Prado (Da Angela de), actress in the Corpus festival at the
villa of Hita in 1637.
Prado (Antonio de), or Antonio Garcia de Prado, famous
autor de comedias, born in I594( ?) (S.-A., p. 275 ; 1584 is proba-
bly nearer the correct date. See below under Lorenzo de
Prado), and notable in after years for his obesity. In 1614 he
belonged to the company of Juan Acacio in Toledo, and his name
occurs in the cast of Tirso's La Tercera de laSanctaJuana (licensed
in 1 61 6). Perhaps this was the company of Pedro Llorente. On
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 561
Dec. 24, 1622, Guillen de Castro finished his famous comedia
La Tragedia por los Celos, which he wrote for Antonio de Prado.
(Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 3299.) In Jan., Feb., March,
and June of 1623 his company represented ten comedias before
the King in the palace at Madrid, receiving 200 reals for each
performance. In 1623 and 1624 he represented the autos at
Corpus in Madrid. For his company in 1624, v. N. D., p. 206.
In 1626 his company first represented Lope's Amor con Vista, as
the MS. shows. He was in Seville with his company in 163 1,
beginning at La Monteria in Oct., when he was imprisoned for
debt and his effects were attached. He then lodged in the Calle
de Jimios in the posada del Caracol. ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 274.)
In the following year he performed in La Monteria, Seville, from
April 12 to June 20, and also represented the autos, which he
again produced in 1637 and J639, and in the former year gave
sixty representations in the Coliseo, and in the latter acted at La
Monteria. In 1635 he again represented ten comedias before the
King, and in 1648 eight comedias. He represented autos in
Madrid in 1633, 1635, 1636, 1642. On Oct. 24, 1645, he began
to represent once more in Madrid, where we find him in 1647,
1648, 1649, and 1650, also representing autos. He died in Madrid,
in the Calle de las Huertas, on April 14, 1651, and his company
was taken up by his son Sebastian de Prado. Antonio de Prado
was twice married, first to Isabel Ana, daughter of a physician of
Toledo. She was extremely beautiful and of unblemished repu-
tation, and is said to have died by poison. Perhaps her name
was Isabel Ana Garces, for in 1631 Dona Luisa Garces is styled
mother-in-law (suegra) of Antonio de Prado. (Averiguador,
Vol. I, p. 26. ) Isabel Ana had three children : Sebastian, Lorenzo,
and Maria. After her death (and before 1634) Prado married
Mariana Vaca de Morales (born in 1603?), daughter of Juan de
Morales Medrano and Jusepa Vaca, and by her had two children :
Jose and Diego. The company of Prado at the close of his career,
in 1650, when he represented autos at Madrid, was as follows:
Antonio Garcia de Prado, Juan de la Calle, Cosme Perez, Manuel
Francisco Martinez (Brillante), Gaspar de Valdes, Antonio de
Escamilla, Luis de Mendoza, Francisco de San Miguel, Juan de
Tapia, Jose de Prado ; Mariana Vaca, Bernarda Manuela, Rufina
Justa, and Maria de Escamilla. {Calderon Documentos, ed. Perez
562 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Pastor, p. 170.) For Prado's company in 1632, v. Cotarelo, Tirso,
p. 216; for his company in 1639, Sanchez- Arjona, p. 324.
Prado (Jose Antonio Garcia de), son of Antonio de Prado
and Mariana Vaca, was a member of his father's company in 1650.
He married Maria de Anaya (after 1658?), and played galanes,
and had a company in Seville and represented autos in 1658 and
1659, and in Jaen in 1660. In 1674 he was with Simon Aguado;
in 1675 and 1676 with Escamilla; 1677 and 1678 with Agustin
Manuel; 1680 with Jeronimo Garcia; 1681 with Manuel Vallejo.
In 1679 he had a company in Madrid, v. Calderon Documentos,
p. 357. He was also a playwright; his comedia Pachecos y Palo-
meques was licensed in 1674, while Convertirse el mal en bien,
it is said, was finished in Paris on Aug. 1, 1625. This is an im-
possible date; perhaps 1652 is intended. (Schack, Nachtrage, p. 60;
Barrera, Catdlogo, p. 169.) For his company in 1658, see San-
chez-Arjona, p. 415.
Prado (Juana de), wife of Gabriel Angel, farsante in Madrid
in 1583. {Bull. Hisp. (1906), p. 153.)
Prado (Lorenzo de), son of Antonio de Prado and Isabel
Ana [Garces?], was a member of his father's company in 1624
and again in 1632. (N. D., p. 206; Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 216.) In
1634— 36(?) ne was again in his father's company. (Rosell, I,
p. 97.) These dates show almost convincingly that Antonio de
Prado must have been born at least ten years earlier than the date
(!594) given by Sanchez-Arjona (v. above). His wife was
Manuela Mazana, daughter of Juan Mazana and Dorotea de
Sierra; both belonged to the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1640,
and to the company of Lorenzo Hurtado in 1642, he as gracioso
and Manuela playing second parts. For the Corpus festival of
this year at Seville he wrote a loa, two entremeses, and three bailes.
(S.-A., p. 358.) He is said to have died of the pest in Seville
in 1649.
Prado (Maria de), daughter of Antonio de Prado and Isabel
Ana, and wife of the musician and composer Ambrosio Duarte
[Martinez?], a Portuguese; both were in the company of Antonio
de Prado in Valladolid in 1645 (M. y M., p. 566), and in that
of Sebastian de Prado in Nov., 1651. Maria played primeras
damas in the same company in 1659 and 1 66 1, and segundas in
1662. In 1657 she was with Diego Osorio, in 1663 primera with
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 563
Jose Carrillo, in 1664 with Bart. Romero and Juan de la Calle,
and in 1665 with Francisco Garcia.
Prado (Melchor de), actor, indicted for taking part in a
brawl and for attempting suicide in 1598. He was a friend of
Xope de Vega. v. Life of Lope de Vega, p. 25, n.
Prado (Sebastian Garcia de), eldest son of Antonio de
Prado and Isabel Ana, belonged to his father's company in 1632,
playing galanes jovenes. In 165 1, on the death of his father,
he took the management of the company. At that time his wife
was Bernarda Ramirez, who was a member of the company, and
who also acted with him in 1659 and 1662, playing fifth and
fourth damas respectively. In 1659 Sebastian de Prado had a
company with Juan de la Calle, and represented autos in Madrid ;
in 1660 (he left Madrid on April 13) he took a company of play-
ers to Paris on the occasion of the marriage of Maria Teresa,
daughter of Philip IV., to Louis XIV. He again had a company
in Madrid and represented autos in 1 661 ; in 1662 he managed
one jointly with Escamilla, and represented one of Calderon's
autos at Corpus; in 1670 and 1672 he was primer galan in Manuel
Vallejo's company, and in 1673 with Felix Pascual. He was
famous in the role of galan. In 1674, after the death of his wife,
he retired from the stage, entered the Convento del Espiritu Santo
at Madrid, was ordained priest, passed to Rome, and died at Leg-
horn in 1685. A member of this family was at the head of a
company in Madrid in 1723. (Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 1846.)
Primo (Francisco), actor in the company of Cristobal de
Avendano in March, 1623.
Probay (Jorxe) or Giorgio Proval, an Italian; actor in 1604
in a joint company in Borox at Corpus.
Puelles (Diego de), farsante in Madrid in 1583.
Quadrado (Juan), actor, native of Murcia, died in Madrid
on Feb. 29, 1636. The name Quadrado occurs in the cast of
Lope's El piadoso Aragones (1626).
Quesada (Isabel de), actress, wife of Francisco Solano in
March, 1638: "no sabia firmar."
Quesadas (Maria de), actress in a joint company with San-
chez de Vargas, Juan de Malaguilla, and others in Madrid from
Shrovetide, 1634, for one year, playing principal parts.
564 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Quevedo (Jusepe de), member of the company of Diego
Osorio in 1659, and with Sebastian de Prado in 1662; in 1665
he was with the company of Felix Pascual in Seville.
Quinones (Luis de) , actor in the company of Alonso Riquelme
in Madrid in Nov., 1605, and Jan., 1606, and at Corpus, 1607,
in Seville. In 1610— 11 we find him again in Riquelme's company,
taking part in Lope's La buena Guar da (a Quinones appeared as
Aurelio in Lope's ha Discordia en los Casados, 1611), and in 1614
in the company of Pedro Valdes, when he appeared in Lope's La
Dama boba. He entered the company of Valdes in Feb., 1614,
being engaged "to sing alone or accompanied," and besides played
barbas. On Sept. 20, 1614, he married Isabel de Velasco.
Quinones (Margarita de), widow in July, 1636: former
actress ? She kept an actors' boarding-house in Madrid.
Quinones (Maria de), daughter of the preceding, played
primeras damas in the company of Tomas Fernandez in 1637-38.
In 1640 and 1643 she was in Manuel Vallejo's company in Seville;
in 1649 with Antonio de Prado; in 1659 primera dama with
Diego Osorio; in 1660 with Pedro de la Rosa, and in the same
year and 166 1 with Escamilla; in 1662 with Sebastian de Prado
and Escamilla, and in the company of the latter in 1663, 1664,
1665, 1670-72. Barrionuevo states {Avisos, IV, p. 370) that
on her account D. Francisco Paz, caballero del habito de Santiago,
was killed on the evening of March 24, 1 66 1, at the instance of
D. Gaspar de Valdes, Regidor of Madrid. Maria de Quinones
was celebrated in the role of dama, acting until she was past
seventy, and died more than ninety years of age. See also under
Romero (Mariana).
Quirante (Juan) played fifth parts in the company of Mag-
dalena Lopez in Seville in 1677.
Quirante (Pedro) of Madrid, actor. He married the actress
Maria de Salazar in Valladolid in 1674. (M. y M., p. 567.)
His daughter Jeronima Quirante married Francisco de Fuentes.
Another daughter, Petronila Jibaja, was also an actress.
Quirol (Jaime), actor in the company of Magdalena Lopez in
1674.
Quiros, v. Lopez de Quiros.
Quiteria, actor in the company of Nicolas de los Rios prior
to 1602. (Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 465.) Cortes, Una Corte
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 565
literaria, p. 34, says that his name was Hernandez Quiteria, while
Marti y Monso, Estudios, p. 566, give it as Quiteria Alvarez.
Quiteria, actress in the company of Antonio de Prado (about
1632), who appeared in Benavente's entremes El Murmurador.
(Rosell, Vol. I, p. 143.)
Ramirez (Bernarda), her husband Bartolome de Robles, and
their daughter Maria Ramirez were members of the company of
Roque de Figueroa in 1631-32. (Cbtarelo, Tirso, p. 206; Rosell,
Vol. I, pp. 109, 224, 232. In the latter work the name appears
only as Bernarda, but on p. 232 she is called the wife of Robles.)
Bernarda- was again in Figueroa's company, apparently in 1635,
when her name occurs in the cast of Rojas Zorrilla's Peligrar en los
Remedios (written in Dec, 1634), as tne autograph MS. shows.
In 1639 Bernarda Ramirez played sixth parts in the company of
Pedro de la Rosa. (S.-A., p. 327.) It is said that she was also
the wife of Cosme Perez. (Ibid., p. 330.) This seems to be a
mistake. See under Bernarda Manuela. In an article on
El Burlador de Sevilla by Sr. Cotarelo, in the Rev. de Archivos
(Jan.-Feb., 1908), p. 85, occurs the following notice concerning
Bernarda Ramirez: "Estando para embarcarse el dicho Bartolome
de Robles y Bernarda Ramirez (su muger) con la compania de
Roque de Figueroa en la dicha ciudad de Napoles para venir a
Espafia, por Noviembre del ano pasado de mil y seiscientos y treinta
y siete, el Duque de San Pedro habia robado a la dicha Bernarda
Ramirez y llevadola a Benevento, donde habia estado en compania
del Duque de San Pedro, asi en la villa de Benevento como en
Napoles mas de dos anos, en cuyo tiempo tuvo por hijos y del
dicho Duque al dicho D. Diego Lopez y Da Jeronima Lopez, su
hermana."
Ramirez (Bernarda), wife of Sebastian de Prado. She was
acting in his company in 1651, 1659, and 1662, playing fourth
and fifth parts. (Colder on Documentos, ed. Perez Pastor, pp. 189,
261, 292.) It may be worth noting that in 1659 both Bernarda
Manuela (playing second parts) and Bernarda Ramirez, playing
fifth parts, were in the same company. She was the daughter of
Lazaro Ramirez, peddler, and Catalina de Flores, "she of the
wonder that gave rise to the Cofradia de la Novena." v. Rosell,
Vol. II, Appendix. We are told (ibid., p. 344) that Bernarda
566 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Ramirez, la "Napolitana, first married Bartolome de Robles and
afterward became the wife of Sebastian de Prado. The name
Beatriz Ramirez occurs in the Entremes del Nino Caballero by
Solis, acted in the Coliseo del Buen Retiro in 1658. (Comedias de
Solis, 1 68 1, p. 55.) It is almost certain that this name should be
Bernarda Ramirez, as it occurs only once. The other players in the
entremes are: la Becona, la Borja, Godoy, Rosa, Najera, Cosme
[Perez], and Bernarda Manuela. From the dialogue (p. 57,
col. 1 ) it seems to follow that Bernarda Manuela was at this time
the wife of Cosme Perez. In the Entremes del Salta en Banco
(p. 61) appear: Cosme, Godoy, Bernarda [Ramirez?], Bernarda
Manuela, la Beqona, Maria de Prado, Maria Romero, and Maria
de Quinones.
Ramirez (Cristobal), or Cristobal Ramirez de la Cruz,
actor in the company of Diego Jimenez de Valenzuela in 1602.
He was an autor de comedias in 1610, 1612, and 1613. His wife
was Ines Sanchez.
Ramirez (Juan), member of the company of Gaspar de Porres
in 1593; he took part in the Corpus festival at Seville in the
preceding year, producing the autos La Redencion del Caulivo
and Las Cadenas. According to Sanchez-Arjona, p. 83, he first
represented Matias de los Reyes's comedias Di Mentira y sacaras
Verdad and Que dirdn y Donaires de Pedro Corchuelo.
Ramirez (Marcos) of Toledo is mentioned as a well-known
actor in 1602. (Rojas, Viage, p. 362.)
Ramirez (Maria), daughter of Bernarda Ramirez and Barto-
lome de Robles, and a member of Figueroa's company in 1631-32.
In Rosell, Vol. I, p. 109, she is called a sister of Bernarda.
Ramirez (Miguel) of Toledo, autor de comedias mentioned
as early as Jan., 1579, when he represented in Madrid (B. H.
(1906), p. 77); in 1587 he represented one of the autos at
Madrid. In June, 1595, he was in the company of Cisneros, and
in 1597 m that of Nicolas de los Rios. He had a company again
in 1602, and on Feb. 26 of this year he engaged Agustin de Rojas,
author of the Viage entretenido, as a member of his company. In
Dec, 1614, Ramirez resided at Toledo. He was in the company
of Nicolas de los Rios for some years, playing galanes, while
Rosales played the King and Rojas recited the has. (Viage
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 567
entretenido, p. 493.) Ramirez was one of the interlocutors in
the latter work. Miguel Ramirez is also mentioned by Figueroa,
Plaza Universal, p. 336, among the distinguished actors then
living (1615).
Ramon, actor in the cast of Lope de Vega's El Sembrar en
buena Tierra (1616).
Ramos (Antonio), autor de comedias in 1606, when his wife
was Eugenia de Villegas. On Feb. 15, 1636, his widow is called
Jusepa Roman, q. v. He and his wife Jusepa Roman were in
Rosa's company in 1635. (Marti y Monso, Estudios, p. 566.) His
name occurs in the cast of Lope's Sembrar en buena Tierra ( 1616).
Rayos (Luisa de) , wife of Pantaleon de Borja. Both belonged
to the company of Avendano in 1633 ( ?) > their names occur in the
cast of the entremes El Tiempo. They were in Antonio de
Rueda's company in 1639-40.
Real (Gaspar), musico in Escamilla's company in 1661, 1663,
1664, 1665, 1670, 1671, and 1672; in Sebastian de Prado's com-
pany in 1662, with Manuel Vallejo in 1673, and with Simon
Aguado in 1674.
Real (Pedro), actor in the company of Pedro de Valdes in
1625-26; in that of Cristobal de Salazar (Mahoma) in i63o(?),
and in the company of Bartolome Romero in 1634 and again be-
tween 1637 anQ* J643- v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 221.
Reina (Eufrasia Maria de), whose real name was Catalina
Hernandez, was the wife of the autor Carlos de Salazar ; after his
death at Elche, in 1648, she married Damian de Castro, son of
Matias de Castro. ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 484.) It is said that she
plotted to have her first husband (a Sevillan, name unknown)
killed; he disappeared, and she then married Salazar. She was in
the company of Carlos Vallejo in 1695, afterward retired to
Seville, served in a hospital, and led an exemplary life. v. Pellicer,
II, p. 47.
Reinoso (Juan de) took part in the Corpus festival at Seville
in 1574.
Reinoso (Luisa de), wife of Miguel de Ayuso; both were in
the company of Claramonte from June 19, 1614, till Shrovetide,
1615, receiving 7 reals daily for maintenance and 10 reals for each
performance.
568 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Reinoso (Luisa de), wife of the famous actor Damian Arias
de Penafiel at least as early as 1620. She, her husband, her son
Francisco Arias and daughter Luisa de Penafiel were members of
Manuel Vallejo's company in 1631.
Renteria (Ana de), wife of the actor Juan Vivas in 1619
(N. D., p. 175) ; perhaps she is the "Ana" who appeared in Pedro
Cebrian's company in Lope de Vega's Quien mas no puede ( 1616.)
Renteria (Felipe de), actor in Madrid in 1584; perhaps this
is the Renteria mentioned as a famous actor by Suarez de Figueroa,
Plaza Universal, p. 336, as being then (161 5) deceased.
Reyes, v. Coca y Reyes.
Reyes (Baltasara de los), la Baltasara, famous actress, wife
of Miguel Ruiz; both were in the company of Gaspar de Porres
in 1604-05, receiving 16 reals for each representation, 6 reals
daily for maintenance, and expenses of travel, and both belonged
to the company of Melchor de Leon in 1607. She and her hus-
band are characters in the comedia La Baltasara, written for her
by Luis Velez de Guevara, Antonio Coello, and Francisco de
Roxas. Pellicer calls her Francisca Baltasara, "a no less celebrated
actress than holy anchorite." She achieved her greatest triumphs
in the company of Heredia. At the height of her success she
withdrew from the stage and entered a hermitage dedicated to
St. John the Baptist, near Cartagena. {Ibid., Vol. II, p. 50.) Ac-
cording to Perez Pastor, Bibliografia Madrileha, III, p. 325,
Miguel Ruiz and his wife Ana Martinez were, apparently, in the
company of Baltasar Pinedo in Salamanca in Nov., 1607, and both
were again in Pinedo 's company in Madrid, in Feb., 161 1.
Reyes (Catalina de los), daughter of Melchor de los Reyes
and Dona Bernardina de Sotomayor, married the actor Antonio
de Rueda, then in the company of Olmedo in Cadiz, sometime
before Nov. 15, 1630. v. Rueda.
Reyes (Gaspar de los), manager of the Campania Espahola
in May, 1602, jointly with Pedro Rodriguez and Diego de Rojas.
He represented in Valladolid in this year. His wife was Gregoria
de Guerma. At the end of June they represented in Barco de
Avila two comedias "a lo divino" : El Castigo en la Vanagloria and
Los Martires Japorieses, and two comedias " a lo humano" : ElConde
Alarcos and El Cerco de Cordoba. He is mentioned by Rojas,
Viage, p. 13.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 569
Reyes (Da Jacinta), actress in Valladolid in 1642, when she
married the actor Francisco Garcia, "vecino de Granada." (M. y
M., p. 566.)
Reyes (Juana de los). Her name occurs in the cast of
Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan (after 1625), in which she ap-
peared as Sirena.
Reyes (Maria de los), whose parentage is unknown, was
brought up by the actor Juan de los Reyes, and assumed his name.
She entered the Cofradia de la Novena in 1668, and was the wife
of Juan Bautista Loche. She played fourth parts in Escamilla's
company in 1670; fifth parts in the same company in 1 67 1 and
1672, and segundas damas with Manuel Vallejo in 1673. She died
in the Calle de Francos in 1674.
Reyes (Mariana de los), called la Garbonera( ?), wife of the
actor Jeronimo Carbonera. In 1637 Jeronimo Carbonera and his
wife Mariana de los Reyes took part in the Corpus festival at
Barajas. (N. D., p. 261.) On Sept. I, 1637, Mariana de los
Reyes, wife of Jeronimo Carbonera, agreed to act in Romero's
company until Shrovetide, 1638, playing second parts. (Ibid.,
P- 273.) Jan. 18, 1638, Mariana de los Reyes, wife of Jeronimo
Carbonera, agreed to act in the company of Segundo de Morales
for one year, to play first parts, sing, and dance. (Ibid., p. 280.)
Jan. 20, 1639, Mariana de los Reyes, wife of Jeronimo Car-
bonera, agreed to play first parts in the company of Andres de la
Vega for one year. (Ibid., p. 302.) June 21, 1639, Mariana de
los Reyes was a member of the company of Andres de la Vega.
