“La alegrÃa que pasa” is a work by Santiago Rusiñol that was originally premiered at the Teatro Romea in 1898. It was one of the most represented shows of the time and now it has returned thanks to Dagoll Dagom. The company, which is widely recognized for its innovative and emotional works such as “Mar i Cel”, ends its career with the show “La alegrÃa que pasa”.
The plot is very attractive and powerful: in a gray and industrial town where the entire population works in the factory, owned by the mayor, a theater company is hired before the elections. With his arrival, the population will break with its routine, and Joan, who is the son of the mayor and who is about to marry Lina, will fall in love with the protagonist, Zaira, with whom he will want to run away and live with her forever. On the other hand, Zaira would like to live in peace and get rid of her representative, who is a man who mistreats her physically and psychologically and would also like to live the love story with Juan. Will they march together and live the life they have envisioned, or will the overbearing manager and phony Democrat mayor force them to give up on their dreams?
The symbolism of the characters is magnificent. On the one hand, the villagers have no desire to change their reality and are in favor of not thinking much more. On the other hand, other characters like the comedians, Nic, who is a young worker who fights for a free being, and Joan are supporters of bohemia and love art, poetry and music.
One of the most important points of this work is the incorporation of music into the plot. Thus, the text of the characters, which is full of precious verses, is mixed with music and dance so that the two worlds, that of routine (which is prose) and that of art (which is poetry) , go in unison. In fact, the director has used all kinds of dances and rhythms to be able to express the feelings of the actors and actresses with greater passion and emotion. A differentiating aspect is that the musical pieces are performed by the same characters and that it can be seen how they play them live with electric instruments and keyboards. In addition, there is much variation in the musical performances, and the songs and dances are both individual and collective, and have variable rhythms and transitions. It should also be said that in this musical, speaking has been kept to the essential minimum to make the musical pieces, both choral and solo, the true protagonists. The choreography goes to the rhythm of the music and includes shows and a play of lights that make the viewer focus their attention and become trapped and empathize with the feelings of each character.
As the play progresses, greater conflicts are generated that cause great tension to the public. In addition, the adaptation is very contemporary and the themes dealt with in the work are very current: the population exploited at work and without a critical sense, toxic relationships, the search for freedom…
As we have said before, the casting of the actors and actresses is spectacular because the entire team is capable of singing, dancing and acting at the same time. Thus, the work is represented by excellent performers who manage to convey their emotions and feelings through their body, singing and voice.
Our feeling when leaving the theater was very impressive: not only did we feel nostalgic for seeing Dagoll Dagom’s farewell, but we also left wanting to go to the theater more, and wanting the company to rethink its decision.
The artistic cast includes highly renowned professionals. The text and stage direction is under the charge of Marc Rosich and the music and musical direction under Andreu Gallèn. The artistic and production team accompanying the directors is expert and professional. The actors and actresses performing are Àngels Gonyalons, Mariona Castillo, Jordi Coll, Julia GenÃs, Eli Gómez, Pol Guimerà , Basem Nahnouh, Pau Oliver and David Pérez-Bayona.
The reviews from all the media are very positive and, for example, the newspaper ARA has come to say that it is one of the best shows that the company has offered.
They will perform at the Poliorama Theater until May 28.
