"Els feréstecs" (The Boors, aka The Cantankerous Men), by Goldoni, in the Teatre Lliure
"Els feréstecs" (The Boors, aka The Cantankerous Men), by Goldoni, in the Teatre Lliure
The version of the play, translated into Catalan from the Venetian dialect by the director himself, Lluís Pasqual, can be seen up until the 19th of May
Els feréstecs (The Boors), by Goldoni, is a satirical comedy about the bourgeoisie lifestyle towards the end of the 18th century which saw its Italian debut in 1760.
During Mardi Gras, four traditional Venetian middle-class merchants, or boors, plan a marriage of convenience between Llucieta and Quimet. When the girl begins to suspect something, the merchants decide to keep her out of sight, declaring that if by chance anyone should see her, they will be obliged to marry her. The liberal spirit of the younger generation, however, forces the already rocambolesque situation to acquire unexpected dimensions.
Lluís Pasqual transfers this classic Italian play to a Catalan context, drawing on his philological training to highlight the linguistic characteristics of the text and remain faithful to the original poetic style of Goldoni. The director has the talents of ten distinguished actors and actresses at his command in order to invoke the relaxed, festive atmosphere of the play.
The play, in which the spectator can enjoy the enlightened and benign yet incisive and caustic perspective on human behaviour of one of the greatest playwrights of all time, can be seen up until the 19th of May in the Teatre Lliure.
Publication date: Monday, 15 April 2013