(Ibid., p. 315.) Sept. 6, 1640, Andres de la Vega contracted to
represent two comedias at the villa del Escurial, "if his wife be one
of the company, but if la Carbonera goes, then he is to give three
comedias." (Ibid., p. 325.) Mariana de los Reyes must have died
or been divorced sometime before Oct. 3, 1643, for on that date
Mariana Ladron de Guevara, wife of Jeronimo Carbonera, exe-
cuted her last will. (Ibid., p. 331.) In this will she requests that
some costumes be recovered "which she has in the possession of
Andres de la Vega." She had therefore been an actress in the
latter's company. The first notice that we have of "Mariana, la
Carbonera," is in 1635, when she played primeras damas in the
company of Alonso de Olmedo in Seville. ( Sanchez- Arjona,
p. 297. ) The question is : Which of these two actresses was called
570 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
la Carbonera, or was not the name simply applied to the wife or
wives of Jeronimo Carbonera, one after the other? Averiguelo
el discrete.
Reyes y Coca, v. Coca y Reyes.
Reynoso y Villacorte (Jeronimo), native of Leon, actor in
the company of Alonso Riquelme for two years from March 29,
1602.
Riaza (Sebastian de), actor in the company of Francisca
Lopez in Seville in 1660.
Ribas, v. Rivas.
Ribera (Antonia de), actress in Naples in 1635, and in 1636
became an Augustinian nun in S. Giacomo alia Lungara. v. Croce,
I Teatri de Napoli, p. 122.
Ribera (Dorotea de) appeared in Calderon's La Vida es
Sueno, Lope's D. Juan de Austria, and Rojas Zorrilla's Casarse par
vengarse at Corpus in 1 636 in Madrid.
Ribera (Fabian de), actor in the company of Jeronimo Velaz-
quez, 1584-90. He is mentioned by Rojas, Viage, p. 12.
Ribera (Magdalen a de), wife of Francisco de Vergara; both
were in Damian Espinosa's company in March, 1639-40.
Ribera (Pedro de) and his wife Catalina de Monsalve were
in the company of Alonso de Olmedo in 162 1.
Ribero or Ribera (Ana Maria de) of Valladolid, wife of
Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan (Jan., 1614), and acting in the com-
pany of Pedro de Valdes in that year, when she and her husband
appeared in Lope's ha Damn boba. She was in her husband's
company in Seville in 1619 and 1620, and in the latter year received
a gratuity of 20 ducats. In 1 621 she and her husband were in the
company of Alonso de Olmedo.
Ribero (Bartolome), actor in the company of Baltasar Pinedo
in Valladolid in 1604. (M. y M., p. 566.)
Rigol (Esperanza), member of the company of Esteban Nunez
in Seville in 1654.
Rija (Leonor), mulata, dancer and player of the guitar,
sonajasj and timbrel at the Corpus festival in Seville in 1590. She
performed "en union de otras cuatro mulatas y dos hombres," and
received 80 ducats.
Rio (Antonio del), actor in a joint company in June, 1603,
with Luis de Castro and others.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 571
Rio (Maria del), wife of Domingo Farinas, was an actress in
Valladolid in 1652. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Rio (Ursula del), wife of Juan de Cuevas or Juan de la
Cueva; both were in the company of Andres de la Vega in
i638-39> and in the company of Pedro de la Rosa in 1639-40,
playing fifth parts. This name also occurs spelled Ursula de
Berrio, q. v.
Rios (Jose Martinez de los) , son of Nicolas de Los Rios. and
actor in his company, who was admitted into the Cofradia on
Sept. 6, 1 63 1, and managed a company in that year, according to
Gallardo, II, p. 668. He had a son named Jose de los Rios, also
an actor. The statements in these Libros de la Cofradia de la
Novena must be received with great caution. I can find no con-
firmation of the above assertion.
Rios (Juan de los), actor in the company of Cristobal Ortiz
de Villazan in Seville in 161 9.
Rios (Lorenzo de los), brother of the preceding and member
of the same company. Both were from Seville, "en la collacion
de San Pedro."
Rios (Nicolas de los), native of Toledo and a famous autor
de comedias. In the Viage entretenido of Rojas (Madrid, 1603,
p. 132), Rios says that he had then had "mas de treynta afios de
comedia," which would fix the beginning of his theatrical career
about 1570. In 1583 he was indicted in Madrid "par varios
excesos." In 1 586 he resided in Toledo and had a company with
Andres de Vargas, which represented in Seville in Oct., and in
the following year his company represented one of the autos at
Madrid, and again in 1590, 1596, and 1597. He also contracted
to produce the autos in Toledo in 1596 and 1597. (B. H. (1907),
pp. 361, 362.) In 1590 Rios and Cisneros represented frequently
in Madrid, and produced the three autos: Los Desposorios de
Isaac, El Bellocino dorado, and N. Senora de Loreto. See Ap-
pendix A. In 1588 he represented at Corpus in Seville, in 1589
at Corpus in Toledo, and again in 1604, receiving 4300 reals, and
in Jan., 1589, he was manager of the company Los Espanoles. In
1598 and 1609 he again represented autos in Seville, and in 1606
and 1607 in Madrid with Pinedo. For his company in 1609,
v. S.-A., p. 136. It appears that in 1601 Rios was commanded
by the King to leave Madrid with his company and was de-
572 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
prived of his license to perform, because he represented a comedia
which offended the French Ambassador. Leaving his company
in Zaragoza, he returned to Madrid on Sept. 10, 1601, to peti-
tion the King to be allowed to return with his company, which
was granted. He represented for long periods in Valladolid, and
produced the autos there with Villegas in 1602 and with Alcaraz
in 1605. In Jan., 1603, he represented five comedias privately
before the Queen at Valladolid, and on Feb. 10, 1603, he repre-
sented a comedia before the Duke of Lerma in the Huerta de la
Ribera del Pisuerga. He again performed before the Queen at
Burgos in June and at Valladolid on July 13, 1603. (B. H.
(1907), p. 368.) In Nov., 1603, he again took his company to
Valladolid, and played four comedias before the King at Torde-
sillas. He was one of the eight autores authorized by the de-
cree of 1603. On April 28, 1603, Rios married Magdalena de
Robles in Valladolid. (Cortes, Una Corte literaria, p. 35.) The
witnesses to his marriage were three members of his company:
Agustin de Rojas, Miguel Ramirez, and Bartolome Calvo de Arze.
The other members were: Juana Vazquez, Hernandez Quiteria,
Bartolome de Torres, Bartolomico and Maria (children), Pedro
de Callenueva, [Marco?] Antonio, Agustin Solano, and Juan
Bautista Rosales. Rios seems to have represented at the Corpus
festival of this year in Medina del Campo. (B. H. (1907),
p. 367.) In April, 1607, his wife was Ines de Lara. He died
on March 29, 1610, of apoplexy, in the Calle de las Huertas,
Madrid, his wife surviving him. (The date of the "memorial"
of Rios, Feb. 6, 1612, published by Perez Pastor, N. D., p. 356,
must be a mistake; it is doubtless 1602.) His house adjoined the
Church of the Barefoot Trinitarians of San Ildefonso, and the
noise of music, dancing, and rehearsals therein caused it finally to
be incorporated in the convent by royal decree of Aug. 13, 16 1 6.
In the course of his career Rios first produced a number of Lope's
comedias: before 1 603, his La Bella mal maridada — Lope calls
him "Mar de donayre y natural gracia"; El ingrato arrepentido;
El verdadero Amante; El Caballero de Illescas; El Remedio en-
la Desdicha, "Representola Rios, unico Representante" ; La France-
silla, El Sol parado, and El Ruysenor de Sevilla. For his company
in 1609, v- Sanchez-Arjona, p. 136. He is mentioned by Rojas,
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 573
Viage, p. 131, among the "farsantes que han hecho farsas, loas,
bayles," etc. Rios and Solano at one time belonged to the "honrada
compania" of Martinazos in Valencia. {Ibid., p. 91.) The com-
pany of Rios in i6oo(?) consisted of Juana Vazquez, Rojas,
Quiteria, Torres, Bartolico and Maria (niiios), Callenueva, Arze,
Ramirez (played galanes) , Rosales, Antonio, and Solano. {Ibid.,
pp. 463-465.)
Riquelme (Alonso), native of Seville and celebrated autor de
comedias, much favored by Lope de Vega. He had a company at
least as early as 1602, when his wife was Micaela de Gadea.
On July 8, 1605, he petitioned to be released from the prison at
Valladolid (in which he was confined for a debt of 900 reals),
on giving security for the amount. On Jan. 1, 1606, he is styled
autor de comedias de los nombrados par S. M., but his name is
not included in the decree of 1603. In 1607 he represented the
autos at Seville with Gaspar de Porres, and again in 161 1, when
Lope de Vega wrote the four autos. For his company in 1607
(in which Micaela de Gadea also acted), see S.-Av p. 126. On
March 30, 1608, then a widower, Riquelme married Catalina de
Valcazar, widow of Gabriel Vaca. He also represented autos at
Madrid in 1608 (in this year he performed for thirty days in
Toledo, beginning on June 20), 1610, 1613, and in Toledo in
1615 and 1617, and was one of the twelve autores authorized by
the decree of 1615. In 1610 (after July 1) he took his company
to Lisbon. He first represented a number of Lope de Vega's
comedias: La buena Guarda (1610) ; La Madre de la Mejor; La
Arcadia; El Halcon de Federico; El Alcalde mayor; Los Espanoles
en Flandes; La mal Casada; Querer la propia Desdicha; Santiago
el Verde and La Historia de Tobias. He had a company in 1619,
and in Oct., 1621, represented Lope's El Principe perfecto (2*
parte), the latest date that I have found. See Paz y Melia, Catd-
logo, No. 2737.
Riquelme (Jacinto), autor de comedias. In 1645 he married
the actress Francisca Vefdugo. (Marti y Monso, Estudios, p. 567.)
Both were then, apparently, in the company of Bartolome Romero.
He represented the autos in Seville in 1652 with Pedro de la Rosa.
(S.-A., p. 402.) Having broken his contract with the manage-
ment of La Monteria, Seville, his wardrobe was seized, and in the
574 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
following year he was again imprisoned. He represented one of
the autos of 1653, and died before 1655, when his wife Francisca
Verdugo represented the autos in Madrid. (Calderon Doc, I,
p. 238. See also Barrionuevo, Avisos, II, p. 222.)
Riquelme (Maria de), famous actress, daughter of Alonso
Riquelme, and noted for her virtuous and exemplary life. She
was the second wife (married after 1623) of the autor de comedias
Manuel Vallejo, and was a member of his company in 1631. On
St. John's eve of this year she appeared in Quevedo's comedia
Quien mas miente medra mas, and in 1632 acted in Lope de Vega's
El Castigo sin Venganza, playing the part of Casandra. See my
article "Ueber Lope de Vega's El Castigo sin Venganza," in the
Zeitschrift fur Romanische Phil., Vol. XXV, pp. 411—423. In
1632 she appeared in the entremes El Casamiento de la Calle
Mayor con el Prado viejo. v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 277. On the
death of her husband (1644) she devoted herself to religion, and
died in Barcelona in 1656. See text, p. 163.
Risques (Leonardo de), actor in the company of Cristobal de
Avendafio in 1622.
Rivas (Juan de), autor de comedias, represented for the first
time in the Corral de Puente on Oct. 25, 1579, and then only once.
In 1590 he was residing in the Calle de la Cruz; his wife was
Juana Romero.
Rivas ( Jusepe de) , member of the company of Manuel Vallejo
in 1 63 1 and in 1640 in Seville.
Rivas (Manuel de) of Plasencia, actor in the company of
Diego Vallejo in Seville in 1619.
Rivas Carrillo (Domingo), member of a joint company in
Madrid in June, 1603, with Luis de Castro and others.
Rivera (Francisco de), lessee of the Coliseo at Seville in 1619.
Rivera (Juan Francisco de), actor in the company of Carlos
de Salazar in Seville in 1675, and barba in the company of Pablo
Martin de Morales in 1678. His wife was Da Maria de Figueroa.
Rivera, v. also under Ribera.
Robledo (Diego de), actor in a joint company with Francisco
Lopez on March 31, 1632. Robledo, his wife Josef a de la Vega,
and their son Juan were admitted to the Cofradia de la Novena
on March 14, 1632, being then members of the company of
Cristobal de Avendafio. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 202.) In 1638 and
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 575
1640-41 Robledo was in the company of Bartolome Romero, and
in 1642 he played second galanes in the company of Luis Hurtado
in Seville. (S.-A., p. 356. See also Rosell, Vol. I, p. 200.)
Robleno (Alonso), actor in the sixteenth century Entr ernes de
un Hijo que nego a su Padre. See p. 406.
Robles (Alonso de) agreed to sing in the company of Juan
Jeronimo Valenciano from Shrovetide, 1624, to 1625.
Robles (Da Ana de), widow in 1639, when she agreed to play
second parts in the Corpus festival at Brunete ; she was in the
company of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago at the Corpus festival at
the villa of Borox in that year.
Robles (Bartolome de) and his wife Mariana de Guevara
took part in the Corpus festival in Buendia in 1619 (N. D.,
p. 170) ; in 1 62 1 he and his wife Micaela Lopez acted in the
Corpus festival in Madrid (ibid., p. 189). In August, 1623,
Bartolome de Robles and his wife Mariana de Robles y Varela
bought a house in the Calle del Infante from Luis de Monzon,
one of the lessees of the theaters of Madrid (ibid., p. 199). In
1 63 1 Bartolome de Robles, his wife Bernarda Ramirez and her
•daughter (sister?) Maria Ramirez were members of the company
of Roque de Figueroa (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206), and in 1643
Bartolome de Robles and his wife Alfonsa de Haro were members
of the company of Tomas Diaz in Seville. If this be the same
Bartholomew, his matrimonial record is unequaled in the annals
of the Spanish stage. See Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 2550.
Robles (Francisco de), actor in 1609 in Madrid; in 1622 he
belonged to the company of Cristobal de Avendano; in 1623 to
the company of Pedro de Valdes, and in 1624 he was with Juan
de Morales Medrano.
Robles (Gines de), member of the company of Juan Bautista
Valenciano in March, 1623. (Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 248.)
Robles (Ines de), "single woman," in the company of Bar-
tolome Romero, from March 24, 1638, for one year.
Robles (Juan de), actor of the company of Pedro de la Rosa
in Seville in 1639.
Robles (Luisa de), wife of the actor Juan de Labadia. On
June 19, 1618, she is described as his widow. About this time, or
perhaps earlier, believing her husband dead, she married Alonso
de Olmedo, q. v., and appeared in Alarcon's tragedy El Antecristo.
576 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
In 1621 she was in the company of Alonso de Olmedo. (Bull.
His p. (1908), p. 244.) In Sept., 1623, she is described as a
"single woman over twenty-five years old," and belonged to the
company of Manuel Vallejo, and in March, 1624, she was in the
company of Antonio de Prado. Perhaps she is the Luisa who
appeared as Narcisa in Tirso's Celos con Celos se cur an (1625).
In 1627 she and her husband Juan de Labadia were acting in the
company of Manuel Simon in the Coliseo in Seville. See the story
concerning her under Olmedo (Alonso de), and also Fernandez
Guerra, Alar con, pp. 291 ff.
Robles (Magdalena de), first wife of Nicolas de los Rios,
whom she married in Valladolid, April 28, 1603.
Robles (Teresa de), actress in the company of Antonio de
Escamilla in 1675 and 1676, playing fifth parts; in 1678 she was
in Agustin Manuel's company; in 1679 with Jose de Prado, and
in 1681 with Carvajal.
Robles y Varela (Mariana de), wife of the actor Bartolome
de Robles in August, 1623.
Robles, v. Diaz de Robles (Pedro).
Roca Paula, one of the earliest of Spanish actresses; she was
the wife of Agustin Solano in 1584.
Rocha (Diego de la), actor in the company of Jeronimo
Velazquez in 1590. He is mentioned by Lope de Vega in the
prologue to his Comedias, Part XVI (1621), among the celebrated
actors who were then rapidly disappearing.
Rodenas (Francisco), actor. His wife was Marina Mar-
garita Ruiz, actress in 1623. Marina was born in Ecija, the
daughter of Lope and Juana Ruiz.
Rodriguez (Alonso) of Seville was one of the earliest autores
de comedias. We find him in Madrid in 1574, when he per-
formed in the Corral de Burguillos. He represented at Corpus in
Seville in 1573 and 1575, and in 1579 produced, in the Huerta de
Dona Elvira, for the first time the following plays of Juan de la
Cueva: La Muerte del Rey don Sancho y Reto de Zamora por D.
Diego Ordonez, El Saco de Roma y Muerte de Borbon y corona-
cion de nuestro invicto Emperador Carlos V, and Los siete Infantes
de Lara. In May, 1580, Alonso Rodriguez, "vecino de Sevilla,"
was in Toledo, and represented three autos in that year, receiving
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 577
210 ducats. On Feb. 7, 1586, we find Alonso Rodriguez, "vecino
de Sevilla," called "residente en Madrid," whither he had come
with his company from Toledo. (Nuevos Datos, p. 1 6.)
Rodriguez (Alonso), "el Toledano," represented in the Corral
de Puente, Madrid, on Aug. 15, 1579, and again performed in
Madrid on Oct. 28, 1580. On Dec. 10, 1581, Alonso Rodriguez,
"el de Toledo," represented in the Corral de Puente, and likewise
on Dec. 17 and 18, and in 1582 on Dec. 12, 18, 19, 21, 25, 26, 27,
28. (v. Appendix A.)' On May 25, 1583, Alonso Rodriguez
represented in Madrid {ibid.), where we find him in Feb., 1584.
Whether the latter was the "Toledan" or the "Sevillan," is not
stated. {Bull. Hisp. (1906), p. 364.)
Rodriguez (Alonso) and his wife Mariana Cabello were in
Domingo Balbin's company in 1613 in Seville.
Rodriguez (Ana Maria), wife of the actor Juan Perez de
Tapia (Nov. 15, 1640).
Rodriguez (Antolina), wife of the autor de comedias Gon-
zalo de Alarcon in 1598.
Rodriguez (Antonio) of Avila, actor in 1619. In 1621-22
his name occurs in the cast of Lope's Amor, Pleito y Desafio; in
1623 he was in the company of Cristobal de Avendano, and
in 1624 in Antonio de Prado's company. In Feb., 1633, he and
his wife Juana Margarita Pinelo joined the company of Juan
Martinez for one year, he as gracioso and she playing third parts.
Rodriguez (Bartolome), gracioso, mentioned by Rojas, Viage,
p. 14.
Rodriguez (Diego) played fourth galanes in the company of
Pablo Martin de Morales in Seville in 1678.
Rodriguez (Francisca), third wife (2V. D., p. 212) of the
autor Hernan Sanchez de Vargas (1619-26). v. Bull. Hisp.
(1907), p. 383, where she is mentioned as the wife of Sanchez on
Feb. 22, 1619. She was the sister of Dr. Francisco Rodriguez.
Rodriguez (Francisco), his wife Maria Suarez and her
daughter Antonia Bernarda were members of the company of
Manuel Vallejo in 1631. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 220.) His name
occurs in the cast of Lope's La gran Columna fogosa (1629). He
was also in Vellejo's company in 1633.
Rodriguez (Francisco) and his wife Sebastiana Muiioz were
578 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
in the company of Juan Roman from Shrovetide, 1639, to 1640;
he was in the company of Bartolome Romero from March 14,
1640, for two years.
Rodriguez (Gaspar), actor in the company of Fernan Sanchez
de Vargas from Oct. 20, 1634, till Shrovetide, 1636; on Feb. 15,
1636, he agreed to play third parts in the company of Pedro de la
Rosa for one year, and in Sept., 1637, he belonged to the joint
company of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago till Shrovetide, 1639.
Rodriguez ( Isabel) , wife of the autor de comedias Jeronimo
Lopez de Sustaya in March, 1602, when both agreed to act for
two years in the company of Antonio Granados; in 1603 both were
acting in the company of Juan de Morales Medrano. (N. D.,
p. 80.)
Rodriguez (Isabel), wife of Juan de Villanueva; both were
in the company of Pedro de Valdes in 161 3— 14, and appeared in
Lope de Vega's La Dama boba. Perhaps she was the same as the
Isabel Rodriguez of the preceding article.
Rodriguez (Jeronima), wife of Salvador de Ochoa; both were
in the company of Baltasar Pinedo in Feb., 161 3.
Rodriguez (Jeronima), wife of Pedro Maldonado at Easter,
1 62 1, when both were in the company of Juan de Morales
Medrano till Shrovetide, 1622. Their names occur in the cast
of Lope's Amor, Pleito y Desafio, finished Nov. 23, 1621.
Rodriguez (Jeronima), wife of the actor Isidor Gil, and both
in the company of Damian Espinosa in March, 1639-40. Perhaps
the three preceding wives were one and the same Jeronima.
Rodriguez (Jeronimo), actor in Madrid in 1584. (Bull.
Hisp. (1906), p. 364.) In 1596 Juan de Albricio, also an actor,
was indicted for killing him.
Rodriguez (Juan), actor in the company of Esteban Nunez
in Seville in 1648. He was a native of Granada and in 165 1
married Beatriz Barba of Rioseco, in Valladolid, both being in the
company of Carlos de Tapia. (M. y M., p. 567.) In 1660 he
played third galanes in Jeronimo Vallejo's company, and in 1675
and 1677 in Ant. de Escamilla's. In 1680 he was apuntador in the
company of Jeronimo Garcia.
Rodriguez (Mariana), wife of Diego de Monserrate; both
were in Alonso Riquelme's company from March, 1602, for one
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 579
year, and in the company Los Andaluces from March, 1605, till
Shrovetide, 1606.
Rodriguez (Pablo), member of the company of Luis Lopez
in Seville in 1645 and 1650.
Rodriguez (Pedro) and his wife Mariflores were in the com-
pany of Jeronimo Velazquez in 1590. He was manager of a joint
company with Diego de Rojas and Gaspar de los Reyes, called
La Compania Espanola, in May, 1602, and in Oct. of the same
year he was in the company of Melchor de Leon. He and his
wife were again in the company of Leon in 1607. He had a
company at the time of his death, in 1610. (Pellicer, Vol. I, p. 40.)
Rodriguez de Antriago (Juan), autor de comedias in 1637,
1638, and 1639. In 1638 he was associated with Luis Bernardo
de Bovadilla. His wife, who acted in his company, was Juana
Bernabela. For his company in 1639, v. N. D., p. 312.
Rodriguez de Villalobos (Marcos), lessee of the theater in
Toledo in 1639 and 1640.
Rojas (Agustin de), actor, and author of the Viage entretenido
(1603), and of a comedia El Natural desdichado (published by
Paz y Melia in the Revista de Archives, 1900). He was born
in Madrid in the Calle del Postigo de San Martin, the son of
Diego de Villadiego and Luisa de Rojas, vizcaina, and was bap-
tized on September 2, 1572. (Perez Pastor, Bibliografia Madri-
lena. Vol. II, Madrid, 1906, p. 75.) From the age of nine to
thirteen he served as a page, and at fourteen he came to Seville, and
enlisted in Castilleja, remaining over two years in the fortifications
of Blaubete, and taking part in various actions. For a while
he was a prisoner in La Rochelle, and afterward returned to
Spain. He again took service in the galleons, and then became
a scrivener in Granada. He went to Malaga and became an actor,
performing in Ronda, Grenada, and Seville. It was in the latter
city that he first saw the company of Antonio de Villegas, prob-
ably in 1599-1600. He afterward (1601) joined the company
of Nicolas de los Rios. On July 8, 1603, he sold the right to
print and sell his Viage entretenido for ten years to the book-
seller Francisco de Robles for 100 ducats. (Perez Pastor, Biblio-
grafia Madrilena, II, p. 75. See also Barrera, Catdlogo, p. 336.)
The interlocutors in his Entertaining Journey are the author and
580 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
three other actors: Rios, Miguel Ramirez, and Agustin Solano.
In Feb., 1602, he joined the company of Miguel Ramirez, and
the agreement then made is printed by Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos,
p. 351. Rojas agreed to act for one year, till Shrovetide, 1603, for
2800 reals. Abandoning the stage in i6o4( ?), he became a notary
and scrivener in Zamora. That Rojas knew some French and
Italian is shown in his Viage, pp. 364 and 419. He also mentions
the English as writers of plays :
Los sabios Italianos
escriuieron muchas buenas [i.e., comedias],
los Ingleses ingeniosos,
gente Alemana y Flamenca.
(Ibid., p. 123.)
Rojas (Alfonsa de), wife of Fernando Roman; both were in
the company of Carlos de Salazar in Seville in 1676.
Rojas (Diego de), joint manager with Pedro Rodriguez and
Gaspar de los Reyes of the Compania Espanola in 1602.
Rojas (Francisco de), actor in the company of Domingo Bal-
bin from Sept., 1623, till Shrovetide, 1624.
Rojas (Maria de), wife of the autor de comedias Alonso de
Heredia in July-Sept., 1604.
Rojas (Melchora de) , wife of the autor Gabriel de la Torre.
In 1589 they lived in their own house in the Calle de Atocha,
below the hospital of Anton Martin. Latest date, July 28, 1608.
Rojas (Tomas de), actor in the company of Juan de Morales
Medrano in 1624. He married the celebrated actress Maria Calde-
ron; when, we do not know. He is mentioned as her husband
in Dec, 1632.
Rojo (Jose), actor in the company of Juana de Cisneros in
Seville in 1660. He was second barba with Simon Aguado and
Juan de la Calle in 1662.
Roman (Fernando) and his wife Alfonsa de Rojas were in
the company of Carlos de Salazar in Seville in 1676.
Roman (Juan) had a company before 1636, and in that year
belonged to the company of Tomas Fernandez. (Rosell, Vol. I,
p. 282.) He and his wife Ana Maria de Espinosa were also act-
ing in the following year. On June 28, 1638, he and his sister
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 581
Juana Juarez agreed to act in the company of Hernan Sanchez
de Vargas for one year. In Oct., 1638-39, he was one of the
autores de comedias appointed by the King. For his company in
1639, v. N. D., p. 305. See also Life of Lope de Vega, p. 247.
Roman (Jusepa), widow of Antonio Ramos (Feb., 1636). In
1635, 1636, 1637, and 1639 she played third parts in the company
of Pedro de la Rosa. In i637~38( ?) she was in the company of
Tomas Fernandez, and appeared in the entremes La Guardain-
fante. v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 381, also pp. 134, 151, 235, 405, 432.
Her name occurs in the cast of Belmonte's A un tiempo Rey y
Vasallo, in 1642. This appears also to be the company of Pedro
de la Rosa. Jusepa's husband was still living in 1635.
Roman (Maria), la Asturiana, belonged to the company of
Juan de Morales Medrano in 1624. In 1636-37 she was in the
company of Tomas Fernandez (Rosell, Vol. I, p. 288) ; and in
1639 she was in the company of Juan Rodriguez de Antriago. She
was the wife of Tomas Enriquez, and was vulgarly called Marimo-
rena.
Romano (Curcio), autor de comedias, who represented autos
at Toledo in 1579. v. Curcio Romano.
Romera or Romero (Ana). Her name appears as Ana Ro-
mero in an obligation in which she joined with her husband Andres
Gutierrez de Olivares and Baltasar Pinedo and his wife Juana de
Villalba on Oct. 11, 1603. (JV. D„ p. 82.) In her will, dated
Sept. 7, 1605, the name is written Ana Romera, and she is de-
scribed as " the widow of Alonso de Villalba, and now the wife of
Antonio (sic) Gutierrez de Olivares, actor." She had three chil-
dren then deceased: Mateo, Melchor, and Isabel de Villalba; and
three children living : Alonso de Villalba, Antonio de Villalba, and
Juana de Villalba, besides a niece, Maria de Villalba, daughter of
Mateo, deceased. (N. D., p. 92.) Baltasar Pinedo, famous actor
and autor de comedias, was her son-in-law, having married her
daughter Juana. See also under Romero (Juana).
Romero (Agustin) and his wife Ana de Sandoval were in the
company of Jeronimo Sanchez from March 27, 1603, for one year.
In 1639-40 he was prompter and bill-poster (hacer carteles)
in the company of Francisco Velez de Guevara, Pedro de Cobaleda,
and Francisco Alvarez.
Romero, musico, and his wife were in the company of Rodrigo
582 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Osorio in Valencia toward the close of the sixteenth century (in
1588?). This is, in all probability, the Bartolome Romero, musico,
who was in Pinedo's company in 1 61 3. There was a- division of
his effects on Aug. 1 1 of that year, between his wife Luisa Romero
and his children Bartolome and Maria Romero. (Bull. Hisp.
(1907), P- 378.)
Romero (Bartolome), son of the preceding, celebrated actor
and autor de comedias. He was in the company of Cristobal de
Avendano in 1622-23, and from Ash Wednesday, 1624, he and
his wife Antonio Manuela (Antonia Manuela Catalan) were in.
the company of Juan Bautista Valenciano for one year. In 1 626'
they bought a house in the Calle de Santa Maria for 2300 ducats,
and in this year Jacinto Cordero wrote for him El Favor en la
Sentencia. (Paz y Melia, Catalogo, No. 1242.) In 1628 his
company and that of Andres de la Vega represented the autos in
Madrid, and in 1631 his company produced the autos in Seville;
in this year he also represented in La Monteria, when he and his
family were received into the Cof radio de la Novena. In 1634 h'&
company and those of Luis Lopez and Pedro de Ortegon repre-
sented autos in Seville, and in 1642 with Lorenzo Hurtado's com-
pany, and again in 1643 with Manuel Vallejo. (For his company
in 1642 and 1643, v. S.-A., pp. 358, 366.) In 1636 his company
represented five comedias privately before the King. In this year
he. and his wife appear to have acted for a while in the company
of Tomas Fernandez, v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 288. In 1637 he owned
a house in the Calle del Amor de Dios, corner of the Calle de
Santa Maria, and another in the Calle de Francos, corner of the-
Calle del Nino. He had a famous company in this year, as fol-
lows: Mariana de los Reyes, Pedro Valcazar and Maria de Val-
cazar, his wife ; Gabriel Cintor, Pedro Garcia de Guevara, Tomas
Enriquez, gracioso, Antonio Pinero, Onofre Pascual, Maximi-
liano Eustorquio de Morales, Juan Perez, and the famous galan
Alonso de Osuna. He represented at the Buen Retiro in 1638,
and the autos at Madrid in this year. In June, 1638, he agreed to-
take his company to Lisbon for two or three months before Shrove-
tide of 1639. He also performed fifty times in Valencia in the
winter of 1638. (N. D., pp. 297, 298.) In 1640 he represented
autos at Madrid, receiving 950 ducats (Calderon Documentos,
p. 121), and again represented in Madrid in 1658 and 1664, in.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 583
the latter year in conjunction with Juan de la Calle. In 1640,
beginning in mid-September, he gave twenty consecutive perform-
ances in Toledo. He also agreed to take his company to Lisbon
to perform from Nov., 1640, until Shrovetide, 1641. He had
four children : Luisa, Mariana, Damian, and Francisca ; the latter
is mentioned as being quite young in 1637. See Cotarelo (Migajas
del Ingenio, Madrid, 1908, p. 215), who says that Romero had
the following children : Eusebia, Luisa, Mariana, Domingo, Fran-
cisca, and Maria who in 1655 was the widow of Jeronimo
de Medina and in 1658 was married to Heredia (Jeronimo?).
For his company in 1637, 1638, and 1640, v. N. D., pp. 273, 280,
321. He first represented Montalvan's Lo que son Juicios del
Cielo.
Romero (Juana), wife of the autor de comedias Juan de Rivas,
lived in the Calle de la Cruz in July, 1590. It seems that Juana
Romero and Ana Romera are one and the same person. At all
events, in July, 1590, Melchor de Villalba declares that he is the
son of Juan de Rivas and Juana Romero, his wife. (N. D., p. 338.)
Perhaps Rivas was Juana's second husband, for in 1590 Melchor
de Villalba was more than twenty-five years old. (Ibid.)
v. Romera (Ana).
Romero (Luisa), daughter of Bartolome Romero the younger.
She and her sister Mariana appeared on the stage in 1 65 1, accord-
ing to Cotarelo (Migajas del Ingenio, 1908, p. 216), when both
appeared in Solis's loa to Calderon's Darlo todo y no dar nada,
represented at the royal palace in 1651. Both names again occur
in the same author's loa to the comedia Pico y Canente, by D. Luis
de Ulloa and D. Rodrigo Davila, in 1653, and in 1655 in the loa
to the comedia Las Amazonas, also by Solis. See Poesias varias,
Madrid, 1692, pp. 173, 188, 192, and 219. In 1661 Luisa Romero
played segundas damas in the company of Antonio de Escamilla;
in 1665 in Francisco Garcia's company, in 1670 with Manuel
Vallejo, and in 1 67 1 with Felix Pascual and Agustin Manuel.
Returning with Marcos Garces from a private representation, she
was struck by a stone while passing the cemetery of San Sebastian,
and died from the effects of the injury. She was the first wife of
Carlos Vallejo.
Romero (Maria), v. under Romero, musico.
Romero (Mariana), younger sister of Luisa, was born be-
584 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
fore 1 63 1, when she was inscribed, with the other members of
her father's family, in the books of the Cofradia de la Novena.
She played primeras damas in Manuel Vallejo's company in 1670,
1672, 1673, and 1674. In the latter year she suddenly abandoned
the stage and entered the convent of Trinitarian nuns in Madrid,
which she left just as suddenly. About 1660 she had married the
actor Luis Ortiz, whose wife Leonor Banuelos had died in 1658.
Mariana had a daughter, Da Mariana Rufina de Ortiz, who be-
came a Trinitarian nun in 1676. After July, 1670, Mariana
married the actor Manuel Angel, having been divorced from Ortiz
sometime before July, 1674. An interesting fact in connection
with Mariana Romero is that on July 13, 1674, she bought from
Luis de Usategui y Vega Carpio, son-in-law of Lope de Vega, the
house in the Calle de Francos (now called Calle de Cervantes) in
which Lope had lived for many years, and in which he died in 1635.
(Cotarelo, ibid., p. 219.) See also Mesonero Romanos, El Antigua
Madrid, Vol. II, p. 48, who says that it was Lope's grandson who
sold the house, which is more likely. The house of Lope de Vega
finally passed, on June 21, 1823, into the possession of Francisco
Maria Lopez de Morelle, a merchant, in whose family it remains.
(Ibid.) Under date of May 8, 1658, Barrionuevo (Avisos, IV,
p. 140) chronicles the following: "Mariana Romero ha malparido.
Anda en la compafiia de Prado, y a su hermana Luisa por unos
celillos le han dado una pisa de coces y tundido la badana en la
compafiia de Rosa, sin valerle el que ella lo sea." Which of these
sisters was called la Romerilla (ibid, under date June 26, 1655)
I do not know.
Romo, El, gracioso, about 1638. v. Rosell, I, p. 371.
Ros (Pedro), musico in Escamilla's company in 1676 and 1681.
Rosa (Antonio de la), actor in the company of Juan Acacio
in March, 1626-27.
Rosa (Catalina de la), first wife of the autor Pedro de la
Rosa; she played primeras damas in his company in 1636-39. Her
maiden name was Catalina de Nicolas.
Rosa (Feliciana de la), daughter of Pedro de la Rosa and his
second wife Antonia de Santiago. She was the wife of Carlos
Vallejo, and played subordinate parts in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1676.
Rosa (Gregorio de la), musician in the company of Sebas-
tian de Prado and Juan de la Calle in 1659 and 166 1 ; in 1662
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 585
in the company of Simon Aguado; in 1664 in that of Juan de
la Calle and Bartolome Romero; in 1665 with Francisco Garcia;
in 1671 and 1673 with Felix Pascual; in 1676-78 with Escamilla,
and in 1670, 1672, 1674, 1675, 1679, and 1680 he was musico
principal with Manuel Vallejo.
Rosa (Pedro de la), well-known actor, playing first galanes,
and autor de comedias in 1636, when he represented six comedias
before the King; for his company in this year, v. N. D., p. 244.
His first wife ( 1635) was Catalina de Nicolas. At Corpus of 1636
his company represented two comedias at Torrejon de Ardoz.
In 1637 he gave twenty-one private performances before the King,
produced the autos in Madrid with Tomas Fernandez, and repre-
sented fifty times in Valencia. For his company in this year,
v. N. D., p. 258. In 1638 he was in Malaga, and at that time,
we are told, he possessed more than fifty new comedias. (S.-A.,
p. 328.) In 1639 he played second galanes in his own company
and represented autos in Seville, and also acted in the Coliseo. For
his company in this year, v. S.-A., p. 327. In 1643 he took his
company to Paris; in 1 650 he was again in Valencia, and in 1652
and 1653 in Seville. In 1656, 1657, 1658, and 1660 (the latter
"year in the company of Vallejo at Corpus) he represented in
Madrid, and in 1674 again visited Paris with his company. In
1659 he produced the autos in Valladolid. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Pedro de la Rosa was a native of Granada, and on the death of
Catalina de la Rosa he married Antonia de Santiago, and had a
daughter Feliciana, q. v. He died in Madrid on Dec. 19, 1675,
having written a sainete for the- Corpus festival in Madrid in April
of that year. (Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, I, p. 345.)
Rosales (Juan Bautista), actor in the company of Nicolas
de los Rios in 1601-02. v. Rojas, Viage entretenido, pp. 467, 493.
His name appears in the cast of Lope's La hermosa Ester as
represented by the company of Sanchez in 16 10. In 1613 he
was in the company of Baltasar Pinedo.
Rozas (Francisco de), actor in the company of Sebastian
Gonzalez from Ash Wednesday, 1636, for one year.
Rubio (Francisco), member of the company of Magdalena
Lopez in Seville in 1674.
Rubio (Gabriel), a tailor in 1596. In 1601 he arranged fes-
tivals for the autor de comedias Antonio de Villegas. He had
charge of dances at Corpus in Madrid in 1606, 1607, and 1608.
586 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Rubio (Pedro el), actor in the company of Alonso Cisneros
in 1589. He represented the autos Las Avenidas and La Escala
de Jacob in Seville in 1597, in conjunction with Melchor de
Villalba and Francisco de Palencia.
Rueda (Antonio de), actor in the company of Heredia in
1628, appearing in Lope de Vega's Del Monte sale, and in Alonso
de Olmedo's company in 1631-32, acting galanes, his wife Catalina
de Acosta being in the same company. In 1635 he was acting in
the company of Salvador de Lara and Maria Candau at La
Monteria, Seville, and in 1638 had a company and with Pedro
Ascanio represented at Corpus in Madrid. In Aug.-Sept. he gave
twenty-four comedias at Valladolid. On April 16, 1638, Rueda
and Ascanio agreed to go to Lisbon and give ninety performances
between mid-November (1638) and Shrovetide, 1639, and on
July 31, 1638, Antonio de Rueda agreed to go to Toledo by
Nov. 8 [1638] and give thirty representations, "without leaving
the city." (N. D., p. 295.) In 1639 Francisco de Rojas wrote
for him the comedia Nuestra Senora de Atocha (Paz y Melia,
Catdlogo, No. 2396), and in this year he represented Calderon's
comedia La Desdicha de la Vox and his autos Santa Maria Egip-
ciaca and El mejor Huesped de Espana at Madrid, and beginning
on Nov. 1, he gave ninety performances at La Monteria in Seville,
one of the conditions being that he should give each week two
comedias with their bailes and entremeses, "which had never been
seen or represented." (N. D., p. 317.) In 1640 he represented
at Corpus in Seville and also in La Monteria, and in 1643, begin-
ning on Dec. 25, he performed in Seville till Feb. 9, 1644, and
in this latter year again represented at La Monteria and the autos
at Corpus in Seville. In 1654 he produced an auto at Madrid.
Shortly before Nov. 15, 1630, Antonio de Rueda, being then in
the company of Alonso de Olmedo, married in Cadiz Catalina de
los Reyes, daughter of Melchor de los Reyes and D" Bernardina
de Sotomayor, then deceased. {Bull Hisp. (1908).) His wife
at the time of his death was Catalina de Acosta (probably the same
person as the Catalina just mentioned). He left two daughters,
Catalina and Bernarda, and died in Madrid in the Calle de Leon
on Dec. 29, 1662. For his company in 1639, v. N. D., p. 304;
in 1640 and 1644, S.-A., pp. 337, 371.
Rueda (Catalina de), v. Acosta (Catalina de).
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 587
Rueda (Francisco de), prompter and bill-poster in the com-
pany of Bartolome Romero in 1638-39.
Rueda (Lope de), son of Juan de Rueda; a Sevillan by birth
and a gold-beater by trade, he became a famous actor and play-
wright, and was one of the founders of the Spanish national
drama. We first hear of him on June 8, 1554, when he repre-
sented an auto at Benavente; thence he went to Valladolid, where
he resided in July of that year. About two years before he had
married Mariana de Rueda, a wandering singer and dancer, who
had come from Aragon in 1546 and had entered the service of
D. Gaston de la Cerda, Duke of Medinaceli, at Cogolludo, remain-
ing six years. It is probable that Lope de Rueda met her there
in 1552. On Aug. 15, 1558, he represented a comedia at Segovia,
and in 1559 produced at Seville the autos El Hi jo prodlgo and
Navalcarmelo, receiving 60 ducats. In 1561 he was acting in
Madrid with his company, when his goods were attached for
debt. His wife is then described as a Valencian. In this year he
also represented the autos in Toledo. On July 18, 1564, Maria
Luisa, daughter of Lope de Rueda and his wife Rafaela Anxela,
was baptized in Seville. This daughter died in infancy. Lope
de Rueda died in Cordoba shortly after March 21, 1565, the
date of his last will, his wife Rafaela Anxela surviving him.
v. Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, Madrid, 1 901 ; Cortes, Un Pleito de
Lope de Rueda, Madrid, 1903.
RUFINA or RUFINA JuSTA, V. GARCIA (RuFINa).
Ruiz (Ana), wife of Miguel Ruiz in 159c, when both be-
longed to the company of Jeronimo Velazquez. This is doubtless
Ana Martinez, q. v. See also Ruiz (Miguel).
Ruiz (Damian), actor in the company of Manuel Vallejo in
1 63 1, together with his wife Maria Martinez and his son Juan
Francisco Ruiz. In 1639 he was in the company of Pedro de la
Rosa.
Ruiz (Jeronimo), menestril in 1592 in Madrid, with Alonso
Granados and others.
Ruiz (Juan), actor in the company of Juan de Morales
Medrano at Corpus in Seville in 1610; he had a company in 1632.
(S.-A, p. 341.)
Ruiz (Juan Francisco), v. Ruiz (Damian).
Ruiz (Juana) and her husband Lope Ruiz of Ecija, players?
588 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Their daughter Marina Margarita Ruiz was the wife of the actor
Francisco Rodenas. Both parents were deceased before Sept. 26,
1623.
Ruiz (Lope), v. the preceding.
Ruiz (Maria or Mariana), wife of Vicente Ferrer of Valen-
cia; both were in the company of Juan deTapia, Luis de Castro and
Alonso de Paniagua in Madrid from March, 1602, for one year.
Ruiz (Marina Margarita), v. Ruiz (Juana).
Ruiz (Miguel) and his wife Ana Ruiz belonged to the com-
pany of Jeronimo Velazquez in 1590. This is probably the Ruiz
who lived in the Calle de las Dos Hermanas, Madrid, in 1587—
1588, whose house Lope de Vega visited to play trucos. v. Life of
Lope de Vega, p. 31. Miguel Ruiz and his wife, the cele-
brated Baltasara de los Reyes, were members of the company of
Gaspar de Porres in 1604-05. (Nuevos Datos, p. 84.) He
seems to have been in the company of Baltasar Pinedo in 1607,
when his wife was Ana Martinez, who had been a member of the
same company as early as 1603. (Perez Pastor, Bibl., Mad.,
Part III, p. 325.) But in the Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 373, we
read that Miguel Ruiz and his wife Baltasara de los Reyes were
in the company of Melchor de Leon in April, 1607. Certain it
is that Miguel Ruiz and his wife Ana Martinez were in Pinedo's
company in 161 1. (Bibl. Mad., Ill, p. 325.) In 1614-15 he
was in the company of Valdes. (N. D., pp. 136, 137.) I am
unable to explain the matter of his two wives. See also Rojas,
Viage entretenido, p. 362.
Ruiz (Simon), actor, indicted in 1606 for a quarrel with an
alguacil.
Ruiz de Ledesma (Juan), actor in the company of Pedro de
Valdes from Feb. 24, 1614, for one year. v. Ruiz (Juan), above.
Ruiz de Mendi (Alfonsa), actress? born about 1570, daugh-
ter of Juan Ruiz de Mendi and Isabel Ruiz, his housekeeper.
Ruiz de Mendi (Juan) and his wife Mariana Vaca, players
in Madrid in 1589, when they owned a house in the Calle del
Principe. He was a native of Santo Domingo de la Calzada, and
lived "in his own house" in the Calle del Principe in 1592. He
died on Nov. 25, 1596, leaving two daughters by his wife Mariana:
Jusepa Vaca, afterward a famous actress, and Hipolita, besides
the daughter Alfonsa, mentioned above.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 589
Saabedra, actor in Benavente's entremes Los Escuderos y el
Lacayo, about 1671-75. v. Migaxas del Ingenio, fol. 79, v.
Saavedra (Rodrigo de), actor and friend of Lope de Vega.
He was born in 1559 and is mentioned as an actor as early as 1584.
In 1587-90 he was in the company of Jeronimo Velazquez,
v. Life of Lope de Vega, pp. 23, 48. In 1592 he was director of a
company and with Gaspar de Porres represented autos in Madrid
in that year. v. Datos desconocidos, ed. Perez Pastor, pp. 151 ff.,
and N. D., p. 31.
Saavedra y Aguiar (Ana de), wife of the actor Gabriel
Sedefio, living in Madrid in- 1632.
Sagramano (Luis de) brought out the auto El Nino per dido
in Seville in 1575. He was, perhaps, its author.
Salas (Catalina de) or Catalina de Medina, wife of Fran-
cisco de Salas and mother of Juan de Salas. v. Medina (Cata-
lina).
Salas (Domingo de), actor in the company of Esteban Nunez
in Seville in 1654.
Salas (Francisco de) and his wife Catalina de Medina were
in the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631-32, and appeared in
Lope's El Castigo sin Venganza in 1632. Prior to this, in 1628,
he was in the cast of Lope's Del Monte sale, apparently in
Heredia's company. In 1633 he belonged to the company of
Juan Martinez, and in 1639 and 1640 he was again with Manuel
Vallejo.
Salas (Juan de), son of Francisco de Salas and Catalina de
Medina; he was in Manuel Vallejo's company in 1 63 1.
Salas (Jusepe de), actor in the company of Diego de Santan-
der in Nov.-Dec, 1594. In 1603-04 he was in the company of
Diego Lopez de Alcaraz.
Salas (Maria de), actress, first wife of Miguel Bermudez de
Castro.
Salazar (Andrea de), daughter of the autor de comedias
Carlos de Salazar and his wife Isabel Diaz; all were acting in the
company of Carlos in Seville in 1676. In 1679 she was in the
company of Jose de Prado.
Salazar (Carlos de), son of Jose de Salazar and Juana
Bernabela, actor in the company of Louis Lopez in Seville in 1650,
and in the company of Felix Pascual at La Monteria, Seville, in
59© SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
1665, where, in 1675-76, having a company of his own, he gave
forty representations. He married Isabel Diaz and had two
daughters, Andrea and Josefa de Salazar, q. v. He afterward
married Eufrasia Maria de Reina, and died in Elche in 1684.
Salazar (Catalina de), wife of Juan Vifias; both were in
Manuel Vallejo's company in Seville in 1643.
Salazar (Cosme de) , actor in the company of Juan de Morales
Medrano in June, 1626.
Salazar (Cristobal de), called Mahoma, was an autor de
comedias in 1630.
Salazar (Feliciano) brought out an auto at Corpus in
Seville in 1576.
Salazar (Jose or Jusepe de) of Toledo, actor in the company
of Cristobal de Leon in May, 1622; in 1626 he represented one of
the autos at Seville, Roque de Figueroa having charge of the
other. He returned to Seville with his company for the autos
of 1628, 1630 (in this year, in Dec, he also represented at a
festival in Seville), and 1 63 1. He represented Calderon's Peor
estd que estaba in 1630. (The comedia was finished in May of
that year. Schmidt, Die Schauspiele Calderon's, p. 31.) His wife
was Juana Bernabela, and his son Carlos de Salazar, q. v.
Salazar (Josefa de), wife of Esteban Nunez, autor de come-
dias; both were in the company of Juan Acacio in Seville in 1644,
and in Lorenzo Hurtado's company in 1645. In 1642 Jusepa de
Salazar appeared in the cast of A un tiempo Rey y Vasallo, by
Belmonte Bermudez. She was a member of her husband's company
in 1648 and in 1654. A Josefa de Salazar, daughter of the autor
Carlos de Salazar, is mentioned in 1676, when she and her husband
Jose Antonio [Guerrero] were acting in the company of her father
in Seville.
Salazar (Juan), dorador, brought out the auto El Triunfo de
la Fe in Seville in 157 1.
Salazar (Luis de), actor in the cast of Lope's La Conpetencia
en los Nobles (1628). In Feb., 1619, Pedro Cebrian, autor de
comedias, executed a power of attorney to Luis de Salazar, "vecino
de Toledo." (N. D., p. 173.) Perhaps this was the same person.
Salazar (Maria de), widow, actress in the company of
Esteban Nunez in Seville in 1648. In 1674 Maria de Salazar,
actress, of Madrid, married Pedro Quirante in Valladolid. (M. y
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 591
M., p. 567. ) A Maria de Salazar, also an actress, in the company
of Gaspar de Porres, is mentioned in Nov., 1600. v. Nuevos
Datos, p. 53.
Salazar (Pedro de), resident of Madrid, actor in the com-
pany of Diego Vallejo in Seville in 1619; in 1622 with Manuel
Vallejo; in 1624 he was in the company of Juan de Morales
Medrano; in 1625-26 in that of Pedro de Valdes; in 1631 in
that of Juan Vazquez, el Polio, and in 1635-36 ( ?) with Antonio
de Prado. v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 322. In 1639-40 he belonged
to the company of Antonio de Rueda, and in 1643 to the com-
pany of Tomas Diaz in Seville.
Salazar (Pedro de), el Granadino; his wife (1654) Maria de
los Santos was a celebrated singer; both were in the company
of Sebastian de Prado in 1662, and with Antonio de Escamilla
in 1663.
Salcedo (Jeronima de) and her husband Sebastian de Sasieta
Avendano were acting in Valladolid in 1603, apparently in the
company of Pinedo. (M. y M., Estudios, p. 566.) She is men-
tioned by Suarez de Figueroa in his Plaza Universal (161 5)
among the famous actresses then deceased.
S\lcedo (Lucia de), actress in the company of Alonso
Riquelme in 1610. She appeared in Lope's El Sembrar en buena
tierra (161 6) in the company of Ortiz, v. Life of Lope de Vega,
pp. 230 et seq.
Salcedo (Maria de), actress, wife of the autor de comedias
Pedro Ximenez de Valenzuela in 1601-02. In the latter year she
was residing in Toledo.
Salcedo (Mateo de), one of the earliest of the autor es de
comedias. He produced two autos in Seville in 1572, and again
represented autos there in 1580, 1586, 1589, and 1600. In May
and June, 1579, he represented in the Corral de la Pacheca in
Madrid, and again in Oct., Nov., and Dec, and also produced
the autos in this year. He represented the autos at Salamanca in
1595. He died before 1608. Suarez de Figueroa mentions him
as a famous actor in his Plaza Universal (1615). See Ap-
pendix A and Sanchez-Arjona, pp. 501, 502. He seems to have
represented Argensola's tragedy Isabela. (Ochoa, Tesoro, I,
p. 506.)
Salcedo (Nicolas de), son of the preceding, was lessee of
592 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
the Corral de San Pedro in Seville in 1610. See also B. H. (i907)>
p. 385. The name "Sacedo" occurs in the cast of Lope's La Con-
petencia en los Nobles (1628).
Salcedo (Pedro de), musician in the company of Alberto
Naseli, alias Ganassa, in Madrid, in 1581-82. (Revista de Archi-
vos, 1908, p. 52.)
Saldana (Luis de) brought out the car of El Desposorio at
Corpus in Seville in 1570.
Saldana (Pedro de), one of the most celebrated autores de
comedias of his time. In 1576 his company and that of Juan
Bautista represented the autos in Seville, and again he produced
them in 1577, 1578, and 1579. In the latter year he represented
for the first time at the Huerta de Dona Elvira in Seville the fol-
lowing plays of Juan de la Cueva: La Libertad de Espana por
Bernardo del Carpio, El Degollado, El Tutor, and La Constancia
de Arcelina, and the tragedy La Muerte de Ay ax Telamon sobre las
Armas de Aquiles, in which latter Saldana played the part of Ajax
admirably, according to Cueva. He also represented for the first
time in the Huerta de Doha Elvira in Seville in 1580 the following
plays by Cueva : Tragedia de la Muerte de Virginia y Apio Claudia
and El Principe tirano, in two parts, and the comedia El Viejo
enamorado, in the Corral de Don Juan, and at Corpus in 1583,
1584, and 1585. In 1581 he represented the autos in Toledo, and
in Dec. of the same year his company appeared seven times at the
Corral de la Cruz and the Corral de Puente. In Jan. and Feb.,
1582, he performed twenty-eight times in La Cruz and La Pacheca,
and in Aug. and Sept. fourteen times in La Cruz. See Ap-
pendix A. He is mentioned by Suarez de Figueroa, Plaza
Universal, among the famous actors then (1615) deceased.
There is no record of Saldana's having produced any of Lope's
plays, from which it is very probable that he died not long after
1585.
Salinas (Antonio de), actor in the company of Damian de
Espinosa in 1638. He was a gracioso and died in 1669.
Salinas (Francisco), harpist.
Salinas (Hernando de), actor in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1674.
Salinas (Maria de) played fourth parts in the company of
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 593
Bartolome Romero and Juan de la Calle in 1664; in 1665 she
was in the company of Antonio de Escamilla. She had a daughter,
Maria Flores, also an actress.
Salinas (Martin de), actor, was seized in Pamplona, while
a member of the company of Hipolito de Olmedo, and sent to the
galleys for having two wives.
Salinas (Pedro), v. Garcia de Salinas (Pedro).
Salinas (Vicente de), actor in the company of Bernardo de
la Vega in 1672; in Manuel Vallejo's in 1675; in Jose Garcia de
Prado's in 1679, and in Jeronimo Garcia's company in 1680. He
was born in Zaragoza, the son of Vicente and Garcia de Soria.
His wife was Manuela de Acuna.
Salomona (Angela), Italian actress in the company of
Drusiano Martinelli in Madrid in 1587.
Salvador (Jaime) is mentioned by Lope de Vega (Comedias,
Part XVI, Madrid, 1622, Prologue) as a famous actor; he was in
the company of Tomas Fernandez in 1636 ( ?). v. Rosell, Vol. I,
p. 405. In 1637-39 he was second gracioso in the company of
Pedro de la Rosa. In 1642 he appeared in the cast of Belmonte's
A un tiempo Rey y Vasallo, also in Rosa's company, and in
Sept., 1643, he was in the company of Luis Lopez. His wife was
Maria Salvador.
Salvador (Lorenzo), actor in the company of Alonso de
Olmedo in 1 62 1. {Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244.) There was a
Salvador in the company of Porres in Valencia (in 1601?). See
the loa to ha belligera Espanola. He was a native of Valencia.
Salvador (Maria), v. Salvador (Jaime).
Samaniego (Juan de) and his wife Maria de la O were mem-
bers of the company of Juan Bautista Espinola or Espinosa in
Madrid for one year from Feb. 17, 1633. On Feb. 8, 1633, he had
agreed to act in the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas at the
Corpus festival of that year, and in 1637 he and his wife acted at
the Corpus festival at Zedillo.
Sambrano (Alonso), actor in the company of Bernardo de la
Vega in 1672. v. Zambrano.
Sampayo (Antonio de) and his wife Mariana Gutierrez were
in the company of Antonio de Villegas in Feb., 1612; he was in a
joint company with Baltasar Pinedo and others in 161 3 to repre-
594 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
sent the autos in Toledo in that year. In 1614 he and Pedro
Llorente directed a company, and in 16 16 he appeared in Tirso's
La Tercera de la Sancta J nana, in Prado's company. In 1640
Antonio de Sampayo and Alfonsa de Riaza, players in the company
of Juan Bautista Mayo, were married in Valladolid. (M. y M.,
p. 566.)
San Juan (Tomas de), barba in the company of Jose Carrillo
in 1663; he was with Francisco Garcia in 1665, with Manuel
Vallejo in 1670 as barba, and tercero galan in Escamilla's company
in 1672.
San Martin (Juan de), actor in the company of Pedro de
Valdes in 161 4 and 162 1 (N. D., p. 189), and in the company of
Manuel Vallejo in Madrid in 1622. v. Life of Lope de Vega,
pp. 172, n., 295, n.
San Mateo (Simon), actor in the company of Manuel Vallejo
in 1674.
San Miguel (Dona Francisca), actress in the company of
Antonio Granados in 161 8, when she received a gratuity of 501 1
mrs. for her excellent acting in the auto Obras son Amores in
Seville. ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 195.) In March, 1624, she was in
the company of Antonio de Prado.
San Miguel (Francisco de), actor in the company of Pedro
de la Rosa in 1636, 1637, and 1639. In 1650 he was in the com-
pany of Antonio de Prado. {Calderon Documentos, I, p. 170.)
His wife was Brigida Garcia, and he had two daughters, Josefa
and Maria San Miguel. He died in 1669. In 1657 a Francisco
de San Miguel was musico in the company of Jose Garceran.
San Miguel (Josefa de), daughter of Francisco de San
Miguel and Brigida Garcia, and actress in the company of Simon
Aguado in 1674; in 1675 and 1676 she was segunda in the com-
pany of Manuel Vallejo; in 1677 and 1678 she played terceras in
Agustin Manuel's company; in 1679 segundas with Jose de Prado,
and in 1680 terceras in the company of Jeronimo Garcia. She was
the wife of Pablo Polope in 1675. (M. y M., p. 567.)
San Miguel (Maria de), v. San Miguel (Francisco de).
She was the wife of Salvador de las Cuevas, q. v.
San Miguel (Melchor de) brought out one of the carros at
the Corpus festival in Seville in 1577. There was a San Miguel
celebrated as a bexete, mentioned by Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 52.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 595
San Miguel (Pedro de), actor in the company of Domingo
Balbin in Seville in 161 3.
San Pedro (Cristobal de) and his wife Magdalena de Oviedo
were in the company of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz from Jan. io,
1610, for two years. In 1613 he was in Baltasar Pinedo's com-
pany, and in 1614-16 in that of Antonio de Prado, when he ap-
peared in Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta Juana.
San Pedro (Maria de), actress in the company of Roque de
Figueroa in 1631-32. In 1635 she and her husband Jacinto
Varela appeared (also in Roque's company) in Peligrar en los
Remedios by Rojas Zorrilla. On Oct. 30, 1638, she is called widow
of Jacinto Varela, and joined the company of Segundo de Morales
for one year, playing second parts, singing and dancing, v. Cota-
relo, Tirso, p. 206; Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 109, 322.
Sanchez (Alonso) of Jaen, musician and actor for two years
from March 14, 1602, in the company of Alonso Riquelme.
Sanchez (Andres), member of the company of Bernardo de
la Vega in Seville in 1672.
Sanchez (Bartolome), actor in the company of Melchor de
Leon in 1607.
Sanchez (Catalina), "natural de Jaca," actress, married
Felipe de Morales in 1650. Both were then playing in the com-
pany of Adrian Lopez in Valladolid. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Sanchez (Catalina), native of Aragon, married Gaspar
Diago in Valladolid in 1655. (M. y M., p. 567.)
Sanchez (Cristobal) produced the auto La Visitation de la
Reina Saba in Seville in 157 1.
Sanchez (Francisco), actor in a joint company in Madrid in
June, 1603, with Luis de Castro and others; in 1607 he belonged
to the company of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz. Perhaps this is Fran-
cisco Sanchez de Medina, who was in the company of Pedro
Maldonado in 161 1. (N. D., p. 124.)
Sanchez (Francisco), el Teatino, had been a Jesuit; he be-
longed to the company of Juan Perez de Tapia in Seville in 1662;
in 1664 he played first galanes in the company of Bartolome
Romero and Juan de la Calle, and in 1665 was with Francisco
Garcia, Pupilo. He died in the Calle de Cantarranas, Madrid.
According to Gallardo, II, p. 678, he was assassinated in 1667.
Sanchez (Garcia), singer and actor in entremeses in the com-
596 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
pany of Alonso Cisneros and Melchor Villalba in 1595-96- In
April, 1607, he was an actor in the company of Diego Lopez de
Alcaraz.
Sanchez ( Ines) , wife of Cristobal Ramirez de la Cruz, autor
de comedias, in 1613.
Sanchez (Jeronimo), autor de comedias in 1610, when he
took up the stranded company of Mariflores, widow of Pedro
Rodriguez. His wife was the celebrated actress Maria de los
Angeles. The next notice we have of him is in 1623. For his
company in this year, see Nuevos Datos, p. 194.
Sanchez (Lucas), actor in the joint company of Andres de
Claramonte from July 11, 1614, for one year.
Sanchez (Marcos), musician in the employ of D. Garcia de
Mendoza, Viceroy of Peru, in Lima, in 1588.
Sanchez (Maria) and her husband Francisco Garcia were
members of the company of Alonso Riquelme from March, 1602,
for two years. Both were residents of Ciudad Rodrigo.
Sanchez (Pablo), actor in the company of Esteban Nunez in
Seville in 1654.
Sanchez (Pedro), musician in the company of Domingo Bal-
bin in 1609.
Sanchez Baquero (Pedro) played first old men's parts in
the company of Pedro de la Rosa for one year from Feb. 15, 1636.
Sanchez de Echeverria (Felipe), autor de comedias. In
Sept., 1623, he represented three comedias before the King.
Sanchez de Medina (Francisco), actor in the company of
Pedro Maldonado in March, 161 1.
Sanchez de Mora (Alonso), actor in Valladolid in 1611.
(M. y M., p. 566.)
Sanchez Mudarra (Juan), musician in the employ of
D. Garcia de Mendoza, Viceroy of Peru, in Lima, in 1588.
Sanchezde Vargas (Hern an), famous autor de comedias. He
took part in the Corpus festival at Seville in 1596, evidently in Diego
de Santander's company. Sanchez-Arjona conjectures that Hernan
Sanchez was the author of the auto San Leonicio, produced by
Santander in this year. He was again in the company of Santander
in Feb.-June, 1597, and in the company of Alonso Riquelme in
1608. He had a company in 1609, and in 1610, 161 1, 1615, 1618,
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 597
and 1619 represented autos in Madrid, receiving 600 ducats for
two autos. In 1610 he lived in the Calle de las Huertas, Madrid,
and in this year his company produced Lope de Vega's La hermosa
Ester, he and his wife Sa Polonia [Perez] appearing in the cast.
He represented autos at Seville in 1612, and again visited that city
at Corpus in 1614, 1620, 1621, and 1622. In July, 1619, he
resided in Valencia. He was one of the twelve autores authorized
by the decree of 161 5, and in November of this year represented
seven comedias in Lerma, receiving 1400 reals. In a power of
attorney which he executed on Jan. 11, 1619, as executor of his
deceased wife Polonia Perez, she is called his first wife. She seems
to have been from the town of Hita, and left two children, Fran-
cisca and Hernando de Vargas, both still minors in Sept., 1626,
when Sanchez was residing in Valencia. On Feb. 22, 1619, his
wife was Francisca Rodriguez. Perez Pastor, Nuevos Datos,
p. 212, says that Polonia Perez was the second wife of Sanchez,
and that Francisca Rodriguez was the third. In Sept., 1623, he
agreed to perform in Madrid for four months, beginning on Sat-
urday, Sept. 2. His sister-in-law in 1633 was Mariana Juste,
widow of Dr. Francisco Rodriguez, physician, v. Bull. Hisp.
(1907), p. 383. In Sept., 1623, Sanchez represented four comedias
before the King. Of La hermosa Ester mentioned above, Lope
says: "Representola el famoso Sanchez con notable autoridad y
aplauso." From Shrovetide, 1634—35, he managed a joint company
with Juan de Malaguilla. Sanchez had a company in 1638 (in
1636-37 he seems to have been acting in the company of Pedro de
la Rosa. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 419; v. the entremes Los Muertos
vivos), and in 1640 is called a "merchant in the Calle de las
Huertas, living in his own house." In May, 1642, he is merely
styled a "resident of Madrid." He died, a widower, on Nov. 18,
1644, in prison in Madrid, leaving as executors Mariana Juste
and his daughter Francisca Vargas, who were then living in the
Calle de las Huertas, opposite the Calle del Amor de Dios, and he
was buried by the Cofradia de la Novena. Sanchez was especially
friendly to Luis Velez de Guevara, much to the displeasure of
Lope de Vega, who refused to write a play for him in Dec, 161 4.
v. Life of Lope de Vega, p. 252. The Sanchez mentioned by
Rojas, Viage, p. 131, among the "farsantes" who wrote farsas,
has, bayles, etc., is perhaps the same person.
598 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Sandino (Diego), actor in Madrid in 1584. (B. H. (1906),
P- 363.)
Sandoval (Alonso de), actor? Witness to the marriage of
Josefa Vaca and Juan de Morales Medrano, Dec. 27, 1602.
Sandoval (Ana de), wife of Agustin Romero; both were in
the company of Jeronimo Sanchez from March 27, 1623, for one
year.
Sandoval (Jeronimo de), actor in the company of Antonio
de Castro in 1656, and with Jose de Prado in Seville in 1658.
Sandoval (Juan Antonio), husband of the actress Luisa de
la Cruz, q. v.
Santa Cruz (Baltasar de), actor in the company of Alonso
de Olmedo in Aug., 1620; in the company of Cristobal de
Avendano in 1622, and in Domingo Balbin's company from Sept. I,
1623, till Shrovetide, 1624.
Santa Cruz (Maria de), actress, married Diego Prudencio
de Florencia y Carrillo in Valladolid in 1653.
Santa Cruz Caballero (Diego de), el Tuerto, born in
Seville in the "barrio de Triana." His wife was Manuela Mazana,
q. v. He died in 1679.
Santamaria (Juan de) and his wife Luisa de Ortega were in
the company of Sanchez de Vargas in March, 1634-35.
Santander (Andres de), money-taker (cobrador) for Fernan
Sanchez de Vargas in 16 19.
Santander (Diego de), autor de comedias in Madrid in
Oct., 1594. In 1591 he represented two autos in Seville, and
again in 1596 and 1599. In the latter year he produced in Madrid
the comedia Lupercia constante 6 la Dama fregona (Paz y Melia,
Catdloffo, No. 1933), and represented three comedias in Seville on
the occasion of the visit of the Marquesa de Denia, receiving 600
reals. In 1601 his company represented in Valladolid. (Cortes,
Noticias de una Corte literaria, 1906, p. 31, n.) Lope de Vega
at the end of his Peregrino en su Patria (ed. 1604, fol. 163) men-
tions Santander as having first produced his comedia La Montanesa,
and says of him that he was "digno de ser oydo, y no de menor
cuydado y ingenio [que Villegas]." Barrera, Catalogo, p. 366,
mentions a Martin de Santander, and says that he was a contempo-
rary of Lope de Rueda.
Santiago (Antonia de) of Granada was the second wife of
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 599
Pedro de la Rosa; in 1635 she belonged to the company of
Alonso de Olmedo, and is called "famosa, tercera," and in 1639
she played fourth parts in Pedro de la Rosa's company in Seville.
Whether she was the sister or the wife of Santiago, who played
segundo barba in the same company in those years, I do not know,
v. Sanchez-Arjona, pp. 298, 327. It may be noted that in 1639
Pedro de la Rosa's first wife, Catalina de la Rosa, and Antonia de
Santiago were both members of his company. Antonia's name
again appears in the cast of Belmonte's A un tiempo Rey y Vasallo
(1642). It is probable that at this date she was not yet the wife
of Pedro de la Rosa. The Sra. Antonia of the cast of Montero's
Amar sin favorecer (1660) is almost certainly the wife of Rosa,
who appeared in the same cast. She accompanied her husband's
players to Paris in this year and in 1674; in 1664 she was sobre-
saliente in Bartolome Romero's company. (Perez Pastor, Calderon
Doc. , I, p. 308.) She seems to have survived her husband, who
died in 1675.
Santiago (Antonia de), wife of Francisco de Castro; both
were in the company of Luis Lopez in 1650 in Seville.
Santiago (Diego de), actor in the company of Diego de San-
tander in Dec, 1594; in Oct., 1602, he and his wife Marina de
Torres were members of the company of Melchor de Leon. From
March 27, 1623, for one year, he was in the company of Jeronimo
Sanchez; in July, 1626, he had a company and represented a
comedia before the King. In 161 3 we find Diego de Santiago,
autor de comedias in Seville, where he produced an auto. His
name occurs in the cast of Godinez's La Reina Ester (1613).
Sanchez-Arjona (p. 155) says that in March, 1633, his wife
was Maria Lopez Ferrer, when both were received into the
Cofradia de la Novena. See also the Santiago mentioned above,
under Antonia de Santiago.
Santiago (Isabel de), actress in the company of Francisca
Lopez in Seville in 1660.
Santillana (Bartolome de), actor in Madrid in 1584.
Santiuste (Diego de), lessee of the theater in Toledo in
Feb., 1638.
Santos (Bernabela de los), child acting in the company of
Juan Acacio in Seville in 1644.
Santos (Maria de los), celebrated singer and wife of Pedro
600 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
de Salazar, el Granadino (1654). She played quintas damas in the
company of Sebastian de Prado and Antonio de Escamilla in 1662 ;
fourth parts in the company of Escamilla in 1663; in the company
of Simon Aguado in 1674; third parts with Escamilla in 1675 and
1676; fourth parts with Agustin Manuel de Castilla in 1677,
and sobresaliente in the company of Juan Antonio de Carvajal
in 1681.
Santoyo (Antonio), member and manager of the company
called Los Conformes in 1630, when they were acting in Lima,
Peru. Nuevos Datos, p. 219. This company was in existence in
1623. v. ibid., p. 202.
Sarmiento (Bernardino), actor in the company of Nicolas
de los Rios in 1609.
Sarmiento (Pablo), actor in the company of Nicolas de los
Rios in 1609, and in Claramonte's company from March 28, 1614,
till Shrovetide, 1615. In March, 1623, he and his wife Maria
Calderon were in the company of Juan Bautista Valenciano.
(Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 248.)
Sasieta, v. Avendano.
Saura (Juan de), member of the company of Pedro de la
Rosa in Seville in 1639.
Scobedo (Antonio de), "autor desconocido" ; represented the
auto El Bellocino dorado in Seville in 1589. See Escobedo (An-
tonio de).
Sedeno (Gabriel), actor in 1632 in Madrid. His wife was
Ana de Saavedra y Aguiar.
Segobia, actor in the cast of Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan
(1625), taking the part of Carlos.
Segura (Ana de), actress, married Bias de Aranda in Valla-
dolid in 1607. (M. y M., Estudios, p. 566.) Both were in the
company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas for one year from Feb. 27,
161 1. Whether she is the same as the Juana de Segura mentioned
below, I do not know.
Segura (Antonio de), actor in the company of Cristobal de
Avendano in 1632.
Segura (Francisco de) of Seville represented the auto El
Ensalzamiento de la Humanidad in 1575 at Seville. Perhaps this
is the Segura mentioned by Suarez de Figueroa, Plaza Universal,
1615, as an actor then deceased.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 60 1
Segura (Gaspar de), husband of the actress and autora de
comedias Francisca Lopez (1660). He died before 1663.
Segura (Juana de), widow, actress in the company of Jero-
nimo Sanchez from March 27, 1623, for one year.
Segura (Maria de), autora de comedias; she had a company
in Seville in 1663.
Sequeiros (Juan de Sierra), musico in the company of
Manuel Vallejo in 1676 and 1679; he was in Agustin Manuel's
company in 1677 and 1678, and in Carvajal's in 1681. According
to Cotarelo (Migajas del Ingenio, 1908, p. 194), his first wife was
Teresa de Garay, q. v.
Serrano (Gaspar), actor in the cast of Lope de Vega's La
gran Columna fogosa in 1629.
Serrano (Jose), actor in the company of Magdalena Lopez in
1674 in Seville.
Sevillano (Bernardino), actor in Madrid in Jan., 1619.
Sevillano (Lucia or Luisa), widow, actress in a joint com-
pany in 1637, representing in Brunete on Aug. 15 and 16, and in
Pefialver in March, 1639.
Sierra (Antonio de) , actor in the company of Juan Rodriguez
de Antriago in April, 1639.
Sierra (Dorotea de), wife of Juan Mazana; both appeared
in the cast of Alarcon's Las Paredes oyen in 1617, and in Lope
de Vega's El Brasil restituido in 1625. She was the daughter of
Jeronima de Sierra by a first marriage. She was in the company
of Antonio de Prado in 1632(F) or i636(?). v. Rosell, Vol. I,
pp. 174, 193, 322. The entremes Las Duehas (p. 322) seems to
have been represented in 1635-36. In Feb., 1636, she and her
husband Juan Macana agreed to act at Brunete at the festival of
Nuestra Senora de San Roque. In May, 1642, she is described as
the former wife of Juan Mazana, who was still living. She had
two daughters, Jusepa and Manuela.
Sierra (Jeronima de), mother of Dorotea de Sierra by a first
marriage and afterward wife of the actor Juan de Escuriguela or
Escorihuela at the date of her will, Dec. 26, 1641.
Sigura (Juan de), actor in the company of Jeronimo Velaz-
quez from May, 1574, till Shrovetide, 1575, for the sum of 100
ducats, "y demas dellos le ha de dar de comer y beber y cama y
posada y hacelle lavar la ropa y Uevarle y traerle caballero donde
602 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
quiera que fuere y los dichos cien ducados se los ha de ir dando
como fuere sirviendo." (N. D., p. 334.)
Silva (Alonso de), maestro de danzas at the Corpus festival
at Madrid in 1574.
Silva (Antonio de) actor in Valladolid in 1644 in the com-
pany of Francisco de Guzman Morales.
Silva (Catalina de), actress, wife of Francisco Antonio
Becerra, representing in Valladolid in 1642. (M. y M., p. 566.)
Simon (Juan Antonio), second galan in the company of
Pablo Martin de Morales in Seville in 1678; in 1681 he was in
the company of Juan Antonio de Carvajal.
Simon (Manuel) and his wife belonged to the company of
Diego Lopez de Alcaraz in 1603-04; he was in the company of
Alonso de Heredia in March, 1614; in the company of Pedro de
Valdes in 161 3 -14, and appeared in Lope's La Dama boba. He
directed a company in 1627, acting in the Coliseo, in Seville, and
his name occurs in the cast of Lope's La Conpetencia en los Nobles.
His company first produced Cordeiro's comedia El Hijo de las
Batallas. (Schack, Nachtrage, p. 103.)
Solano (Agustin) of Toledo and his wife Roca Paula be-
longed to the company of Tomas de la Fuente from March 5, 1584,
till Shrovetide of 1585, receiving 9 reals for each performance
and 4j4 reals daily for maintenance. In 1593 he was in the
company of Cisneros. (Rojas, Viage, p. 515.) On May 19, 1595,
he joined the company of Gaspax de Porres for two years, from
Shrovetide to Shrovetide, receiving 3000 reals per year. In
March, 1597, he seems to have been in the company of Nicolas
de los Rios. (N. £)., p. 47.) In Nov., 1600, he was again in the
company of Gaspar de Porres. Solano was one of the interlocu-
tors in the Viage entretenido of Rojas (1603), who calls him a
famous actor (p. 362). Suarez de Figueroa in his Plaza Universal
(161 5) gives his name among the famous actors then deceased.
He is also mentioned by Lope de Vega, Comedias, Part XVI,
1622, Prologue, among the celebrated players who were fast dis-
appearing, and in the dedication of his comedia Jorge Toledano,
"comedia de las antiguas mias," in Part XVII, Lope bestows this
extraordinary praise upon Solano: "Hacia el Jorge Toledano
aquel insigne representante de Toledo Solano, a quien en la figura
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 603
del galan por la blandura, talle y aseo de su persona nadie ha
igualado." In the Viage entretenido (p. 393) Solano states that
he was a boy in 1566.
Solano (Francisco), autor de comedias in 1637 and 1638; his
wife was Isabel de Quesada.
Soler (Jose), harpist in the company of Manuel Vallejo in
1672, 1673, and 1674.
Soria (Diego de) of Toledo, actor in the company of Antonio
Granados in Valladolid in April, 1604.
Soria (Francisca de), actress in the cast of Lope's Amor,
Pleito y Desafio ( 1 62 1 ) .
Soria (Juan de), actor in the company of Diego Lopez de
Alcaraz in 1603-04, and member of a joint company of actors in
March, 1604. The name Soria occurs in the cast of Lope's La
Discordia en los Casados ( 161 1 ).
Soriano (Juan de) belonged to the company of Baltasar
Pinedo in Toledo at Corpus in 161 3.
Soriano (Pedro), primer galan in the company of Jeronimo
Vallejo in 1660; he was barba in Agustin Manuel's company
in 1678; in Jose de Prado's in 1679; in Jeronimo Garcia's in
1680 and in Carvajal's company in 1681.
Sosa (D. Francisco de), musician in a joint company at Hita
in July, 1637.
Soto (Juan de), actor in the company of Ines Gallo, was
drowned at Huelva in 1678.
SOTOMAYOR, V. PaEZ DE SOTOMAYOR.
Sotomayor (Francisco de) and his wife Vicenta Lopez were
members of the company of Cristobal de Avendano for one year
from Jan. 18, 1626, and both, with their daughter Isabel (v. Isa-
belica), belonged to the company of Roque de Figueroa in 1631.
See Rosell, Vol. I, p. 23 1 , which shows that he managed a company
in the preceding year. He appeared in the cast of Lope de Vega's
Los Guzmanes de Toral, ed. Restori, p. vii. It seems that he died
in 1637. (Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. I.)
Sotomayor (Isabel de), v. the preceding. She is probably
the Isabelica of La Guarda cuidadosa by Miguel Sanchez, ed.
Rennert; and of Lope's Los Guzmanes de Toral, ed. Restori.
6o4 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Sotomayor (Juan de) of Toledo, actor in the company of
Domingo Balbin in Seville in 1613. In 1617 and 1619 at Corpus
in Seville he was a member of the company of Juan Acacio, re-
ceiving in the former year a gratuity of 1000 reals for his excellent
acting in the auto La Salteadora del Cielo.
Suarez or Suarez Camacho (Cristobal), actor in the com-
pany of Domingo Balbin from June, 1609, to 1610. In Dec, 1610,
he was a witness to the marriage of Diego Lopez de Alcaraz and
Catalina de Carcaba. He was again in Balbin's company in
1 61 3, and his name occurs in the cast of Lope's El Voder en el
Discrete (1624). In 1627 he was in the company of the Valen-
cianos. (Barrera, N. Biog., p. 442.) In 1629 he had a company
and represented an auto in Seville. This is probably the Suarez
who first produced Lope's Amar como se ha de amar. The sueltas
read : "Representola Suarez," and the MS. contains licenses of the
year 1643. (Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 121.)
Suarez (Diego), one of the autores de comedias in charge of
the autos in Seville in 1 684.
Suarez (Dionisia) of Madrid, wife of the actor and autor de
comedias Juan Martinez; both were in the company of Cristobal
Ortiz in Seville in 1619, when she received a gratuity of 25
ducats for her dance las Gallegas. She was again in the com-
pany of Ortiz in the following year. The statement that she was
the wife of Juan Nunez (S.-A., p. 204) is almost certainly an
error.
Suarez (Maria), wife of Francisco Rodriguez; both, together
with their daughter Antonia Bernarda, were in the company of
Manuel Vallejo in 1 631.
Suarez (Paula), actress in the company of Manuel Vallejo
in 1675.
Sustaete, v. Lopez de Sustaete.
Tafalla (Bernabe), actor in the company of Cristobal de
Avendano in 1622.
Talavera (Mariana de), wife of Francisco Felix; both acted
in Barajas at Corpus, 1636. She appeared in Calderon's La Vida
es Sueno, Lope's Don Juan de Austria, and Rojas Zorrilla's Casarse
par vengarse at the octave of Corpus in Madrid in the same year.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 605
Tapia, v. Perez de Tapia (Juan).
Tapia (Carlos de) or Manuel Francisco Carlos de
Tapia, son of Juan de Tapia and Basilia de Alcaraz, was a mem-
ber of Manuel Vallejo's company in 1631, and in the company of
Jacinto Riquelme in Seville in 1652. In 1651 he managed a
company in Valladolid, which included Maximiliano Morales,
Maria de Borja, Juan Rodriguez, and Beatriz Barba. (M. y M.,
p. 567.) He returned to Seville in 1660 and 1663 in the company
of Francisca Lopez, and in 1665 in the company of Felix Pascual.
He was still living in 1680.
Tapia (Francisco de), harpist and musico in the company of
Alonso de Olmedo in 1635.
Tapia (Jose de), son of Juan de Tapia and Basilia de Alcaraz;
he was in the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1 63 1.
Tapia (Juan de), native of Seville, was more than twenty-five
years old on March 5, 1584, when he joined the company of Tomas
de la Fuente for one year, till Shrovetide, 1585. In 1600-01 he
seems to have been in the company of Gabriel de la Torre. (N. D.,
p. 57.) In March, 1602, he had a company jointly with Luis de
Castro and Alonso de Paniagua. He was in the company of
Domingo Balbin in Seville in 161 3, when he appeared as Asuero
in La Reina Ester by Godinez. Lope de Vega {Comedias, Part
XVI, Madrid, 1622, Prologo) mentions him as a famous actor.
He married (after 1602) Basilia de Alcaraz, and had two sons,
Jose and Carlos; all were in the company of Manuel Vallejo in
1631-32. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 220. Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 277, 301.)
Tapia appeared also in the cast of Lope de Vega's Los Guzmanes
de Toral, ed. Restori, p. ix, and in his Sin Secreto no ay Amor
(1626), ed. Rennert. See also Perez de Tapia (Juan).
Tapia (Pedro de), actor in the company of Domingo Balbin
in Seville in 161 3.
Tardia (Maria), actress in Pedro Cebrian's company in 1616,
when she appeared in Lope de Vega's Quien mas no puede. In
1 61 8 she belonged to the company of Juan de Morales Medrano,
and received a gratuity of 501 1 mrs. at Corpus in Seville for
excellence in the auto La Peregrina del Cielo. In 1619 she and
her husband Cebrian Dominguez were acting in Madrid. (N.D.,
P- 175.)
606 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Tejada or Tejera (Diego de) represented autos at Seville in
1571. 1573. and 1574.
Tejada Meneses (Jose de), actor in the company of Barto-
lome Romero from March 24, 1638, for one year.
Teloy (Bernarda), her husband Miguel Jimenez and daugh-
ter Bernarda Gamarra were in the company of Manuel Vallejo in
1631-32. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 221.)
Tellez (Catalina), wife of Sebastian Gonzalez; both were
in Domingo Balbin's company from Sept. 1, 1623, till Shrove-
tide, 1624.
Teresa Maria, actress in the company of Esteban Nunez in
Seville in 1654.
Timor (Vicente), actor in the company of Antonio de Prado
in 1624.
Timoteo (Jose), actor in the company of Francisca Lopez in
Seville in 1660 and 1663.
Toledo (Angela de) and her husband Miguel Muiioz were
in the company of Juan Bautista Valenciano in 1623. (Bull. Hisp.
(1908), p. 248.)
Toledo (Juan de), administrator of the theaters of Toledo
in 1623.
Toledo (Luis de), actor in the company of Hernan Sanchez
de Vargas in Lope's La hermosa Ester (1610). He was indicted
in 161 1 for stabbing a woman in the face. In 1614-16 he and his
wife Petronila de Loaysa of Madrid were in the company of
Antonio de Prado, and appeared in Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta
Juana. In 1619 both were in the company of Juan Acacio in
Seville. In Feb., 1632, his wife was Sebastiana de Cordoba, sister
of Maria de Cordoba y de la Vega. (N. D., p. 223.)
Tomas (Diego), actor in the company of Bartolome Romero
for one year from March 22, 1639.
Tome (Francisco) and his wife Francisca Antonia belonged
to the company of Bartolome Romero in Feb., 1638. He was
money-taker (cobrador) at the entrance for women.
Torrado (Angela de), wife of Bartolome Manso and mother
of Francisca Manso; both the latter were in the company of
Andres de la Vega from Feb. 7, 1636, for one year. In the notice
of Bartolome Manso's death, July 26, 1652, his wife is called
Maria Torrada.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 607
Torre (Gabriel de la), autor de comedias. In Aug., 1589,
he was an actor and lived "in his own house" in the Calle de
Atocha, below the hospital of Anton Martin. His wife was
Melchora de Rojas. He had a company in 1597, and in 1599
represented at Salamanca at a festival given by the "Colegio del
arzobispo." In 1600 he represented the autos at Madrid with
Melchor de Villalba. He is mentioned by Rojas, Viage entretenido
(1603), as a famous autor. In 1605 and 1611 he is styled a
merchant (he sold theatrical goods and hired out costumes), and
in that year at Corpus brought out, with Andres de Najera, two
dances: "una de El Rey D. Alonso, que sera de cascabeles y otra de
Cuenta." (N. £>., p. 125.) In 1612 he was again in charge of
a dance at Corpus in Madrid with Luis de Monzon, and also from
1615 to 1620. In 1623 he was joint lessee of the corrales of
Madrid with Luis de Monzon and Gabriel Gonzalez.
Torrella. Pellicer, Vol. II, p. 139, speaks of two brothers by
this name, natives of Morella, and both at one time members of
the company of Roque de Figueroa. They so greatly resembled
each other that the audience could not tell them apart, which
sometimes produced a very striking effect, as in the comedia El
Palacio confuso, where the illusion of the play was greatly aided
by this circumstance.
Torres (Alonso de), autor de comedias who represented the
auto La Justa divina in Seville in 1 59 1. Perhaps this is the Torres
who appeared in the sixteenth century Entremes de un Hijo que
nego a su Padre, v. p. 406.
Torres (Ana de), actress, wife of Manuel Jerje and mother
of Francisca and Beatriz de Hinestroza and of Juana de Mendoza,
all of whom were in the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631-32.
Torres (Bartolome de), actor in the company of Nicolas de
los Rios in Seville in 1609, and in Feb., 1614, in the company of
Alonso de Villalba. v. Rojas, Viage entretenido, p. 465.
Torres (Catalina Eugenia de), wife of Felipe Garces; both
were in the company of Antonio Granados from Sept. 3, 1604, for
one year.
Torres (Cristobal de), actor in the company of Antonio de
Castro in Seville in 1656, and in that of Juana de Cisneros in 1660.
Torres (Francisca de), wife of Juan Vazquez; both were in
the company of Antonio Granados for one year from March 19,
6o8 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
1623, "she to play one half of the first parts of the old and new
comedias, one half of the second parts, and one half of the bailes."
They were in the company of Manuel Vallejo from Ash Wednes-
day, 1624, for one year, she to play one half the first parts. They
had a daughter Maria Vazquez.
Torres (Isabel de), la Granaaina; in July, 1614-15, she was
the wife of Francisco Hernandez Galindo, and both were members
of the company of Claramonte. She is mentioned in a complaint
made to the Inquisition of Valencia (in 1588?) as living in
concubinage with Avendano, el Mozo, "a youth with a scar near
the right eye," when both were in Osorio's company in that city.
At this time Isabel was married, her husband being apparently in
the same company, v. Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, p. 30.
Torres (Jose de), actor in the company of Tomas Diaz in
Seville in 1643.
Torres (Josefa de), doncella, actress in the company of Juan
Acacio in Seville in 1644.
Torres (Juan de), actor in the company of Gaspar de Porres
in Dec, 1597.
Torres (Leocadia de), wife of Segundo de Morales; both
were members of the company of Diego Vallejo in Seville in 1619.
Torres (Marina de), wife of Diego de Santiago in Oct.,
1602, when both belonged to the company of Melchor de Leon; in
Feb., 16 14, she was the wife of Jeronimo de Culebras, and both
were members of the company of Alonso de Villalba for one year
from that date.
Torres (Melchor de) played second galanes in the company
of Angela de Leon in Valencia in 1676.
Torres (Salvador de), gracioso mentioned by Pellicer, Vol. II,
p. 60.
Torres (Teresa de), wife of Domingo Garcia; both were in
the company of Felix Pascual in Seville in 1665.
Torres ( Tomas" de), actor in the company of Juan Acacio in
Seville in 1619.
Torres (Ursula de), wife of Francisco Ortiz, cobrador; both
were in the company of Bartolome Romero for one year from
March 14, 1640. In Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. I, p. 671, we read
that Ursula de Torres was the wife of the cobrador Juan de Ayora,
and that she had a daughter Maria de Ayora.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 609
Torres Laballe (Maria de), wife of Antonio de Castro;
both were in the company of Juan Acacio in Seville in 1644.
Tovar (Luis de), actor in the company of Alonso de Olmedo
in 1635.
Trejo (Juan de), actor in the company of Juan Roman from
Shrovetide, 1639, to Shrovetide, 1640.
Trevino or Tribino (Francisco de), actor in the company
of Cristobal de Avendano in 1622; in 1624 he was in the com-
pany of Juan de Morales Medrano, and his name occurs in the
cast of Lope de Vega's El Poder en el Discreto (1623), performed
by that company, and in Amor, Pleito y Desafio (1621-22). In
1631-32 he was in Roque de Figueroa's company, to which his
wife Isabel Blanco also belonged. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 206;
Rosell, Vol. I, pp. 109, 322.) He was in the same company in
1635, and appeared in Peligrar en los Remedios by Rojas Zorrilla.
He and his wife also appeared in Lope's Los Guzmanes de Toral,
ed. Restori, p. ix. From Shrovetide, 1637, t0 1638, he was gracioso
in the company of Lorenzo Hurtado.
Tristan (Matias) of Zaragoza, actor, member of a distin-
guished family. His first wife, Angela Labella (not an actress),
jealous of her husband, poisoned herself. He then married
Manuela Quirinos of Zaragoza.
Truchado, actor in the company of the Valencianos in 1627.
(Barrera, N. Biog., p. 442.)
Uarte, v. Duarte.
Uceta (Alonso de), actor in the company of Ayendano,
together with his wife Dona Maria de Castro, in 1632. (Cotarelo,
Tirso, p. 203 ; Rosell, I, p. 84.) In the Bull. Hisp. ( 1908) , p. 248,
we read that Diego de Uceta and his wife Maria de Castro were
in Juan Bautista Valenciano's company in March, 1623.
Ugarte (Juan de), harpist in the company of Manuel Vallejo
in 1676.
Ulloa (Ana Maria de), wife of Juan de Montemayor and
mother of Beatriz de Velasco. She belonged to the company of
Antonio de Prado in 1 614-16, appearing with her husband in
Tirso's La Tercera de la Sancta Juana. Both were in the com-
pany of Fernan Sanchez de Vargas in 1617-18, and in Heredia's
company in 1627-28, appearing in Lope's Del Monte sale. In
610 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
1632 she and her husband and daughter belonged to the company
of Cristobal de Avendafio. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 203.)
Ulloa (Antonia de), muslca in the company of Jeronimo
Vallejo in 1660.
Ulloa y Sotomayor (Ines de), wife of Andres de Guevara,
actor in the company of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas in March,
1626.
Ureina (Pedro de), v. Ortiz de Urbina.
Urquiza (Juan de), his wife Maria Hidalgo, and his son
Pedro were in the company of Roque de Figueroa in 1 63 1. (Cota-
relo, Tirso, p. 206.) In 1 638 he was cobrador in Antonio de
Rueda's company.
Urquiza (Pedro de), v. preceding. He and his wife Juliana
Candado were in the company of Antonio de Rueda in Seville in
1644.
Vaca (Gabriel) of Madrid, autor de comedias in 1598. His
wife was Catalina de Valcazar. In 1601—02 he had a company
with Pedro Ximenez de Valenzuela. Vaca and his wife were in
the company of Antonio Granados from Sept. 13, 1602, till
Shrovetide, 1603. (B. H. (1907), p. 367.) He died before
March 30, 1608.
Vaca (Hipolita), daughter of Juan Ruiz de Mendi, autor de
comedias, and Mariana Vaca. She was a minor in 1596.
Vaca (Mariana), wife of Juan Ruiz de Mendi (1589), who
died Nov. 24, 1596, she surviving. She was the mother of Jusepa
and Hipolita Vaca, and was a celebrated actress. She must have
managed a company after her husband's death, for she produced
Lope de Vega's Viuda Valenciana before 1603. (I believe the
play has been revised, as we have it now.) Lope says: "Repre-
sentola Mariana Baca, unica en la accion, y en entender los
versos." (Comedias, Part XIV, fol. 101.) Suarez de Figueroa,
Plaza Universal (1615), mentions her among the famous actresses
then deceased.
Vaca (Mariana), v. Morales (Mariana Vaca de).
Vaca de Mendi (Jusepa) or Jusepa Vaca, as she is generally
called, one of the most famous of Spanish actresses, was the daugh-
ter of Juan Ruiz de Mendi and Mariana Vaca. She married the
celebrated autor de comedias Juan de Morales Medrano on Dec. 27,
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 611
1602, from which time she appeared almost constantly in her hus-
band's company. For her Luis Velez de Guevara wrote La Serrana
de la Vera (1603), and Lope de Vega composed his Almenas de
Toro (1618): "Representola Morales y hizo la gallarda Jusepa
Vaca a Dona Elvira." She had a daughter Mariana de Morales,
q. v., and in 1622 she, her husband, and her daughter belonged to
the company of Manuel Vallejo, and in 1623 all appeared in Lope
de Vega's El Poder en el Discreto. They lived in the Calle del
Principe (1619). In 1618 Jusepa and her daughter Mariana re-
ceived a gratuity of 300 reals for excellence in acting in Enciso's
auto La Serrana de la Vera in Seville. Jusepa Vaca was still living
in Madrid in 1634, ner husband being in Segovia in that year with
his company. (2V. £)., p. 239.)
Vacamonte, v. Bracamonte Gallareta.
Valba Ojeda (Maria) played second parts in the company of
Pedro de Ortegon in Seville in 1635.
Valcarcel, v. Gonzalez Valcarcel.
Valcazar (Catalina de), wife of the autor de comedias
Gabriel Vaca (March, 1598, to 1602). Both were in the company
of Antonio Granados from Sept., 1602, till Shrovetide, 1603.
On March 30, 1608, she married Alonso Riquelme. Both are then
described as being widowed. (N. D., p. 105.) She appeared in
her husband's company in 1610 in Lope de Vega's La buena
Guar da. Catalina Valcazar died on Nov. 22, 161 8. In the
"partida de defuncion" she is described as "madre de Riquelme
farsante." Perez Pastor, Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 383, says that
she was the mother-in-law of Alonso Riquelme.
Valcazar (Jeronima de), wife of Pedro Garcia de Salinas;
both were in the company of Alonso Riquelme prior to Feb. 15,
1619, when they joined the company of Fernan Sanchez de Vargas
for two years, beginning at Shrovetide, she playing second parts.
Both belonged to the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631-32, she
playing graciosa parts, and both appeared in Lope de Vega's El
Castigo sin Venganza (1632).
Valcazar (Juan de), actor in Valladolid in 1628, in the com-
pany of Figueroa. (M. y M., p. 566.)
Valcazar (Luis) was a member of the company of Luis
Hurtado in Seville in 1642.
Valcazar (Maria de), wife of Pedro de Valcazar; both were
612 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
members of the company of Bartolome Romero from Sept. I, 1637,
till Shrovetide, 1639, and from Feb. 25, 1640, for one year, and
again in 1642 and 1643. She played third parts. Her full name
was Maria de Astorga y Valcazar. (N. D., p. 296 ; Rosell, Vol. I,
p. 220.)
Valcazar (Pedro), v. the preceding. He played the part of
vejete. A Valcazar, famous as a gracioso (about 1638) is men-
tioned in an entremes of Benavente. v. Rosell, I, p. 371.
Valdes (Agavaro Francisco) of Valladolid, autor de come-
dias in Madrid in 1583-84 and in April, 1588. His wife was
Luisa de Aranda.
Valdes (Gaspar de), actor in the company of Manuel Vallejo
in Seville in 1643 and in Madrid in 1650 and 165 1 in the company
of Antonio de Prado.
Valdes (Maria de) played segundas damas in the company of
Simon Aguado in 1674; in 1676 she was in the company of
Antonio de Escamilla, and in 1677 and 1678 with Agustin Manuel
de Castilla.
Valdes (Pedro de), famous actor and autor de comedias. He
was an actor in the company of Melchor de Villalba prior to
Nov., 1596 (N. D., p. 345), and was in the company of Diego
Lopez de Alcaraz in 1603-04. In 16 10 his company and that of
Juan de Morales Medrano represented the autos at Seville, whither
he returned in 1 616 and 1617. Ini6n Valdes was in the company
of Pinedo. (Perez Pastor, Bibl. Mad., Part III, p. 325; N. D.,
p. 139.) In Feb., 1614, his wife was the no less celebrated
Jeronima de Burgos, who had also been in Pinedo's company. On
Feb. 2, 1 6 14, Valdes is called "autor de comedias de los nombrados
por S. M." He was one of the twelve autores authorized by the
decree of 1615. On July 28, 1615, he and his wife mortgaged a
house which they owned in Valladolid "a la guerta perdida" for
8085 reals. In this year he took his company to Lisbon (after
June 15), and in 161 7 represented in Dona Elvira in Seville. In
1 62 1 he produced two autos in Madrid, receiving 600 ducats.
Valdes first represented several comedias of Lope de Vega, among
them: La Dama boba (1613) ; Con su pan se lo coma (written
before 1618) ; La Villana de Xetafe (printed in 1620) ; Amor,
Pleito y Desafio (written in 1621) ; in the latter play Valdes ap-
peared as the servant Sancho, and "La Senora Jeronima" as the
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 613
servant Leonor. Among the comedias of Tirso de Molina first
produced by him were: Amor y Celos hacen Discretos ( "Repre-
sentor Valdes, con que comenzo en Sevilla") ; Quien hablo pago;
La prospera Fortuna de D. Alvaro de Luna y adversa de Ruiz
Lopez d'Avalos, Primera y Segunda Parte. {Comedias, Part II,
1635.) In 1623 Valdes represented privately before the King.
In his company in the year 1625-26 were: Juan Gonzalez, Pedro
de Salazar, Pedro Real, and Ignacio Velazquez. (B. H. (1908),
p. 250.) He had a company in Perpifian on May 10, 1632, as
the autograph of Montalban's comedia La puerta Macarena shows.
(S.-A., p. 146.) v. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, p. 303, who gives the
date as May 10, 1631.
Valdes (Rafaela de), actress in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in 1 63 1. In 1637 she is called "criada de Damian Arias,"
an actor.
Valdes Toral (Diego de) agreed to act in the company of
Juan Martinez in 1631. His wife in Feb., 1637, was Ber-
narda de Castro y Guzman, and both contracted to act in the com-
pany of Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla for one year, he taking third
parts or barbas and she playing primeras damas.
Valdivia (Francisca Maria de), wife of Pedro Garcia de
Vergara; both were members of the company of Francisco Solano
from Aug. 12, 1637, till Shrovetide, 1638.
Valdivielso (Juan de) of Madrid, actor in the company of
Juan de Tapia from March 4, 1 602, to 1603, in the company of
Melchor de Leon in 1607, and in Diego Vallejo's company in 16 19.
He appeared in Lope's El Sembrar en buena tierra (1616).
Valdivieso (Simon Arias de), "prodigioso representante,"
mentioned by Claramonte in his Letania moral (1613) as then
deceased.
Valencia (Francisca de) of Seville, actress in the company
of Esteban Nunez in Seville in 1654-55. In the preceding year
she was in the company of Miguel Bermudez.
Valencia (Francisco de) and his wife Maria de Herrera
were in the company of Juan Bautista Espinola from Feb. 16, 1633,
to 1634; b°th played second parts, and both were in the company
of Hernan Sanchez de Vargas from March 9, 1634, to 1635. He
also acted in the company of Tomas Fernandez and Sebast. de
Avellaneda.
6 14 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Valenciano (Agueda), daughter of Francisco Valenciano r
both were in the company of Pedro de la Rosa in 1636-37-
Valencano (Francisco) played old men's parts (barbas) in
the company of Pedro de la Rosa in 1636—37.
Valenciano (Juan Bautista), native of Valencia. He had a
company in 1617, when he produced Lope de Vega's El Desden
vengado, in which he appeared as Rugero and his wife Dona
Manuela Enriquez, also of Valencia, as Celia. In 1619 he and his
wife were in the company of Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan at
Corpus in Seville. In 1620 Andres de Claramonte wrote for him
the comedia La infeliz Dorotea, in which he appeared as Don Fer-
nando, and in 1621 he represented autos in Seville. On the after-
noon of Thursday, July 25, 1620, the Valencianos, who had been
joined by Cristobal Ortiz, were representing Claramonte's San
Onofre 6 el Rey de los Desiertos in the Coliseo at Seville, when it
was destroyed by fire. (S.-A., p. 211.) In 1622 his company
produced Lope de Vega's Nueva Victoria de D. Gonzalo de
Cordoba, Manuela Enriquez also appearing in the cast. On
March 18, 1623, he agreed to take his company to Valladolid.
(Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 248.) In his company were: his wife
Manuela Enriquez, Diego de Uceta and his wife Maria de Castro,
Agustin Coronel, Miguel Munoz and his wife Angela de Toledo,
Pablo Sarmiento and his wife Maria Calderon, Gines de Robles,.
Juan de Arce, and Juan Perez. (Ibid.) In this year his company
and those of Juan de Morales, Cristobal de Avendano, and Manuel
Vallejo acted on the stages which were erected along the streets in
Madrid on the occasion of the visit of the Prince of Wales. (Ibid.)
In Oct., 1623, he is called autor de comedias por S. M. and
represented three comedias privately before the King; he then
resided in Segovia. His company represented in Madrid from
Nov., 1623, until twenty days before Shrovetide of 1624. He first
produced Tirso's Tanto es lo de mas como lo de menos. (Come-
dias, Part I (1626).) He seems to have died before 1628. v. En-
riquez (Manuela).
Valenciano (Juan Jeronimo) of Valencia, actor in the com-
pany of his brother Juan Bautista Valenciano in 1617, when he
appeared in Lope's El Desden vengado; in 1619 he belonged to
the company of Cristobal Ortiz de Villazan, and in 1620 he was
in his brother's company in Seville. In this year he appeared as
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 615
the King in Claramonte's Infeliz Dorotea. In 1623 he had a
company in Madrid, and on Feb. 12 produced the Vomedia of
Alarcon and Belmonte, Siempre ayuda la Verdad, before the
King and court, and afterward performed it in Seville, for on the
title-page we read : "Representola Juan Jeronimo Valenciano, con
que entro en Sevilla." He had a company in Seville in 1625, 1626,
1627, and 1633. His wife Ana Maria de Caceres played segundas
damas in Olmedo's company in Seville in 1635, and both played in
Manuel Vallejo's company in 1643.
Valenciano (Santiago), actor in the company of Alonso de
Heredia in 1614, and in the company of Pedro de la Rosa for
one year from March 2, 1637.
Valenzuela, v. Jimenez de Valenzuela.
Valera or Varela (Jacinto) and his wife Maria de San
Pedro were in the company of Roque de Figueroa in 1632 at
Corpus in Seville ( Sanchez- Arjona, p. 281), and in 1634—35,
when both appeared in Peligrar en los remedies by Rojas Zorrilla.
On Oct. 30, 1638, Maria de San Pedro, who then joined the
company of Segundo de Morales, is called the widow of Jacinto
Varela. (N. D„ p. 300.)
Vallejo (Carlos), well-known actor, son of Manuel Vallejo.
His first wife was Luisa Romero, and afterward he married
Feliciana de la Rosa, daughter of Pedro de la Rosa and Antonia de
Santiago. In 1660 he was segundo galan in the company of
Jeronimo Vallejo; in 1662 tercero galan in the company of Sebas-
tian de Prado; 1663 segundo galan with Jose Carrillo; 1664
segundo with Juan de la Calle and Bartolome Romero; in 1665
segundo with Francisco Garcia; 1670, 1672, 1673, 1675, and 1676
segundo galan with the company of Manuel Vallejo; 167 1 with
Felix Pascual, and in 1674 barba in the company of Simon Aguado.
He had a company as late as 1698. (Restori, Titulos de Comedias,
p. 198. See also Sanchez- Arjona, p. 328.) He was the author of a
comedia, Las Murallas de Casal. v. Paz y Melia, Catdlogo,
No. 2252. He had a son, Vicente Vallejo, also an actor, and died
in Madrid on Jan. 24, 1704. (Cotarelo, in Migajas del Ingenio,
p. 220.)
Vallejo (Diego), native of Seville, autor de comedias, and
father of Manuel Vallejo. He had a company in Gibraltar in 1614 ;
he and Juan Acacio represented the autos in Seville in 1619, and
616 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
in the previous year he represented Alarcon's Anticristo in Madrid.
Fernandez Guerra (Alarcon, p. 291) calls Diego an "herculeo
moceton" (strapping youth), but Diego's son Manuel acted in the
company in the following year. In Aug., 1627, Diego Vallejo,
according to Sanchez-Arjona, p. 258, again brought his company
to Seville. Very little seems to be known of the career of Diego
Vallejo; I find him mentioned only by Sanchez-Arjona and by
Fernandez Guerra. For his company in 1619, v. Sanchez-Arjona,
p. 203.
Vallejo (Francisca), called la Palomina, mentioned by Pelli-
cer, Vol. II, p. 59.
Vallejo (Francisco), tercero galan in the company of Antonio
de Escamilla in 1661.
Vallejo (Jeronimo), autor de comedias at the Corpus festival
in Madrid in 1660. For his company in this year, v. Perez Pastor,
Calderon Documentos, Vol. I, p. 269.
Vallejo (Juana), wife of Diego Pavia; both were in the
company of Francisco de Guzman Morales in Valladolid in 1644.
Vallejo (Manuel or Manuel Alvarez de), famous autor
de comedias, native of Seville, and son of Diego Vallejo. He and
his wife Francisca Maria were members of Diego Vallejo's com-
pany in 16 19. In 1622 he had a company and represented two
autos and also Lope de Vega's La Ninez de San Isidro in Madrid.
For his company in this year, v. Perez Pastor, Proceso de hope
de Vega, p. 297. In May of this year he declared that he was
more than twenty-five years old. (B. H. (1908), p. 246.) In
1623 he agreed to represent every day at Madrid from the third
or fourth day after Lent, "the performances not to be omitted al-
though there be but few people in the corral." He received 250
reals daily, besides being furnished with an alguacil. "If he takes
in more, he is to keep the excess; if 250 reals be not taken at the
entrance, he is to change the comedia, unless it be the day before
a festival, nor is he to leave Madrid for any festival." (N. D.,
p. 193.) In Feb. and May of this year his company produced
seven comedias before the King, including Tirso's La Gallega Mart
Hernandez. He represented besides many particulares before
Philip IV. (Averiguador, pp. 9 et passim and text, p. 236.) In
1623 he is called "autor de comedias de los nombrados por S. M.,"
and in this year (March 23, 1623) he and Juan de Morales, Cris-
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 617
tobal de Avendano, and Juan Bautista Valenciano represented on
Sunday on the public stands erected in honor of the visit of the
Prince of Wales. He was one of the five founders of the Cofradia
de la Novena. In 1627 he represented at Seville ( Sanchez- Arjona
says this was Diego Vallejo) ; in 1632 at Corpus in Madrid, and
in the early months of 1638 at La Monteria in Seville, and at
Corpus produced the autos. His first wife was Francisca Maria.
In the Bull. Hisp. ( 1908), p. 255, we read the following partida de
defuncion: "Francisca Maria, married to Vallejo, autor de come-
dias, died in the Calle del Nino on Nov. 21, 1627," etc. On p. 249
we read an inventory and appraisement of the effects of Manuel
Vallejo, "hechos con motivo de la muerte de Francisca Maria, su
muger," Madrid, Dec. 1, 1623. I cannot reconcile these statements.
According to the latter, she left a daughter, also named Francisca
Maria. It seems probable that 1623 is a mistake for 1627. In
1632 his company produced Lope's El Castigo sin Venganza, the
only time that it was given publicly, and on Feb. 3, 1635, repre-
sented it privately before the King. His wife was then the cele-
brated Maria de Riquelme. In 1639 he represented at Madrid
Coello's auto La Carcel del Mundo and the auto Hercules by
D. Francisco de Rojas. He returned to Seville and represented
autos in 1640, 1641, 1642, and 1643, and died in Madrid in 1644.
Vallejo left three children, Manuel, Carlos, and Maria Vallejo,
who also followed the profession of acting. For his company in
1631, v. Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 220; in 1640, v. S.-A., p. 339; in 1643,
ibid., p. 365. He first produced Tirso's Habladme en entrando
(Paz y Melia, Catdlogo, No. 1450) and Lope's El Engano en la
Verdad. Barrera, Catdlogo, p. 416, mentions the dramatist Juan
Francisco de Vallejo y Riquelme, author of the comedia Honor
tiene Leyes contra los Reyes, and conjectures that he was the son
of Manuel Vallejo and Maria de Riquelme.
Vallejo (Manuel de), el Mozo, son of Manuel Alvarez
Vallejo and Maria de Riquelme. His wife was Manuela Maria
de Espinosa; both were in the company of Antonio de Castro in
1656, and in 1660, before Corpus, they acted in the company of
Juana de Cisneros in La Monteria in Seville. (S.-A., p. 426.)
In this year he had a company in Madrid, and began to represent
in the Cruz on March 23, producing Calderon's Los Empehos de
un acaso, and on the 24th D. Fernando de Zarate's El Maestro
618 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
d e Alejandro, "new and never before seen or represented" ; April 30,
Zabaleta's No amar la mayor finexa, "new and never before repre-
sented, and unfortunate because of the few spectators present";
May 1, Vallejo did not represent "because there was not a soul
in the corral"; May 2, Vallejo repeated Zabaleta's play; May 3,
Moreto's Lo que puede la aprension; May 4, No hay ser padre
siendo Rey by D. Francisco de Rojas; May 5, No hay burlas con
el Amor by Calderon; May II, the new comedia by Matos(?),
El Renegado del Cielo; May 17, Montalvan's Amantes de Teruel
(the total receipts were 116 reals!) ; May 19, the new comedia
by Zarate( ?), A cada paso un peligro; June 9, Vallejo began with
the auto El Diablo mudo by Calderon. This auto was repeated
until June 20, when Vallejo took his company to Avila. (Perez
Pastor, Calderon Documentos, I, p. 276.) In 1663 Vallejo was
gracioso in the company of Jose Carrillo; in 1664 gracioso with
Juan de la Calle and Bartolome Romero; 1665 gracioso primero
with Francisco Garcia. From 1670 he had a company until 1681.
His wife Manuela Maria de Espinosa having died in 1670, Vallejo
married Da Ana. de Rojas, who died in 17 10. (Cotarelo, in
Migajas del Ingenio, p. 221.)
Vallejo (Maria), daughter of Manuel Alvarez Vallejo and
Maria de Riquelme. She was primera dama in the company of
Jeronimo Vallejo in 1660. Sometime before 1672 she married
Francisco Garcia, Pupilo, and acted in her husband's company in
that year. She died in Madrid in 1 702, leaving no children.
Vallejo (Vicente), actor, son of Carlos Vallejo.
Valles (Pedro), actor in the company of Francisco Lopez in
Seville in 1660 and 1663, and in that of Francisco Gutierrez
in 1668.
Vallespin (Esteban), native of Palma, where he married
Jeronima Abella in 1673. Actor and afterward manager of a
company in Valencia with Agustin Manuel. He died at Pifia,
Aragon, in 17 11.
Valmaseda (Diego de), actor in the company of Juan Acacio
in Seville in 1644, and in the company of Francisca Lopez in 1660.
Valmaseda (Maria de), actress (in the company of
Figueroa?) at Valladolid in 1628. (M. y M., p. 566.)
Vaquedano (Juan), member of the company of Esteban
Nunez in Seville in 1648.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 619
Vaquedano (Polonia), tercera dama in the company of Jero-
nimo Vallejo in 1660. She was the sister of Teresa de Garay and
the wife of Francisco Rodriguez, cobrador in various companies.
Polonia was in the company of Felix Pascual in 1667 or 1668;
with Cristobal Caballero in 1674, with Hipolito de Olmedo in
1676, and with Felix Pascual in 1680. She was still acting in
1687 in the company of Antonio Arroyo. (Cotarelo, in Migajas
del Ingenio, 1908, p. 195.)
Vaquedano (Teresa), actress in the company of Esteban
Nunez in Seville in 1648.
Varela (Jacinto), v. Valera.
Vargas (Andres de) of Toledo, indicted in 1583, together
with Nicolas de los Rios and Martin de Aguirre, "for various
excesses." In 1584 he was acting in Madrid, and in Sept., 1586,
he and Nicolas de los Rios had a company of fourteen players,
who were to represent in Seville in Oct. of that year.
Vargas (Francisca de), a minor in 1626, daughter of Hernan
Sanchez de Vargas and Polonia Perez, his second wife. She
played second and third parts in her father's company in 1633,
and in 1634 she belonged to a joint company directed by her
father and Juan de Malaguilla, sharing the principal parts with
Manuela (Maria?) de Quesadas. She was living at the time of
her father's death, Nov. 18, 1644.
Vargas (Hernan Sanchez de), v. Sanchez.
Vargas (Hernando de), a minor in 1626, son of Hernan
Sanchez de Vargas and Polonia Perez.
Vargas (Jeronima de), actress in the company of Juan de la
Calle and Sebastian de Prado in 1659; her daughter Bernarda
Manuela, la Grifona, was in the same company. (Perez Pastor,
Calderon Documentos, Part I, p. 265.)
Vargas (Juan de) of Plasencia, actor in the company of Juan
Bautista Valenciano in 1617, appearing in Lope de Vega's El
Desden vengado; in 1619 he was in the company of Cristobal
Ortiz in Seville; in 1620 and 1622 he was again in the company
of Juan Bautista Valenciano, and appeared in the latter year in
Lope's La nueva Victoria de D. Gonzalo de Cordoba. In 1623
(Oct.) he was in the company called Los Conformes. There was
a Vargas in the company of Lorenzo Hurtado in Madrid in
1632-35 (?) (v. Rosell, Vol. I, p. 29), and in the company of
6zo SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Figueroa in 1635, when he appeared in Peligrar en los remedios
by Rojas Zorrilla.
Vargas Leyva (Juan de) produced the "dance of Portuguese
women" for the entry of the Queen into Madrid in 1570.
Varona, v. Barona.
Vazquez (Antonio), actor in the company of Alonso Cisneros
in 1589; one Vazquez, perhaps the same, and Juan de Avila gave
the first representation in the Corral del Principe on Sept. 21,
1583. v. Pellicer, Origenes, Vol. I, p. 69. A Gaspar Vazquez,
comediante, is mentioned by Moratin, Origenes del Teatro Es-
panol, as the author of the Comedia de la Costanza, printed at
Alcala de Henares in 1570.
Vazquez (Dionisio), actor in a joint company in Madrid
with Anton Alvarez, Vicente Ortiz, and others for one year from
March 23, 1604.
Vazquez (Juan), el Polio, and his wife Francisca de Torres
were members of the company of Antonio Granados from
March 19, 1623, for one year, and of the company of Manuel
Vallejo from Ash Wednesday, 1624, for one year. He repre-
sented one of the autos at Seville in 1628, and had a company in
1 63 1. His daughter was Maria Vazquez, q. v.
Vazquez (Juan Antonio), actor(?), lived in the Calle de
las Huertas, opposite the cemetery of the church of San Sebastian,
from 1626 to 1641. He was testamentario of Jeronima de Burgos
on her death in the latter year. The same as Juan Vazquez,
above ?
Vazquez (Juana), one of the earliest of Spanish actresses.
On March 15, 1583, Miguel Vazquez and his wife Juana Vazquez
agreed to act in the company of Juan Limos from that date until
Shrovetide of 1584. Luis de Molina, actor, joined in the contract
with them, and all three were to receive 9J/2 reals at the end of
each performance, besides board, lodging, washing, and traveling
expenses. {Bull. Hisp. (1906), p. 153.) She was in the com-
pany of Villegas in Seville before 1 600, and in the company of
Nicolas de los Rios before 1602. v. Rojas, Viage entretenido,
p. 462. She wrote some commendatory verses for the latter work.
In Dec, 1601, Juana Vazquez was the wife of the actor Nicolas
de Villanueva. (B. H. (1907), p. 366.)
Vazquez (Maria), daughter of Juan Vazquez and Francisca
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 621
de Torres. She is said to have been a member of Lorenzo Hur-
tado's company.
Vazquez (Miguel) and his wife Juana Vazquez were mem-
bers of the company of Juan Limos in 1583-84. He probably
died before Dec, 1601. See under Vazquez (Juana).
Vazquez (Pedro), actor in the company of Pedro de Ortegon
in Seville in 1635 ; acting in 1638.
Vazquez (Pedro), actor in the company of Manuel Vallejo in
1679, 1680, and 1681.
Vazquez (Sebastiana), sister of Fernando Perez; both were
in Andres de Claramonte's company from June 19, 1614, till
Shrovetide, 1615.
Vega (Agustin de la), actor in the company of Esteban
Nunez in Seville in 1648.
Vega (Agustina de), wife of Pedro de Ocana of Murcia;
both were in the company of Gaspar de Porres for one year from
March 27, 1593.
Vega (Alonso de la), actor and playwright, produced at
Seville in 1560 the autos Abraham and La Serpiente de Cobre, and
seven dances, receiving 160 ducats. He is said to have been a
member of the company of Lope de Rueda, and died at Valencia
before 1566, when his three comedias were published there by
Juan de Timoneda. On the title-page of the volume he is styled
"illustre poeta y gracioso representante." His comedias have been
republished by Menendez y Pelayo (Dresden, 1905).
Vega (Andres de la), called el gran Turco, celebrated autor
de comedias; his wife (1618) was the famous actress Maria de
Cordoba, called Amarilis and la gran Sultana, and both acted in
that year in the company of Baltasar Pinedo; they were in the
company of Tomas Fernandez in 1621. He had a company
in 1624 and produced at Seville Claramonte's autos La Sinagoga
and El Pastor Lobo. In 1625 he represented Lope de Vega's
Brasil restituido, and in 1625, 1626, 1627, 1628, and 1630 repre-
sented autos in Madrid. He was one of the five founders of the
Cofradia de la Novena. On April 11, 1635, his company repre-
sented privately before the King one of the last plays that Lope de
Vega wrote: Las Bizarrias de Belisa. He possessed an extensive
theatrical wardrobe, which he frequently hired out for festival rep-
resentations. For him Mira de Mescua wrote No hay Dicha ni
622 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Desdicha hasta la Muerte, the autograph of which is dated at
Madrid, July 20, 1628. (Paz y Melia, Cat., No. 2328.) In
1638 he is called "de los nomhrados por S. M.," and in this year
his company represented in Toledo. For his company in 1638,
v. N. D., p. 282. On June 8, 1643, his company, including his
wife, represented two comedias in the villa de Santorcaz for IOOO
reals and expenses. Latest date, Oct., 1643.
Vega (Bernardo de la), actor in the company of Juan de la
Calle and Bartolome Romero in 1664, playing terceros galanes;
he had a company and represented autos at Seville in 1672, 1673,
and 1675, and was in Valencia about 1675, acting galanes in his
own company. He married Luisa de Pinto, and both joined the
Cofradia in 1663.
Vega (Diego de), actor in the company of Diego de Santander
in May, 1597, and in that of Ximenez de Valenzuela in 1602.
In April, 1604, he joined the company of Gaspar de Porres, till
Ash Wednesday, 1605; jn Nov., 1607, was in the company of
Alonso Riquelme, and was a witness to his marriage on March 30,
1608.
Vega (Domingo de la), actor in the company of Manuel
Vallejo in Seville in 1640.
Vega (Francisco de) of Palencia, actor in the company of
Alonso Riquelme for one year from March 21, 1602. There was
a Francisco de la Vega, musico, in the little company of Lope de
Rueda in 1554. v. Cortes, Un Pleito de Lope de Rueda.
Vega (Hernando de la), actor in Madrid in 1584. (JS. H.
(1906), p. 363.)
Vega (Josefa de), wife of Diego Robledo; their son was Juan
de Robledo; all were in the company of Cristobal de Avendano
in 1632.
Vega (Pedro de), actor in a joint company in June, 1603, with
Luis de Castro and others, and for one year from March 23, 1604,
with Anton Alvarez, Vicente Ortiz, Francisco Ortiz, and others.
Vega (Salvador de), actor in the company of Andres de la
Vega for one year from Feb. 24, 1638.
Vega (Toribio de la), autor de comedias in May, 1653, when
his company represented before the King at Aranjuez.
Velais (Jose), actor in the company of Magdalena Lopez in
1677 at Seville.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 623
Velasco (Ana de), wife of Sebastian de Montemayor in
Feb., 1584, when both were in Madrid. {Bull. Hisp. (1906),
p. 363.) In Aug., 1589, she paid 100 ducats for a costume {una
basquina y manteo, ricos). She is mentioned by Suarez de
Figueroa, Plaza Universal, 1 61 5, among the famous actresses then
deceased.
Velasco (Antonio de), member of the company of Luis Lopez
in Seville in 1645.
Velasco (D. Bartolome de), real name of the actor "Juan
Alonso," who was in the company of Felix Pascual in 1665. He
was born in Villadiego (Burgos) and studied at Salamanca.
He was in Valencia in the company of Jose Carrillo in 1662 and
with Lopez in 1673. He died at Valladolid in 1685.
Velasco (Beatriz de), daughter of the actor Juan de Monte-
mayor and his wife Ana Maria de Ulloa. She was in Avendafio's
company in 1632. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 203 ; and v. Rosell, Vol. I,
pp. 62, 84, where she is called Beatricica.) Perhaps this is the
Beatriz who appeared in Avendafio's company at Corpus, 1626,
in Belmonte's entremes La Maestra de Gracia. v. Flor de En-
tremeses (1657), P- I22-
Velasco (Felipe de), at first an Augustinian friar, afterward
married Ana de Barrios and became an actor (about 1650). His
real name was Felipe de Cabrera y Sotomayor.
Velasco (Francisco de), actor in the company of Francisco
Lopez and others in 1632 at Corpus in Madrid. He and his
wife Ana Fajardo belonged to the company of Pedro de la Rosa
for one year from Feb. 15, 1636, when he played the primera
parte de galanes; in May, 1637, they paid 2300 reals for a single
costume. In this year he was in Pedro de la Rosa's company. In
1639 and 1641 he was again primer galan in Rosa's company.
(Schack, Nachtrage, p. 72.)
Velasco (Gabriel de), actor in the company of Cristobal de
Avendano in 1622.
Velasco (Inigo de), actor, murdered in Valencia Dec. 1,
1643. v. Comedias de Calderon, ed. Hartzenbusch, IV, p. 718.
According to Hume, Philip IV., London, 1907, p. 385, in the
Avisos de Pellicer {Semanario Erudito, Vol. XXXIII), the ac-
count of this affair is dated Aug. 25, 1643. It states that Inigo de
Velasco was beheaded "because, forgetting the humility of his
624 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
calling, he courted ladies as impudently as any gentleman could
have done."
Velasco (Isabel de), actress, betrothed to Luis de Quinones,
actor, on Sept. 20, 1614, when both were in the company of
Pedro de Valdes. They were married in the same year in Valla-
dolid.
Velasco (Jeronimo de), actor and musician, married Barbola
de Celis, actress, in Valladolid in 1632. (M. y M., P- 566.) He
was in the company of Pedro de la Rosa for one year from
March 3, 1637.
Velasco (Mariana de), called la Candada, and her husband
Luis Candau lived in the Calle del Infante in 1623, when they
seem to have been in the company of Tomas Fernandez; both
were members of Roque de Figueroa's company in 1632. (Cota-
relo, Tirso, p. 202.) It is said that they died on successive days
(Oct. 2 and 3, 1649) and were buried in the same coffin. Her
daughter Maria Candau was the wife of Cristobal de Avendano.
Velazquez (Alonso), autor de comedias, born in 1572
(S.-A., p. 98) ; he had a company in Seville at Corpus in 1598,
which included : Antonio Granados, Vicente Ortiz, Juan de Avila,
Cristobal de Ayala, Vicente Martin, and Domingo Fuentes.
Velazquez (Fernan?), autor de comedias in 1577, in charge
of the autos at Corpus in Madrid.
Velazquez (Ignacio) played subordinate parts in the com-
pany of Pedro de Valdes in 1625-26.
Velazquez (Jeronimo), one of the earliest and most cele-
brated of all Spanish autores de comedias. He represented in one
of the corrales of Madrid as early as 1568, and in 1570 represented
two autos in Segovia. In 1574 he produced the following autos
at Corpus in Madrid: La Pesca de San Pedro, La Vendimia
celestial, and El Rey Baltasar quando en sus convites profano los
vasos del Templo. "He is to furnish everything necessary for the
festival, except that the city is to furnish the three cars, with all
the necessary decorations, etc. He is to provide the personages,
costumes, etc., and the people to draw the cars, and is to receive
130 ducats, besides 60 reals to move the cars. He is to represent
only on Corpus day wherever the procession may go, and after-
ward whenever the commissioners may order." In 1576 he again
represented three autos in Madrid. On Sept. 6, 1579, he gave his
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 625
first representation of that year in Madrid at the Corral de Puente,
in the Calle del Lobo. He also produced the autos at Madrid in
1 58 1, 1582, and 1584. In 1582 he began to perform at the
Corral de la Cruz on Jan. 15, and represented many times in
the course of the year, alternating with Cisneros. In 1583, 1587,
and 1593 he represented the autos in Seville. In the latter year he
produced four autos, receiving 1200 ducats. In 1586 he produced
three autos in Madrid, receiving 5000 reals, and performed many
times during this year, beginning in Jan., and in 1587 in Madrid.
In 1589 he again represented three autos, receiving 700 ducats
and the sole right to act in Madrid from the second day of Pascua
de Resurreccion until Corpus three work-days in each week, besides
Sundays and feast-days; he also represented many times in Jan.,
Feb., and March, 1590, in Madrid, and again represented the
autos there in 1594 and in Toledo in 1596. For his representations
in Madrid, see Appendix A. In 1587 he caused the arrest and
indictment of Lope de Vega for libel, and on the trial it was shown
that Lope de Vega was then providing Gaspar de Porres with the
comedias which he had previously furnished to Velazquez, v. Life
of Lope de Vega, pp. 28, 30 et passim. His wife was Ines Osorio,
and his daughter Elena Osorio was the sweetheart of Lope de Vega
and the Filis of his ballads. Velazquez died on Feb. 25, 1613.
See Perez Pastor, Proceso de Lope de Vega, pp. 136 ff.
Velera (La), v. Hernandez (Isabel).
Velez (Antonio de) , gracioso in the company of Jose Garceran
in Seville in 1657.
Velez (Jacinta), wife of Francisco Maire; she played first
parts at Corpus in the villa de Algete in 1636.
Velez de Guevara (Antonio), el Riolo, son of the Valencian
actor Jose Vives and Ana Maria. He was a gracioso in Lorenzo
Hurtado's company in 1631.
Velez de Guevara (Francisco), actor in the company of
Juan Martinez in 1 63 1, and autor de comedias from Shrovetide,
1639, t0 1640, jointly with Pedro de Cobaleda and Francisco
Alvarez de Vitoria. For their company in this year, when they
represented autos at Segovia, v. N. D., p. 308. He represented
with his company in La Monteria, Seville, in 1 641.
Vellon (Manuel del), actor in the company of Gabriel de
Espinosa in July, 1638.
626 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Vera (Diego de), lessee of the Huerta de la Alcoba in Seville
in 1585.
Vera (Francisco DE),autor de comedias jointly with Jeronimo
Ruiz and Alonso de Morales in 1592 in Madrid.
Vera (Juan de), musico in the company of Jeronimo Velaz-
quez in 1584 and 1590.
Verdeseca (Catalina de), v. Hernandez de Verdeseca.
Verdugo (Francisca), actress in the cast of Belmonte's A un
tiempo Rey y Vasallo in 1642, when she played the part of a
prince aged seven; however, she is mentioned as an actress in
Valladolid in this year. (M. y M., p. 566.) She married Jacinto
Riquelme in 1645, when both were in the company of Bartolome
Romero {ibid., p. 567), and both were acting in Seville in 1652,
in his own company. In 1655 she is described as the "widow of
Riquelme" and took part in the autos of that year in Madrid, in
the company of Diego Osorio; in 1657 she was in the company of
Francisco Garcia; in 1659 in that of Pedro de la Rosa (she ap-
peared in the autos of this year in Madrid in the company of Diego
Osorio), in 1660 with Manuel Vallejo, when she appeared in
Calderon's El Diablo mudo. (Perez Pastor, Calderon Docu-
mentos, I, pp. 238, 276.) In 1662 she was primera dama in the
company of Simon Aguado and Juan de la Calle.
Verdugo (Francisco), actor in the company of Juan de
Morales Medrano in 1624.
Vergara (Alonso de), lessee of the Coliseo in Seville in
1640-43 and 1654. He had a son Francisco. (S.-A., p. 368.)
Vergara (Antonio de), actor in the company of Gabriel
Vaca in March, 1598. He was indicted in 1596 for wounding
some one; he was still acting in 1 61 4.
Vergara (Francisco de) and his wife Magdalena de Ribera
were in the joint company of Damian de Espinosa in March, 1639.
Vergara (Juan de), "famous actor of Jetafe; he wrote come-
dias." (Claramonte, Letania moral, in Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. II,
p. 476.) He was in Valencia apparently in 1588 in the company
of Rodrigo Osorio (Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda, p. 30), and also in
1 594-95 (Gallardo, I, p. 683), and in the company of Diego de
Santander in 1596 at Corpus in Seville, receiving a premium for
his acting in the auto El Caballero de la Luz. See also Rojas,
Viage, p. 13 1, who mentions him among the "farsantes" who wrote
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 627
farsas, loas, bayles, etc. Timoneda printed his two Coloquios
pastoriles, which are now lost. (Cotarelo, Lope de Rueda,
p. 30, n.)
Vergara (Luis de), well-known autor de comedias at least as
early as 1593, for he first represented Lope de Vega's El Favor
agradecido, written in that year. In Nov., 1595, he represented in
Granada Lope's El leal Criado, as the license (dated Oct. 30,
1595) attached to the autograph MS. shows. He produced an
auto in Madrid in 1599, receiving 325 ducats, and was also in
Madrid with his company in Nov., 1600. He also represented
autos in Seville (of which city he was a native) in 1601, 1602,
and 1614. Lope calls him "general en todo genero de representa-
ciones." Besides the two comedias mentioned above, Vergara
produced the following by Lope de Vega for the first time: El
Argel fingido (before 1604) ; El primer Rey de Costilla (written
probably before 1595) ; El Caballero del Milagro (before 1603),
and El Desposorio encubierto. Vergara died before 1 61 7, and was
survived by his wife Maria de la O, q. v. See also Rojas, Viage
entretenido, pp. 48, 53, 54.
Vibar (Martin de), actor in a joint company at the Corpus
festival in Borox in 1604. A Vibar appears in the cast of Lope de
Vega's La buena Guarda (1610).
Vibas (Mencia de), daughter of Marco Antonio de Angulo;
both were in the company of Segundo de Morales for one year
from Nov. 17, 1638. See also under Vivas.
Vicenta, actress in the company of Cristobal Ortiz at Corpus
in Seville in 1620, receiving a gratuity of 200 reals in the auto
La Casa del Pecado. She appeared in the same year in Clara-
monte's Infeliz Dorotea, as acted by the company of Juan Bap.
Valenciano. She had been in the same company in 161 7, and took
the part of Ynarda in Lope's Desden vengado in that year. How-
ever, this may have been Vincenta de Borja. See also under
Vincenta.
Vicente (Francisco) of Valencia, actor in the company of
Alonso Riquelme for two years from March, 22, 1602. In 1621
Francisco Vicente was a member of the company of Alonso de
Olmedo. {Bull. Hisp. (1908), p. 244.) The name Vizente
occurs in the cast of Lope's El piadoso Aragones (1626). In 1632
he and his son Mateo were members of the company of Antonio
628 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
de Prado. (Cotarelo, Tirso, p. 216.) Perhaps this was the
Vicente who appeared in the company of Sanchez de Vargas in
Lope's La hermosa Ester (1610). On May 19, 1638, Diego de
Leon, an actor, was accused by Lucia Bravo of the death of her
son Francisco Vicente. Whether this was the same person as our
actor, I do not know. (N. D., p. 292.)
Viera, actor in the cast of Tirso's Celos con Celos se curan
(1625).
Villa (Alejandro de la) and his wife Antonia Manuela
were in the company of Jose de Prado in Seville in 1658. He died
before 1663.
Villacorte (Bartolome de), autor de comedias in 1605.
v. Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 372.
Villafane (Alonso de), member of the company of Damian
Espinosa for one year from March 21, 1639.
Villagomez (Antonio de), actor in the company of Juan
Acacio for one year from March 9, 1626.
Villalba (Alonso de), autor de comedias; he died before
Sept., 1605. v. N. £)., p. 92. His wife was Ana Romera, q. v.
Their children were: Mateo, Melchor, and Isabel, deceased in
1605, and Alonso, Antonio, and Juana de Villalba, then living.
(N. D., p. 92.)
Villalba (Alonso de), son of Alonso de Villalba and Ana
Romero. In 1609 he and his wife Maria Alvarez belonged to the
company of Nicolas de los Rios in Seville. He had a company in
Seville in 1 610 and in 1 61 2, and refused to represent in the latter
year. (S.-A., p. 151.) In 1614 he resided in Toledo. For his
company in this year, v. N. D., p. 140.
Villalba (Antonio de), brother of the preceding(?). In
1642 he played fourth parts in the company of Lorenzo Hurtado,
and in 1 65 1 he was in the company of Sebastian de Prado.
Villalba (Fernando de), farsante, apparently in the company
of Pedro de la Plata in Dec, 1598. (B. H. (1907), p. 363.)
Villalba (Isabel de), daughter of Alonso de Villalba and
Aria Romera. She died before Sept. 7, 1605.
Villalba (Juan de), autor de comedias in 1600. (N. D.,
P- 53-)
Villalba (Juana de) , sister of Isabel de Villalba. She was the
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 629
widow of the actor Juan de Morales, who died before April 10,
1595. In March, 1597, she was the wife of the celebrated autor
de comedies Baltasar Pinedo. They had a house in the Calle del
Amor de Dios, opposite the hospital of Anton Martin, Madrid,
in 1617. She was still living in May, 1619.
Villalba ( Manuel de) , actor ? His wife Sabina Pascual was
the daughter of Felix Pascual (1665).
Villalba (Maria de), actress? She was the daughter of
Mateo de Villalba and granddaughter of Ana Romera.
Villalba (Mateo de), actor? son of Alonso de Villalba and
Ana Romera. He was deceased in Sept., 1605.
Villalba (Melchor de), brother of the preceding, and autor
de comedias. In Jan., 1590, he was a member of the company of
Jeronimo Velazquez; on July 12 of the same year he was in the
company of Juan de Rivas and lived "in his own house" in the
Calle del Arenal, where he also resided in 1592. (N. D., p. 340.)
On July 17, 1590, he is called autor de comedias and was more
than twenty-five years old. (N. D., p. 339.) In 1594 Lope de
Vega wrote for him the comedia El Maestro de Danzar. In 1595
he resided in the Calle del Amor de Dios (see above, Juana de
Villalba), and managed a company with Alonso de Cisneros; and
in 1597 he and Melchor de Leon represented at Corpus in Seville.
In 1600 he and Gabriel de la Torre produced four autos at
Madrid, receiving 1 300 ducats. Melchor de Villalba first pro-
duced Lope de Vega's Los Muertos vivos (written before Dec. 31,
1603), and also Lope's El Domine Lucas, written before 1595. In
the dedication of the latter play Lope says: "I recall this play for
the reason that I have mentioned and because it was performed by
Melchor de Villalba, a man who had no superior in his profession
nor have we known any one to equal him.'' (Comedias,
Part XVII, 1621.) Villalba died before Sept. 7, 1605. The fol-
lowing document published in N. £)., p. 338, is not clear to me:
"12 Julio 1590. — Obligacion de Juan de Rivas, autor de comedias,
vecino de Madrid, morador en la calle de la Cruz, y Juana Romero,
su muger, como principales deudores y pagadores, y yo Melchor de
Villalba, representante en la compafiia del dicho Juan de Rivas,
hijo de los susodichos residente en esta corte, morador en la calle
del Arenal en casas mias propias, como su fiador, de pagar," etc.
630 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Villalobos (Juan Bautista de), born in 1565, was an actor
in the company of Rodrigo Osorio in Valencia in 1588, and in that
of Gaspar de Porres in 1595. (Proceso de Lope de Vega, p. 8.)
He was connected with the Coliseo in Seville in 1622. (S.-A.,
Andes, p. 218.) See also under Bautista.
Villanueva (Acacio de) of Toledo, actor in the company of
Nicolas de los Rios in Seville in 1609; he was in Alonso de
Villalba's company in 1614, and was musico in the company of
Cristobal Ortiz in Seville in 1619.
Villanueva (Juan de), actor, indicted in 1606 for a quarrel
with an alguacil. He and his wife Isabel Rodriguez were in the
company of Pedro de Valdes in 1613-14; on Feb. 3, 1614, he
again agreed to act in the company of Valdes for one year; he
appeared in Lope de Vega's La Dama boba (1613).
Villanueva (Nicolas de), actor in Madrid in Dec, 1601,
when his wife was Juana Vazquez. (Bull. Hisp. (1907), p. 366.)
He was in the company of Alonso de Heredia in 1604, and he and
his wife Inez Fajardo were members of a joint company with Pedro
Bravo and others from July 8, 1614, till Shrovetide, 1615.
Villanueva (Pedro de), actor in the company of Alonso
Riquelme in June, 1 6 10, when he accompanied him to Lisbon. An
actor named Villanueva appeared in the cast of La belligera
Espanola by Ricardo de Turia (printed in 1616). v. Restori,
Studj, p. 92.
Villaroel (Agustin de), apuntador in Antonio de Prado's
company in 1632. His wife Mariana was in the same company.
In 1639 he acted in Antonio de Prado's company in Seville.
Villaroel (Antonio de), prompter in Prado's company in
1 623 ? Perhaps the same as the preceding.
Villaroel (Bernarda de), actress in the company of Cristobal
de Avendano in Madrid in 1622.
Villaroel (Cristobal de), autor de comedias and played the
part of gracioso. He was a member of the Cofradia in 1639 and is
mentioned in 1653.
Villaroel (Mariana de), v. Villaroel (Agustin de).
Villaroel (Matias Cristobal de) played first parts in the
company of Juan Roman from March 20, 1639, to 1640, "and if
he play second parts he is to receive one real less daily." He is
again mentioned in 1653. Perhaps the same person as Cristobal de
Villaroel.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 631
Villaverde (Juan de), actor in the company of Hernan San-
chez de Vargas, in Lope's La hermosa Ester (1610), and in the
company of Pedro de Valdes in 161 3.
Villavicencio (Carlos de), second gracioso in the company
of Agustin Manuel de Castilla in 1678.
Villegas (Ana de), actress, sister of the dramatist D. Fran-
cisco de Villegas, and daughter of Antonio de Villegas and Ana
Munoz. She afterward entered a convent.
Villegas (Antonio de), native of Seville and famous autor de
comedias. In March, 1592, he was an actor in the company of
Gaspar de Porres; in June, 1593, he is called autor de comedias,
and his wife was Ana Munoz. In 1595 he represented the autos
at Seville, and produced the comedia El Cerco y Libertad de Se-
billa por el Rey D. Fernando el Santo, by Luis de Venabides in
Valladolid (Schack, Nach., p. 22), and in the following year pro-
duced two autos at Madrid, receiving 640 ducats. In 1598,
together with Diego Lopez de Alcaraz, he produced the autos
again at Madrid, and in 1600, 1604, and 1605 again represented
autos in Seville. In 1602 he and Rios represented the autos
at Valladolid. In 1603 his company performed before the King
at Ventosilla, and he was one of the eight autores authorized by
the decree of this year. In Sept., 1603, he represented four
comedias before the Queen at Valladolid, receiving 1200 reals.
(B. H. (1907), p. 368.) Villegas played the part of the King in
Lope de Vega's El Cordobes valeroso (1605), and first produced
Lope's Los Locos de Valencia (written before 1603) and the same
poet's El Galan agradecido (before 1604), Lope saying of him:
"era celebrado en la propiedad, afectos y efectos de las figuras."
Claramonte in his Letania moral (1613) calls him "notable repre-
sentante, hizo comedias." Sanchez-Arjona, p. 93, says that Villegas
also represented Lope's Lo que pasa en una tarde, the autograph
MS. of which is dated Nov. 22, 1617, but Suarez de Figueroa
in his Plaza Universal, 161 5, mentions Villegas among the famous
autores then deceased, and Figueroa was not mistaken. Villegas
represented autos in Madrid in 1613, and died on May 29, 1613.
He was especially favored in Seville, v. Rojas, Viage entretenido,
pp. 48, 53, 54, and 131, where he names him among the "farsantes"
who had written farsas, has, bayles, etc. He had four children:
Juan Bautista, actor and playwright, Francisco the dramatist,
632 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Maria, and Ana. For his early representations in Madrid ( 1601-
1602) , v. Appendix A.
Villegas (Antonio) , actor in the company of Juan de Morales
Medrano for two years from Feb. 23, 1625. (Nuevos Datos,
p. 208.)
Villegas (Blas de), actor? in 1637.
Villegas (D. Diego de). His wife Dona Maria de Paniagua
acted at the Corpus festival in Valdemoro in 1623. In July, 1626,
he was one of the executors of the will of Cristobal Ortiz de
Villazan, and lived in the Calle de Atocha, opposite the Calle de
los Desamparados, "in the house of Torrijos." (N. D., p. 361.)
Villegas (Eugenia de) , wife of the autor de comedias Antonio
Ramos; they represented two comedias at Daganzo after Corpus
in 1606; both appeared in the cast of Lope's El Sembrar en buena
tierra (1616).
Villegas (Juan Bautista de), brother of the dramatist
D. Francisco de Villegas and son of the autor de comedias Antonio
de Villegas and of Ana Munoz, was no less celebrated as an author
than as an actor. Claramonte calls him "monstruoso y apacible
representante." He and his wife Paula Salvadora were members
of the company of Baltasar Pinedo in 1617, and he joined the
company of Manuel Vallejo on March 16, 1623, for one year,
when he received 22 reals for each representation and 8 reals for
maintenance. In Jan., 1623, he had a company of players, which
represented five comedias privately before the King in the Alcazar ;
among them was Como se enganan los ojos, written by himself.
Villegas died before Nov. 13, 1623, on which date his wife Paula
Salvadora filed a petition for an inventory of his effects. He was
the author of at least twelve other comedias besides the one men-
tioned, v. Barrera, Catalogo, p. 495, and Gallardo, Ensayo, Vol. I,
p. 683, and Vol. II, p. 476.
Villegas (Maria de), actress, sister of the preceding.
Villegas (Pedro de), actor, appeared as Beltran in Alarcon's
Las Paredes oyen in 1 61 7. He was in the company of Antonio
de Prado in 1624; on Nov. 2, 1638, he and his wife Andrea Zapata
agreed to act in the company of Juan Roman for one year, both
to play second parts. The story has often been repeated that
Diego Calderon, the elder of the poet Don Pedro's two brothers,
"was mortally wounded by an actor named Pedro de Villegas
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 633
in the spring of 1629. Villegas took refuge in a monastery, and
was arrested there by the police, the brother, and other relatives
of his victim. The brother was probably Don Pedro." {Calderon,
ed. Maccoll, 1888, p. xxi.) If Don Diego Calderon de la Barca
was ever attacked by Pedro de Villegas he was not mortally
wounded, for he survived till after Nov. 13, 1647, the date
of his last will. (Perez Pastor, Calderon Documentos, Part I,
p. 150.) For an account of this stabbing affray see Fitzmaurice-
Kelly, Chapters on Spanish Literature, London, 1908, p. 186. The
poet's other brother, Don Joseph, "Teniente de Maestre de Campo
general," died in 1645, "peleando sobre el puente de Camarasa,"
in Catalonia. (Perez Pastor, ibid., p. 220.)
Vincenta, v. Borja, Lopez, and Vicenta. The Vicenta
who appeared in Lope's Desden vengado ( 1617) was probably Vin-
centa de Borja, who was in Baltasar Pinedo's company in that year.
Vinas (Juan) and his wife Catalina Salazar were in the com-
pany of Manuel Vallejo in 1643. He had a company in April,
1653, when he represented a comedia privately before the King at
Aranjuez.
Vitoria (Antonia de), wife of Alonso Diaz Navarrete; both
appeared in Lope's La Conpetencia en los Nobles (1628), and both
were in the company of Cristobal de Avendano in 1632.
Vitoria (Antonio de), musician in the company of Luis de
Vergara in Oct., 1597.
Vitoria (Isabel de), actress in the company of Roque de
Figueroa in 163 1. She and her husband Jusepe del Peral were in
the same company in 1632, and acted in the Corpus festival at
Seville. She figures in the original cast of Rojas Zorrilla's Peligrar
en los Remedios (1634).
Vitoria (Maria de), wife of Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla;
both appeared in the cast of Alarcon's Las Paredes oyen in 161 7,
and both belonged to the company of Antonio de Prado in 1624.
In 1625 she and her husband appeared in Lope's Brasil restituido.
Both were also in Prado's company in 1626, when they appeared
in Lope's Amor con Vista. They acted at the Corpus festival in
Salamanca in 1637, Bernardo directing the company. From Feb.,
1638, to 1639, she acted in the joint company of her husband and
Alonso de Olmedo. In 1639 both were again in the company of
Antonio de Prado in Seville at Corpus.
634 SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES
Vivas (Isabel), wife of Vicente Vivas; both were in the com-
pany of Francisco Lopez in Seville in 1663. She was in the com-
pany of Felix Pascual in 1665 (being then divorced from her
husband Vicente Vivas), and 1671, playing cuartas y musica.
Vivas (Juan) of Valencia and his wife Ana de Renteria were
in the company of Pedro Cebrian in 1619. (N. D., p. I75-) On
Feb. 15, 1636, he joined the company of Pedro de la Rosa. (Ibid.,
p. 245; Rosell, Vol. I, p. 235.) On Feb. 7, 1637. he entered the
company of Luis Bernardo de Bovadilla as gracioso for one year.
(N. D„ p. 260.) In Rosell, Vol. I, p. 405, he appears in the com-
pany of Tomas Fernandez, but this company is identical with that
of Rosa, and the entremes El Soldado was, apparently, represented
in the same year (1636). The Juan Vivas in the company of
Sebastian de Prado (Nov. 25, 1651 ) was probably the same person.
(Calderon Documentos, p. 189.)
Vivas (Vicente), v. Vivas (Isabel).
Vives ( Jose) , Valencian actor; his wife was Ana Maria. Their
son was Antonio Velez de Guevara, q. v.
Vizcaino (Juan) and his wife Isabel de Gongora were in the
company of Cristobal de Avendafio in 1632, he being cobrador.
He died before Feb., 1636, when Isabel de Gongora is described
as a widow.
Volay (Andres de), musico y bailarin in the company of
Antonio de Rueda in 1640. v. Bolay.
Xerez (Cosme de) took part in the Corpus festival at Seville
in 1559. 1560, 1563, 1564, 1574. and 1576.
Xerez, v. also under Jerez.
Ximenez, v. Jimenez.
Xuarez, v. Juarez.
Ynes, v. Hita.
Zabala (Manuela), actress in the company of Felix Pascual
in 1673.
Zabala (Nicolas de), "Americano, natural de Zacatecas,"
married Maria Jacinta (la Bolichera). He died before 1670.
Zaballos or Zeballos, v. Ceballos.
SPANISH ACTORS AND ACTRESSES 635
Zambrano (Alonso), actor in the company of Bernardo de la
Vega in 1672. v. Sambrano.
Zamudio (Sebastian) and his wife Jeronima de Herrera were
members of the company of Manuel Vallejo in 1631.
Zancado, actor in the cast of Lope de Vega's Quien mas no
puede (1616).
Zapata (Andrea) and her husband Pedro de Villegas were in
the company of Juan Roman for one year from Nov. 2, 1638,
both playing second parts.
Zavala (Maria de), actress in the company of Jose Garceran
in Seville in 1657, and in the company of Juana de Cisneros
in 1660.
Zavala (Nicolas de), galan in the company of Jose Garceran
in Seville in 1657.
Zayas (Jeronima de), "single woman," actress in the Corpus
festival at Almonacid de Zurita in 1631 ; "she is to go a fortnight
previously to rehearse, and is to receive 300 reals and have expenses
paid."
Zayas (Rodrigo de), actor in the company of Francisca Lopez
in Seville in 1663.
Zebrian, v. Cebrian.
Zorita or Zurita (Pedro de), native of Segovia, actor in the
company of Jeronimo Velazquez in 1590, and in the company of
Alonso Riquelme for one year from March 7, 1602. "He is to
receive 10 reals for each performance and 4 reals daily for main-
tenance." In 1607 he was in the company of Melchor de Leon.
He is mentioned in 1603 by Rojas (Viage, p. 131) among actors
who were also playwrights.
Zuniga (Bartolome de), actor in the company of Juan de
Morales Medrano in Seville at Corpus, 1615, when he received a
gratuity of 100 reals.